Broncos Roundtable: Grading Denver’s first week of the new league year

DENVER — Welcome to John Elway’s season.

On Wednesday, the 2020 NFL season kicked off with the official start of free agency. But Elway and Co. were hard at work beginning Monday morning as the legal tampering window opened.

In classic Elway fashion, he made a couple of big splashes to start the new league year.

Here’s how the DNVR Crew graded his initial efforts.

HOW WOULD YOU GRADE DENVER’S MOVES SO FAR

Zac

A — Well done, John. The Broncos entered free agency with a myriad of glaring holes on both sides of the ball. With over $60 million in cap space, Elway had the resources to significantly help his team. However, just because a team has money doesn’t always mean they’re going to spend it right.

But John spent it right.

Denver’s long list of pressing needs included wide receiver, defensive line, offensive line and cornerback. A few days into the new league year, Elway not only addressed three of the four positions, but he also got at minimum a very good player at three of those four positions.

The biggest splash was landing five-time Pro Bowler Jurrell Casey in a trade with the Tennessee Titans. Not only did Elway get an absolute stud on the defensive line, he only gave up a seventh-round pick to do so. On top of that, Casey will only count $11.8 million against Denver’s cap, which puts him as the 27th-highest-paid defensive lineman in the NFL.

Elway addressed another hole via trade by acquiring A.J. Bouye from the Jaguars for a fourth-round pick. Bouye has not only been to a Pro Bowl, but he profiles to be a perfect fit in Vic Fangio’s scheme.

Graham Glasgow, the only player mentioned who has not made a Pro Bowl, is a very solid player along the offensive line. In 2019, according to Pro Football Focus, he graded out as the ninth-best guard in the NFL. Additionally, his versatility gives Mike Munchak plenty of flexibility.

Oh, the position Elway didn’t address with a big-time player—receiver—is the deepest position in the draft. He’ll have no worries taking care of that in April.

Oh—Elway also landed two-time Pro Bowl running back Melvin Gordon to pair up with Phillip Lindsay. Talk about a dangerous backfield.

Elway not only addressed needs in a major way, but he also added some sizzle to the offense by signing Flash.

Ryan

A — Man, from a realistic viewpoint. I don’t know how much more you could ask for. Elway wasn’t exactly traditional in the ways he went about his acquisitions but in the end, he checked off a bunch of boxes on the list of Denver’s needs.

Cornerback: Check. (A.J. Bouye)

Defensive line: Check. (Jurrell Casey)

Right guard: Check. (Graham Glasgow)

RB2: Check. Double-check. (Melvin Gordon)

Backup QB: Check. (Jeff Driskel)

Add in the fact that Justin Simmons is locked in for another year, and you’ve got yourself a homerun offseason right here. And Elway may not even be done yet.

In my opinion, you are legitimately cleared to start getting excited about the 2020 Broncos.

Mase

B+ — If free agency was the only aspect of the offseason building plan, the Broncos would have received a lower grade. But acquiring two veteran starters in Casey and Bouye for seventh- and fourth-round choices, respectively, is a coup for the Broncos, who didn’t have to deal with a market driving their prices up. Casey, in particular, gives the Broncos an interior pass rusher superior to anyone who was available on the open market, and the Broncos were able to get him for a cheap trade price because the Titans needed to dump his salary.

The acquisitions were judicious. Bouye is an ideal scheme fit for Fangio’s defense and should thrive with more use in zone coverage. Casey brings pass-rush punch and leadership to a unit that is looking to find new leaders as it moves forward with few threads connecting the team to its last Super Bowl (and playoff) appearance. Glasgow’s durability makes him the opposite of the team’s big O-line splash last year, Ja’Wuan James. Backup QB Jeff Driskel has many of the same raw skills as Drew Lock, allowing the Broncos to change little on the offense if Lock succumbs to injury. Finally, Gordon gives the offense a red-zone and receiving back it hasn’t had in several years.

The defensive line could still use one more contributor; the depth falls off fast beyond the projected starting trio of Casey, Mike Purcell and 2019 third-round pick Dre’Mont Jones. The Broncos could also do with adding one more cornerback; the draft isn’t stacked at that position. Re-signing De’Vante Bausby ensures depth, but adding Prince Amukamara or Nickell Robey-Coleman would make sense to round out the group with experience.