Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - Denver Broncos LOSE OUT On Zack Baun In NFL Free Agency

Episode Date: March 7, 2025

The Denver Broncos missed out on trying to add Zack Baun at linebacker during NFL Free Agency after he re-signed with the Philadelphia Eagles. If Baun was one of Sean Payton's top potential targets, does the Broncos priorities for free agency change or pivot to wide receiver or safety? Plus, Zach Allen has a ballpark for where he'd like his potential contract extension to be and Denver's AFC West rivals are making moves. Cody Roark is a credentialed beat reporter for Mile High Sports and covers the Broncos daily in person. Sayre Bedinger is the site expert for Predominantly Orange. Both bring Broncos Country the most in-depth and objective coverage of the Denver Broncos. WANT MORE DAILY DENVER BRONCOS CONTENT?For all of the latest Denver Broncos news today -- Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…🎧 https://link.chtbl.com/LOBroncos?sid=YouTube Locked On NFL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft & More🎧 https://linktr.ee/LockedOnNFL Follow on Twitter: @CodyRoarkNFL and @SayreBedingerFollow the show on Twitter: @LockedOnBroncos Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!ChewyChewy has everything you need to keep your pet happy and healthy. And right now you can save $20 on your first order and get free shipping by Clicking this link: https://prf.hn/click/camref:1011l3Huc8/creativeref:1011l164602 FanDuelRight now, new FanDuel customers can get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in Bonus Bets if your first FIVE DOLLAR bet wins!Download the app or head to FANDUEL.COM to get started. Bet with FanDuel—Official Partner of the NBA. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Denver Broncos lost out on a potential top target in NFL free agency. Could this mean that they can make a big splash at another position? We'll tell you why we believe that's the case here on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. What's happening in Broncos country? You know what time it is. It's time for another episode of Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast.

part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. for all your Broncos news, content coverage, analysis, more, all throughout the entire offseason. This is the place to be. Next week is NFL free agency frenzy. So make sure you stay on standby because we've got a lot to break down as we expect the Broncos to be active when free agency begins. Thanks to all the everydayers out there in Broncos country. Thanks for making us your first listen of the day.

However, you choose to do so. And if you're not yet an everyday listener, someone by simply hitting that follow or that subscribe button wherever you get your podcast. I'm Cody Roarck Broncos beat reporter from Mile High Sports. Joined as always by Sarah Beniger, site expert predominantly orange.com. And we got a jam-packed episode for you here today. Broncos country, the Wild Wild West and the AFC is some storylines that are certainly heating up. And the Broncos might have to be ready to counter some of the moves that in division rivals

might have to make. We'll look at that and wrap up today's episode's show with that. We'll talk about Zach Allen's potential asking price per year as he looks for a new contract extension. We're going to kick things off by talking about the Broncos missing out on one of their potential top free agent targets in free agency. Zach Bonn. Sir, Zach Bonn, obviously, you know, the hot name on a lot of Broncos' countries wish list at the inside linebacker position. And we're eager. We were waiting to see, is he going to hit the free agency market?

Well, we found out yesterday he is not. The Philadelphia Eagles took. care of him. They're giving him a three-year deal to keep him in that Kelly Green in the NFC. So the Bronco is potentially missing out on what could have been maybe one of their top targets in free agents. Yeah, it's for the best too, Cody. Sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off there. I apologize for that. I think he's got one of the best nicknames in in football right now. I didn't even know this was a thing until the Eagles re-signed him, but they call him the bald eagle. And I love that. I think that's just absolutely perfect for Zach Barron.

So congrats to him for getting $17 million a year. You and I had just come off the heels of doing an episode where we talked about our dream free agent halls and things like that. And Bond was on my list. And I've been doing a little bit of Michael Scott, you know, a little snip, snap, snip, snap on my thoughts on Zach Bonn all offseason. Do I want Zach Bonn on the team? Like, do I want the Broncos to go get him? I think my line of thinking here has been that, well, if the Broncos are going to make their biggest splash at linebacker, and they don't want Nick Bolton, which has been apparently, you know, reported or rumored,

then Zach Bonn is the guy who makes the most sense. So that to me is kind of where I was going there. But I don't know if the Broncos necessarily needed to go after Zach Bonn. I know that's going to sound ridiculous after I said he's part of the dream free agency. But I'm kind of trying to play this game of Sudoku, right, that we talk about in free agency, where you try to line up all the rumors and all the breadcrumbs and all these different things that you're seeing. And it's like, okay, how can I make this all fit together? I don't know that the Broncos are missing out all that much with a 17 million per year price tag.

