Stokley: Broncos may need to part with Von Miller to bring change

Don’t get Brandon Stokley wrong. His perfect offseason plan for the Denver Broncos involves drafting a quarterback with the fifth-overall pick in the NFL Draft, signing free agent tackle Nate Solder, and building up the offensive line.

That plan doesn’t include trading Von Miller as part of a plan to afford both Solder and soon-to-be former Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins.

But, if trading Miller is necessary to enact “drastic” change to get the Broncos back to a championship-caliber level, then “so be it,” the “Stokley and Zach” co-host said.

“Everything is on the table, and if you want to go get Kirk Cousins and Nate Solder, then you might have to part with Von Miller,” Stokley said on Wednesday. “So be it. Love you Von, but look, this football team needs something drastic to happen to get back to a championship-caliber team.”

Stokley called Miller a “special” player, a future Ring of Famer who essentially led the Broncos to a third Super Bowl win. But at the moment, Denver needs “a lot more than just Von Miller.”

“If we were just a quarterback away, I’d say OK. That’s fine. But we need a tackle. We need another guard. We need possibly a tight end. We need a slot receiver. We need to upgrade the receiver room,” Stokley said. “There are a lot of needs offensively everywhere, across the board.

“And, so, if you want to take this thing year by year and in 2021 we’ll look back and say now we finally have an offense, I don’t know if I’ll be around then. I want to get this thing done quickly.”

Sandy Clough questioned that logic on Wednesday night, saying that getting rid of Miller would essentially make the Broncos pass rush “disappear.”

“Is Kirk Cousins really more valuable? Is it worth strengthening the quarterback position? You’d undoubtedly strengthen the quarterback position by bringing in Kirk Cousins,” Clough said. “You’d dramatically change the quarterback position here in Denver relative to the other teams in the division, relative to how badly Broncos quarterbacks have played for as far back as three and a half years now.

“But, would it be worth weakening your defense?”

However, Stokley said he’s not necessarily advocating for Denver to ditch the prolific pass rusher but instead to just keep an open mind to everything.

“Von is great, but you’ve missed so much in the draft and free agency, you need to build a team. And it takes drastic measures to get back to a championship-caliber football team,” Stokley said. “Don’t be so closed-minded.”

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.