Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - RUN IT BACK: Will the Denver Broncos COMMIT to Dre Greenlaw Returning in 2026?

Starting point is 00:00:00 Linebacker is already looking like one of the toughest positions the Broncos have to address here this offseason. But would Drake Greenlaw be back in the mix as well? We'll talk about that morning on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. What's up, Broncos country? Welcome into another episode, Lockdown Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, the number one sports podcast network,

Starting point is 00:00:34 in the country. And that's all thanks to all you every day or is out there in Broncos country. Thanks for tuning in, making us your first listen, however you choose to do so. Today's episode of the show, Sarah and I, we're going to break down Drake Greenlaw, whether or not he'll be back with the Broncos in 2026, especially at a position that is already arguably one of the biggest needs the team is facing this off season. On top of that, we'll discuss whether or not the Broncos will run it back with Ben Powers to keep that offensive line continuity intact going into 2026. and then we'll argue or debate the idea on whether or not the Broncos will look at trading any corners or receivers to maybe upgrade those positions, so to speak.

Starting point is 00:01:12 We'll get all that here on today's episode of the show here, Broncos Country. I'm Cody Rour, Credential, Broncos reporter from Ohio Sports. Join, as always, by Sarah Bettinger, SciExpert up there, predominantly orange.com. Sarah, linebacker, as you and I have discussed in our free agency preview, so to speak, with Alex Singleton, Justin Sternad, said to be unrestricted free agents. Drake Greenlaw is still under contract here for Denver, but there's been a lot of discussion. I've seen a lot of conversation on social media from Broncos fans,

Starting point is 00:01:39 weighing whether or not Drake Greenlaw will return, whether the Broncos could move on from him, so to speak. I'm curious for your thoughts on this, because I think that there are arguments for both sides of him returning and maybe why the team may look to go a different direction. But let's start things off. How do you feel about this topic of conversation? I would be so disappointed if Drake

Starting point is 00:02:01 Greenlaw is not back with this team, Cody, because I feel like the Broncos did not get to experience the fullness of what he brings to the table. We got glimpses, didn't we? We got glimpses with the interception against Washington. We got glimpses with that goal line stand against Houston. We got glimpses here and there, but in eight games, I mean, plus the playoffs, we did not see what I think everybody felt like was the missing piece of this Denver Broncos defense, right? When it came to the addition of Dre Greenlaw, we all thought, all right, that's the final stone in the Thanos gauntlet right there. Like the Broncos have an elite pass rush.

Starting point is 00:02:38 They've got an elite defensive line. They've got a top tier secondary. They added Telanoho Fonga for crying out loud. So all they need is this playmaker at linebacker. So to me, like getting rid of Dre Greenlaw, who's under contract, who you have high expectations for, who just spent the whole last year learning your defense, getting acclimated to your culture, getting suspended. for a game for standing up for one of his teammates.

Starting point is 00:03:01 I'd be so disappointed if it was over at this point, Cody. It would be a huge error, not an era of Dre Greenlaw for the Denver Broncos. And I get it, though. I mean, I do. Like 10.3, 5 million cap number this coming season. No guaranteed money on his contract left. I mean, that was one of the biggest things when signing him. You got a three-year deal.

Starting point is 00:03:25 And essentially, you had an out after that first year to say, things don't go well, we can move on. And the Broncos can. They can move on. They don't have any guaranteed. Like, he's not guaranteed anything this year. So that's where this contract becomes the main part of the discussion and the disappointment of year one in combination with that.

Starting point is 00:03:45 And the hope is that obviously this off season, maybe he's got a rehab training plan that Bowler and his staff have really put together from because, look, that quad injury that he suffered in the April workouts last year, that was something that lingered for a long time. And then you have the hamstring injury that certainly did pop up for him. But luckily he was able to go for the divisional round of the playoffs, was able to go to an AFC championship game. So could that be the star of Dre just finally piecing it together? And on top of that, you even go through where Dre himself acknowledged, hey, learning this defense, it's like learning Spanish. You know, it's very complicated. There's so many different

Starting point is 00:04:19 rules. But that's why I think makes Vince Joseph's defense as good as it is, is because there is no true tale for quarterbacks when they're under center say, hey, I know. exactly what coverage you're in because they disguise so well, but the stunts, the different packages that they put together, the personnel groupings that they put together, how they run coverages, you know, man to one side, zone to the other, they have different match rules that they certainly apply there, that give them flexibility to get after the quarterback. All these things, it's just you have to learn that a million miles an hour. When you don't have as much time on task like Drey Greenlaw didn't have in 2025, it is

Starting point is 00:04:54 hard to kind of jump right in and pick all that up. Now I'd say, I agree with you. I think Dre should be back. I think you at least give it another year because your first year with him was kind of incomplete, so to speak. But man, you certainly saw the flashes. I think everybody knows what Drake can bring to the table when he's fully healthy. And the question, the key is, hey, hopefully he can be fully healthy in 2026 for all 17 games. Man, that would be incredible.