Now, at 12 to 15 million per year, I mean, on the lower end of that, I think you could convince me that he would be an outstanding free agent pickup, but 51 million in total money for a guy who played really well for Vic Fangio, and then you would be now talking about him switching cities, switching schemes, all these sorts of different things. I don't know, Cody. I feel like maybe the Broncos, it's not that they dodged a bullet here, but it's not the worst news in the world before the start of free agency.

Well, for Bonn, obviously, he was going to be the guy that was expected to command the most on the market at the linebacker position. Now, I know we have talked about Nick Bolton. And look, I've kind of been firm on saying like, all right, you know, I don't think the Broncos will heavily pursue Bolton. You know, I think for me, it was Dre Greenlaw or it was Zach Bonn at this point. But maybe playing devil's advocate here in terms of Nick Bolton, I don't think he's going to command anywhere between 17.

million dollars per year. I'm curious what his price tag will be considering he's going to be 25 years older. He's 25. He's very, very young. So essentially, you're getting him on a second contract, essentially, is he's really trying to hit his peak in the NFL. I understand the dynamics of he's not necessarily the most agile guy in terms of being a coverage linebacker for you. But we've seen firsthand with Nick Bolton when he blitzes on third down. He is a very, very hard guy to account for. He pursues the run really well. Is that what the Broncos are looking? for are they truly looking for a coverage dynamic? Part of me is thinking there's a little bit of both.

And I saw your tweet that you put out there. You said maybe we have one of these guys at home. Like you had a picture of Zach Bonn. And then next to it was Drew Sanders. That could be a certain possibility here for the Broncos. But because we figured, and we talked about maybe Zach Bonn being potentially the big splash that maybe Denver could have had or the big positional splash that maybe the Broncos could have had interest in, does linebacker still factor into maybe

a big splash for Denver, or do you think that position now changes where Denver can make a big splash at another position? I think they're still going to do something at linebacker of like a substantial move at linebacker. But I can't help but wonder. I mean, we just, right before we start recording this, two to Atwell gets a deal for one year, $10 million from the RAM. So Cody, if the Broncos are going to go after a wide receiver of note, as our good friend Mike Cliss stated that wide receiver of notes is probably going to clock in at above $10 million per year. I mean, on an average annual salary, if 2-2 Atwell is going for 10 million, maybe I'm wrong about that. I guess we'll see, but that could end up being the case. And so

it might end up being that the most expensive free agent is now a wide receiver for the Broncos, but maybe don't sleep on safety either, right? I mean, safety is a position where we could see the Broncos go after a starter. That could also end up being maybe their most expensive move, considering they saved some money by, you know, they cut Justin Simmons last year. You went budget friendly with Brandon Jones and PJ Locke. Maybe they go for a bigger money safety now, Cody, and kind of just try to really, they really need to amp up that coverage in the middle of the field, right?

That was a huge problem late down the stretch last season. And the linebacker position will help that. But I think even more so as well, having another. ball hawking safety back there next to Jones. That could be a huge deal for the Denver defense too. Yeah, I still think candidates for a big splash could be that wide receiver, the safety position. I mean, still potentially linebacker.

I think that they're going to, I think they'll add an out, like an out of house free agent in free agency. And I think they bring Justin Sternod back, right? You bring back a guy in house. You have Alex Singleton. You have Drew Sanders. You have Lavelle Bailey. You bring Sternod back because he can start for you if you have something

happened to your starter, but you're getting in. impact value on special teams, which is very important to Sean Payton. Sean knows he's a core four guy there. He was their number two graded special teams player behind Tremont Smith. And yeah, I think you can do that. For me, though, I'm also looking at the wide receiver market. We got an NFL squad show that came out where we really talked about like the storyline that was intriguing to us.

