Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - Denver Broncos Make Two SHOCKING Moves Before NFL Free Agency

Starting point is 00:00:00 Before NFL Free Agency even began on Monday, the Denver Broncos took care of two of their announced players in a move that we believe was a little bit of a shocking start to Free Agency. We'll tell you why here on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Broncos country NFL free agency is here. And of course, we're going to break that down here on Lockdown Broncos. It was part of the Lockdown Podcast Network where you know it is your team every day for NFL free agency frenzy. Make sure you are glued in. Thank you to all the everydayers out there.

Starting point is 00:00:43 We're in Broncos country. Thanks for making us your first listen. However, you choose to do so for NFL free agency. Make sure you subscribe or follow if you're not yet in everyday or as is. So you never miss out on what's going on with your favorite team. As free agency begins with a little bit of a bonus episode for you here on Monday morning, just an hour before NFL free agency, the legal negotiating period, officially opens up.

Starting point is 00:01:07 I'm Cody Roark, Broncos reporter here from Mile High Sports. Joined, as always, by Sarah Bedinger, site expert, predominantly orange.com. And here's we're going to break down here today. The Broncos making two perceivably shocking moves ahead of the NFL free agency, period. We'll talk about them bringing back Jarrett Stedham and why that was a little bit of a shocking move here in the eyes of us on the show and also kick things off on today's episode by talking about the Broncos bringing back DJ Jones, not necessarily a shocker that they're bringing him back. But when we looked at contract values and the ever-changing market, this was something that

Starting point is 00:01:39 we didn't know would price DJ Jones to stay here in Denver. So that's why we talk about it as a shocking move. So Sarah, let's break it down here. DJ Jones staying here with the Broncos at the start of NFL free agency, arguably their biggest in-house free agent taken care of here before he has a chance to hit the open market where there were some rumblings that maybe the San Francisco 49ers could have taken a look at him and he could have gone. back there. He stays in the Mile High City where he looks to continue to build something special. Yeah, I think what's not shocking about this move is that the Broncos wanted DJ Jones back, Cody, but what's shocking to me is everything else about the move. Three years, 39 million in total money at 13 million average annual value.

Starting point is 00:02:24 I've got to eat a little bit of ice cold crow today because when you and I were discussing on the show, a couple shows back about the market value on spot track for DJ Jones. being, I think it was just slightly over 10 million per year. I'm thinking to myself, there ain't no way the Broncos are paying 10 plus million for a guy that played 40% or less of the snaps last season, which DJ Jones did. I mean, he didn't even play 40% of the snaps and he's now getting 13 million average annual value. Plus, you add in the fact that Robert Sala went back to San Francisco. They've been cutting a bunch of defensive linemen lately.

Starting point is 00:03:00 Kind of felt like the writing was on the wall for DJ to leave. and maybe go back home to the 49ers, but he stays in Denver in what I believe is a very shocking turn of events because I assumed he was gone with the Broncos having to pay John Franklin Myers, they got to pay Zach Allen, you got to pay Nick Benito, got to pay all these other guys. We know cash is not an issue for this Denver Broncos ownership group, but at the same time, can you keep everybody?

Starting point is 00:03:29 And I think everybody's going to be wondering, okay, well, 13 million a year. does that mean it's $13 million against this year's salary cap? It never means that, ever. It never means that. Don't worry about that. The Broncos didn't lose $13 million in salary cap space in all likelihood. This is going to cost them around $5 to $6 million on the cap this year.

Starting point is 00:03:50 So it really, it's a decent deal in terms of the percentage of the cap, Cody. That's what I needed to go back to. I keep initially my reaction is vast overpay, another shocking aspect of this. But I think we need to look at the percentage. percentage of the cap to see exactly where we're at in terms of that number. Well, DJ's an impact player here for the Broncos too. And I know it was important for George Payton. I know it was important from Sean Payton to maintain continuity within that unit because

Starting point is 00:04:16 two years ago, it was one of the worst units in all of football, the defensive line, the trenches. They go out there. And obviously, you know, you bring DJ Jones back to play that nose tackle position. That's his true spot. That's where he has had the most success in his career after they had him play some defensive end in 2023 because Denver just simply. didn't have enough depth. They didn't have good enough production quality from the players on the

Starting point is 00:04:37 roster at that point. So, you know, DJ obviously returned in 2024, moved back to his initial spot. They go out and they get John Franklin Myers in an absolute steal from the New York Jets. And of course, Zach Allen takes a massive step forward after his first season initially in Denver. And now it's like, okay, you pay DJ Jones. You have to pay JFM, as you mentioned. You got to pay Zach Allen. You got to pay Nick Benito. You also got to find a linebacker here at this point as well. So Denver might have to bring that checkbook out here for the rest of the free agency to really try to revamp this defense. It was one of the top run defenses in the NFL last year. Obviously, we all saw the unit that front seven produced 63 sacks, which led the entire NFL set a franchise record.

