Explaining The Broncos’ 2023 Free Agent Signings

This is a crosspost containing an introductory snippet of an article written at Broncos Contracts.

This was an unusual start of the new league year for the Broncos where they were extremely active on the unrestricted free agent market. I cannot recall seeing such a blistering pace in a very long time. There is reason behind why the Broncos did this, of course. But because there were so many signings over a short time frame, I decided to do something a little different this time around: take a pause, let the details of the contracts arrive and sink in, and then proceed with discussion all at once.

I’ll break this effort into two pieces. This first part will be a factual look at the contracts that were signed. This article will then be followed up by a second part in where I offer my opinion on what they all mean.

The sections of this article will simply consist of each player’s contract table with a brief explanation. As always, all contract data is courtesy of Over The Cap. Italics indicate salary that is fully guaranteed. All dead money and cap savings numbers are if the players are cut prior to June 1.

Mike McGlinchey

This is a five year, $87.5 million contract that guarantees McGlinchey $35 million at signing, via a $17.5 million signing bonus, and guaranteed salaries in 2023 and 2024. However, his likely guaranteed money is likely to end up being $52.5 million. That’s because, as you can see in the italicized and asterisked figures in 2025, McGlinchey has an injury guarantee on the entirety of his 2025 base salary that vests to full on the 5th day of the 2024 league year. As such, I have adjusted the numbers if McGlinchey were cut before June 1 in 2025 to account for this guarantee vesting.

The Broncos could be able to feasibly cut McGlinchey after one season if something went horribly wrong with his play that is not injury related. In practicality, they would use a June 1 designation to keep his cap number the same for 2024, and defer the remaining $10.5 million of dead money to 2025. The June 1 designation would also likely come into play for a 2025 cut, keeping $7 million in dead money in 2026.

In any case, this contract will likely commit to McGlinchey for three seasons. If his play holds up during his first two seasons, his 2024 and 2025 base salaries are very restructurable if they so choose. Meanwhile, the Broncos securing two non-guaranteed years at total pay of $17.5 million each (indemnified slightly by per game roster bonuses) could end up being a bargain if McGlinchey’s play remains strong beyond age 30.

McGlinchey’s contract is standard among the top tier of right tackles, yet is not overwhelmingly market beating in any regard. $17.5 million APY ranks either 4th or 5th, depending on whether the Chiefs play newly signed Jawaan Taylor on the right or left. Cash flow is not particularly notable in McGlinchey’s favor, either: he ranks either 5th or 6th (again, depending on how Taylor is classified) in running cash flows of $20 million, $35 million, $52.5 million, and $70 million throughout the first four years of the contract.

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To read the rest of the article, go to this link at Broncos Contracts.