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Denver Broncos quarterback Brock Osweiler has had a quick rise to fame these past two weeks. He replaced the injured Peyton Manning in the starting lineup for the Broncos and has led the Broncos to a 2-0 record. That includes a thrilling overtime win over the at the time undefeated New England Patriots this past Sunday.
His success so far has been great, but Osweiler is set to hit free agency at the end of the season. The more success he has, the higher his price tag will be.
Broncos face quite a financial dilemma if Brock Osweiler keeps winning, writes @TomPelissero https://t.co/kHgPEdnwhW pic.twitter.com/HmA8jpArNz
— USA TODAY Sports (@USATODAYsports) December 4, 2015
The Broncos will be staring at a tough decision. Osweiler will have under a seasons worth of starts under his belt at season's end, and the Broncos will have to decide if Osweiler is the future and if they will sign him to a big money contract.
A high-ranking executive told USA Today's Tom Pelssero that the Broncos will be in a "tough" spot if Osweiler is indeed their quarterback of the future.
"Look, if he’s a good player, it’s a good problem, but it’ll be very, very difficult to navigate on multiple fronts. Once he shows he can be the guy, you’re in a tough spot."
It will be a tough spot because the Broncos also have players like Von Miller, Malik Jackson, Danny Trevathan, Derek Wolfe, and Ronnie Hillman all set to hit the free agency market.
Many have assumed that the Broncos would place the Franchise Tag on linebacker Von Miller, but if Osweiler continues his success the Broncos may have to decide between the two. If the 2016 cap is indeed $150 million, the quarterback tag would be $19+ million.
The Broncos could look to sign Osweiler before free agency opens and contract to Aaron Rodgers and Matt Cassel could be baselines for a potential deal.
Cassel took over for an injured Tom Brady and lead the Patriots to a 10 win season. The Patriots ended up trading Cassel to the Kansas City Chiefs and they signed him to a six-year, $63 million deal.
In 2008, Aaron Rodgers was much like Brock Osweiler. He had under 10 starts under his belt and was taking over for one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time. The Packers decided to give him a five-year, $63.52 million deal.
These two deals could be what Osweiler will be looking at if he continues this success during the next five games, and potentially the postseason.
Horse Tracks:
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