Starting point is 00:05:16 DJ Jones, a very important piece of that anchoring in the middle right there. You know, guys I've talked to like Zach Allen, I've talked to guys like JFM. And they said, you know, for DJ, he commands double teams. He commands attention, which allows them to work some more one-on-ones. and the way that they have under Jamar Kane, the ability to disguise some of their looks and the stunts that they run, that's why they've had so much success because they don't have a guy who's playing inside the A gap,

Starting point is 00:05:41 who's getting pushed down to the second level the way that they had been previously. They love DJ's ability to anchor. And look, he's not necessarily a guy that's going to be, he's not going to be ever, I don't think, a candidate to get you 10 sacks in the season at his position. But for him, he can be an impact player against the run, being able to command that attention there in the A and the B, gaps and you allow other guys your linebackers to fill those spots without getting touched by

Starting point is 00:06:05 an offensive lineman who's trying to get up to the next level. That is the impact that people don't necessarily see here with DJ Jones. And there was this weird narrative surrounding, you know, you look on Twitter and it's like, you can tell which fans pay attention, which fans don't. I saw somebody say the DJ's always heard. He's never available. I'm like, what are you watching? Who are you talking about?

Starting point is 00:06:23 Like stuff like that kind of spreads like wildfire around this time. DJ has been such a crucial part. of their defense. And when you look at it, Sarah, 13 million per year. Okay, I understand it. But like, what do we just see in the Super Bowl here from the Eagles? You have to have a dominant defensive line. DJ is very viewed by this Broncos front office as a player who can dominate at that position. They love Malcolm Roach right behind. So DJ plays his number of snaps. And then Malcolm Roach comes in. You are not getting a drop off from those two guys. So really, it is that investment in the trenches in which we just saw when the Philadelphia Eagles a

Starting point is 00:07:00 Super Bowl. That can be the key here going forward. So to me, I like the deal. I love DJ in that locker room. DJ wanted to be back at the end of the season in the locker room. He told me he'd love to be back. He said, we just got to see what the market looks like. We've got to see, you know, what the team is thinking there. But he said he would love to be back. He loves the guys in that locker room. He's, he's loved what they've built. And you keep that culture intact, which I think is super important, because now you don't have to bring somebody new in to try to learn how your culture is. You have a guy who's already, who knows the standard. He sets. it every day he walks into that building. So I like this move. I thought it was important that

Starting point is 00:07:34 they bring back DJ Jones, the most important in-house free agent option. They found a way to do just that. And look, it's a three-year deal worth up to $39 million, $26 million of that being guaranteed. And I think as time goes on here, I think when Jalen Carter's about ready to get a contract, I think it's going to absolutely reset the defensive interior market, which Denver right now, I think looking at $13 million. Okay, yeah, I'll take that. Yeah. And just looking at the of the salary cap too, Cody, to circle it back to that when you, when you, for folks out there that are thinking, man, this was a huge overpay like myself when I initially saw the numbers. I mean, I'm thinking 13 million a year for a guy that doesn't play 40% of the snaps here. Listen to this.

Starting point is 00:08:14 Okay. Back in 2022, when DJ Jones signed for 10 million per season, that percentage was over 4.8% in total of the salary cap, which at the time was 208.2 million. So 10 million divided by 208.8.2. million, that percentage, 4.8%. Now, with the way the salary cap is, $13 million a year for DJ Jones at a salary cap of $279.5 million is under 4.7% of the salary cap. So kind of an interesting way to start thinking about those types of moves when you look at it that way back when the Broncos originally signed him.

Starting point is 00:08:52 It was expected to be one of their biggest signings of the offseason, and it was. And here now, it's a similar percentage of the salary cap. So to me, I mean, that kind of changes my perception of this move a little bit because we love DJ Jones. We love to see him back. And everybody in Broncos country wants to have their cake and eat it too, right? We want to be able to retain all the best players that are in-house guys, but also want to go sign and make the biggest splashes. I mean, this kind of helps you do that in a way, right? Because you're proving that when guys perform well in what we're asking them to do, that we're going to compensate them appropriately.

Starting point is 00:09:26 and I think that this is, it's a better value now that I look at the percentage of the cap that it's taking up, Cody, than when I initially saw those numbers because if you're still thinking in terms of even the 2022 salary cap, that's going to seem like a really rough deal for the Broncos. But look, DJ Jones coming back, continuity on the defensive line, bring the band back together. I like that move from that perspective. Well, you mentioned something about very good like Markovil. I was going to say, like, great value. here for the Broncos making a little bit of a funny pun here today.

