Patrick Smith - Getty Images
6 months ago: LANDOVER, MD - NOVEMBER 6: Wide receiver Braylon Edwards #17 of the San Francisco 49ers eludes cornerback DeAngelo Hall #23 of the Washington Redskins during the third quarter at FedExField on November 6, 2011 in Landover, Maryland. The San Francisco 49ers won, 19-11. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Two free agency periods in just over half a year? Sign me up.
The Denver Broncos are coming off of a season in which they finished 31st in the league in passing, due largely to the fact that when they were winning, it was the running game that was continually dominant and the primary focus of the offensive gameplan.
In 2012, I think we can expect the Broncos to open up the passing game a little bit more, but as of right now, there are only a few guys under contract for 2012. Third year players Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker are joined by free agent acquisition Jason Hill and D'Andre Goodwin in the Broncos' receiver group, with both Eddie Royal and Matt Willis set to become free agents in a couple of weeks.
Needless to say, receiver is a position the Broncos need to seek some kind of upgrade, I'm just not sure what kind of upgrade it will be at this point.
Will the Broncos pursue a big name free agent? Former big name free agent? Will they draft another young guy? A combination of some of these? It's all pretty fuzzy for me right now, but I think when you look back at what this team was able to do last year in getting a guy like Willis McGahee at running back, I think you could see a similar acquisition (or two) this year at wide receiver.
Here are some directions I think the Broncos could go when free agency starts in a couple of weeks:
Big Ticket Free Agent Acquisition: Vincent Jackson, San Diego Chargers
Vincent Jackson is one of the best deep ball receivers in the league, and the Broncos showed last year that their passing game is going to try to take a lot of shots downfield. He comes with some character red flags, but personally, I would rather have V-Jax in Denver than San Diego with Philip Rivers.
Jackson is a Colorado native, and he went to school about an hour away from Denver at Northern Colorado. It would be a homecoming of sorts for the receiver, who is one of the best in the business at helping his team put points on the board. He is such a big physical mismatch and is the type of guy who could be a huge addition for our offense, though I am not so sure the Broncos will make such a big move at receiver when you have a former first and third round pick who had actually pretty good sophomore campaigns considering the conditions of the offseason and everything.
I think it would be interesting to add Vincent Jackson, but it's going to take a lot of money for a guy who is going to be 29, has character problems, and it could potentially really limit our young guys.
Low Risk, High Reward Acquisitions: Braylon Edwards, San Francisco 49ers; Steve Smith, Philadelphia Eagles; Early Doucet, Arizona Cardinals; Anthony Gonzalez, Indianapolis Colts
Why are these guys low-risk? Well, I doubt the Broncos would have to break the bank for any of these guys, both in terms of guaranteed money or years on a contract. I think you could give any one of these guys a reasonable two-year contract and it would suffice.
Why are they high-reward guys? Braylon Edwards has a ton of talent, and obviously has big play ability but he has had problems with injury and inconsistency. I think adding him could allow Eric Decker to move to the slot where he is pretty effective, and help give the Broncos a lot of mismatches at the receiver positions.
Steve Smith basically didn't play in 2011 because he had injury problems and clearly was affected by a switch to a new team during the lockout. Maybe giving him a full offseason can get him back to his 2010 form and be a sure-handed third down target that the Broncos need.
Early Doucet is a young, talented guy who probably would be another big name free agent if the Cardinals had a quarterback who could spread the ball around effectively. He's not an elite player by any means, but a solid role player and a guy who can make some plays.
Anthony Gonzalez has missed a majority of the last couple of seasons with injuries, which is sad because the guy can flat out play. If he comes cheap, he is young enough that he has some upside in my opinion and can possibly give the Broncos what we have hoped for from Eddie Royal for years.
Wily Old Veteran Additions: Reggie Wayne, Indianapolis Colts; Plaxico Burress, New York Jets
I'm pretty picky when it comes to this list because you see what certain guys can do, but I think that Reggie Wayne could be an absolutely perfect addition for this team if he were willing to play here.
Wayne is already 33 and on the back end of his career, and I have this sneaking suspicion that he's just going to follow Peyton Manning wherever he goes (Miami), but I would still give us a shot. Wayne has always played pretty well in Denver or against Denver if memory serves me right, so why not just sign him if you can't beat him?
He's still one of the best receivers in the league, and even if he has lost a step, he's still a reliable guy who can run great routes, get open, and not consistently drop passes.
Plaxico Burress is a guy who can pretty much only score touchdowns, but that's okay with me. Still, he might be the most unlikely because of his history and the fact that he is a pretty one-dimensional player at this point. Still, we could sign worse players to fill in at wide receiver.
Former First Round Picks Up for Grabs--Under 30
3 recs | 38 comments
I think Wayne will go wherever Manning goes.
I’d like to get Garcon or Doucet. My dream is Vincent Jackson, but i doubt it.
