We all know about some the of the issues facing Denver right now: the quarterback situation, a struggling secondary, questions about the run game, and others. But one issue that I've found seems to be something that is forgotten, the Broncos are a team about to lose a massive chunk of it's roster.
"What!?" You may ask, "teams lose players every year" and while that is true, I don't think fans realize the coming collapse, roster edition. So let's take a look at the Broncos roster, how it will be affected over the next two years, and what areas are of immediate concern. Let's jump.
One thing fans rarely pay attention to is the long term, especially when it comes to contracts and team depth, so that is why I wanted to bring this to the focus today. So when it comes to long term planning, coaches and GM's look at roster depth and contracts and when they end to plan who to draft and who to pick up in free agency. We are going to sit down and put our general manager hats on and look at the Broncos roster. Let's start with the 2011 Broncos roster:
2011 Roster:
* Names in Bold are in their last contract year *
OFFENSE |
|||||
QB |
RB |
FB |
WR1 |
WR2 |
TE |
Kyle Orton |
Willis McGahee |
Spencer Larsen |
Brandon Lloyd |
Eric Decker |
Daniel Fells |
Brady Quinn |
Knowshon Moreno |
Matt Willis |
Eddie Royal |
Julius Thomas |
|
Tim Tebow |
Lance Ball |
Demaryius Thomas |
Quan Cosby |
Virgil Green |
|
Dante Rosario |
|||||
66% Roster Lost |
33% Lost |
100% Lost |
50% Lost |
25% Lost |
|
Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
Starter Lost |
1 Starter Lost |
Starter Lost |
|
LT |
LG |
C |
RG |
RT |
K |
Ryan Clady |
Zane Beadles |
J.D. Walton |
Chris Kuper |
Orlando Franklin |
Matt Prater |
Chris Clark |
Russ Hochstein |
Manny Ramirez |
Tony Hills |
||
Lonnie Paxton |
|||||
50% Lost |
50% Lost |
0% Lost |
0% Lost |
0% Lost |
100% Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
Starter Lost |
DEFENSE |
|||||
DE |
DT |
MLB |
WLB |
SLB |
|
Elvis Dumervil |
Brodrick Bunkley |
Joe Mays |
D.J. Williams |
Von Miller |
|
Robert Ayers |
Kevin Vickerson |
Nate Irving |
Wesley Woodyard |
Mario Haggan |
|
Jason Hunter |
Marcus Thomas |
||||
Derrick Harvey |
Ryan McBean |
||||
Mitch Unrein |
|||||
50% Lost |
60% Lost |
50% Lost |
50% Lost |
50% Lost |
|
Starter Lost |
Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
||
CB |
FS |
SS |
P |
||
Champ Bailey |
Rahim Moore |
Brian Dawkins |
Britton Colquitt |
||
Andre' Goodman |
David Bruton |
Quinton Carter |
|||
Cassius Vaughn |
|||||
Jonathan Wilhite |
|||||
Chris Harris |
|||||
0% Lost |
50% Lost |
0% Lost |
100% Lost |
||
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
Notes:
- We lose 8 starters:
- Kyle Orton
- Spencer Larseon
- Brandon Lloyd
- Daniel Fells
- Matt Prater
- Brodrick Bunkley
- Joe Mays
- Britton Colquitt - We lose 12 backups/rotational players:
- Brady Quinn
- Lance Ball
- Matt Willis
- Eddie Royal
- Chris Clark
- Russ Hochstein
- Jason Hunter
- Derrick Harvey
- Marcus Thomas
- Ryan McBean
- Wesley Woodyard
- Mario Haggan
- We lose 100% of our starting special teams guys in Prater and Colquitt.
- We lose 50% of all out linebackers.
- We lose 56% of all our defensive lineman.
- We lose 50% of all our wide receivers.
- Our secondary and offensive line remain in good conditions, losing no starters.
