Many difficult decisions loom for the Denver Broncos in the 2024 offseason, which is shaping up to be yet another pivotal offseason for the franchise. But then again, aren't they all?
Every offseason, we talk about that particular offseason's importance. What that really means is that the Denver Broncos have key areas that are not yet solidified. We know the Denver Broncos have rock-solid ownership, who have proven willing to do whatever it takes to make the team better. Proof of that is the team's head coach -- Sean Payton -- one of the best head coaches of the last 25 years in the NFL and a piece of the franchise that cost a lot to acquire.
Although the Broncos have stable ownership and a good head coach in place, there are huge questions looming for this team in the 2024 offseason. Franchise-altering decisions will have to be made.
1. Who is going to be the team's quarterback?
One of the biggest decisions looming this offseason is quite obvious: What are the Broncos doing at the quarterback position?
The Broncos acquired Russell Wilson in a blockbuster trade with the Seattle Seahawks less than two years ago, and that trade obviously hasn't worked out. Wilson and the Broncos had a horrendous 2022 campaign, and although he played much better in 2023, he was benched at the end of the season for Jarrett Stidham.
It seems more likely than not that Wilson won't be back in 2024, although the door is allegedly not completely closed (until it is). Sean Payton has put the pressure on himself -- if he's going to be the one to burn the Russell Wilson bridge (which ownership will have to be in agreement with), then he had better have a good plan ready to execute.
This isn't just a short-term answer, either. How long did Sean Payton sign up to coach this team? He's 60 years old compared to Bill Belichick, who is still going strong into his early 70s, but still...how long is Payton going to be going at it? It's not like QBs are growing on trees these days.
Especially if you consider Russell Wilson a sunk cost, the replacement plan is going to have to be on point.
2. Navigating the salary cap
This is another very layered discussion for the Broncos, but there seems to be a common misconception about how the Denver Broncos can navigate the salary cap right now. According to Spotrac, the Broncos are currently just under $19 million over the 2024 salary cap. That means they will have to make some cuts and contract adjustments to get right before mid-March.
How are they going to do that? Well, there are probably some very easy ways, to be quite honest. Making Russell Wilson a post-June 1 roster cut would spread his $85 million dead cap hit over the next two years, and would be a net-0 on the Broncos' salary cap figure for 2024.
Knowing that this was a possibility last offseason, the Broncos undoubtedly wrote restructures into the language of their big-money free agents in 2023 (Mike McGlinchey, Ben Powers, Zach Allen, Alex Singleton). It's possible they could get under the salary cap just by doing easy restructures on those players' deals in the offseason.
But beyond that, the Broncos have big decisions looming with players like Garett Bolles, who is set to count $20 million against the salary cap with no guaranteed money left on his deal. Do you approach Bolles about an extension? The Broncos could do that. They could also restructure or extend wide receiver Courtland Sutton and add to their cap space.
Other contracts that will be looked at include Justin Simmons, DJ Jones and Tim Patrick. The Broncos would be able to get under the salary cap just by cutting Jones and Patrick.
I think we'll see situations where the Broncos navigate bringing many of these players back on new contracts, but these are the decisions looming contractually to get the team in position to still add in free agency.
3. Do you stick with Vance Joseph?
Sean Payton is going to have to decide if he wants to stick with defensive coordinator Vance Joseph or not this offseason.
This is not an easy decision at all, because Joseph's defense was arguably the worst in franchise history through the first five weeks of the season, then became a force to be reckoned with for about eight weeks, then regressed again in the final month or so of the season.
It wasn't a straightforward year to evaluate for Payton, and that makes this an interesting predicament overall. There is value in continuity, and we saw what Joseph's defense was capable of doing when it was at its best during that stretch in the middle of the season. There were few defenses getting the job done as well as Denver's throughout that timeframe.
Then there are questions about whether or not this team's defensive deficiencies last year were purley due to personnel, or whether they were due to scheme. If you determine it was more personnel-based, then you might be able to say that Joseph's defense will have a higher floor in 2024 than it did in 2023.
And I would personally err on that side. It wasn't a good enough job in 2023 overall, but it's hard to blame Joseph with the cards he was dealt. And the progression on that side of the ball after a horrendous start was eye-opening. With so many major coaching changes happening around the league, are the realistic alternatives better than continuity? That might be the question to ask at this point.