Starting point is 00:09:59 But look, obviously, free agency is just starting off here for the Broncos. The legal tampering period, 10 o'clock a.m. Mountain time is just moments away from us. We're reacting here to the Broncos resigning DJ Jones here. That wasn't just one move that they made. They made another one. Probably the more shocking move, in our opinion, was bringing back Jarrett Stidham as the team's backup quarterback.

Starting point is 00:10:20 Why was this a shocking move here for Denver? And what does it mean about Zach Wilson's future? We'll discuss that and much more here. today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. Brockos Country. Today's episode show is brought to you by our friends over there at TurboTax. And this is a message from our sponsor, Intuit TurboTax. Taxes was waiting and wondering and worrying if you were going to get any money back, then waiting, wondering, and worrying some more. Now, taxes is matching with a TurboTax expert who can do your taxes

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Starting point is 00:12:16 on the College Hoops Action all tournament long. Once again, that's fandul. dot com. Speaking of keeping the band back together, the Denver Broncos are two-thirds of the way to keeping their quarterback room together with Jarrett Stidham, surprisingly deciding to come back despite the fact that, remember last year after Bo Nix was named the starter, the guy was breaking news. Breaking news. Let's have it. Sorry to interrupt you, my friend.

Starting point is 00:12:40 As we're recording this year, Ian Rappaport tweets out, Reagent Tideon, Evan Ingram, formerly of the Jaguars, is visiting the Broncos. So as we're sitting here talking about Jared Stittam, Evan Ingram's in the mix here. If that deal becomes official, we'll update you here on Lockdown Broncos. But sorry, Sarah, I felt like this is going to go out ASAP here to Broncos country. So that's good news to know. That's exactly why we love NFL free agency, isn't it? I mean, the Broncos bringing in Evan Ingram.

Starting point is 00:13:08 Cody, that moves me a lot more than Joanne Johnson would, to be honest with you. They're similar age. Engram has been way more productive throughout his career. So if the Broncos can get Ingram before the NFL draft and then pair that up with one of the tight ends from this incredible class, I mean, we'll be cooking with gas at that point. So I'm excited about that. I love that idea. And hopefully they don't let him leave the building without a deal. But let's talk about Jared Stidham because there must have been some serious recruiting that went on, Cody, to make this happen.

Starting point is 00:13:42 There's starting jobs available around the NFL. There's kind of a lot of question marks with quarterback situations elsewhere in the league. But I do think there's something to be said about being in the right situation, the right fit, organizationally, being taken care of financially. The Denver Broncos gave Jared Stidham a raise. They gave him a two-year deal worth $12 million in total money, $7 million guaranteed to come back and be Bo Nix's backup quarterback. And of course, the possibility always exists that you could trade the guy if a situation arises

Starting point is 00:14:14 to where you feel like, hey, hey, he could go start here. We want to do right by the player, obviously. But look, Stidham wasn't willing to give up those Broncos throwback uniforms, Cody. He wasn't willing to throw those away just yet. What are your thoughts on him coming back as the backup to Bo Nix again? Well, I know that the Broncos wanted to bring back Jared Stidham. And look, they still want to bring back Zach Wilson.

Starting point is 00:14:36 As the time that we're sitting down here, they would love to have that quarterback room remain the same. Davis Webb has done a tremendous job there. He's still, obviously, the QB coach, but got an upgrade in terms of, of a promotion passing game coordinator as well and john peyton has been very impressed with what web has been able to do he's loved what that quarterback room has been able to do those guys have grown so close but when you look at like Denver whether or not they're going to bring back jerry sit them you know jarrott obviously wants to

Starting point is 00:15:01 play he wants to be able to start but part of me is also thinking too i think jarrott sees the value that hey right now there's all these other teams look there's some vacancies right now the seahawks have an immediate quarterback opening the pittsburgh steelers have an immediate opening as well and the ten Tennessee Titans have an opening. But, you know, for a guy like Jared Stidum, you got to factor in like, okay, hey, I really want to play. But is that in Tennessee? Like, do I want to go to Tennessee and play there?

Starting point is 00:15:25 I mean, it just depends. I know a lot of guys love to play. It's also about money for some guys. But also, I think Sean Payton can sell the vision on the importance of a backup quarterback. You and I have talked about ad nauseum on this show here in the last handful of years, the number of backup quarterbacks that have actually had to play in the last two to three seasons combined. It's astronomical in a sense. Now, luckily the Broncos, knock on wood, they don't have to be in that position.

