Broncos place tender on two restricted free agents

Late Sunday night, the Denver Broncos began the process of placing tenders on their restricted free agents. First on the list, linebacker Brandon Marshall.

Filed to ESPN: Broncos ILB Brandon Marshall… Restricted FA will get a 2nd round tender. Teams will be interested… Like Miami

— trey wingo (@wingoz) March 7, 2016

If you’re unfamiliar with the term, a tender essentially a shield the Broncos place on a player based on a round in the draft. Other teams are still allowed to negotiate with the player and are able to submit and “offer sheet,” the Broncos are given a chance to review the offer sheet and either match the offer, retaining the player, or receive the pick of the tender they placed on the player from their new team?

For example, let’s say the Dolphins do want Marshall and are willing to pay him more than the Broncos, Denver would receive a second round pick from Miami. If no teams put in an offer sheet, Marshall will get a one-year deal in the $2M range.

Get it? Got it? Good.

The Broncos also placed a low-round tender (worth $1.67M) on running back C.J. Anderson on Monday morning, as reported by Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post.

It seems the once undrafted free agent wasn’t exactly stoked on the value his team placed on him. Since Anderson was undrafted, the low-round tender means teams do not have to give up a pick, the tender just allows the Broncos to match another team’s offer if they please.

Wow welp I've been here b4 jus keep grinding keep working 2 be the best 32-254-22

— Cj Anderson (@cjandersonb22) March 7, 2016

The only other restricted free agent the Broncos have on the roster is Lerentee McCray. Denver does have five Exclusive Rights Free Agents in Bennie Fowler, Matt Paradis, Brandon McManus, Sam Brenner and Todd Davis. If the Broncos put in a qualifying offer on any of these players, they cannot negotiate with other teams. Brenner is expected to be tendered as well.