B-Marsh and a Contract

I think there’s still some questions about whether he can stay healthy and out of trouble.

As far as the health issue goes, I think he may have gone to Orlando for his rehab in order to hide his lack of progress from the team. That’s from a trusted source close to the team, and by that I mean something I just pulled out of my butt. Nonetheless, Marshall has had lingering injury problems, and you have to look at the possibility that he’ll never be the same again.

Ultimately, Coach Josh wants a specific type of person on the team, and choosing this time to angle for a better contract might be the straw that broke the camel’s back, causing him to determine that Brandon is not the type of person that fits the Bronco mold.

He still seems to have some unresolved off field issues, I don’t know if you tie up alot of money in him. The other issue is that I think Rod Smith has done wonders with Marshall, I don’t know how much time and effort he will continue to exert on Marshall, and without a positive older mentor I worry that he will slip back into some poor habits. Now if we could trade Marshall for say Aquan Boldin, I would be all for that.

Stay healthy. Stay team oriented. Produce. Big pay day.

Love the way Brandon plays, question the way he conducts himself off the field. But, without a new CBA on the table all bets are off as to who gets signed where and when. If Denver wants to keep him in the stable then extend him this year…..

but there are still questions with him off the field. maybe they could structure the contract with incentives like, “dont get arrested for 12 months” or “stay out of ATL for 6 months” lol. but i think we will be able to sign him for cheaper right now, than after the season. why? because i expect bmarsh to have a huge year

away from the Bears. Brandon COULD become the face of this franchise, why would we want him to go. He is a proven play-maker and from what I’m hearing from him, he is going to stay out of trouble. Why not sign him to a longer deal?

Brandon Marshall is a true talent on the football field. We need to lock him down as a Bronco as soon as possible. (If you are reading this, Much Love Beast!!!)

That being said, the organization does need to approach this in an intelligent way:

1) No new contract until we see healthy production…someone above said October. That’s fine by me. Whenever they can see that he is back and healthy and dominating poor fools on the field.

2) Big money protection for misbehavior. It is fair and it is necessary. Give him money, but put ties to the bigger portion to keeping his nose clean. I for one think Brandon would sign this in a heartbeat for two reasons: A. He’s going to keep his nose clean anyway. B. It is automatic incentive for him to take extra precautions on walking a straight line.

With those two points covered, I see no reason not to give him a contract that makes him one of the 3 best paid wide receivers.

But in my humble opinion, I think it’s in the team’s best interest to wait for the following questions to be answered before considering a BMarsh contract extension:

Health – The whole Orlando rehab thing is very suspect to me. I’d want to see that Marshall can endure a full training camp and at least a half season without any hip or arm issues.

New System – Many people seem to think that Marshall and Royal will be to the McDaniels offense what Moss and Welker are to the Patriots. MAYBE Royal could fit in the Welker role due to his crisp route running and capable hands but I think comparing Marshall to Moss is like comparing square pegs to round pegs. BMarsh is nowhere near the deep threat that Moss is to the Patriots. I’m really curious to see what his role will be in the new offense. I hope Brandon will thrive in it but at the same time he may have to accept a role entirely different than the one that gave him over 200 balls in the past 2 seasons. Will he have the maturity and flexibility to adapt to a different role? Again, just worth waiting on before shelling out, in my opinion.

Character – Look, I’m glad to see BMarsh avoid a long-term suspension from the NFL for the second time. But if his name comes up in just one more police blotter….and I don’t care how much supportive evidence he can produce in an ESPN interview….I’m for all intents and purposes, done with him. He needs to prove to the team and more importantly, to himself that he can stay out of trouble for a full calendar year. I think the pain of having a trouble-ridden BMarsh under a long-term contract far outweighs a well behaved BMarsh under a long-term contract with another team. The embarrassment of Dale Carter, Darryl Gardener, Maurice Clarett, and the likes still permeate for me from time to time.

So common sense suggests to me to let Marshall play the season out and hope the Broncos compensate him fairly based on his performance this year both on and off the field.

counts. We only see the off the field antics, the MSM, the interviews, and other tidbits for public consumption. I think McD and Bowlen, as many others above have pointed out, are putting a premium on character.