Starting point is 00:05:19 And it'll give you a chance if that is the case to see how impactful he truly is. As you mentioned, we saw it in spurts here. But because there's no guaranteed money, and if there is this dilemma where let's say the Broncos, and I don't know how the organization feels, I'm saying maybe this is something that they're thinking about is can we really go into another season, really trying to bank on the health of Dre Greenlaw, right? That is a huge question mark. Obviously, they support him. But from a football standpoint, from a business standpoint, is we don't know if this guy's going to be able to stay on the field all game. So what do we do at the linebacker position? Well, Alex Singleton is unrestricted.

Starting point is 00:05:54 Justin Sternat. He's unrestricted. I would say this. The only way I can see the Broncos moving off from Drey Greenlaw is if they go into free agency and say, hey, our goal here, we're going to keep Singleton and Sternad as starters. We're going to pay both of those guys. That would be at. But then also, Sarah, that doesn't fully address the linebacker position because behind those two, you have Jordan Turner, obviously was an undrafted guy who was very impressive. He's a player. they want to continue to develop. And then Lavelle Bailey, who's a developmental player as well, that doesn't necessarily speak to, hey, we're super comfortable now with the linebacker room.

Starting point is 00:06:31 That's where the dilemma of this conversation really kind of comes into play. Yeah, you'd really have to hedge your bets in the NFL draft in that case, right? Because, I mean, you have Drew Sanders, but what does he bring into the table at this point? We have no idea. Bigger questions and Dre. Way bigger questions. So it's the depth of this position, and it's also sorting out the top of this position, right? because like you said, it's an either or proposition.

Starting point is 00:06:55 There is not a scenario that we can see right now. I mean, never say never in the NFL, money talks. But right now there's not a scenario where we could say Alex Singleton, Dre Greenlaw, and Justin Sernat are back with this team in 2026 because Justin wants to be a starter. I would assume Alex wants to be a starter. And you're not bringing Dre Greenlaw back at an over 10 million cap number to sit on the bench or to be a rotational guy at the position. It's not going to, it's not going to happen. So you have to, as we're going to talk about throughout the show, with many situations on this roster, especially at linebacker, you now have to

Starting point is 00:07:33 pick a lane. You have to say, okay, do we take the risk with Dre Greenlaw? Do we, I would say it's a risk to go with Singleton and Sternad, because those guys haven't necessarily been at the, I wouldn't say, I'd say they played well in the, the Vance Joseph defense, but have they played at the level, the team signed Drey Greenlaw for a reason, let's put it that way, right? They went out. out and paid big money for Dre for a reason. So I don't think that's the solution either. I think that right here, you're set up to, you're at a fork in the road, right? It's that proverbial fork in the road where you have to make a decision. What are we going to do at the top of this position? How are we going to supplement the depth? Where do we want to invest? And it ultimately

Starting point is 00:08:13 starts with that question from the front office to the coaching staff. Who do we want in the starting lineup? If the answer doesn't include Dre Greenlaw, then he becomes the most. obvious cut candidate on the entire roster. Yeah. And once again, I'm on the premise saying, I don't think, I don't think Drey's going to go anywhere. I think they're going to run it back another year with him. And you should Sean Payton alluded to saying, hey, like, you know, next year I could do a veterans thing with Cortland and with Dre to get them an NIR, veterans day, you know, arrest day throughout the week. That might be the plan here going forward. Also, I mean, I could see a scenario where the Broncos say, hey, we're not going to bring Singleton back. We're not going to bring Stern ad back.

