John Elway’s stance of wanting players who want to play for the Denver Broncos is going to be tested in 2019 when it comes to linebacker Brandon Marshall.

Marshall told Brandon Krisztal of Orange and Blue 760 that he would absolutely restructure his deal to stand in Denver. He loves the city, the community he works in, and Broncos fans. And he is basically asking for a restructure to stay with his teammates and this city, so why not give it to him?

While Marshall’s role on the defense has no doubt diminished over the last couple of seasons, his leadership has not. He has a role on this team and Elway should recognize that.

From a dollars standpoint, Marshall is entering Year 4 of a five-year deal, $32 million contract with $15 million in guarantees. Cutting him outright would cost the Broncos $4 million in dead money in 2019 and another $2 million in 2020, while saving $5 million in cap space this year and $7.5 million in 2020.

From a business standpoint, there is wiggle room here for Elway to consider making a deal with Marshall for a contract restructure. The dead money costs is not a number to take lightly and the cap savings not as significant.

As time goes one, this defense is going to lose more and more players from that 2015 Super Bowl winning defense. Why not keep Marshall around to near the end of his playing career, while carving out a role for him under Vic Fangio’s new defensive scheme?

I say go for it, Elway!

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