The Denver Broncos have a big decision to make in front of GM. Three finalists were reduced to just two in Minnesota Paton, Minnesota, and New Orleans Terry Fontenot, both with a second interview on Tuesday.
As soon as GM is hired, the new Broncos executive faces several important decisions, including what to do with Von Miller. Miller is about to enter his 32-year season and is recovering from an ankle injury that made him miss the entire 2020 season.
Creating a bottleneck for the new GM is Miller’s contract. While the eight-time Pro Bowler is entering the last year of his contract, it is an optional year; that is, the Broncos can choose whether or not to extend it or let it hit the bricks and become an unrestricted free agent.
John Elway expressed optimism about wanting to keep Miller at Orange and Blue, but hiring a new GM will remove that prerogative from his plate. Elway, of course, wants to be consulted on any “important” decisions, but ultimately what to do with Miller is a call that the new guy will have full authority to make.
In a radio interview with 104.3 The fan on Monday, 9NEWS‘Broncos insider Mike Klis reported the opinion of the team’s GM candidates on Miller’s situation during the first wave of interviews. For one man, each professed the priority of finding a way to keep the Pro Bowl Justin Simmons safe in Denver, but Miller’s view was a little more, shall we say, complicated.
“All these GMs, when they were interviewing, almost everyone tried to say, ‘Try to get Justin Simmons – Justin Simmons has to be a priority to get him back.’ Find out how to bring Justin Simmons back, “said Klis The Drive hosts Darren McKee and Tyler Polumbus. “And Von, the feeling was, ‘Try to bring him back in a … see if we can make a new contract’ kind of business. You can’t bring him back for $ 18 (million). But I I think it was beautiful when all the GMs thought about these two players. ”
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Remember that Klis did not stipulate which GM had which specific view of Miller, only that the consensus seemed to be concentrated on the Broncos who were looking for a kind of restructuring with the veteran passista.
Miller is set to command a base salary of $ 17.5 million with a training bonus of $ 500K in 2021. In addition, the Broncos would be in danger for $ 18 million if Miller’s option was exercised.
What Klis reported is that each GM candidate would like to keep Miller in Denver, but not at that price. The problem is that Miller was not even receptive to discussing the topic of restructuring his contract when pressed publicly about it.
However, if the new GM brought together an extension that reduced the Miller’s ceiling while adding new years to the business term, the Broncos could keep it close and postpone the ceiling for the future – spreading the financial liability over the time.
Miller would have to be open to the idea, of course. And if it was presented correctly, perhaps he would accept an extension, even if it meant transferring part of his money into the future.
However, if the new GM arrives and tries to force Miller to simply accept a pay cut, chances are it won’t work. Miller may have missed 2020 and his 2019 season, despite winning a nod at the Pro Bowl, was not up to his established standard over the years – but he is still von Miller.
This influence, despite his age and recent injury, will open the checkbooks of many NFL teams looking for a veteran pass rusher to come in and pick up the defender. If the Broncos can’t find a way to pay it, someone else will.
At the same time, Miller has been a Bronco for 10 years and the life span of pass rushers quickly reaches the point of diminishing returns after 30 years. If the new GM found a way to structure an extension that recognized Miller for the talent he still is, while protecting the team a little from Father Tempo’s whims, Miller could be open to such an agreement if it allowed him the opportunity to retire as a Bronco at some point in the relatively near future.
Dwight Freeney, a former Indianapolis Colts player, played until he was 37, almost 38, although the last six years of his career have been spent as a one-year mercenary with five different NFL teams. Miller’s mentor, DeMarcus Ware, played until he was 34 before his body ran out in Denver.
We don’t know how long Miller imagines playing, but there is a way to make him happy, acknowledge his huge contributions to the Broncos canon and keep him in orange and blue until he hangs up his boots while protecting the team from the salary cap. . But it takes two to dance the tango, as they say.
Speculation will continue until a new GM is hired. From there, it won’t be long before Broncos Country knows what the future holds for the Super Bowl 50 MVP. One thing seems certain, however; Elway will not be the impetus for any decision the Broncos make with Miller.
“I don’t think he gets involved in Von Miller,” said Klis of Elway.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.