Starting point is 00:08:51 and they make an aggressive push to maybe go get a guy like Devin Lloyd. I mean, could you imagine, under the hypothetical here, the Drey Greenlaw stays healthy all 17 games. Could you imagine pairing Drey Greenlaw and Devin Lloyd together with this defense? Sarah, that to me would be like the ultimate dream of the offseason for the linebacker position. How likely is that to happen? I don't know. I'm sure they're going to try to push their chips in,

Starting point is 00:09:14 but I want to get your thoughts on that as a possibility where maybe they don't bring Sternad or Singleton back. I mean, let's go. Like that's the, that is the other factor in this is like, okay, we have the wild card option, right? We have the, hey, you didn't know this was in my deck option with, okay, like you said, Devin Lloyd, probably going to be the highest paid off ball linebacker in free agency. Or like I said on my top three offseason moves like Caden Ellis from the Falcons as well. So you go outside of the organization. And what are you risking by doing that?

Starting point is 00:09:49 What you're risking is, is you're saying, we believe that an elevation in the talent department. These guys are holdovers. These guys are part of the culture. Singleton, Sternad, they're part of the culture of this team. They've been in Vance's defense for now three seasons together. So you're saying we're trading that for the risk of a talent upgrade at this position for guys who have to come in and learn this defense, which I think is a worthwhile risk. But what you're saying is that we believe a top three defense.

Starting point is 00:10:19 We're willing to put that in the balance by saying we're going to go out of house to bring in somebody on a big money contract. I think that's a risk worth taking. And I think that the Broncos are kind of at that point right now where that decision might almost be made for them with these two guys, Singleton and Sir Nad being free agents. Broncos country, we want to hear from you on today's episode of show. If you're watching on YouTube, make sure you comment a flexing emoji if you think that Dre Greenlaw will be back this upcoming season here for the Broncos. sure you share your thoughts with us here today as well. But coming up next, Broncos, we're going to talk about whether or not the Broncos

Starting point is 00:10:54 will run it back with their starting offensive line with Ben Powers. Could he return here in 2026 or could he be a cut candidate? We'll go through that and more here on today's episode of the show. Today's episode, the show is brought to by friends over there at TurboTax. And tax season doesn't have to take over your life this year. TurboTax, they're making it easier than ever to just hand things off and move on with your day. With TurboTax full service, you can have your taxes done for you by a trusted local expert and start to finish without the stress or the guesswork.

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Starting point is 00:12:32 Thanks for tuning in today and every single day. You know your boys, Cody and Sarah got you covered all throughout the off season. So don't miss a single episode of this show. And if you haven't already done so, all you every day is out there. Go ahead. Check out the link in the show notes to sign up for the Every Day or All Access Club. the base level of that, you're going to get an ad-free episode of the show. But for all you all access members, man, you're going to get so much bonus content from Cody and I throughout the course of the off season and into next regular season.

Starting point is 00:13:01 We're dreaming up ideas for that. And we love that you consider supporting the show in that way. It means the world to us. So Cody, let's talk about Ben Powers because he's a piece of discussion here because he signed a four-year deal back in 2023. He's entering a contract year. you always kind of look at things from a roster construction standpoint. When a guy is entering the last year of his contract, you really have to weigh three options, right?

Starting point is 00:13:28 Do you move on? Do you just ride it out? Or do you say, hey, we're going to continue to build around this guy and we're going to re-sign him. We're going to extend him into the future. I don't know where the Broncos are at with Ben Powers right now, right? I mean, he missed a bunch of time this past season due to injury. And that happens.

Starting point is 00:13:47 you know, happens to the best of them. But this year, he's set to count for 18.155 million against the salary cap with a base salary of 11.99 million. And just like Dre Greenlaw, none of that money is guaranteed. Yeah, and that league's the bigger question here. When you look at his contract and how it was structured is, okay, hey, there are two void years at the end of it after 2026. There's a void year in 2027.

Starting point is 00:14:12 There's one in 2028. Denver, I mean, they could. I mean, right now you look at his contract, it kind of screams that he's the ideal cut candidate for you. But then that leaves you with no real solution at left guard, which I think leads to another discussion. Like for the Broncos, I think we can say this year, Ben Powers, when he went out with his injury, we saw how impactful he truly was. And it seemed like in that Philadelphia Eagles game where obviously he suffered the torn bicep that required surgery, J.K. Dobbins was running really well behind him.

