The Denver Broncos offensive line was quite good in the 2023 NFL Season, but with Lloyd Cushenberry leaving in free agency, a huge hole remains. The Broncos were likely expecting Cushenberry to leave in free agency, as the team has other issues to take care of along the offensive line, and he signed a $50 million deal with the Tennessee Titans.
I just do not believe they were at all expecting to retain him. They did address the position though after he left, signing veteran center Sam Mustipher, who is a low-end starter but could be a high-end backup option. Already in the center room includes Alex Forsyth and Luke Wattenberg. Forsyth was a teammate of Bo Nix's when the two were at Oregon, so that could be something.
In the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Broncos took another center, Nick Gargiulo, so the position does have a good bit of bodies within it. Having more players to compete for the starting job does give the team a better chance at finding a long-term solution. However, there is a free agent still out there who was going to cash in this offseason before an ACL tear late in the 2023 season derailed his plans.
I am once again asking the Denver Broncos to bring in free agent center, Connor Williams. He was a second-round draft pick back in 2018 and played guard the first four years of his career with the Dallas Cowboys. He then signed a two-year deal with the Miami Dolphins, played his best ball in 2022, and still played quite well in 2023, but was limited to nine games.
According to Pro Football Reference, Williams played 1,554 offensive snaps for the Dolphins in 2022 and 2023 and was called for 11 penalties, which spanned across 26 games. PFF gave him an elite 86.5 grade in 2023, and a strong 78.2 grade in 2022. Overall, while Williams might not be ready for Week 1 of the 2024 NFL Season, him being signed would still give the Broncos a massive upgrade at the position.
And the team needs to be all about making it work with Bo Nix, so continuing to invest in the offensive line is smart. Williams entering the free agency period injured and hi still being unsigned at this point does mean he isn't going to cost a ton. The Broncos could sign him for quite cheap and let him fully recover and get up to speed before inserting him into the lineup.
This is a logical move to make and frankly, it's insane that the team has not done it yet.