The Broncos found a trade partner for Randy Gregory after all.
They dealt him to San Francisco along with a 2024 seventh-round draft pick in exchange for a 2024 sixth-rounder, the team announced Friday.
The compensation isn’t much, but Denver spent the week intending to release the veteran pass-rusher if they couldn’t find a trade partner for him. In that regard, moving up a few spots in the 2024 draft can’t hurt.
“You always try to do that,” Broncos head coach Sean Payton said after Friday’s practice of getting at least something in return. “That’s pretty common.”
Denver is set to pay all of Gregory’s remaining salary besides the prorated veteran minimum, a source said. That trims about $840,000 off Denver’s books and leaves the Broncos on the hook for right about $10 million in remaining base salary.
The remaining money is the same they would have been responsible for had they released Gregory and he signed with another team right away. Denver signaled its willingness to take that hit in the first place when they informed him earlier this week that they intended to release him unless they found a trade partner.
The way the salary cap math works out, the Broncos end up with $7.72 million charged against their cap this year (instead of Gregory’s initial number of $16.1 million), but have $13.86 million in dead cap on their books next year, according to OvertheCap data. Those numbers look different than if they’d released Gregory, but Denver can roll the newly created 2023 space to next year (as long as it doesn’t spend the money) and come out about in the same position. So the simplest answer is the trade provides short-term flexibility and doesn’t impact the team’s 2024 cap outlook unless they acquire an expensive player in the coming weeks.
Gregory initially signed a five-year deal with $28 million in guarantees and a maximum value of up to $70 million in March 2022. Instead of a long-term difference-maker, though, Denver got 10 total games played, 21 tackles and three sacks from the former Dallas pass-rusher.
“I love Randy as a player, but it’s a production business and it’s a team decision,” defensive coordinator Vance Joseph said Thursday. “Obviously Randy’s a good football player, but sometimes it’s not a good fit. It’s a fit thing in this league and it was probably good for both parties to separate.”
By trading for Gregory rather than waiting for his release, the 49ers pay a small price to ensure they don’t have to compete against anybody else for his services.
The move works out well for Gregory, too, who goes from a struggling Broncos team to one of the most talented rosters in football in unbeaten San Francisco.
Gregory will provide one more option for defensive coordinator Steve Wilks and defensive line coach Kris Kocurek, who’s widely regarded as one of the best in football.
“We love the tape,” San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters in the Bay Area on Friday. “Know he’s messed up at times in the past. But the type of person he is, from what I’ve been told, we’re excited to have him.”
Want more Broncos news? Sign up for the Broncos Insider to get all our NFL analysis.