Starting point is 00:14:43 I mean, he was the guy that was pulling. Dobbins was following behind him, being patient. And we talked about just there's this level of efficiency that comes to play here on the offensive line when you have continuity, when you're not switching out pieces left and right. And luckily, I mean, knock on wood, the Broncos, they haven't had any major, major injuries outside of powers last year. Luckily, it wasn't season ending, but it forced him to miss some time where the Broncos had to scramble for solutions. And then that led into Matt Parrott stepping up where Matt Parr got hurt in his first game playing. and, you know, he struggled in that game against the New York Jets. But then you saw Alex Paucheski step in and he actually did a really good job.

Starting point is 00:15:20 But I know this is the conversation. This is the people that, you know, the idea that people are discussing, okay, well, if you let Ben Powers go, well, maybe just slide Alex Paucheski, who is a restrictive free agent, do you just slide him over to left guard? I don't know if that's the right solution. I know you and I've discussed this before off air, but I'm very curious for Broncos' country's thoughts on this. How do you approach the Ben Power's?

Starting point is 00:15:43 situation here, Sarah, if you were the GM. I think I would first look at the restructure situation, right? Or maybe even a contract extension, right? Because like you mentioned, you have the void years in the deal. And Ben Powers has been a really good player for this Denver Broncos team, especially when it comes to, like you said, noticeable absence in the running game. So next year, he's already set to account for 4.35 million against the salary cap. And he's not even supposed to be on the roster, right?

Starting point is 00:16:10 That's what those void years do. You're kicking the can down the road and you're just saying, hey, this is going to be such a minimal percentage of the salary cap that it's worth us kind of taking that hit down the road to have the player now on the team. And everybody knows how credit cards work, right? That's what we're talking about essentially. Klarna. You're trying to afterpay Ben Powers here is what you're doing. But I think that to me, I would look at an extension and say, hey, what works, what makes the most sense going forward because he is going to be 30 this year. year or he's already 30 or one of the two.

Starting point is 00:16:43 Yeah. And so I would say look into a short term extension and say, hey, how can we keep you part of this unit? If not that, I would say this is the prime year to move on because you're going to get a decent amount of cap savings either way, especially if you designate him as a post-June 1 cut where you could save $12.73 million against the cap. And that would give you kind of all offseason to figure out alternatives. If you make him a post-June 1 cut, you don't get those cap savings right away, though.

Starting point is 00:17:11 that's part of the problem. So that's why I would say first I would look to extend or I would look to restructure and get that additional cap space however possible while keeping him around for at least this next year. You know, I look at the offensive Alonto. I'm looking up on spot track right now. Broncos, their top three highest paid players in terms of cap hit.

Starting point is 00:17:32 Mike McGlinchie, Quinn Miners, Ben Powers. After that, Pat Sertan. Garrett Bowles is the 13th highest paid in terms of cap hit or, you know, cap impact there. But also you mentioned Mike McGlenshy, 32. Ben Powers 30. Quinn Miners is 28. I'm not worried about that.

Starting point is 00:17:48 But then you got Garib Bulls, 34 years of age. And look, he's playing really well despite where his age is at. But then you have Matt Pair at 19, who is the next highest paid offensive lineman behind Garrett Bulls. To me, that's a little bit crazy in terms of cap hit from the standpoint of 3.9 million. So for me, I just look at Denver's offensive line. Is this maybe the ideal time if there's an upgrade outside? there in free agency, do you go out there and maybe get a guy here? Like if you move on from

Starting point is 00:18:16 Ben Powers, do you supplement that by saying, hey, we're going to go with a younger guy? In my opinion, if you do that and there is a top interior offensive guard out there, well, that is essentially going to cost you probably the same, if not more money this upcoming season, Sarah. So I don't know how to look at it. I mean, obviously, I think you have the flexibility, right? Like if you do a new contract to the new player, well, yeah, you can make it to where that first year cap hit isn't as much, but you're running at the same conversation. down the line when other contracts here in a few years are set to expire. I mean, this is, I think this is where the complexity of being a GM in the NFL and being

Starting point is 00:18:50 obviously the guy who's responsible with the salary cap and structuring these deals like Rich Hurtado is. Boy, I don't, I don't envy them in this position. This is tough here. So if they're up to you, I think Ben Powers brings a lot to the table. I think you bring him back in my, because right now you don't have any other clear-cut option. Now let's say the NFL draft, I think you could draft the guy and maybe let him develop while maybe you extend powers on a two-year deal, so to speak.

