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According to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, the Denver Broncos are among the teams who are scheduled to meet with recently released defensive lineman Earl Mitchell. The scheduled visit will happen sometime next week according to Garafolo.
DT Earl Mitchell has visits lined up w/ Seahawks, Niners, Falcons + Broncos starting next week, source says. Lots of interest after Mia cut.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) February 18, 2017
The other teams meeting with Mitchell are the Seattle Seahawks, Atlanta Falcons, and the San Fransisco 49ers.
Mitchell was released from the Miami Dolphins this past week and many started connecting the veteran defensive tackle to the Broncos. He played for Vance Joseph last season as a member of the Miami Dolphins and was coached by Bill Kollar during his time with the Houston Texans. So it makes sense the Broncos would have some interest in Mitchell's services.
The Broncos also lack depth along the defensive line. Starting nose tackle Sylvester Williams and backups Vance Walker and Billy Winn are also hitting Free Agency, so a veteran like Mitchell could provide depth along the defensive line.
Mitchell has played in seven NFL seasons and has 38 career starts under his belt. During his seven-year NFL career, Mitchell has totaled 128 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and 1 forced fumble. This past season for the Miami Dolphins, Mitchell played in 9 games and totaled 18 tackles. His stats are not great, but he has mostly played nose tackle during his career.
I see this as the Broncos doing their due diligence on a familiar player for the Broncos coaches. Mitchell is a decent player, but I do not see teams rushing to sign him prior to Free Agency. I believe these meetings will help determine if either of these teams will sign Mitchell after the first or second wave of free agency concludes. Now, I do think this shows the Broncos will be players for some of the top defensive line players on the Free Agent market once it opens here in a few weeks.