Schefter: ‘Frank Clark and Denver are getting divorced’

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Frank Clark won’t play for the Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium on Thursday night.

And, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, it seems like Clark won’t play in the Broncos’ orange and blue again.

“Frank Clark’s time in Denver is basically done, okay? He’s gonna be released or traded,” Schefter told Mark Schlereth and Mike Evans on “Schlereth and Evans” Thursday morning.

“He re-did his contract last night and gave back close to $1.7 million in salary.”

That kind of restructure would make it more palatable for a team to acquire Clark, as even teams with tight salary-cap situations could fit a lower-salaried player under their cap with relatively minimal disruption or adjustment.

Last week, the Broncos traded Randy Gregory to the San Francisco 49ers. As part of the deal, the Broncos assumed nearly all of his base salary, leaving the 49ers with a league-minimum base on their books. That relatively low cap figure made trading for Gregory a palatable deal for the 49ers.

Clark will have some allure. Even though his Broncos tenure failed to launch — with a partially-torn abductor muscle suffered Sept. 13 exacerbating matters — he had 2.5 sacks in three playoff games last winter for Kansas City. Overall, he has 10.5 sacks over his last 12 playoff games.

For a contender that expects to be playing in January, Clark will certainly have appeal.

“You’re not giving that back unless you know that you’re getting traded somewhere that’s gonna pay you, or you’re gonna be released and somebody else is going to [sign] you,” Schefter said. “You’re not (restructuring) just for the fun of giving back $1.7 million.”

THE TIME OF FRANK CLARK IN DENVER

In July, Frank Clark made some pointed comments about the state of the Broncos-Chiefs rivalry.

“I wouldn’t call it a rivalry. In a rivalry, it’s competitive,” he said during training camp. “I’ve been on the other side, and we didn’t call it a rivalry there (in Kansas City).”

Now, it appears as though Clark will not get a single chance to be on the Broncos’ side in their attempts to change the dynamic established through 15-straight defeats.

The Broncos ruled Clark out for Thursday’s game due to an “illness.” He didn’t practice Tuesday.

“So, Frank Clark and Denver are getting divorced,” Schefter said in his on-air segment. “The only question is, is he traded or is he released?”

We’re fixin’ to find out.

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