Starting point is 00:19:17 How would you feel about that? I like that idea. I love this draft for offensive line. You know, the deeper you get, I don't know, there's not necessarily like the blue chip, you know, Joe Thomas of this class by any stretch. But I think this is a pretty deep offensive line class, or at least there's some nice depth for where the Broncos are picking. And so I like that option.

Starting point is 00:19:38 I also don't hate the option as I'm looking at some of the projected free agents here, Cody. I mean, like, Elijah Vera Tucker from the Jets is a free agent. There's a number of young guys out there, Zion Johnson. Like, could you steal him from the charters or will they try to franchise tag him? And if they do, then say goodbye to Odafe Owe, which helps the Broncos regardless. David Edwards from the bills, do you look at him and say, hey, can't beat him, join them, sort of a situation. Like those guys have pummeled our D line.

Starting point is 00:20:07 So bring that dude over and let's say, hey, you come play left guard for me. I think the Broncos leverage is this year's free agent and draft class to be able to go to Ben Powers and say, look, this is where we're at. You missed how many games last year, eight games or seven games or whatever it was. It was over two months roughly. So I think you look at that situation and you say he's 30. He's coming off a season where he had a serious injury. He's in the last year of his contract. I would say if he's not willing.

Starting point is 00:20:37 to come back on a restructured or maybe even a pay cut type of deal, I might go to free agency and go after one of those younger guys and say, hey, we're going to reset the clock here. We're going to pay somebody. It's worth investing in the O line when you got a young quarterback on a rookie contract, especially. I think there's, that's why we say they're at a fork in the road here because there are, I mean, and it may not even be a fork. We may be on a super highway where there's, you know, an exit to the right and exit to the left.

Starting point is 00:21:04 And you got to, you know, I don't know exactly what's going to happen. happen, but I think that the options here gives the Broncos some nice leverage. On on top of that, too, you do have a young guy in Luke Wattenberg on your offensive line. Everybody else is up there in age, so to speak, outside of Quinn Miners, right? So maybe balancing out and saying, hey, you got Bow Nix on a rookie deal. Well, guess what? You have this offensive line that is highly paid. Okay, let's try to push our chips in right now.

Starting point is 00:21:27 Or it's like, hey, we also need to get younger for the eventual event that one of these guys retires or walks away at a certain point or you move on in free agency. You also have to have a plan in place for. that, not just this year, but it's also just looking into like 2027. That's the business with the NFL. But Broncos Country, make sure you let us know your thoughts on whether you would like to see Ben Powers return. Comment with a lock emoji or respond to that here on today's episode of the show. But coming up next, Sarah and I are going to debate whether or not the Broncos will look at trading a corner or a receiver to add to that position or to add to their draft capital.

Starting point is 00:21:59 We'll debate that more here on today's episode of the show. Rockos Country. Fan duel is the place to be for all of the winter games because the winter games, they are officially here. And if you're anything like us, you are locking in for the events that you only get to see on the biggest stage every four years. And that is why following the winter games on Fan duel just makes sense. From metal counts to individual events to finding your angle on the sports that you care the most about. They give you more ways to stay connected on the action. You got the drama of curling matches that may start slow, but somehow they get intense super fast. speed skating races decided by inches,

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Starting point is 00:23:00 we'll discuss that here on today's episode of show. I want to say thank you once again to everyone in Broncos country. Thanks for taking time out of your day. However, you choose to do so to listen to us, making us your first listen, however you do that here. Sarah, let's get into this conversation here because I felt like on our squad show the other day, felt like we had a really good conversation with obviously AP and Ferg about this when talking about the cornerback position, right?

Starting point is 00:23:21 There's the dilemma like, hey, J-Quan Macmillan needs to get paid. Okay, well, you drafted Jada Baron. So what does this mean for him if you pay J-Quan? Well, I think you and I think the squad, we actually discussed the idea of let there be an open competition for that cornerback spot opposite of PS2. Like Riley Moss obviously earned the job to be a starter. But, you know, with his contract set to come up here at the end of this upcoming season, and now you've got to look at it from the standpoint of, okay, can we just raise the level of that ceiling a little bit inside of that room? Do we have a competition with Riley and Jaday Barron and Chris Abrams drain, so to speak?

Starting point is 00:23:59 there is that idea or there's the idea of maybe trading a guy, sir. How do you feel about that? And then we'll obviously get into receiver afterwards. Yeah, this is a tough one because it's nice to have enviable depth at a position, isn't it? I'm currently writing up something on predominantly orange about this. And so hopefully the listeners will be able to read that by the time they listen to this show. But I think that really what it comes down to is what is the most beneficial to the Broncos? What gives the Broncos the most value from this position group?