And we'll touch on a little bit later on here in this show here. But the wide receiver market, there are so many guys available that when I look at this two, two out with them. I'm thinking to LA, like, what are you schmucks doing over there? Because you just found a way to make your quarterback happy to keep Matthew Stafford, but you're still going through not having a lot of core players. You're going to release Cooper Cup at some point if you can't trade him. So what is going on there?

Like that one year 10 million for Tutu is a little weird in my opinion. But impact in the market. I mean, that's what these teams ultimately decide to do. Here's maybe a splash that could happen, right? I don't know how much substantiation there is. I don't even know if that's a word. We're making things up here on today's shell. There is to like Mark Andrews.

You know, I think I've seen some people talk about if he's, like the Ravens could release him. If the Broncos were to somehow trade for a guy like Mark Andrews, would that be a big splash in your opinion? Oh, yeah. I mean, that would be big, at least in terms of Mark Andrews's name, right? I mean, he would be the best tight end to come through Denver in a long time for sure, especially when it comes to the name value there. So I wouldn't be surprised by that, Cody, because I know Isaiah likely is probably going to get more target share there. And then the Ravens, they're looking for another wide receiver to add depth to the room. So that wouldn't shock me to see him kind of, you know, and it would

unfortunately be on a low note, you know, obviously the way things ended in the playoffs of the drop two point conversion, things like that. So I would not be opposed to Mark Andrews at all. I know you and I have discussed that in other forums this offseason and how that would be impactful. And a trade, quite frankly, might be the only way to make a big splash before the draft at tight end, barring somebody else getting cut that we're not expecting at this point. Because otherwise, you're looking at under the radar guys. I mean, you and I have talked about Mike Giseki, who's not under the radar, but, I mean, he might be relatively inexpensive compared to some other players you could sign.

We've talked about the Carolina tight end, Tommy Tremble, as well as a potential option. And there's a couple of other interesting names out there, but nobody who's going to come in and immediately be your Joker guy, which is, you know, the hot button term of the offseason. So I don't know where the big splash is going to come initially, but you get the feeling and the sense of the Broncos are getting ready to do something, Cody. I mean, they have to. There's no choice, right? And so Zach Bond being off the table, I don't think changes anything. I'm certain that George Payton, Sean Payton, one of their top scenarios that they had involved, Zach Bond never hitting free agency anyway.

So I'm still guessing that plan A is still on. Well, Broncos country free agency begins next week. Monday is the legal negotiating period, the legal tampering period. Wednesday is the official start of the NFL free agency frenzy. And just so you can set the tone for your day on that Wednesday, go fill up your bathtub, find the heaviest thing that you have in your house and throw it in there so you can hear that big splash and maybe set the tone for the day. Maybe the Broncos will follow suit right after that here.

But we'll have you covered every step of the way. sure you let us know here on today's episode, Locked on Broncos, your thoughts on what the big splash could be now that Zach Bonn is off of the table here for the Denver Broncos. But we're not done yet, Broncos country. We still got a lot to break down here on today's episode of the show. We now know where Zach Allen is potentially looking for a contract extension. It's $25 million per year, the sweets bought, and is that something the Broncos are willing to do? We'll debate and discuss that and much more on today's episode. of the show. Today's episode, Lockdown Broncos is brought to our friends over there at Fandu,

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if you pair that with a futures bet down the road here of him winning MVP this upcoming season. And right now, new Fanduil customers can get $150 in bonus bets. If your first $5 bet wins, just visit Fanduil.com to join today. That's Fanduil.com for your shot at $150 in bonus bets. Make every moment more with Fandul, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Well, we started calling him Sack Allen this last year because he was getting to the quarterback so much. But we might have to go with Bag Allen going forward as Zach Allen is looking for the bag in the 2025 offseason. Broncos country.

What are your thoughts? Do you think Broncos should pay Zach Allen upwards $25 million per year, which is reportedly the asking price. Well, we're going to break down why he's absolutely worth that on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. But before we go any further, I want to say thank you to every single one of you out there that makes Lockdown Broncos your first listen of the day every single day. If you're not already an everyday listener, take a couple seconds right now.

