Jonathan Harris will not receive restricted free agent tender from Broncos
Jonathan Harris, who started five games on the defensive line for the Broncos last year, will not receive a restricted free-agent tender.
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Jonathan Harris took the long way to playing time for the Broncos. And by last summer, he finally cracked the first team.
But for now, there isn’t room for him at the inn.
The Broncos will not place a restricted-free-agent tender on the Lindenwood University product, making him an unrestricted free agent. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero first reported the news.
Had the Broncos placed a tender on Harris, he would have incurred a $2.985 million cap charge, given the original-round tender value. For a player who became a rotational contributor after starting five of the first six games last season, that was deemed to be too much.
Harris had one sack and four quarterback hits last year while playing 529 snaps over 17 games. Among Broncos defensive linemen, Harris’ snap count ranked third, trailing Zach Allen and D.J. Jones.
The Broncos do have the option of bringing Jonathan Harris back on a contract that would be less than the restricted-free-agent tender cost. But given the team’s struggles against the run last season, Denver might be looking for a fresh start and a reset up front.
MORE CHANGES TO COME BEYOND JONATHAN HARRIS ON THE DEFENSIVE LINE?
Potentially moving on from Jonathan Harris could be just the beginning. Jones, one of the team’s free-agent pickups in 2022, has been mentioned as a possible salary-cap casualty. The Broncos could save $9.97 million of cap space by cutting Jones, who is in the final year of his three-year contract.
Long-time nose tackle Mike Purcell is also due to become an unrestricted free agent.
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