Scotty Payne - February 18, 2012
is there any difference between
V-Jack and Bay Bay?
the new Bradfather - February 19, 2012
I don't trust Edwards, for a number of reasons
The biggest is he hasn’t had even a good season since 2007, has injury, drop and character issues. Add in he wasn’t even a priority on a WR needy team like SF says something. If I had to choose one I’d go with, that always would logically make sense (terms of contract, desire to come to Denver, and skill set) I’d have to go with Doucet or Robinson, mostly because so many of these WR’s would want really big contracts or have their success closely tied to their QB’s.
Topher Doll - February 18, 2012
Yeah stay away from Braylon
he cant catch the ball, and we really don’t need a WR who can’t catch, we have enough of those issues with our team already
Scotty Payne - February 18, 2012
Nice thoughts...
I think I would go with someone like Doucet. I really want nothing to do with Vincent Jackson. I would spend my free agent money in a hundred other places first.
swg777 - February 18, 2012
Yep, Doucet was great at Mihigan, solid player and getting better. he would be good value for money!
boydy2669 - February 18, 2012
Doucet played at LSU
pbgogators - February 18, 2012
I think you mean Manningham. He was a stud at Michigan, but left too soon in my opinion.
tiderfootball09 - February 19, 2012
I think V Jax might be somewhat overrated
I think he benefitted from being with a good QB that didnt mind throwing the deep ball to him.
V Jax has never caught more than 70 balls in a season. He actually has never even caught 70. And he’s only had 3 1,000 yard seasons since coming into the league in 2005. He had one season that he only played in 5 games…. but a bunch of them we played in all 16 and he had either Rivers or Brees tossing him the ball (I forget the year Drew left)
He’s a big target that you can chuck it up to and he’ll come down with it. But you can find those in a lot of places these days since defenders cant even breathe on wideouts.
Triz06 - February 19, 2012
You guys are often polling what kinds of content we enjoy in the offseason, this is the kind of stuff that gets me going
GreasyQtip - February 18, 2012
We'll keep that in mind
And try to keep giving you articles that inspire content.
Topher Doll - February 18, 2012
No Edwards.. no Plaxico.
A possession WR like Steve Smith or A. Gonzalez would be a nice compliment to Decker/Thomas. A speedster would be nice as well… but no D. Jackson!
B_B - February 18, 2012
V jax is the perfect addition if you ask me, or Edwards would work for me
You barely touch on the point that V jax would allow Decker to play in the slot. Jax would open the field and it is good enough to have 2 young growing receivers on the roster, and see if lower draft picks develop.
I think many of your edwards points can be made for Vjax, but I think Vjax would come with a chip on the shoulder and a lot more drive (if history has any say).
I think we need a veteran, my first pick would be like uhhhh Jabar Gaffney, I can’t believe we let him go. Royal is the first guy I wouldn’t mind seeing go, I like him, but cmon, maybe he can do better elsewhere.
GreasyQtip - February 18, 2012
Steve Smith
Talks alot of stuff, but plays with passion, and thats a good thing
Baghdad - February 18, 2012
I don't think EFX will sign any veterans other than the ones they have, Jason Hill...
We have a guy who is coming off IR that got a few looks in preseason in Mark Dell. Dell illustrates Brondon Lloyd like features where he somewhat acrobatic with his catches, a verticle threat, and a mid range threat. Dell has speed, break away strength, and fluid hips to go with his soft hands. Many he catches the ball.
Let our young (Decker, D Thomas, De’Andre Goodwin, Mark dell, Jason Hill and Eddie Royal) grow together in the unit with Tebow. EFX may draft a receiver if the right one is available at the selection and sign a couple of UDCFAs. No big names, no middle names or other FAs…
bfree2bronc - February 18, 2012
Respect your opinion
But there’s absolutely no way I would ever consider this a good strategy at all in a billion years. No offense meant, but this is the “Chris Baker” strategy that will fail 100 times out of 100 unless you get extremely lucky.
Sayre Bedinger - February 18, 2012
Bill didn't say he agrees with the strategy
But that’s what EFX are probably making by what they shown us until now. And I agree with you both: I think EFX likely won’t sign any veterans here AND I don’t think it’s the strategy I’d run.
Fabio Broncos - February 18, 2012
You forgot to mention Colston
A-Rom - February 18, 2012
No to Braylon Edwards
He’s not been any good on the field for a few years since leaving Cleveland. To compensate for that, he’s still a diva. Bad character and no production. Why would we need that on a rebuilding team? On an off chance that with bad character and diva complex, he’ll break out and finally produce? He’s at the age when breakouts don’t happen.
si_ice - February 18, 2012
if you think Knowshon
has a proclivity to get soused, I guarantee you Braylon is even worse
the new Bradfather - February 19, 2012
Great Hands are what we need
Our QB does not throw a tight spiral and he is not always perfect target like some of these guys are used to. Obviously Vjax can catch anything in the neighborhood when he’s on but he’s not always on and way to $$$. Robinson seems to run great routes and catches most everything in his reach, at 6’2" that’s a lot of space. At 26 he has plenty of upside and may be a guy who would go for a creative front loaded contract. After such a rough 2011 Steve Smith might be a great 1-2 year contract kind of guy. Wayne seemed to be irritated when throws were just a hair behind or high last year. The rest of the guys on this list are just too inconsistent for our offense.