Hit subscribe if you're on your, if you got your phone, you're at a stoplight. Don't do this while driving, obviously, Cody, but hit subscribe. But we appreciate all of you for rocking with us every single day. you know your boys, Cody and Sarah got you covered. Every single thing that's going to happen with the Broncos, especially at this busy time of year, which may include a special episode of, you know, talking about an extension for Zach Allen,

who signed with the Broncos in free agency back in 2023. Remember the whole fiasco with Draymont Jones, being upset about the Bradley Chub trade, kind of indicating during the season that he didn't want to be in Denver anymore. Then he just left in free agency with no contest from the team. and we saw why. The Broncos were able to sign Zach Allen for a more team-friendly deal at the time worth around $15 million per season.

Now, though, Cody, he's looking for a raise. And Chris Thomason is reporting that that raise is upwards of $25 million per season. Man, that's a lot of money. And, you know, I think it changes the market. I mean, we talk about so many positions every year. The market for these positions changes every season. You look at Zach Allen. He's a defensive end.

Okay, well, look at Max Crosby. Max Crosby, you know, he's considered a pass rusher, but he's also at the defensive end position. And Max Crosby, we'll talk about a little bit later on here in the shows. We look at the AFC West, but man, did he get a massive payday? How does that impact where Denver is at, like with him? I think you look at Zach Allen here. What do we see from him this season?

I mean, an unrelentless motor like Sean Payton had told us so many times this season, there's times where they have to try to yank him out of the game because he won't come off the field. Like this is a guy who is in great shape, great condition, fights through. He's so tough, fights through some injuries that he's been, you know,

has dealt with. The dude is tough as nails, but he's got the most relentless motor we've seen. And someone that JJ Watt, you know, who was his teammate in Arizona, looked at him and it was like, hey,

this guy, he's going to be a special player. We have seen that here from Zach Allen. I think his first season in Denver, there, because of the Broncos, I think not having, solidarity at the defensive tackle position and not really having their edge

rusher rotation set in stone there. Zach Allen was facing a lot of double teams. He's still generating pressures at a high rate. But last year, man, we saw him absolutely turn it on. And I would say this, he is deserving of a contract extension, $25 million per year. I mean, that's what the market is going to be for him right now. And then on top of that, there's other guys you're going to have to try to potentially extend coming up to like the Nick Benito's.

We just did an episode yesterday on. Cortland Sutton potentially receiving an extension before or after the NFL draft. And I'm thinking to myself, okay, if Denver finds a way to do these extensions, they'll get more cap space and they have the chance to restructure these guys a year from now, two years from now, even three years from now to create even more flexibility here. In your opinion, when you look at Zach Allen, would you extend him at $25 million per because you also have to factor in. John Franklin Myers also wants to get paid as well.

And both of these guys are crucial to what you need to have here in Denver. I don't know how you pay Zach Allen, 25 million and maybe even pay JFM what he's looking for. We don't know what that ballpark is just yet. This is where things get a little dicey and puts the Broncos into tough position. It is a tough position. It's a good tough position to be in. I mean, when you have good players who are playing well and deserving of new contracts, that's a great problem for your team to have because as of right now,

these guys are all under contract for the Denver Broncos, and that's a huge advantage in the Broncos favor. But you want to do business the right way, right? And I think George Payton has proven that over time. When a guy plays well for your team, when a guy goes out there and he does what is required to earn this type of big money contract, good business says that you pay him that contract, right? I mean, we just talked about the Eagles with Zach Bond. And they did the same for Saquoan Barkley as well. I think that paying market value for guys who are, you know, all pro level or pro bowl level,

that's exactly what you have to do because what does that say to every other player on your roster that that plays well that says that, hey, this team pays guys who play well. And that's a huge advantage when you're recruiting for free agency. It's a huge advantage for guys being motivated in season, out of season. Like they're going to want to work hard to play well for this team because they know that George Peyton and the Walton Penner family ownership group, they're going to write a check and get you a press conference. Hopefully, Cody, I would love to see press conferences for guys that get signed, by the way. That's a side note there. But I think absolutely worth the money. It's not my money.