Starting point is 00:15:48 Bow Nix, as we all know, is tough. He played with a freaking broken back last season, Sarah. So you're not questioning his toughness. But if you do have an injury to your starter, you need a capable backup. Now, I would say when I look at Stidham, he knows Peyton's system, but he's not, in my opinion, the guy who can operate it as athletically as a guy like Bo Nix, right? So that's why you and I were talking about, well, hey, Zach Wilson will be the perfect fit because, okay, now he's continuing to learn Peyton's system.

Starting point is 00:16:15 But on top of that, he's got athletic traits that are very similar to Bo Nix's. So we'll see how things formulate here, but they bring him back. And Sean Payton really believes in having a good backup quarterback. Stidham can protect the football if he has to come in. And I think that's something that Sean, he values more than anything. You didn't see Jared Stidham making a lot of plays in training camp that led the turnovers. I mean, obviously in preseason, there was a Samajet P. P. Ryan tip pass that was intercepted, things like that.

Starting point is 00:16:42 Stidham knows how to protect the football. He's capable. And I think Sean Payton sees that. So that's why they want to keep that room, that continuity kind of important. But question here is, how does this impact Zach Wilson? I think Zach's got a better opportunity

Starting point is 00:16:56 to land a starting job than Jared Stidham does at this point. To me, if I'm the Seattle Seahawks of the Pittsburgh Steelers, I'm saying, hey, if we miss out on Sam Darnold, let's go try to get Zach Wilson here at this point. Like, why not? Yeah, let's see what happens with that market as it unfolds because I know Diana Rusini of the athletic reported that the Broncos are indeed trying to bring Zach back into the fold, which is fascinating to me. I mean, they like these guys a lot.

Starting point is 00:17:21 I think they know that these guys like each other a lot. Their wives love hanging out together. And they all, those guys became kind of the three caballeros this year for the Denver Broncos. They were kind of inseparable off the field, which is cool to see if you follow along on social media with any of that stuff. So I find that to be fascinating. And I think it would be, I think it would be good for a number of reasons. You want the right situation to present itself. Like if Pittsburgh is offering Zach Wilson a starting job, Cody, I mean, I think he's got to probably go take that.

Starting point is 00:17:53 But if Tennessee or if Seattle, I mean, what would you do in that situation? Because those are kind of rough situations right now with who you're throwing to. Yeah, who are you thrown to in Seattle? I mean, I know you got Jackson Smith and Jigba there. And I know the draft is upcoming and you reload teams do those sorts of things. It's hard to see the forest through the trees right now. But I mean, it's, it's tough because it's just like being a head coach or being a general manager. It's like how many shots do you really get to be a starter in the NFL, right?

Starting point is 00:18:21 How many shots do you, are you going to always, it's not going to like every single year. You're going to get an opportunity. So I could see Zach taking a chance elsewhere on him on himself. And he should. The reclamation project quarterback is very much in vogue. in today's NFL and guys have made the most of other situations. So it's going to be interesting to see, but I kind of do hope he comes back. Yeah, we'll see how things kind of play out here.

Starting point is 00:18:45 And look, if I'm, if I'm Zach Wilson's agent, I'm calling Pittsburgh, you know, I think right now it's probably going to be between like Sam Darnel is going to be the biggest piece of competition of the Seahawks are interested in him. But if you're Sam Darnal, it's like, I want to go throw to George Pickens and DK Metcalf at this point versus going to Seattle, you know, Jackson Smith and Jigba's good. what you got Jake Bobo who's another good option where you got no fan that tied in but it's like that team is making moves for a rebuild and I don't know if you want to stick around for that so you know the the market is going to be very interesting really it's all going to be determined as to

Starting point is 00:19:19 where Sam Donald goes I think that's going to impact and influence maybe what happens here with Zach Wilson so that's a development we'll continue to monitor here over at lockdown Broncos with that said Broncos country out to wrap up our bonus episode here today Denver taking care of two of their in-house guys two big moves D. Jay Jones, Jared Stidham, locked in for the foreseeable future here. Stidham as the backup to Bow Nix, DJ Jones and anchor there on the defensive line alongside Malcolm Roach. What do you think about these moves here for Denver and Evan Ingram in town?

Starting point is 00:19:48 Maybe the next time we're doing a bonus episode of the show. Broncos country, we're going to be reacting to whether or not Evan Ingram signs, which could very well be on the table here at this point with him set to visit Denver here on Monday at the start of NFL free agency. With that said, stay tuned. Lockdown Broncos, wherever you get your podcast. never miss out on what's going on with your favorite team, especially as NFL free agency is here.

Starting point is 00:20:10 Brockos country, buckle up.

Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - Denver Broncos Make Two SHOCKING Moves Before NFL Free Agency

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