Starting point is 00:24:30 Is it riding it out and competing during training kit with, like you said, Riley Moss, Jaday Barron, and Chris Abrams Drain out there for that outside cornerback position? Or do the Broncos have enough of a sample from Riley Moss to definitively say at this point, we view him as a contract extension candidate, we view him as a future franchise tag candidate, or we say, like, let's trade him now. Let's get him to a new situation. he's got one year left on his deal. He's played a lot of football. Teams always need starting corners. Do we trade Riley this off season?

Starting point is 00:25:02 Or do you say, you know what? The ink is still drying on Jada Barron's draft reports for all these teams. He did not, he played 330-something snaps last season, barely 33% or 30% of the team's defensive snaps in 17 games, five in the AFC championship, 12 in the divisional round. So what the Broncos did last year is they drafted a first round. corner who essentially was a backup on the team only played 91 special team snaps and that's not unless you're drafting a quarterback in the first round who's sitting behind a star at the position an aging star you want first round like instant return on investment that's what you want and

Starting point is 00:25:44 jade is an older rookie so he's going to be 24 already there's so much in terms of the layers to this discussion that I think to me, Jaudei Barron could be the number one trade chip that nobody's talking about on this Denver Broncos defense. If the team believes that Riley Moss is a second contract player, if that's not the case, then Riley becomes an obvious trade candidate. And you compete Jadae and Chris Abrams drain on the outside and feel good about

Starting point is 00:26:13 whatever, however the chips fall in that situation. And look, Broncos country, let us preface this by saying, we're not advocating for the Broncos to trade anybody. We're talking about possibilities. When you're looking at roster construction, what makes sense, right?

Starting point is 00:26:27 Considering the reality of Jadae being drafted to the deepest cornerback room in the league, do you, like, if that didn't work out, like, because you put pressure on Jekwon, the moment that they drafted him, Jekwon had his best season as a pro and was arguably one of the more valuable players of the Broncos defense throughout the season. When you talk about needing a clutch play to happen, and that's nothing against Jade. That's just, hey, it just raised the game of someone. somebody else, which is what you want. But you don't move on from a great player like Jaquan for a rookie, so to speak. You don't move on just because you drafted a guy. And look,

Starting point is 00:26:57 even Sean Payton, I think he's been very reflective over the last couple of seasons. He goes back and tell stories about guys like Rob Ninkovich, you know, where they had him and they envisioned him in this position. End up not working out. He ended up going to another team and thriving and all of a sudden becoming a pro bowler, so to speak, in another position. So I look at all these things. And sometimes, like, I think that Denver was in a position too last year, Sarah, with the draft that, I mean, they had most of their starters on offense and defense really solidified here. And the draft was about maybe adding the best overall player. And I think we can all agree that in hindsight, maybe we wouldn't have, if we were in charge, we wouldn't have gone

Starting point is 00:27:33 with a corner, so to speak, in the first round. Maybe tight end probably would have been the biggest priority or I don't know. I mean, they added a running back in RJ Harvey in round two. So I'm not even going to factor running back into that equation there, unless it was like Trayvion Henderson. But Denver's got some decisions that they have to make here. Obviously, cornerback depth is we have seen is super important having the right depth there. I'm curious who will be the new coach for this position here going forward. But I think an open competition certainly is good. But here's the thing, like in today's NFL, and I think Sean Payton certainly believes

Starting point is 00:28:02 this as well, you need guys that can be versatile. But I think he has preference over players who have a certain height on the outside. Like typically, you're shorter guys playing the slot there. That's just how it's always been. We'll see. We'll see if that changes philosophically. Now, let's talk about wide receiver here as well. You and I have thrown out in our dream offseason episodes that we've done in Broncos country.

