DENVER — The Broncos have become one of the more interesting teams of NFL free agency because they still have not signed an outside free agent.
While much of the league attacked the market early, Denver’s first wave has been defined less by splash and more by restraint. That has created a split reaction around the team. After finishing last season near the top of the AFC race, the Broncos look disciplined to some and overly passive to others.
Up to this point, Denver’s offseason has been built almost entirely around keeping its own players. The Broncos have brought back names they already know and trust, including J.K. Dobbins, Alex Singleton, Justin Strnad, Adam Trautman, Jaleel McLaughlin and several other depth pieces. Ja’Quan McMillian also signed his tender, continuing the team’s emphasis on internal stability over outside splash.
“The first step obviously is free agency with our own players, other players, and then the draft.”
That approach should not surprise anyone, but it does.
The message from Sean Payton and George Paton has been clear for weeks: be measured, be selective and avoid overpaying just to look active in March. For a team that believes it already has a strong foundation in place, that thinking makes sense. Denver appears to believe it is closer to contention than rebuilding, and teams in that position often value continuity as much as change.
Paton said, “We’re going to be urgent. We’ll be aggressive in our approach. No stone unturned. But you have to be measured and selective and make the right decisions. You can’t just go crazy.”
Paton has said, “We’re going to be urgent. We’ll be aggressive in our approach. No stone unturned,” Paton said at the NFL Combine. “But you have to be measured and selective and make the right decisions. You can’t just go crazy.”
There is logic behind that plan. Bringing back players who already understand the system, coaching staff and locker room can be more valuable than chasing unfamiliar names at inflated prices. The Broncos are clearly betting that chemistry, cap discipline and player development will matter more in the long run than winning the first few days of free agency.
Still, continuity and improvement are not the same thing. That is where the uneasiness comes from.
Denver has retained a good portion of its roster, but it has also lost players who mattered. John Franklin-Myers is gone, and that departure stands out the most because productive defensive linemen are not easy to replace. P.J. Locke’s exit affects depth and reliability in the secondary. Dre Greenlaw’s release closes the door on a move that never fully delivered what Denver hoped it might.
Those losses are not devastating on their own, but they do add context to the Broncos’ quiet approach. This is not simply a case of Denver doing nothing. The Broncos have been active. They have just been active inwardly, choosing roster maintenance over outside aggression.
That makes the current state of Broncos free agency easy to understand and harder to fully praise.
Inside the building, the strategy probably feels responsible and disciplined. Outside the building, it feels incomplete. Fans have watched division rivals and contenders move quickly, and until Denver adds an outside player who clearly upgrades the roster, that contrast is going to remain part of the conversation.
George Paton said the team evaluates free agency and the draft together when shaping the roster.
“When you’re getting your plan for free agency, you look at the draft — where is it strong? It’s a balance, and you develop your plan that way.”
For now, the Broncos are betting that patience is a strength, not a weakness.
“I think so many times teams get into trying to win that day. And I think you can make a lot of mistakes that way.” said Payton.
Maybe that patience will look smart once the market cools and the draft reshapes the roster. But in the middle of free agency, patience rarely feels exciting. Right now, Denver’s offseason looks logical on paper, defensible in the building and still a little underwhelming from the outside.
Broncos moves so far
Re-signed/retained: Palczewski, Trautman, Dobbins, Strnad, Adkins, Singleton, Ehlinger, Prentice, Humphrey, Krull, McLaughlin, McMillian, plus ERFA tenders for Key, Tillman, Badie and Jordan Jackson.
Departures: John Franklin-Myers, P.J. Locke, Dre Greenlaw.
Outside additions from other teams: none yet