As you and I talk about all the time, we joke about all the time. It's not my money. I don't care. An extension for Zach Allen adds cap space like you said. So why would you not want to do this? Keep a core player around. Give him a two to three year extension or something like that and pay him what he wants. Like, give him, give him some money. Give the guy some money. It'd be, it'd be the same as saying, like, hey, let's restructure Zach Allen's deal and add caps base this year. Like, wow, that's, that seems like a no-brainer, right? Go ahead, get this deal done. Well, in my opinion as well, the Broncos have had a reputation for so long. When John L.A. was running the team, the reputation was you play good. John L.A. ain't going to pay good. And you're going to go somewhere else and get paid.

And to that point, like it took George Payton coming in. And unfortunately, Shelby Harrison, the whole Russell Wilson trade to Seattle with Shelby going there, kind of set that back a little bit, right? Because what did George Payton do when he got here? He extended Shelby Harris. He extended Justin Simmons. And all of a sudden in that locker room, it's like, guys started thinking like, wow, like this guy's actually taking care of guys who are coming out here playing and producing.

And the Broncos have continued under George Payton to do just that. The Pat Sir Tans, the Jonathan Cooper. the Quinn Miners, like these guys are getting extensions because of their deserved play. And obviously, people want to be here in Denver. And if you want to create a culture where people want to come to it from the outside, take care of the guys that play well. I mean, that's exactly what the game is for, right? And free agency, you're bringing in players who can play good to help you win games.

And if that's the case and you do that, you find a way to take care of those guys. I think for Zach Allen, yeah, you take care of a guy who has absolutely busted his tail for you, you know, like I said, you have to pull him off the field, you know, with one leg. Like, he could be hobbling on one leg and he's still going to be out there fighting and clung and trying to get after the quarterback. Guys in that locker room, they see how organizations treat players, and they take note of that. And the Broncos have been in a position where they're changing that perspective a little bit in a positive way. Find a way to take care of Zach Allen.

I think the rest will fall into place. And also, what do we hear George Payton say here this offseason? He said it's important for us to continue to invest. vest in the trenches. So what that means is keeping that core, that nucleus intact, that led you getting a franchise high, 63 sacks in 2024 here. Broncos Country, your thoughts on what Zach Allen is looking for here this upcoming season, $25 million per year.

Is it worth it? Is it not? Make sure you let us know. However, you're listening or watching lockdown Broncos here today, but we're not done yet, Broncos Country. We're going to wrap up today's episode show up next by talking about the wild, wild AFC West. Some teams, some of the Broncos biggest rivals are making moves. How can Denver counter some of these moves as well?

We'll debate that and more here on today's episode of the show. NFL Free Agency is a time where teams are making moves left and right. They're moving on from players. They're trading players and they're preparing to sign new players when free agency comes about. That process doesn't change here for the Denver Broncos. They're doing the same exact thing. But as you're looking to compete and move the needle inside the AFC West, the Broncos ultimately want to win that here in 2025.

How can they counter some of the moves that the Chargers, the Raiders, and the Kansas City Chiefs are making? Thank you once again, everyone in Broncos country, all the everydayers out there for tuning in making us your first list. And we appreciate you so much, you make the show exactly what it is. And like we promise you, every single day, including throughout the off season, we got you covered because for the true fan, there is never an off season. Fresh Broncos content every single day, your boy, Sarah and Cody, we got you covered. Thank you for being a part of what we're doing here at Locked on here. Sarah, let's take a little bit of a glance here at the AFC West. Some moves before NFL free to, some surprising moves by some of Denver's rivals.

Now, obviously the Broncos, they went one in one with the Kansas City Chiefs this season. They lost, they got swept by the Chargers, unfortunately, and then they swept the Las Vegas Raiders. You always want to pay attention to what your division rivals are doing, but you never wanted to dictate maybe how you change your approach or how you you may even approach things like free agency or the NFL draft. Your thoughts here, let's start off. The Las Vegas Raiders making a big time move. Obviously a new head coach in Pete Carroll,

but making a big time move, giving Max Crosby the highest contract by a non-quarterback in NFL history, massive extension for them. How does this impact the Broncos? Well, I think, you know, obviously it keeps one of the most terrorizing defensive players. Of course, Max Crosby is one of those guys that the Broncos have really struggled to block in general since he came into the NFL.