BM may be another TO. I don’t think anyone on the new Character Broncos wants TO because even though he puts up numbers, he is toxic. He damages chemistry and he is a QB spirit killer. TO doesn’t have much in the way of off field antics and during interviews he’s all sweetness and light, but his teams don’t win big games and when they do win, it isn’t because of his elite play. It’s a team game. On paper, Dallas was studly. On the field, they weren’t, but TO still put up numbers.

If BM is a problem in the film room, in the locker room, in the weight room, in the coach’s office, anywhere, he should go. It seems to me that he has character issues that keep resurfacing in a variety of ways and if we are seeing them from afar, they have to also be surfacing in the confines of the team sanctuary. If that is the case, let him go. And let him go in such as way as to get the maximum price for him. That may mean letting him go while he is still respected and his team problems are still only rumors. Character is more important than talent.

Put Sheff in the slot, Royal and Swift wide. Graham as TE with Moreno as the lone back. Orton under center. Motion Sheff across the backfield. What are we going to do, run or pass?

Brandon who?

I believe BMarsh can put up Rice-ish type numbers right here in Denver or anywhere he wanted to. The point is, does he want to. Gifted atheletes are sometimes overwhelmed with the amount of money they get. Never having that much to begin with and then ‘bam’ theres a couple of million in the bank. Some recover some don’t. I know teams have counselors to coach rookie players with money management, but some never really grasp it.

BMarshes injury probably won’t be much of an issue and in fact may restore him to 100%. I tend to go with PO above wait until mid Oct and see the results. Great post Rev.

Not sure they need to panic about his contract just yet.

With everything going on around him, and the fact (imo) that Brandon wants to stay a Bronco, we probably have all the leverage we need to get him signed for value with some smart incentives to protect ourselves. C’mon X, time to dazzle us!

I agree with several other members.

Sign him to a good, long term deal. Also, put in an escape clause. If he gets in any trouble, the team either recovers significant money or can realease him.

He’s a terrific player. But he also gets in environments where he is likely to get into trouble or to be around it.

Way too many drops last year.

And I would agree with others that any deal would have to include him staying out of anything other than “minor” trouble.

He is under contract. The Broncos are in no way obligated to do anything at this time. I’m not saying he will have a hissy fit, but he should be counseled by his agent to prove he is worthy of a new deal this year. As has been stated, moral and physical health needs to be established before any rational decisions should be made. Yes, the kid is a great talent and should be locked up in a long term deal with fair market compensation, IF these things are met. A contract with incentives and stipulations would be the smart way to go here. I really like BMarsh and really and truly hope he succeeds for the Broncos and in life, but if I were financing this investment, I would look to protect it.

The worry I’ve had (all the way back to mid-last year) is rumors that Brandon had a troubled hip. I think we saw some signs as the season progressed, with occasional lack of effort after the pass, and passes dropped. I would like to think that it was the nerve damage in his hand causing the problem—but I didn’t see it early in the season (the passes dropped).

This leads me to believe that something was breaking Brandon’s concentration. Hips are funny things.

Ask Bo Jackson………….

If the hip is not a problem…let’s keep Brandon and follow him to the Hall of Fame…..

I have no idea what Pat, Josh and X will actually do but this shouldn’t be too difficult to plug into a risk / reward matrix and calculate. Risks 1) He bolts as soon as he gets a chance because he gets his feelings hurt over not getting a new contract 2) His off field issues continue and he gets suspended 3) His recovery from hip surgery doesn’t go as planned and he’s never the same..(sorry but it’s possible) 4) A new contract at this point limits the teams cap flexibility to acquire additional free agents in July and August when there are almost always good players to be had. 5) and this is strictly my personal observation ; He has some nerve damage in his arm that will continue to haunt him in the form of dropped passes. So on the risk side we have 4 solid and 1 questionable concerns. Rewards 1) HE’S A BEAST and brings an element to the passing game that few players can bring (if healthy). Now factor in these mitigating circumstances 1)He’s under contract, can’t go anywhere else if he wanted to and if necessary could have the Franchise Tag option if we needed to apply it to keep him and the picture gets a little clearer. 2) He’s not exactly in a strong negotiating position. All things considered now would be the time to show up , work hard and prove his value. (I know it will be tough to survive on 2.3 Mil but maybe it will build character) and finally 3) He’s on a team that just boldly demonstrated that prima donna’s will not be tolerated so if he chooses to go the " I just want to get paid what I’m worth" route … good luck, but bad timing.

Oh alright. We can toss them a 5th rounder