Broncos handing out bonuses
After a flurry of action to start the week, the Denver Broncos have slowed down on the free-agency front and have turned instead to getting some key players well deserved roster bonuses.
The largest roster bonus handed out this week went to Knowshon Moreno, who earned a $3.775 million payday. Champ Bailey and D.J. Williams also earned $3 million bonuses and Brandon Stokley got in on that action with a $500,000 bonus.
Bailey, 32, will now earn $13 million in all next season, which is the final year of his seven-year $63 million contract. There are reports of Bailey and the Broncos working out an extension to keep the All-Pro and future Hall of Fame corner back in Denver.
A nine time Pro-Bowler and NFL 2000s All-Decade Team member, Bailey has had a few down seasons, by his standards, but should get another big boost of relief this year with the improved defensive line the Broncos are building via free agency. The entire Broncos secondary will benefit from a better defensive front and one could expect Bailey to have another stellar season. It will be important for the Broncos to lock Bailey up with an extension if they hope to keep him off the market but perhaps his age and the uncertainty of a 2011 season has the Broncos reluctant to hand out a fresh big-time contract.
D.J. Williams flourished in the 3-4 defense coach Josh McDaniels has been working to instill in Denver. In 15 games in 2009, Williams racked up 110 tackles with four sacks along with three forced fumbles and two more recovered fumbles. His numbers should also only go up with an improved line in front of him clogging up the lanes. The Broncos will however have to find him another solid inside linebacker to lineup next to Williams after the team released Andra Davis earlier this week.
Moreno rushed for 897 yards and five touchdowns on 233 carries his rookie season.
He also added 25 receptions good for 165 yards and another two scores. fans were disappointed with his four fumbles and Moreno will have to work on his ball security heading into his second season.
However, fans can only be excited about the future of Moreno with Denver as he will greatly benefit from an offensive line that is becoming bigger and switching to a power-blocking scheme that will help Moreno gain yards up the middle, something the team struggled to do in short yardage situations in 2009.
It was also exciting to see Moreno run the “Wild-Horse,” offense last year and it will be interesting to see how that formation evolves and develops in McDaniels’ system this upcoming season.
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Time: March 13, 2010, 4:00 pm
[...] unknown wrote a very interesting post today. Here’s a quick excerpt:A nine time Pro-Bowler and NFL 2000s All-Decade Team member, Bailey has had a few down seasons, by his standards, but should get another big boost of relief this year with the improved defensive line the Broncos are building via free … [...]
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