Now, got a little bit of revenge last year against Crosby in that game against the Raiders, the first victory of both victories against the Raiders, which was nice to see. But man, for him getting nearly, I think it's $91.5 million in total guaranteed money on his contract, which is pretty insane, a really great deal for him.

Obviously, the Raiders have a ton of cap space this offseason and certainly got to reach that salary cap floor. So they're trying to spend as much, money as they can and get to that salary cap floor. And I think that, you know, Cody, the way that this impacts the Broncos is twofold. Obviously, on the field, you got to face off against him, but also got an edge rusher to pay. Nick Benito. And I don't think Nick Benito is on the same tier as Max Crosby.

Crosby is 27 years old. He's established himself as like truly one of the top three probably edge rushers in the game, I would say. And Nick is not quite there yet. So maybe his agent is going to argue otherwise. I don't know. We'll see. But I think obviously you're going to look at this contract as one that's, okay,

it's either resetting part of the market or it's helping dictate the market for your own edge guy in Nick Bonito. Yeah. And part of me also asked the question too because you look at how Max Crosby plays the position in terms of being a hand in the dirt defensive end that he moves sometimes he'll move inside. He can play a three tech. He can play a one. But man, this is a guy who moves around hand in the dirt defensive end. the dirt, ridiculous motor.

He is a terrific player. He's, he's frustrating to go against. And obviously, we all remember the clip of, hey, Bo, speak up. They can't hear you. And then the L'Bronko scored 38 unanswered there. That was a nice little thing to see there. But obviously, I think for Denver and where they're at, like for Nick Bonito, Nick's a stand-up guy.

You know, Nick is a different tier. He's a different level of player than Max Crosby. So I imagine when you go into contract discussions, negotiations, you look at what Nick was able to do as an outside linebacker, how do you negotiate that contract based on like what Max Crosby does? Now, here's the thing. Nick Benito, I don't think is going to get anywhere close to what Max Crosby gets average annual value per year.

Heck, even loan T.J. Watt, like what is the price range here? I think people have been saying 23 to 24 million, that might actually be a little bit of a bargain for what that position I think is going to command here in two to three years. I think it's going to continue to expand. and you want to be able to take care of your guys like Nick and the other. So I think that is a little interesting here. In terms of pass rusher, the Los Angeles Chargers here, moving on from Joey Bosa,

a guy who had been a little bit of a thorn on the side of the Broncos for a handful of years, Bosa, more than likely, not coming back to L.A. Even if they try to resign him, obviously they released him there. Anytime there's a release, you always hope, okay, can he come back, you know, and resign on a cheaper deal? I mean, always a possibility. But Joey Bosa's time in L.A. more than likely over. Khalil Mack also more than likely gone from the chargers here.

That's good news here for the Broncos, but also gives them a chance to revamp. They're also in conversations to potentially trade for D.K. Metcalfe, who they've had interest in trying to trade for here. But we know the Seattle Seahawks, they're asking price a first and a third as DK enters the final year of his current contract. I don't think that's a great asking price. I don't think they're going to get a first and a third. I think you get a third round pick, maybe a fifth round pick as well, and then say,

hey, that's it, but you have to sign him to a $30 million per year potential extension there. Or Devante Adams, like even though the chargers are losing two good pass rushers, they could be in the market for one of the NFL's two best receivers there in DK. Mekkaf and or Devante Adams, who are free agents. Yeah, and to pair one of those guys up with Ladd-McConkie and that offense, that would be tough. It would be tough to face off against. Don't necessarily want to see that.

As far as the asking price for D.K. Metcalfe, Cody, my son, who has a, birthday in March just rattled off to me this morning, his birthday list. And I'm like, sure, you go ahead and want whatever you want. But we'll see what you end up getting, right? And the Seahawks can want whatever they want, right? You say whatever you want in terms of the asking price. You ain't going to get that. But, you know, I think that there's a degree of there's a bitter sweet sort of thing with

Joey Bosa. I think the Chargers banking so much on him in recent years has kind of also helped to the Broncos because the guy just can't stay on the field, unfortunately for him, you'd love to see guys be able to stay healthy. But now the Chargers are going to be able to pivot to something completely different. My guess is he's going to go play with his brother Nick in San Francisco and terrorize the offensive lines that way. That would be fun to watch. I think as far as the Kansas City Chiefs goes, Cody, the bill is coming due for the Chiefs, right?

