Broncos look in-house for Elvis Dumervil successor after sticker shock By Jeff Legwold The Denver Post April 4, 2013 Today's question about the Broncos comes from Ken Fry. To submit a question for consideration, send an e-mail to The Denver Post's Jeff Legwold. Q: The Broncos have Malik Jackson, Jeremy Beal, Derek Wolfe and Robert Ayers listed as defensive ends. I thought Jackson and Beal showed promise last year. What if the Broncos grabbed Tommy Kelly for more interior push? Could one of the current defensive ends fill (Elvis) Dumervil's shoes then? A: Ken, Kelly has only been in the market for a week or so, but he joins a list of veteran defensive linemen searching for free-agency dollars that simply haven't been there thus far, which is why the position group may currently lead the way in familiar names that remain unsigned. That's been especially true for the pass rushers. Former Detroit Lions defensive end Cliff Avril was supposed to be one of the top available players at the position when free agency opened. But Avril got a two-year, $13 million deal, with a $4.5 million signing bonus, from the Seattle Seahawks. And while he likely made a concession to play for a playoff team, it was a deal both lower and shorter than many expected he would get. And Dwight Freeney, who some in the league say is seeking an $8.5 million salary for the upcoming season, and John Abraham still find themselves unsigned. The Broncos are interested — both recently visited the team's Dove Valley complex — but Denver's decision-makers aren't going to go that high to sign either. The $8.5 million for Freeney would be more than they were going to pay Dumervil for the upcoming season in the original renegotiated deal and the offer that was made after Dumervil's release. The Broncos simply aren't going to dive in on longer-term, high-end deals for free agents who have long passed their 30th birthday. Wes Welker, 31, is the oldest veteran free agent they have signed from elsewhere this year, and he agreed to a two-year deal. And Welker has been far more productive at his position than Kelly, Freeney and Abraham have been at theirs. Kelly was still under a seven-year, $50.1 million deal when he was released by the Oakland Raiders last week. Abraham and Freeney are considered largely one-down players at this point in their careers, which is affecting the interest they have drawn in comparison to their hoped-for contract demands. The Broncos were not interested in former Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle C.J. Mosley, who played for Broncos defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio during Del Rio's tenure in Jacksonville. Mosley had two years left on a $7.5 million deal when Jacksonville let him go. The Lions agreed Wednesday to a two-year contract with Mosley. So, put it all together, and the Broncos have made it pretty clear they prefer to look to their own depth chart to replace Dumervil in the defense rather than jumping out with a high-end deal for a veteran free agent. With 64 players under contract right now to go with six draft picks, that puts the Broncos with 70 committed roster spots at the moment. They can go to training camp with 90 players, so they will sign plenty of undrafted rookies following the draft. But they would have room to sign another veteran or two, much like they did with Keith Brooking and Jim Leonhard last summer, if they wish and didn't address any of their needs as strongly as they had hoped in the draft. As far as Wolfe, he is an impact player in the defense who can be written in as a starter with a Sharpie. Del Rio considers him a defensive tackle in the responsibilities he gives Wolfe snap to snap, but also considers Wolfe an effective pass rusher with the ability to win matchups all along the line of scrimmage. Wolfe played the second-most snaps among the Broncos defensive linemen last season, and his playing time isn't going down. But the Broncos have made it clear to Robert Ayers that this is his chance to be the full-time player he's always contended he could be. Broncos coach John Fox has consistently said he believes Ayers has the talent to be a regular. Fox was at Ayers' pro day at Tennessee when Ayers was coming into the 2009 draft, and Del Rio is the first defensive coordinator to be on the job in two consecutive seasons in Ayers' career. Jackson is a versatile inside/outside role player in the defensive line who played 113 snaps last season as a rookie, or just under 11 percent of the defensive plays. The Broncos believe he will show some progress this year and would be an inside pass rush option in some of their long-yardage looks. Beal had a two-sack game in the preseason last August, but ended up on injured reserve for the year with knee surgery. The Broncos liked his work in last year's offseason program and in training camp. But he will have to battle for a roster spot this time around. It would be stunning if the Broncos don't use at least one draft pick on a deep class of defensive ends, and the position figures to get some attention among the undrafted free agents as well. NFL quarterback quandary: Find one or watch him win elsewhere By Jeff Legwold The Denver Post April 4, 2013 Today's NFL is filled with a whirlwind of moves, draft picks and big contracts handed out in the quest to find, and keep, marquee quarterbacks. That search influences everything, every decision and almost every slot in the standings. It determines who's hired, who's fired, who wins and who loses. An NFL team without that upper-tier quarterback? "It's like a writer without a pen," said new Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid. "There's a problem. You have to make sure that you have that position taken care of." New Arizona Cardinals coach Bruce Arians, who traded for Carson Palmer this week, put it this way: "It's a problem (when) you don't have a quarterback. When you have two, you don't have one. That's been my philosophy. If we're out there competing to see who the quarterback is, we have a problem." Teams such as the Broncos with Peyton Manning, the New England Patriots with Tom Brady, the Baltimore Ravens with new $120.6 million QB Joe Flacco and the Dallas Cowboys, who extended Tony Romo's contract for six years and $108 million last week, will pay almost any price to keep their guy. And teams without a top- flight quarterback? It's a mad scramble to find one. Just look at the recent frenzy. Without a no-questions-asked starter in this year's draft class, teams have been jockeying throughout the offseason to upgrade at quarterback. This week the Cardinals traded for Palmer and the Oakland Raiders traded for Matt Flynn. When the free-agency period started, the Chiefs traded for Alex Smith. The Buffalo Bills recently signed Kevin Kolb. Flacco's new contract is the richest in NFL history, a result not only of his Super Bowl run but also of the Ravens not wanting to find a replacement. "We're very willing to do what we needed to do," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said of re-signing Flacco. "We're going to build a great team around him too. We've done that in the past." While Trent Dilfer and Brad Johnson were once held up as post-1980s passers who were important role players in their teams' Super Bowl runs, they are little more than quirky footnotes now. On one side you have Johnson and Dilfer, Super Bowl- winning quarterbacks who had the luxury of record-setting defenses playing alongside them. And on the other side you have 12 quarterbacks who account for 19 of the past 21 Super Bowl championships. That list of 12 quarterbacks consists of three Hall of Famers (Troy Aikman, Steve Young and John Elway), 15 league MVPs and 72 Pro Bowl selections. Flacco is on the list because, since the start of his rookie season in 2008, no other quarterback has won as many games as his 63. He also is the first quarterback in league history to win a playoff game in each of his first five seasons. Flynn, meanwhile, is a sign of the times. Despite having made only three starts in his NFL career, he was signed to a three-year, $26 million contract by the Seattle Seahawks before the 2012 season. Seattle then used a third-round pick to acquire Russell Wilson in last year's draft. Wilson beat out Flynn in training camp. This year, teams will line up at the April 25-27 draft trying to make another high- value pick like Wilson. And while many scouts say there is no quarterback worth a first-round pick this year, it won't stop teams from rolling the dice to try to beat the odds. The stakes at that position are that high. Flynn was traded to the Raiders this week in exchange for two draft picks. The Raiders have used 15 quarterbacks in the past 10 seasons, and they hope No. 16 in that long line is the answer — an answer that has to be found if a chance at the trophy is to follow.