What's next for Broncos? A new QB, a well-paid Super Bowl MVP
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Now that Super Bowl 50 is history, the Denver Broncos will face significant issues as they try to repeat as NFL champions. From Peyton Manning’s future to major contract issues that need to be addressed, the Broncos figure to have a very busy few months between now and the start of voluntary workouts in April:
Who will be the quarterback in 2016? There will be no bigger question for the Broncos in the coming weeks and months. Peyton Manning is under contract for 2016, with a salary of $19 million, but it’s hard to imagine that he will be back as the starter. He seemed to hint at retirement after Super Bowl 50, but the Broncos would choose to move on from him as they try to get younger. Brock Osweiler, who started seven games for the Broncos while Manning was injured this season, is the most likely starter, though general manager John Elway will be under a lot of pressure to get a deal done with Osweiler before he becomes an unrestricted free agent March 9. If Osweiler gets away, the Broncos could be players in the quarterback free agent market. One name to watch is Sam Bradford, if the Philadelphia Eagles let him leave.
What will the offensive line look like? It was the Broncos’ weakest link throughout the 2015 season, and in Gary Kubiak’s offense that is built upon the running game and ball control, this group has to improve. Left tackle Ryan Clady, who missed the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, is the biggest question. A first-round pick in 2008, Clady is the Broncos’ longest tenured player, and, when healthy, he remains one of the best left tackles in the NFL. But it seems unlikely the Broncos will keep him at his 2016 salary of $9.5 million, though he has said he is willing to restructure his deal in order to stay. A line with Clady at left tackle and 2015 second-round pick Ty Sambrailo, who missed most of the season with a shoulder injury, at right tackle looks like a far better group than what lined up in the Super Bowl.
What’s next for Von Miller? If the Broncos can’t reach a long-term deal with their star outside linebacker by early March — and that seems unlikely to happen — he will receive the team’s franchise tag and the sides will continue working to a deal by July. Elway has a good track record of getting deadline deals done with his franchised players, starting with Clady in 2013 and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas last summer. Miller will command more than $100 million, and the Broncos know they’ll have to pay it to keep the Super Bowl MVP in Denver.
Can they continue to win with defense? Elway said recently that he likes the model of team he built over the last two years — one that has a smothering, dominant defense and can win close games. And the Broncos might have to continue winning that way. The good news for Denver is that, once Miller is re-signed or given the franchise tag, the team will have the bulk of its 2015 defense back, as well as the defensive coaching staff, including coordinator Wade Phillips. There are a couple of contract issues the Broncos must address on defense outside of Miller, starting with end Malik Jackson, who could command more on the open market than Denver would be willing to pay him after it already gave defensive end Derek Wolfe a new deal, and inside linebacker Danny Trevathan, whose rookie contract is set to expire. Both are important players in Denver’s front seven, but if Elway has shown anything in his tenure as general manager, it’s his eye for defensive talent and ability to find defensive gems late in the draft (Trevathan was a sixth-rounder, Jackson a fifth-rounder) and in free agency.
A competitive division: The Broncos might have won their fifth consecutive AFC West title, but they’ll need to get better to remain at the top. The Broncos lost division games — at home — to the Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders, and both of those teams should be at least as good next season, if not better, and the San Diego Chargers seemingly can’t get any worse. That puts a lot of pressure on the Broncos, especially as they face an uncertain future at quarterback. Winning the division with Manning has almost been a sure thing, but without him, and with a rising star in Derek Carr in Oakland, consistently steady Philip Rivers in San Diego and the consummate game manager in Alex Smith in Kansas City, the Broncos could lose their grip on the AFC West.
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