I mean, we've seen them sign all these different guys, trade for all these guys, extend all these guys. and everybody's wondering over the last eight years, like, where are the chief's getting all this cap space? The bill is coming due now. I mean, eventually the bill does come due. They had to trade away Joe Tuny, their star left guard, all pro, all everything. The guy's one of the best offensive linemen in the NFL.

Didn't exactly work out when he switched to left tackle there for the playoff run. But at the same time, that's not his position. He was doing that because the chief's left tackle position sucks so bad. And now they have a left tackle question. They've got a left guard question, and they still don't have that much cap space because you franchise tag, Trace Smith. So it's going to be a very interesting offseason now for the Chiefs as well. Well, and part of me is also one or two for Kansas City.

How are they going? Obviously, they're banking on getting Rishi Rice back for them next season. And even then, I think he still might be, you know, in that category, he could be suspended. I know that everything that happened with him last offseason. There was like a delay in that. and that could obviously come forth there. Obviously, Roger Goodell could find a way to put them on a suspended list or the commissioner's exempt list there. Obviously, Hollywood Brown.

They've got him in the mix as well. For me, I'm just like, how is Kansas City? Like Travis Kelsey, you already know is coming back, but how is Kansas City going to give Mahomes more weapons, right? Is that where they invest in the NFL free agency period? The NFL draft, in my opinion, at this point, like, you get rid of Joe Tooney. Yeah, of course you got treat Humphrey. Okay, yeah, you're going to eventually come to terms with Tracy. Smith here, but you need continuity on the offensive line.

What do we see in the Super Bowl? That offensive line got absolutely bullied by four downlinment of the Philadelphia Eagles. And we've seen, like, Patrick Mahomes probably got hit a little bit more last year than he's ever been in his entire career in the NFL. So how do you fix that problem? This is the opportunity for the Broncos to kick in the door and take aim and say, hey, we're coming for you, Kansas City and try to win the division. I mean, Denver could do it.

I think 2025 it's a very distinct possibility. Of course, until someone dethrones Kansas City, they're going to be the favorite going into the season. But I can't help but look at what's going on with them, them having to get rid of their best offensive linemen. To me, I look at that and I say they know that their time is running out and they're trying to preserve it. To me, I think this is a great opportunity for the Broncos.

I also think it's a great opportunity for a team like the Chargers as well. I think these two teams right now, can creep up and maybe steal that top spot in the AFC West. It's time to be aggressive, right? That's exactly what they've got to do, these teams. If you see a crack in the door for a team that's being considered a dynasty, and rightfully so, I mean, kick the crack. I mean, kick as hard as you can because there's no reason to sit on your hands.

You and I have talked about this, Cody, as the calm before the storm begins to, you know, bubble over a little bit as we get to NFL free agency. I think what's happening in the AFC West right now gets me more and more excited about what the Broncos have the potential to do. And I know I'm trying to preach patience to myself as much as everyone in Broncos country because I do believe some of the biggest impact players this team gets will be in the NFL draft. But I don't think that means this team has to sit on its hands during free agency. So I'm ready, Cody. I am so ready for the offseason dominoes to begin to fall to see what this team's vision is for. doing exactly that, kicking down the door in the AFC West and trying to go and win that division.

Broncos country, how do you feel about the state of the AFC West as free agency approaches and some of the Broncos biggest rivals in the division making some of the moves that they have made? Where does it put the Broncos in your optics here, especially if they come out and they have an absolutely gigantic free agency hall? Let us know your thoughts here on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. But with that said, Broncos country, that'll wrap up today's episode of the show. For all you every dayers out there on Monday's episode of Lockdown Broncos, it is time for the legal negotiating period. Could we see some movement here from the Broncos early on on Monday,

where everything becomes official on the new league gear on Wednesday? We'll preview that and some of the latest rumblings and more. On Monday's episode, Lockdown Broncos, enjoy your weekend. We'll see you then.