Denver Post Broncos writer Parker Gabriel posts his Broncos Mailbag periodically during the offseason. Click here to submit a question.
The $100 million improvements at Mile High are highlighted by the massive scoreboard reflecting what has been the glaring reality, witnessed by this season-ticket holder, through the first three home games. The amenity upgrades such as food courts and more are nice, but they seem to keep around 30% of the crowd away from their seats instead of turning up the volume when the Broncos defense cries out for a stop after halftime. I’m doubtful this is the same at Arrowhead. Is this a sign of the times, a new fanbase, or merely grasping at straws to come up with excuses for losing?
— Curt Hanlen, Bosque Farms, N.M.
Hey Curt, thanks for writing in and getting us started this week. The amenities are too nice and they’re hurting crowd noise is a novel argument! Even if you’re grasping at straws, points for creativity. But you’d think if the crowd noise was so subdued the Broncos offense would have managed more production than their heinous third quarters so far. So I think we’ve maybe got a bit of a hole in the theory. You’re certainly not wrong that teams are paying more attention than ever to fan experience.
If I ever become president of a team, though (watch out, Damani Leech) maybe I’ll pitch prison conditions for the fans to fuel maximum crowd rowdiness. The bathrooms are just troughs. The concession stands serve gurel and motor oil only. The bleachers — seat backs are for the bourgeois — have electrical current flowing through them. And it’s always 110 decibels or louder. Good luck, Raiders.
Does Broncos Country have a pill available to cure any or all of the following: Depression, anger, schizophrenia, alcoholism, catatonia, malaise, shattered hopes and TV screens? It has only taken five weeks, but I’m suffering from all of the above. Please provide a prescription, oh wise Dr. Gabriel.
— A Referee, Greeley
Tough stretch, eh Ref? Unfortunately I’m not a real doctor. I only play one in my newspaper mailbag. A win against the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium might cure many of those ills, but unfortunately that’s the rarest of antidotes. It hasn’t been seen around here in years.
Until then, a steady intake of puppies, fall colors, Vincent Neil Emerson and dry land training for ski season is about as good as you can do. Oh, and watch the 49ers. Those guys are incredible and, you know, they’ve got a Shanahan and a Lynch running the show.
I’ve got an hypothetical question, borderline unrealistic, but we never know. Russell Wilson has shown some promise overall, but facing a total rebuild we all know the main issue is his contract and we all know by now the cost of cutting him after the season. If they could find a team willing to take Wilson in a trade, how much money would still be on the Broncos’ books cap wise going forward? If that was the way, is there a savior out there now or after the season, or is the trust over Wilson’s capabilities broken league-wide?
— Yoann, Beine-Nauroy (France)
Yoann, a Russell Wilson trade is extremely unlikely given his contract. I guess you never say never because crazy stuff does happen in this league from time to time, but something would have to change. Most likely, he’d have to really want out and be willing to radically alter his deal to do so. Or he’d have to be playing well enough for a team to want him but not so well that the Broncos don’t see value in keeping him. And even then, given the cap situation, it might be a situation where the Broncos are adding picks to the trade to try to get a team to do it. All in all, there’s just not much likelihood in it. They’re more likely to just part ways with him at some point – though, again, it’s best for both parties if he plays well enough that even that conversation can be pushed into the future.
In this hypothetical where they did trade him, though, it’d be similar to what happened with Randy Gregory. The money might move around depending on how a deal gets structured, but essentially you end up with the same $85 million it would cost after the season (plus whatever money is left to be paid out of a player’s base for the rest of the season if it’s an in-season deal). You’ll notice on Gregory’s trade that even though the money shifted to about $7.7 million on the cap this year and $13.8 million next year, it still works out to the $22.4 million that originally made up his 2023 cap number ($16.1 million) and 2024 dead cap hit ($6.3 million) before he was traded.
There are all kinds of interesting scenarios to consider. Would they draft a quarterback and keep Wilson in 2024? Would they bypass a QB altogether if they’re in the top three or four (but let’s say not No. 1) if he plays well? Would they trade back and risk not taking a shot in what’s regarded as a deep quarterback class? There’s a lot of season left, but those are the kind of questions you start thinking about as the losses pile up.
Hey Parker, it seems this mess goes back to Pat Bowlen and those “gap years” of ownership upheaval. Not long after Pat was unable to continue, the Broncos have been in a free-fall. Our new owners have the best intentions but are inexperienced. I maintain that if Pat Bowlen were still around and healthy, we would not be in this situation. Your thoughts?
