Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - HOTSPOT: Why Denver Broncos Will Be NFL's HOTTEST Free Agent Destination

Starting point is 00:00:00 Bo Nix, the Broncos defense, Sean Payton, and all the cool bells and whistles that are coming with a new team facility. Denver is going to be a hotspot for potential free agents here in March. You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. What's up, Broncos country? I'm Cody Roar, Credential Broncos reporter from Ohio Sports. Welcome into a bonus episode, Locked on Broncos. Where today we're going to be talking about why Denver and the Broncos specifically are going to become a

Starting point is 00:00:35 premier hotspot for potential free agents coming up here in the month of March and beyond. We'll go through why Bo Nix and the Broncos defense are really good selling points from a roster standpoint. Plus, Denver's approach has them in a unique position to attract people to come to the Mile High City. And on top of that, some of the cool bells and whistles like a new team facility, those are just small selling points here. The Broncos look to build for the future here. Let's dive into this as well because look, NFL free agency is coming up here, on March 11th. March 9th is the legal negotiating period where we're going to probably see a lot of deals coming in saying that, hey, come the new league year, this will be official. It'll be interesting

Starting point is 00:01:16 to see if the Broncos are involved or heavy in on the legal tampering period. Well, legal negotiating period. I must correct it. That is the new term for it now. That's where the league has gone. But I think that the Denver Broncos in the position that they're at right now, they are going to be a hot spot for big name free agents this off season and for years to come. First off, let's talk about what that outlook looks like. Now, as we're sitting here today, the Broncos have an estimated $26 to $28 million in salary cap space available between now and then, right before you really get to free agency, you start to see some restructures take place where it creates space. You might see some extensions done here for Denver. I imagine that's exactly what they're going to do. They're going to

Starting point is 00:01:55 take care of some guys. They're going to roll through restructure some deals to get some more salary cap space down the road. Give those players that just got extensions or are due for big money in terms the large cap hits like Mike McGlinchie, Quinn Miners. Those guys could be getting some signing bonuses coming their way here, obviously in the next couple of weeks. But Denver's going to have significantly more salary cap space to work with this year than they did last year. Then they did the year prior. And that didn't even stop them to, even after the Russell Wilson dead cap the first two years

Starting point is 00:02:24 and then going out there and releasing Justin Simmons, the Broncos, they were not afraid to spend big. They go out there and they get obviously Brandon Jones one year. Then they go out, obviously, in this past season, they get Drake Greenline. Talanoa Hufanga, and then late signing, which didn't really cost them anything, was J.K. Dobbins. They got impact players with their already young and developing roster here. But I want to say this is another reason why the Broncos are set to be one of the hottest free agent destinations here right now and going forward. And a lot of it is because of what they were able to achieve this past season.

Starting point is 00:02:55 Winning 15 total games, 14 in the regular season, winning the AFC division around where you beat what everybody thought was arguably the best team, the most dangerous team, in the AFC playoffs despite their seating, despite their record. And Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills, you win a thriller in that one. And now, you know, you're a Bo Nix ankle injury away from asking yourself, like, what would have Denver made it to the Super Bowl, right? They were one game away. And I think when you look at Sean Payton's first year to his second year, from the second year jump with Bo Nix.

Starting point is 00:03:26 Now obviously to 2025, now Denver's the number one seed in an AFC playoffs. They're tied for the best record in the entire league. and they have a young quarterback who is without a doubt, their franchise guy. That right there is a huge selling point. Plus, you get to play for a future Hall of Fame head coach here in Sean Payton. I think the direction that Denver is going, and certainly you heard it from various players that played against the Broncos this season,

Starting point is 00:03:51 that they're like, man, I think Denver's going to win the championship. You had Cam Scataboo going on his show saying, hey, if I had to pick someone to win the Super Bowl this year, it's going to be Denver. There's this tenacity. There's this new perspective when it comes to. to how people view the Denver Broncos. I think people that matter, right?

Starting point is 00:04:07 Players, not so much to the national media. We don't care about none of that noise here. But players around the league now view Denver as, hey, just an exciting place to be. And the one thing, too, is players want to come in free agency to a team that is ascending, that is competitive, that is a championship contender, which Denver is. But they also want to go to a place where there is an established franchise quarterback. That is Bo Nix.

