The Denver Broncos’ options with Dre’Mont Jones

Regarding Dre’Mont Jones, there seems to be agreement on one thing: A cap figure of nearly $20 million for the 2023 season is too high.

The Broncos can afford it, from both a cap and cash perspective. But Jones’ production falls short of that sort of outlay for this year. And if the Broncos tag Jones, his cap charge for 2023 would be $19.727 million.

But that doesn’t mean the Broncos shouldn’t bring back Jones.

Consider this: Just seven interior defensive linemen have posted at least 5 sacks in each of the last three seasons. Jones is one of them.

The others:

• Jonathan Allen, Washington
• Denico Autry, Tennessee
• DeForest Buckner, Indianapolis
• Aaron Donald, L.A. Rams
• Chris Jones, Kansas City
• Quinnen Williams, New York Jets

That’s elite company, although one can discern a huge gap from Dre’Mont Jones to players like Donald — a Hall-of-Famer in the making — and Chris Jones, who had 15.5 sacks last season and 32 sacks since 2020. Dre’Mont Jones has 18.5 sacks in the last three years — an average of 7.5 sacks per 17 games.

Now, here are the contract figures for each, per OvertheCap:

• Allen: 5 years, $72 million (signed in 2021), $14.4 million average annual value, $44.142 million in full guarantees. 2023 cap figure: $21.441 million
• Autry: 3 years, $21.5 million (signed in 2021), $7.167 million average annual value, $9 million in full guarantees. 2023 cap figure: $9.103 million
• Buckner: 5 years, $84 million (signed in 2020), $16.8 million average annual value, $39.378 million in full guarantees. 2023 cap figure: $19.75 million
• Donald: 3 years, $95 million (signed in 2022), $31.667 million average annual value, $46.5 million in full guarantees. 2023 cap figure: $26 million. (Contract includes voidable 2025 and 2026 years.)
• Chris Jones: 4 years, $80 million (signed in 2020). $16.0 million average annual value, $37.626 million in full guarantees. 2023 cap figure: $28.292 million
• Williams: 1 year, $9.594 million (fifth-year option for 2023). Salary fully guaranteed.

Autry is the cheapest on a per-year basis. But he signed his current contract as he prepared for his age-31 season. Meanwhile, Dre’Mont Jones is 26 and in the imperial phase of his earning power as a player.

So, let’s evaluate the Broncos’ options.

1. RE-SIGN HIM

Look, there aren’t many interior defensive linemen who have his production. Finding one elsewhere with the Broncos’ current draft-pick complement is difficult. And with the Broncos still looking for more punch from the edge, they need the interior push more than ever — no matter what defensive scheme they run.

Jones’ best comp of the seven players previously mentioned is Allen. He had 16 sacks in the three seasons leading up to his deal. Two years out from Allen’s deal, a contract in the range of $16.5 million to $17.5 million per year and a $50 million guarantee would be reasonable. And on a 5-year deal, that could keep Jones’ cap number for this season in the range of $11 or $12 million.

2. TAG HIM

This acknowledges that players like Jones are hard to find. And it keeps the door open on working toward a long-term deal.

But it also puts the Broncos in a potential overpay situation for the 2023 season. And if Jones flourishes, his annual value could push toward the $20 million mark if the Broncos eventually sign him to an extension.

3. TAG AND TRADE

Since the Broncos are unlikely to tag Jones to begin with, this, too, is unlikely. That being said, this is a reasonable option for long-term planning. In the short term, it hurts. That’s because the moment the Broncos tag Jones, the franchise-tag figure counts against their salary cap.

So, to tag Jones with the intention of trading him leaves the Broncos with a $19.727 million hole in their cap as they attack free agency. They would need to make other moves — converting salary to bonuses to reduce 2023 cap hits, making a trade or two — in order to be in compliance, let alone be in position to pursue players from other teams.

If a trade takes weeks to work out, it would limit the Broncos’ aggressiveness when the green flag drops on the legal-tampering period. But a trade would likely still bring the Broncos more in compensation than option No. 4 …

4. LET JONES GO

It’s not like the Broncos won’t spend. But that creates a hole where one doesn’t exist now. And it means the Broncos would need not only to add in free agency, but likely receive a significant leap from Enyi Uwazurike or Matt Henningsen, two rotational players who saw time last season.

And there would be no guarantee of draft-pick compensation for Jones’ departure. If the Broncos sign a comparable player at another position, that would cancel out the potential third-round compensatory pick which could come their way next year … which would leave the Broncos with nothing from their four-year investment in Jones.

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THE FINAL ANALYSIS

Re-signing Jones or a tag-and-trade are by far the best options.

So now … what will George Paton and Sean Payton do?

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