The Denver Broncos were most likely going to part ways with Ryan Clady this offseason no matter what else happened, but when John Elway was able to sign Russell Okung to an extremely team-friendly five-year, $53 million deal with essentially nothing guaranteed at the time of the signing, his fate was sealed.
Not soon after, Clady was traded to the New York Jets and the torch at left tackle had been passed.
Now, a few months later, Clady has a few words to say about Okung’s contract.
Clady on Okung: "I don’t feel like he should have (gone) in there without an agent … not exactly the greatest deal ever put together…"
— Rand Getlin (@RandGetlin) August 1, 2016
And, while the Broncos are happy to have Okung for $5.2 million this season and with a team option for the next four, Clady’s right: It was not a great contract.
Okung took the unconventional route of negotiating the contract on his own, without an agent, and it didn’t exactly pay off. Although the final number on his five-year deal looks enticing, with an average salary of $10.6 million per year, Okung won’t see any of that if he doesn’t have a strong year in 2016 — the Broncos can decline all four years remaining on his contract after the season, having only paid him $5.2 million of the $53 million contract.
Clady is in a similar situation — he’s getting paid $5.5 million in 2016 with a team option in 2017 for $10.5 million — but you can be sure that when he reaches free agency, whether it be this offseason or next, that he’ll be doing so with an agent in tow.