HippoJohn - February 18, 2012
Could not agree more
Even if Tebow shows improvement in reads, releases and accuracy, he’s not always going to make the pass look pretty. Size and hands are the two most crucial aspects, coupled with a willingness to play team ball and not bitch if he doesn’t get the ball often enough. I’m thinking Doucet is the best fit: solid, used to being a role player and not the star, and undoubtedly willing to be on a team that’s closer to being a contender than Arizona—who, among other things, are AT LEAST as far away from having an elite quarterback. Also, he’d be much cheaper than nearly everyone else.
Dirk Gently - February 19, 2012
Thanks John
I really do like Laurent Robinson!
the new Bradfather - February 19, 2012
It will be hard to get any veteran wr's in Denver because they might not see the ball IMO
I would like to see someone like Steve Smith but I really will be surprised if any wr’s show much interest in the Broncos run first offence. Hopefully Mark Dell can get back on track and Jason Hill can put his speed to good use because we need someone to stretch the D
Broncolove - February 18, 2012 via mobile
My favorites on that list are Braylon Edwards and Steve Smith. I’d be more than happy with either one. Preferably Edwards though.
jbbroncosfan27 - February 18, 2012 via mobile
I actually doubt we go big in FA for a WR
maybe one 3rd-tier player for depth, but I doubt any big signings.
That said, I actually like the idea of Desean Jackson… as a deep threat and playmaker in space, he could play the Percy Harvin role in the Tebow offense, and his deep speed would terrify opposing DEFs forcing at least one safety deep… add in BayBay and challenging the safety on the other side, and suddenly there is a lot of space in the short and intermediate zones for Decker.
Now that said, he’s likely too pricey, he’s a headcase, and his inconsistent routes and hands mean he’ll disappoint occasionally…. but in terms of matchups, he’d have a big impact on how DEFs would have to play us, as none of these otherguys except maybe V-Jax would.
cjfarls - February 19, 2012
Surprised,
No one mentioned Stevie Johnson of the Bills they may have started talking contract already but he is still a possibly intriguing name
I Bleed Pinstripes - February 19, 2012
He is an idiot
I wish him well, but there’s no way I’d want that clown on my team.
Sayre Bedinger - February 19, 2012
you mean it's disrespectful
to mock your opponent by pantomiming shooting yourself in the head? #sarcasm, of course I agree with you Sayre
the new Bradfather - February 19, 2012
i doubt we sign a big name FA
If ’11 is any indication of the team Fox wants… we will be run first. If it is any indication of what Tebow needs from his WRs…. the WRS need to get separation. If ’11 was any indication of how EFX wants to build the team… it means on the cheap.
So we want a guy with above average speed and route running ability, at a low cost, in a non-priority position. The only place you find that is with a little luck… in the draft.
Triz06 - February 19, 2012
Steve Smith would be a great addition....
He may come cheaper than he’s worth since Phi didn’t use him much.
The guys has great hands, and has NO FEAR of playing across the middle of the field. He was Eli’s Victor Cruz before Cruz was. If the ball was close, he would get it. That’s exactly the kind of guy Tim needs.
Edwards has dropsies worse than our current WR Corp, so he scares me. VJ is one strike from a year suspension.
Count me as a happy camper if we could get Smith!
Broncotodd - February 19, 2012
If your going to go FA @ wide out
Then I would pick up Steve Smith he fits the FOX offense. The I would lok to the draft for another deep threat to help D.T. and you say what???
bronco4life - February 19, 2012
Draft day thread blowup
We do not need a WR from the draft. I think we can do just fine picking up one of the players on this list, and let’s see what Hill can do.
Meantime, this is still my dream draft:
1. DT Devon Smith or Fletcher Cox
2. CB Brandon Boykin
3. QB Ryan Tannehill
4. RB LaMichael James
5. MLB James-Michael Johnson
6. [best safety available]
7. [best CB available]
Dirk Gently - February 19, 2012
Ryan Tannehill in the 3rd round? LaMichael James in the 4th round?
You really are dreaming but at least it’s a good dream.
ElwayFanJ - February 19, 2012
Dream a little dream
Yep—no way you get both, and not that late. But we can always hope, right? Can Mile High Magic extend to draft day? ;)
Dirk Gently - February 19, 2012
Well at least its not a nightmare....
Not bad but R.T.?? Well that could be a dream if he is there and they are looking, then yes you grab him. But I think he is gone and Kellen Moore would be more my pick. If LaMar is available I would take him over James. #6 best wide-out left…we have enough safeties and prob will pick up an FA safety. WHY wide-out? Well this is only IF we keep our guys from jumping..Willis/Royal..if they go then we need a FA like Smith and a draft. #7 best LB left. What say you???
bronco4life - February 20, 2012
Tommy Streeter or Brian Quick in the late 3rd round
None of those free agents have much upside other than Dwayne Bowe and I don’t see the Chiefs letting him go.
ElwayFanJ - February 19, 2012
I think we have plenty of players with “upside” we need more proven guys.
Sayre Bedinger - February 19, 2012
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