Starting point is 00:28:24 If you haven't seen those yet, go check out Sares top three off season. Go check out my top three off season. We did solo episodes on that. But we each indicated the idea of trading for a wide receiver, right? Going out there and making a big spin where you and I agree, we don't, like, we had trade the 30th overall pick this year if it meant going, getting Bow Knicks, a number one wide receiver. The question is, if the Broncos do that, do they trade one of their receivers in the mix. I know a lot of people thrown Cortland Sutton and that I don't think that

Starting point is 00:28:53 would happen. I think they would add opposite of Cortland. I don't think Cortland would be on the table. Yeah, that's the that's what I've been seeing and hearing as well too, Cody, is this idea like, you know, there's people in the Philadelphia Eagles organization who, let's say we're talking about the AJ Brown hypothetical situation, right? So the Eagles from their perspective, they've got people in their front office and coaching staff. And they're like, they're saying like, hey, Cortland could actually be the perfect wide receiver to to go along with devante smith here so if you want a j brown we want courtland back and i i can see that perspective of that yeah but i don't i wouldn't say like from the broncos perspective you're out there saying all right we'll give you courtland sutton and a

Starting point is 00:29:35 pick for you know whichever wide receiver you're dreaming of i don't i think it's the it's very much the former sort of situation than it is the latter where it would be like you know the other team saying, hey, we like Cortland. We know Cortland. He'd be a great fit for our locker room. He'd be great for this, that, and the other, like that we want him, as opposed to the Broncos saying, we're trying to offload Cortland Sutton. So anytime these hypothetical situations come up, I think that's important context to keep

Starting point is 00:30:02 in mind. But if I'm another team, I'd be looking at a lot of situations. And I'd be saying, shoot, Broncos, you guys have not used Marvin Mims properly. He's got one year left on his deal. How much do you guys really value him and what are you willing? if you want wide receiver X, are you willing to give up mims and a pick to get him? And if that's the case,

Starting point is 00:30:21 that's the deal breaker or who else likes Pat Bryant and how much do the Broncos value Pat versus somebody like Cortland? Would they say, you know, hey, if you want to trade, you know, for our wide receiver, we want Pat Bryant and a pick. And then you guys get to keep Sutton and Franklin and Mims. Like that's a dilemma that I think realistically the Broncos could face because ultimately if you add a premier wide receiver,

Starting point is 00:30:45 you are saying, okay, somebody's going to be getting sacrificed in terms of the target department, whether it's Cortland, Troy, Marvin, Pat, Evan Ingram, like, that's all a factor in this discussion. So we're acknowledging the Broncos need to increase the talent at wide receiver, but there is the realistic element of this to say they're not going to be able to feed everybody if that happens. And that's the challenge. That's the dilemma too. But I would even say my argument would be, I think teams would want Troy Franklin. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:31:16 I think that they would want him because of where he's at. I mean, he's a rising young player here in the NFL. Obviously, we saw him do a lot with all the targets he had last year. He wants to do even more. Like, I don't want the Broncos to get rid of Troy in any way shapeful. I don't want the Broncos to get rid of any of these receivers. But if it means you have to offset one of your younger guys to do it, I think that Troy Franklin might have the most value in that. I could see the argument for Marvin.

Starting point is 00:31:40 but I think with the limited sample size, it's kind of like this boom bust. Do we really throw that out there? And I think it plays in the hands of the Bronco is perfect in terms of leverage. Like, hey, we haven't showcased Marvin as much. Like, he's done this at the end of the 2024 season. He's had some spurts here where he came up. I think Marvin is the best wide receiver on the team

Starting point is 00:31:59 in terms of just clutch factor, reliability. And the fact that it took us as long as it has, or for Sean Payton, as long as it did in this season, to finally use him because of the fact that they had, injuries at the position of other players. It's wild to me. Maybe this was like Sean trying to hide that so that they can get a good value at extending Marvin and then they unleash him after they extend him.

Starting point is 00:32:20 I don't know. But I'm spitballing here on this one. But if Denver were to land a receiver, I feel like it would be draft pick, Troy Franklin. I think that would be maybe where teams lean more so than ever. I couldn't see Sean parting ways with Cortland. I think Sean and Cortland have such a good relationship. Sean wants him in this offense.

Starting point is 00:32:39 and it's Bo Nix's guy. That's the guy that Bo Nix are saying, you need to extend this guy. I need him. They're not going to get rid of Cortland, especially if it means anything to Bo Nix at this point here. But Broncos Country, let us know your thoughts here. If the Broncos were to look at maybe trading,

Starting point is 00:32:54 a wide receiver or a cornerback, what would that look like in your opinion? Make sure you drop it down below here on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. Sarah and I will be back tomorrow for another episode of the show as we break down all things here in Broncos Country. With that said, Broncos Country, enjoy the rest of your day.

Starting point is 00:33:09 We'll see you. here on Friday.

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