Starting point is 00:04:27 Beyond a shadow of a doubt, it is Bo. I think some people are still skeptical on that. I'm not. I'm all in on that. So you can quote me on that here on today's show here. But that is a big reason why I think the Broncos are a huge selling point. Because of Bo Nixon, his ascension that we have seen from him and what he's done over the first two years of his career. Going into year three now is going to be very exciting, especially with Davis Webb as the play caller.

Starting point is 00:04:49 And if they can get more weapons, if they can get a consistent run game, I mean, there are players out there that might think, hey, I might be the answer to them getting the run game going. I might be the answer to them evolving the tight-in position in the passing game. I just want to go here because I want to play part of this defense. in the mile high city that's got Pat Sertan, Talano, Hufanga, Nick Benito, Jonathan Cooper. The list goes on and on. You want to be part of one of the most dominant defense in the NFL for the last two seasons.

Starting point is 00:05:12 And now you have that coach returning on the defensive side with Vance Joseph. You maintain continuity right there. It's all about running it back. Hey, the Broncos, they made it far. They didn't make it where they wanted to, but they're looking to run it back. They're looking to get to the Super Bowl here. And that window, I think, is very close.

Starting point is 00:05:27 And I think that's going to be an appeal here for a lot of people that want to become a championship contender. Guys, I want to go play for a coach like Sean Payton. I want to play with a team that has a great culture like the Broncos do inside that locker. That's a huge selling point. But I think another selling point are the amenities that come with being a Denver Bronco, especially a new team facility. And in the future, you've got a brand new stadium coming up.

Starting point is 00:05:48 We'll tell you why those are important pieces for Denver becoming a destination for free agents here on today's episode of the show. Today's bonus episode is brought to you by friends over there at Fanduil, folks. if Fandu is giving you the opportunity to experience the NBA finals live and in person, because Fandu, they're giving you the chance to turn that dream into a reality with their NBA sweepstakes. And here's how it works. Here's how you can get entered for a chance to win. Use your profit boost on any NBA future and you'll automatically be entered for a shot to win an NBA final trip for two.

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Starting point is 00:07:22 or Amazon. The Broncos have some exciting amenities coming up here in the Mile High City as the Walton-N-Penter family ownership group is turning over every stone to make the experience for players even better. And that's going to be a huge selling point here going forward. Real quick, I want to say thanks once again,

Starting point is 00:07:39 Broncos' country for tuning in. We love doing these bonus episodes on top of our regular episodes that we do for all of you every single day. Just a reminder, if you want an ad-free version of the show, make sure you check out the Every Day or Club. It's in the show description down below. Make sure you click on the link, check it out.

Starting point is 00:07:52 If you want an ad-free experience here, we appreciate it so much for rocking with us, making us your first listening here. But let's talk about the amenities that are now coming here for the Mile High City. Since Greg Penner, since Kerry Walton Penner have taken over the Denver Broncos, the perspective has changed. They've increased, I would say, their level of power, so to speak, around the NFL. The perspective of the Broncos has shifted significantly with the direction of them. Not only for what they do in the community, that's always been something they've excelled at, But now it's, hey, here's what we're going to do to listen to the players. And I think the NFL PA survey, which was great before the NFL said,

Starting point is 00:08:28 hey, you can't release that. The Broncos had score high in a lot of areas. But the areas in which they got Ds or Fs or even a C, they look to improve that experience here for the players, whether that's changing up the weight room, adding more equipment, or it's other things like giving the family room after a game. So players in their families can have a place to congregate versus sitting out in the cold tunnel. That's one thing that they have looked at doing. If it's even something as small

Starting point is 00:08:54 as that, right, which in the players' eyes, it's big. But I think to most fans who probably don't care about that, to the Walton-Penter family ownership group, those little things matter. They listen to those little details. And I would say another thing, too, the locker room space inside of the team facility is very small, very small. It's very crowded, especially when there are a lot of media members in there, considering where you're at with roster sizes as well. This is where they go out and they're like, we're going to build a new team facility. We're going to completely revamp it. We're going to have a bigger locker room for players, a better weight room, better equipment, better

Starting point is 00:09:27 everything. They're upgrading everything in that team facility that is expected to be done in the month of May. We'll go through a tour on that. We'll share what we can here on the podcast, but it's things like that. And then it's things like, you know what? We like Empowerfield a mile high, but we want to bring a new stadium here. That's going to be privately funded.