- Going into the 2012 draft and FA, there is an immediate need, just in terms of roster spots, for these positions:
- linebacker
- defensive tackle
- defensive end
- wide receiver
- quarterback
- fullback
- kicker
- punter
2012 Roster:
* Names in Bold are in their last contract year *
* - signify a roster spot that lost a player *
OFFENSE |
|||||
QB |
RB |
FB |
WR1 |
WR2 |
TE |
- |
Willis McGahee |
- |
- |
Eric Decker |
- |
- |
Knowshon Moreno |
- |
- |
Julius Thomas |
|
Tim Tebow |
- |
Demaryius Thomas |
Quan Cosby |
Virgil Green |
|
Dante Rosario |
|||||
0% Roster Lost |
0% Lost |
0% Lost |
0% Lost |
||
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Stater Lost |
No Starter Lost |
||
LT |
LG |
C |
RG |
RT |
K |
Ryan Clady |
Zane Beadles |
J.D. Walton |
Chris Kuper |
Orlando Franklin |
- |
- |
- |
Manny Ramirez |
Tony Hills |
||
Lonnie Paxton |
|||||
100% Lost |
50% Lost |
0% Lost |
0% Lost |
50% Lost |
|
Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
|
DEFENSE |
|||||
DE |
DT |
MLB |
WLB |
SLB |
|
Elvis Dumervil |
Ty Warren |
- |
D.J. Williams |
Von Miller |
|
Robert Ayers |
Kevin Vickerson |
Nate Irving |
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
||||
- |
- |
||||
Mitch Unrein |
|||||
0% Lost |
66% Lost |
0% Lost |
0% Lost |
0% Lost |
|
No Starter Lost |
2 Starters Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
|
CB |
FS |
SS |
P |
||
Champ Bailey |
Rahim Moore |
Brian Dawkins |
- |
||
Andre' Goodman |
David Bruton |
Quinton Carter |
|||
Cassius Vaughn |
|||||
Jonathan Wilhite |
|||||
Chris Harris |
|||||
20% Lost |
50% Lost |
0% Lost |
|||
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
No Starter Lost |
Notes:
- We lose 3 starters:
- Ryan Clady
- Kevin Vickerson
- Ty Warren (who returns from IR after this season) - We lose 3 backups/rotational players:
- Tony Hills
- Cassius Vaughn
- David Bruton - At this point we are thin on the offensive line, losing a starter and a backup this season. We also have no starting left tackle.
- We lose 2 of our remaining 3 defensive tackles.
- Secondary and running back are about the only positions that remain somewhat solid, but at this point, both Goodman, Dawkins and Champ will be near the end of their careers.
- Going into the 2013 draft and FA, there is an immediate need, just in terms of roster spots, for these positions:
- linebacker
- defensive tackle
- defensive end
- wide receiver
- quarterback
- kicker
- punter
- offensive lineman (both tackles and guards)
- fullback
2013 Roster:
* Now I won't include who will be leaving in 2013, just the state of the roster *
Offense:
Quarterback:
- Tim Tebow
- 66% lost
Running Back:
- Knowshon Moreno
- Willis McGahee
- 33% lost
Fullback:
- None
- 100% lost
Wide Receiver:
- Eric Decker
- Demaryius Thomas
- Quan Crosby
Tight End:
- Julius Thomas
- Virgil Green
- Dante Rosario
- 25% lost
Offensive Tackle:
-Orlando Franklin
- 75% lost
Offensive Guard:
- Zane Beadles
- Chris Kuper
- 33% lost
Center:
- J.D. Walton
- Manny Ramerez
- Lonnie Paxton
- 0% lost
Kicker:
- None
- 100% lost
Defense:
Defensive End:
- Elvis Dumervil
- Rober Ayers
- 50% lost
Defensive Tackle:
- Mitch Urein
- 80% lost
Linebacker:
- Von Miller
- Nate Irving
- D.J. Williams
- 50% lost
Cornerback:
- Champ Bailey
- Andre Goodman
- Jonathan Wilhite
- Chris Harris
- 20% lost
Safety:
- Brian Dawkins
- Quinton Carter
- Rahim Moore
- 25% lost
Punter:
- None
- 100% lost
Notes:
- Over two off seasons we lose 11 starters and 15 backups/rotational players for a total of 26 players, or about half the roster.
- We are 4th in total roster loss in the next two years.
- We lose 50% or more of these roster spots:
- quarterback
- fullback
- wide receiver
- offensive tackle
- kicker
- defensive end
- defensive tackle
- linebacker
- punter - Over these two years we lose most of our Pro Bowl talent.
Review:
So let's just conclude this quickly, while the Broncos quarterback situation is on the forefront of everyone's minds, the Broncos actually have much bigger problems on the horizon, and unless EFX are very active this up coming off season, we could be in for some major struggles. Add in the aging of key players like Brian Dawkins, DJ Williams, Champ Bailey, Andre Goodman, and Willis McGahee the Broncos may cut ties with any of these players before their contracts are up.
My suggestions for the Broncos FO this off season would include this:
- Draft at least one defensive tackle very high
- Draft a corner very high
- Draft a mid round quarterback
- Resign Brandon Lloyd and Eddie Royal
- Resign Matt Prater and Britton Colquitt
- Resign Jason Hunter and Brodrick Bunkley (or find replacements in FA or the draft)
- Resign Wesley Woodyard and Mario Haggan (or find replacements in FA or the draft)
All I know is that I'm scared right now, not because of who will play QB next week, but because we are going to go through one of the biggest upheavals in the NFL this off season the the off season of 2013. Let's hear some of your suggestions on what the Broncos should do this off season.