NFL Free Agency: Top 10 free agents that make sense for the Denver Broncos
6. Chase Young, DE
Another fun player that the Denver Broncos should take a stab at potentially is fellow 49er, Chase Young, who came over in a trade from the Washington Commanders at the deadline this year. Young put together his best season in 2023 and actually stayed healthy. In 16 games, he racked up 25 total tackles, 7.5 sacks, even tackles for loss, and 15 QB hits.
Also, according to ESPN, Chase Young ranked 15th among all EDGE rushers in pass rush win rate this season. He's also set to enter his age-25 season in 2024, so he's still very young and surely in his prime. Spotrac.com estimates his market value at $13.6 million per year, which would be a doable number for the Denver Broncos, in my opinion.
7. A'Shawn Robinson, DT
Another fun player the Broncos should look at is A'Shawn Robinson, a run-stopping extraordinaire. Robinson has played for the Lions, Rams, and Giants during his NFL career. Robinson is not at all a pass-rushing threat, but he is very good with what he is asked to do. Doesn't that sound a lot like DJ Jones? Well, yes, but Robinson is a better player and cheaper.
Between Robinson and Jones in 2023, Robinson played in more games, had more solo tackles, total tackles, and one more tackle for loss. Robinson also had two passes defended, and Jones didn't have any. Pro Football Reference has its own statistic called Approximate Value. Here's more from them about the stat:
"Created by PFR founder Doug Drinen, the Approximate Value (AV) method is an attempt to put a single number on the seasonal value of a player at any position from any year (since 1960). The way Drinen described the intent of this measurement was:
- PFR
"AV is not meant to be a be-all end-all metric. Football stat lines just do not come close to capturing all the contributions of a player the way they do in baseball and basketball. If one player is a 16 and another is a 14, we can't be very confident that the 16AV player actually had a better season than the 14AV player. But I am pretty confident that the collection of all players with 16AV played better, as an entire group, than the collection of all players with 14AV.""
In 2023, Robinson and Jones had an AV of 6. In 2023, Robinson was on a one-year deal worth $5 million, so he is making half of what DJ Jones is making for the same production. There truly is no reason to not cut Jones and sign Robinson in 2024 if the option presents itself.