Starting point is 00:09:43 You look at an ownership group that is willing to spend money to renovate things to make things better for the players or I'd say a greater example is what they decide to do in season with the field surface. They will have it for the first part beginning in the preseason. They'll get it ready for the regular season. They'll go through the first half of the regular season. They'll rip the field up. They'll install a brand new field. The process has been there. They've taken care of that every single year since they have taken over as the ownership group here. They believe in player safety and how important that is. They work very closely alongside Bo Lowry to say, hey, what is it that our players need in order to stay health?

Starting point is 00:10:18 healthier to have the best technology when it comes to recovery and advancement in that kind of category. That is why I like Denver as another hotspot free agent destinations because you're going have players who, you know, some players look at it like, hey, I want more money. That may not always be the factor here in Denver. I think if there's a player out there that Denver wants to spend big on, they will, I think people want to come be part of the culture. They want to be part of an organization that has an ownership group that cares, especially the way that Greg Penner and Kerry Walton-Penner care about the team on the field and the stuff that they do off the field. That dynamic is we've seen in the NFLPA surveys is so important.

Starting point is 00:10:52 And when you have the cash-richest ownership group in all of pro sports that is willing to turn over every stone that's willing to pay any cost to give the team an advantage, that's a place I'd want to go play for. That's a place I'd want to go work for, right? So I think that's going to be a selling point here alongside of Bo Nix, Sean Payton, this very good Broncos defense that led the league in sacks for two straight years. there is a lot to like about the mile high city and all these other things I just mentioned about the amenities, a new team facility, new stadium. Those are just like little shiny bells and whistles.

Starting point is 00:11:21 That's icing on top of the cake. You can see it and you can tell it. And I've had conversations with players off the record. I'm not going to say who. I'm not going to do that. But I've asked as to like, hey, do you feel like you could be someone who sells a potential free agent on this place? And a lot of guys said, yeah, like there are already a lot of guys that have told us after games, hey, I want to come play with you guys. I want to be. be part of what you guys are building there. To me, that is the most exciting thing about it. And I can't share who those names are, so to speak. But there are some big name players that would love to play in the Mile High City if the opportunity presented itself. And I think that

Starting point is 00:11:55 all of these things that I've outlined are going to be interesting to watch. This is our first real look as to that power pull, right? Because when Sean Payton came in 2023, Denver, they went out, they got Mike McGlinchie, Ben Powers. They built their offensive line. 2024's, hey, we're moving on from Russell. We drafted it. a rookie quarterback. Now at 2024, you see that rookie quarterback play really well. It's like, oh, they might have something here with this kid. 2025, you go from 10 wins of previous year to 14 regular season wins. You rattle off 11 straight victories. Now everyone's seeing Bow Nicks play well. They see the defense playing well. And now they're saying, you know what? This Broncos team,

Starting point is 00:12:33 they might be for real. I want to be part of that. I want to be part of something that is growing into something special. And when you talk about having a lot of your core players already locked up, that is a huge selling point, I think, for any potential free agent that might want to maximize their window, right? I'm not talking about guys necessarily at the end of their career. I'm sure there are guys like that. But, you know, young guys that might be hitting their chance to, like, go hit free agency for the first time. And maybe their original team wants them back, but like, you know what? I like this, but I want to go here.

Starting point is 00:13:01 I want to go see what it's like playing in Denver. I think Denver right now is the sexiest destination right now going into NFL free agency. surely there are a couple of other places that have some appeal to go play there. But I think Denver right now, they're rising. They're the hot name. They have a lot of things going for them right now. They have a lot of things that are going to be coming down the road for them here in their near future. And it's exciting.

Starting point is 00:13:22 It's something you want to be a part of here. And I'm excited to see here in the next couple of weeks how Sean Peyton, George Payton, they sell the mile high city to some of these free agents. How hard will they have to sell? I don't think it's going to be very hard. I think there are a lot of things that speak for itself as to do. Do you want to come play for a winner? All right, the Denver Broncos, we're here.

Starting point is 00:13:37 Kansas City's time is done. We're going to come here and we're going to set the tone here going forward inside the AFC West. That's the vibe that the players have inside the locker room. And I am excited to see if that all comes to fruition here. But Broncos Country, thank you so much for rock with me here on this Friday. A bonus episode, Locked on Broncos. You know Sarah Bedinger, myself, we got you covered every single day. Your regular episodes, you get that Monday through Friday.

Starting point is 00:13:59 Plus you get a bonus episode Monday through Friday as well. Thank you so much for being part of this conversation. We'll see you on Monday for a brand new episode of the show. Enjoy your weekend.

Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - HOTSPOT: Why Denver Broncos Will Be NFL's HOTTEST Free Agent Destination

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