Broncos brass hints at the team’s plans for three veteran free agents

Less than 24 hours after the 2019 regular season came to an end, John Elway and Vic Fangio met with the Denver media to discuss the team’s future. Not surprisingly, many of the questions posed to the Broncos president of football operations and head coach centered around pending free agents.

A lot of players were on the field in Sunday’s finale who might not wear the orange and blue ever again, including some big-name veterans who have been integral parts of the team in recent years. During the press conference, Elway and Fangio offered some clues as to what the team plans to do with three of the most-notable players who could depart this offseason.

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VON MILLER

Elway made it crystal clear that he plans on bringing back the pass rusher in 2020. The Broncos have a club option on the MVP of Super Bowl 50, but they seem committed to bringing him back at a base salary of $17.5 million and a salary cap hit of more than $25 million.

“Yeah,” Elway said emphatically when asked if the Broncos planned to exercise the option for next year, leaving zero doubt that Miller would be back.

For those who thought there was a chance Denver might trade the linebacker during the 2019 season, Elway offered a glimpse inside his mindset when it comes to veteran players that suggested it probably wasn’t considered.

“It’s against my nature to trade good football players for future considerations,” the president of football operations offered.

That doesn’t mean the Broncos don’t expect more of their highest-paid player. An eight-sack season was below Miller’s standards, something everyone seems willing to admit.

“Von still has a lot of football in him,” Elway added. “He can still play better than he did this season.”

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JUSTIN SIMMONS

The prize of the Broncos 2016 draft class is set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason. Denver has been trying to ink the safety to a new deal, but nothing has come to fruition yet. On Monday, both Fangio and Elway were clear that they’d like Simmons back in 2020.

“He played great for us,” the head coach said about the safety’s performance in 2019. “He’s at the stage of his career where he can still improve. He’s a really good football player. He’s a really good person. He’s a really good teammate. He’s everything we want in a player.”

Fangio wanting Simmons back on his defense will go a long way toward a deal getting done. But ultimately, it’s up to Elway to strike a deal. He was also singing the safety’s praises to the media.

He admitted that using the franchise tag to keep Simmons in a Broncos uniform for the 2020 season is a possibility, but that’s the team’s preferred course of action.

“We’d like to get something done with Justin long-term,” Elway said.

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CHRIS HARRIS JR.

The veteran cornerback has been at odds for a while with the front office about his contract status. During the offseason, a temporary truce was struck when the Broncos gave him a raise of more than $3 million for 2019, but that doesn’t seem like it’ll do much to keep the two sides together.

On Sunday, Harris seemed like he was saying his goodbyes to Broncos Country, something he reiterated when meeting the media on Monday. Elway was singing a similar tune.

“We’ll have to see what options we have and what’s available,” No. 7 said when asked if the three-year, $36 million deal offered to Harris prior to the 2019 trade deadline was still on the table. “We’ll have to look at the budget.”

Elway didn’t have to look at the budget before deciding what the Broncos would do with Miller, so it speaks volumes that his answer about Harris went this direction. Denver would love to have him back, but only at the right price; they aren’t going to overpay for the cornerback’s services.

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With optimism running high in Denver, given the Broncos 4-1 finish to the season with Drew Lock at quarterback, it’ll be a big offseason for Elway, Fangio and everyone on the football side of the team’s operations. Can they add the pieces necessary to take the next step? Can they get the Broncos back to their winning ways and in the hunt for a playoff spot?

A lot of decisions will be made that will answer those questions. On Monday, the Broncos hinted at their plans with three key veterans.

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