Denver's Cap Space?

[PandaPancake]

I mentioned this three days ago. 

I hate all of you

[TheSpecialJuan]

4 hours ago, KB_fan said:

I know a lot of us have been focused on New Orleans' cap woes, since they're a division rival, and it's fun to bemoan their troubles.

I was looking up something just now at Spotrac and decided to check out each team's relative cap space.  We're in good shape (11th most cap) with about 18.5 mil (top 51 and not incl draft pool).   Denver is very low on the list, with only 2.8 mil.  But what shocked me was to then look at the number of players under contract.  Denver has only 54???  (We have 70 signed players). 

How the heck is Denver gonna get to 90 players with only 2.8 million in cap space and 36 players to sign?!

WOW. 

I've been wondering why they have been so quiet. This explains why they haven't re-signed Ronnie Hillman or basically any of their own guys.

[thefuzz]

19 minutes ago, TheSpecialJuan said:

I've been wondering why they have been so quiet. This explains why they haven't re-signed Ronnie Hillman or basically any of their own guys.

Surprisingly Elway has been a pretty good leader in that clubhouse.  They may be wondering if they should do a complete tear down, and start over, or thinking that they may have a good enough defense to make another run at it.

I would probably start looking at a rebuild if I were them, the Lombardi there will give everyone a pretty long leash for a few years.  Get rid of some older vets, let Miller walk after this season if you can't sign him, and start over again. 

[The NFL Shield At Midfield]

they picked up russell okung but that's one of the most bizarrely structured contracts i can remember

[KB_fan]

34 minutes ago, PandaPancake said:

I mentioned this three days ago. 

I hate all of you

Apologies.  I seem to recall reading that they didn't have much cap.  What was a shock to me was how few players they have under contract.

[Khyber53]

Realistically, Denver is trying to do like all level-headed sports franchises do: build a loyal fanbase that will keep spending big money to watch the games and own the merchandise. Their methodology is a sound one: stay relevant in each decade. You do that with one or two appearances in the Superb Owl, preferably winning one or both.

They've done that for this run and they've picked up another generation of fans and given their long timers something to be proud of. They mortgaged their future, sure, but in another four or five years, they'll be at the top of the heap again.

Steelers, Cowboys (once upon a time), Giants, Patriots, this is how they have built great franchises with large, steady fan bases. The Seahawks have done this most recently, joining in the big leagues. We may very well do it, too.

One and out of the running doesn't keep you relevant, though. Ask the Saints, Bucs and Cardinals how far and wide their fan bases reaches. They are still pretty much local teams. 

Denver may have mortgaged the future, but they're playing the long game.

[KB_fan]

1 hour ago, Khyber53 said:

Denver may have mortgaged the future, but they're playing the long game.

Sure, I can see why you'd say this.  Makes some sense.  Maybe after we've won two or three SBs I wouldn't mind if the Panthers did something similar... 

[TheSpecialJuan]

1 hour ago, thefuzz said:

Surprisingly Elway has been a pretty good leader in that clubhouse.  They may be wondering if they should do a complete tear down, and start over, or thinking that they may have a good enough defense to make another run at it.

I would probably start looking at a rebuild if I were them, the Lombardi there will give everyone a pretty long leash for a few years.  Get rid of some older vets, let Miller walk after this season if you can't sign him, and start over again. 

Yes. I think this all hinges on Kaepernick.

[Bartin]

They'll just cut Clady whenever they need room. He clears $9M. They don't need it now and they are hoping to trade him so for now he stays on their roster. That's enough for them to do pretty much anything they need to do. There's also a couple restructures they could do if they need a little more than that to bring in Kap or Fitzpatrick.

[Snake]

7 hours ago, thefuzz said:

They went all in for one more run, and it worked out. The NFL made sure of it. 

Fixed it for you. 

[GoobyPls]

The Broncos have been to what? 8 Superbowls, they have been in contention as a playoff team almost every season. I wouldn't be to worried about them, if they can make the playoffs with The Golden Calf of Bristol and Plumber they can be competitive with Sanchez.

[Guest]

It is hard to criticize them or mock their cap situation because they have just won their third Lombardi trophy, and while we may love our team and believe it has a bright future, how many fans would swap what we have for a Lombardi trophy in the cabinet at Bank of America Stadium? If someone said you can win a Super Bowl next season, but the result of that will be Cam Newton retiring early and the team being in cap hell next off season, would you take it or say no thanks? 

I'll be honest, I think a lot of fans would love their team to be in the situation that the Broncos are right now. We might want to mock them because they have Mark Sanchez and little to no money to spend, but despite that they are still the reigning Super Bowl champions with a roster that is still talented enough to win their division and make a run in the play offs. As great as our roster and cap situation may be, we don't have that Lombardi trophy, and that is ultimately what matters - winning the big game. We haven't done that. But the Broncos have, and so have the Saints...

Anyway, it will be interesting to see how the Broncos round off their roster for the coming season and how far they go. I wouldn't be surprised to see them make the play offs again. If they can do it with The Golden Calf of Bristol, they can do it with Sanchez. 

[Khyber53]

1 hour ago, KB_fan said:

Sure, I can see why you'd say this.  Makes some sense.  Maybe after we've won two or three SBs I wouldn't mind if the Panthers did something similar... 

Remember, though, that's just one way to do it. Other teams like New England, Green Bay and Pittsburgh build strong through the draft, don't overspend on any one player and have coaching stability through thick and thin. I like this approach the best and it all starts with having first rate GM, HCoach, QB and defensive captain.

Does it sound a wee bit familiar? If so, we've got reason for optimism!

[Mr. Scot]

41 minutes ago, Mike said:

It is hard to criticize them or mock their cap situation because they have just won their third Lombardi trophy, and while we may love our team and believe it has a bright future, how many fans would swap what we have for a Lombardi trophy in the cabinet at Bank of America Stadium? If someone said you can win a Super Bowl next season, but the result of that will be Cam Newton retiring early and the team being in cap hell next off season, would you take it or say no thanks? 

I'll be honest, I think a lot of fans would love their team to be in the situation that the Broncos are right now. We might want to mock them because they have Mark Sanchez and little to no money to spend, but despite that they are still the reigning Super Bowl champions with a roster that is still talented enough to win their division and make a run in the play offs. As great as our roster and cap situation may be, we don't have that Lombardi trophy, and that is ultimately what matters - winning the big game. We haven't done that. But the Broncos have, and so have the Saints...

Anyway, it will be interesting to see how the Broncos round off their roster for the coming season and how far they go. I wouldn't be surprised to see them make the play offs again. If they can do it with The Golden Calf of Bristol, they can do it with Sanchez. 

Teams that mortgage their future aren't looking at one bad season. They're looking at five to ten.

And that approach doesn't guarantee anything. The Saints and others have gone the 'mortgage the future and throw everything into one year' route and failed. When that happens, you don't get to take it back. You're stuck with the consequences regardless of whether or not you reaped any rewards.

Our front office is building this team to be in contention every year, not just this year. No way in hell I'd trade that to build a one-year wonder that isn't guaranteed anything.

That's panic thinking.