It’s not often that a team wins the Super Bowl with a glaring, unforgiving hole on their roster, but that’s exactly what the Denver Broncos and their painfully ineffective offensive line did. If they want any chance of repeating next season, though, they’ll have to make some serious upgrades in these next few months.
And no, the return of Ryan Clady and Ty Sambrailo isn’t enough. Even if Clady does restructure his contract and return to Denver, there’s no guaranteeing how affective he’ll be; the guy is quickly closing in on 30, and he’s suffered two serious, season-ending injuries in the last three years. And injury or not, nobody knows how good Sambrailo is or isn’t; three games isn’t nearly enough time to decide that.
And if Evan Mathis does decide to bolt in free agency, or retire, then Denver will be losing the one offensive lineman that actually played above average in 2015.
All this is to say that John Elway has some serious work to do. Whether it’s through free agency or the draft, the Broncos need to upgrade their offensive line at every position.
Unfortunately, with the money the defense and quarterback will be demanding, they’ll have to do it on the cheap.
Here are five free agents who could fit that billing:
5. OT/G Kelechi Osemele
EXPERIENCE: 4 years DRAFT: 2nd round (60th overall) out of Iowa St.
CAREER STARTS: 51 HONORS: PFF 2nd-Team All-NFL (’14)
’15 CAP HIT: $1.06 M PREDICTED ’16 CAP HIT: $6-7 M
WHY THE BRONCOS COULD BE INTERESTED: Really, the only reason Kelechi Osemele is this low on the list is because he’s all but guaranteed to make more than any of the other guys. As a Pro-Bowl quality guard, with the ability to play solid snaps at tackle, Osemele is one of the most versatile lineman in the NFL.
For a Broncos team that desperately needs help at all positions across the line, he’d be able to fit in and make an improvement almost everywhere. The only issue is whether they have enough change left over in their pocketbooks to afford a guy like Osemele. My guess is no.
4. G Manny Ramirez
EXPERIENCE: 8 years DRAFT: 4the round (117th overall) out of Texas Tech
CAREER STARTS: 65 HONORS: None
’15 CAP HIT: $3.00 M PREDICTED ’16 CAP HIT: $1.5-2 M
WHY THE BRONCOS COULD BE INTERESTED: Why wouldn’t the Broncos be interested in brining Manny Ramirez back? This is a guy who started all 16 games for the Broncos in 2013 and 2014, which included their first Super Bowl run. Maybe he’s not a world-class center/guard, but he’s serviceable and he knows the city.
And he should come on the cheap. The shine on Ramirez has definitely faded, as he’s now two years removed from playing in the Super Bowl, and I can’t imagine the market is going to be all that high. If Denver can get him on the cheap, they should.
3. G Richie Incognito
EXPERIENCE: 10 years DRAFT: 3rd round (81st overall) out of Oregon
CAREER STARTS: 118 HONORS: Pro Bowler (’12,’15); PFF 1st-team All-NFL (’15)
’15 CAP HIT: $1.10 M PREDICTED ’16 CAP HIT: $3-4 M
WHY THE BRONCOS COULD BE INTERESTED: Richie Incognito may be coming off one of the best seasons of his career, but he’s still Richie Incognito; the market is never going to be that high for a guy who was almost kicked out of the league for behavioral issues.
But if a team has the right group of guys around him, and they can keep Incognito’s career on the up and up, then he could be one of the biggest free agent steals of the offseason. He most certainly deserves a raise from what he was getting with the Bills last season, but I’d expect his salary to cap out at $4 million, at most.
2. G Evan Mathis
EXPERIENCE: 11 years DRAFT: 3rd round (79th overall) out of Alabama
CAREER STARTS: 90 HONORS: Pro Bowler (’13,’14); AP 1st-Team All-Pro (’13); PFF 1st-Team All-Pro (’11, ’12, ’13)
’15 CAP HIT: $2.92 M PREDICTED ’16 CAP HIT: $5-6 M
WHY THE BRONCOS COULD BE INTERESTED: The lone bright spot on the Broncos offensive line last season was Evan Mathis, and that came despite him dealing with a myriad of injuries throughout the season. If he has another healthy season in him, he could play a big role in the stability and improvement of the Broncos offensive line.
The big question, though, is the health. Mathis, 34, is reaching the age where lineman start to crumble from the wear and tear, and maybe it’s time to cut bait before he fall apart entirely. On the other hand, those same question marks could lead to the Broncos getting a good deal, especially if Mathis continues to forego large sums of money in favor of a championship atmosphere.
1. LT Kelvin Beachum
EXPERIENCE: 4 years DRAFT: 7th round (248th overall) out of SMU
CAREER STARTS: 39 HONORS: None
’15 CAP HIT: $1.55 M PREDICTED ’16 CAP HIT: $6-7 M
WHY THE BRONCOS COULD BE INTERESTED: If the Broncos don’t feel comfortable entering the season with Ryan Clady and Ty Sambrailo as their options at left tackle, then maybe free agency is an option. And in that case, the guy they should be targeting is Kelvin Beachum.
Before tearing his ACL in the Steelers’ sixth game of the season last year, Beachum looked to be developing into one of the best young tackles in the NFL. But for the Broncos, that injury could end up being more of a blessing than a curse. If it scares off just one or two teams, a price tag that may have been verging on $9-10 million pre injury could drop considerably.
If Denver feels comfortable with the health of Beachum’s knee, he could go a long way towards fixing the Broncos o-line problems.