— Marilyn Kroner, Boulder
Hey Marilyn, thanks for writing in. I never covered the Bowlen regime, so I can’t say that I have a great feel. But one thing that’s clear is that the lack of continuity has hurt Denver maybe more than we give it credit for. Sean Payton likes players that are slightly different than the players Nathaniel Hackett liked that are slightly different than the players that Vic Fangio liked. That makes the job for somebody like general manager George Paton so difficult. They’ve retrained their scouts on what the coaching staff likes each of the past three years.
Consider that last year the Broncos took Luke Wattenberg and Delarrin Turner-Yell on Day 3 of the draft. This year, they took Alex Forsyth and JL Skinner. Guys that play the same positions. Not like you aren’t always keeping an eye out for DBs and offensive linemen, but Denver had precious few picks this past year and doubled up at spots they’d just drafted the year before anyway. That’s one small part of the lack of continuity that’s been the norm around here for many years now.
Hi Parker, when Russell Wilson fumbled and Sean Payton was chewing him out, it looked like Wilson wanted none of that. With that do you think the relationship between Wilson and Payton is strained to a point that Wilson needs to be traded or at least cut? I am not sure if Wilson will thrive in this offense and sometimes it seems like his heart is not in it anymore.
— Del, Lamar
I don’t think any of those things, actually, Del. Now, if the Broncos end up with a top-end draft pick, it’s entirely possible they take a quarterback. But I don’t think the relationship is strained and I don’t think Wilson has any issues in the care department. In fact, everybody you talk to who knows what’s going on says Wilson is thrilled to be playing for Payton. It’s been something he’s had his eye on for years. Yeah, he gets coached hard and yeah, Payton yells quite a bit, but that’s just part of the deal with him, basically.
None of that means that this is guaranteed to work or that Wilson won’t ultimately get replaced, whether it’s next spring or sometime in the next couple or handful of years. But a couple of competitors venting frustration 10 seconds after a game-deciding play isn’t the spot to take the full temperature of the relationship.
Hi Parker, great coverage as always. I had a couple of related questions: Given that Randy Gregory was traded and we Nolan Arenado-ed his salary, what are your thoughts on the competency of the ownership group? I have no doubt they’ll spend whatever it takes to win but are they competent spenders or are they like the New York Mets ownership (big spenders on a bunch of busts)? Second, how short of a leash is George Paton on and is he on the hot seat? Seems like he’s traded away a ton of draft capital to get Wilson and Payton, and spent a ton of money on the O-line and Gregory — and serious questions remain about all of those decisions. And does he have any say at all or is it Sean Payton’s team now, Will Lutz and all, but he may be the fall guy come offseason? Thanks!
— Joe, Denver
Joe, find a Mets fan to ask that question about competent spending. See what they say.
The Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group is still early, all things considered, in its NFL journey. They say they’re learning fast and they’ve seen a lot for having been on the job all of 14 months. Certainly there’s still a lot to learn, too.
It was interesting that CEO Greg Penner said that they don’t anticipate spending every year in free agency like they did this spring. That’s obviously not an affordability question for them, but it’s the data that says the best teams aren’t overly reliant long-term on free agency. You have to draft and develop and, of course, you have to have a quarterback.
Now, how stridently they stick to that philosophy and how much patience they can show after a couple of thin years and light draft hauls remains to be seen. It’s easy to say you’re going to do that. It’s hard to stick to it when you watch the team lose often in the meantime.
As for Paton, time will tell. He and Sean Payton seem to get along well and Payton’s seen the value of having a talented evaluator in the general manager role like he had for his entire New Orleans tenure in Mickey Loomis. But Paton’s the one who traded for Wilson and signed Gregory and brought in most of the guys on the roster besides this most recent free agency and draft class. The pair and their staffs have been collaborative, but there is little doubt that Payton has a big say in roster decisions. Remember, the way the organization is structured now, both men report directly to Penner.
Maybe it’s just me, but given that we can’t stop the run and our pass-rush is inconsistent at best, shouldn’t we be bringing in some free agents — at least to kick their tires?
And why did they stop feeding Jaleel McLaughlin in the second half? Our offense slowed to a crawl.
— Mike R., Aurora
For sure, Mike, and teams do that every week where they bring in players for visits or workouts. There just aren’t NFL difference-makers out there for the plucking this time of year, though. Every once in a blue moon a team might catch lightning in a bottle, but it’s so rare for a midseason workout guy to go from jobless to impact player.
And on McLaughlin, great question. Payton said he got impatient and relied too much on the passing game. The Broncos had 118 rushing yards late in the second quarter and barely scratched out 20 the rest of the way. Game management: Not ideal.
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