One area where the Denver Broncos are probably going to address this offseason is at inside linebacker, but they may have some more work to do at that position. The Broncos have had some iffy inside linebacker play in recent years. The units have never really been bad overall, but they always seem to end up grading out as pretty average.
And in 2024, we definitely saw the ILB play suffer at times. To open up the 2024 NFL Season, Alex Singleton and Cody Barton were the two starters at the position, but after Singleton tore his ACL early on, Justin Strnad was thrown into the lineup.
The Broncos just lost a key defensive starter
For a while, the duo of Barton and Strnad was fine, but as the season went on, it became clear that major upgrades at ILB were needed. Well, Cody Barton will not be returning to the Denver Broncos, as he landed a free agency contract with the Tennessee Titans.
It's a three-year deal worth $21 million, according to Ian Rapoport. And after just one season with the Denver Broncos, Cody Barton heads more east and lands a nice and shocking payday from the Tennessee Titans, who hold the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
It's clear that with this move, Barton was wanting to chase the money, as the Titans are a bad team and are likely in a years-long process to rebuild their roster. But what isn't clear at the moment is if the Denver Broncos offered Barton some type of contract at any point recently.
In 17 games for the Broncos in 2024, Barton racked up two interceptions, five passes defended, 1.5 sacks, and 106 total tackles. He allowed a 98.2 passer rating when in coverage, so that wasn't his strong suit. Barton was actually a solid player for the Denver Broncos. He truly should have been picked over Alex Singleton, but it seems like Denver is hoping that he returns from his torn ACL.
Denver is also currently in the market for Dre Greenlaw, and with Barton now gone, you would think that the Broncos make a bigger push to land this player. A starting ILB duo of Dre Greenlaw and Alex Singleton could be firmly on the table at the moment, but we do know for a fact that Cody Barton won't be returning to the Denver Broncos after just one season.
Denver did agree to terms with Talanoa Hufanga earlier today, so there is at least one position where they improved.