NFL free agency is finally upon us, making it officially time for the Denver Broncos to start upgrading their roster.
Which additions have they made or are poised to make? Which 2024 Broncos have been retained? Which Broncos are heading for a new team in 2025? Everything you need to know can be found below!
Updated as of 2:16 PM MT on March 24.
Departures
Signed With Another Team
- Tremon Smith, CB
- Signed with the Houston Texans on a two-year, $7.5 million deal.
- Cody Barton, LB
- Signed with the Tennessee Titans on a three-year, $21 million deal.
- Zach Wilson, QB
- Signed with the Miami Dolphins on a one-year, $6 million deal.
- Javonte Williams, RB
- Signed with the Dallas Cowboys on a one-year, $3 million deal.
- Riley Dixon, P
- Signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a two-year, $6 million deal.
- Per 9News’ Mike Klis, the Broncos were attempting to bring back Riley Dixon and were in contact with him on Monday. Those efforts failed.
- Lil’ Jordan Humphrey
- Signed with the New York Giants on a one-year deal worth an unknown amount of money.
Currently on the market
- Quinn Bailey, G/T
- Zach Cunningham, LB
Re-Signings
Denver Broncos Re-Signings
FB Michael Burton
Contract terms: Currently unknown
Considering we don’t know the contract terms, this move will only receive a temporary grade. That said, it would be a minor surprise if this contract wound up being meaningfully different than a one-year, veteran-minimum contract with little-to-no guarantees.
There’s no issue with the Broncos’ desire to invest in the fullback position, but the it does bring into question rostering both him and Nate Adkins for a third straight season. At some point, the Broncos will have to find a replacement for Michael Burton, and Adkins seems like a solid choice, so why not just consolidate now and save the roster spot?
Three years into the installation of Payton’s system in Denver, the need for ‘guys who know the offense’ has lessened, so it’s really just about his ability at fullback. If the Broncos want to pay the aging veteran to ensure they have the fullback position squared away, that’s understandable. It just seems like an average move that is ultimately neither negative nor positive.
Grade: C
LB Justin Strnad
Contract terms: $2.7 million over one year, fully guaranteed
An ice-cold close to the season turned Broncos Country against Justin Strnad, but this is yet another quality signing by a Denver Broncos front office who has yet to whiff during this cycle.
Despite fan favoritism potentially painting a different picture, the Broncos defense didn’t suffer even the slightest dip when Strnad entered the lineup for Alex Singleton until late December, three months after Strnad had claimed the position.
Considering that Denver was left with a very thin linebacker room that featured just Dre Greenlaw, Alex Singleton on a bad contract, and Levelle Bailey, they had to sign another body to the room, and Strnad is a great choice with defensive familiarity. This move not only raises the floor of the room, but also creates more leverage for the Broncos as they attempt to negotiate a better deal with Singleton.
The cap hit seems a little high and the fully guaranteed nature isn’t ideal, even if it is only for one season, but it’s an impressive move overall.
Grade: B
OT Matt Peart
Matt Peart provided competent depth at both the tackle and guard positions and even offered the offense some solid snaps as an oversized tight end.
He’s not a flashy or impressive option, but he did show legitimate improvement last year after a ghastly 2023 campaign in New York. It’s not hard to imagine OL coach Zach Strief continuing to develop him and help him reach the enticing potential he presented as a prospect.
Financially, when adjusting for cap inflation, Peart’s deal is the 119th-most expensive annually at the tackle position, making him cheap, even for a backup.
Grade: B-
DL D.J. Jones
Contract terms: $39 million over three years with $26 million guaranteed
Sneakily, one of the biggest needs for the Denver Broncos was help along the defensive line, with Zach Allen managing an unsustainable workload last season, and run-stopping stalwart D.J. Jones likely out the door.
This signing solves the latter of those two problems, and hopefully helps with the former too.
Financially, this seems like a fine price for Jones. It’s pretty much his 2022 deal adjusted for cap inflation, with a slight discount and some more guaranteed money up front. One concern with the deal is that Jones only played 40 percent of the Broncos’ defensive snaps, which is considerably lower than other players in his pay bracket.
Nonetheless, he was remarkably value for Denver during those snaps, the defense was without a key replacement, and he’s played considerably more every other year of his career, so it’s possible last year was an outlier resulting from being banged up.
Grade: B
QB Jarrett Stidham
Contract terms: $12 million over two years with $7 million guaranteed
The Denver Broncos clearly liked the construction of their quarterback room, and this move keeps it intact. The reported interest in outbidding other teams for Zach Wilson would be a bridge to far, but this Stidham contract is great, in a vacuum.
The cap has gone up 25% since he signed his two-year, $10 million deal with the Broncos back in 2023, and he remains one of the league’s 15-or-so best backup quarterbacks.
They could’ve probably found a slightly cheaper option out there, but this is a very small premium to keep a quarterback with scheme familiarity and a good relationship with Bo Nix.
Grade: B
LS Mitchell Fraboni
Contract terms: $4.2 million over three years with $1.7 million guaranteed
It’s hard to have strong emotions about a contract extension for a long snapper. The deal locks up Fraboni at the 12th-highest annual rate for long snappers, and if you adjust for cap inflation, it’s 22nd.
The Broncos maybe could have gotten cheaper here, but this is a small price to pay for stability.
Grade: C+
ERFAs (Lucas Krull, TE; Jordan Jackson, IDL; Dondrea Tillman, EDGE; Ja’Quan McMillian, CB; Devon Key, S)
The exclusive rights free agent classification allows for the Denver Broncos to ostensibly have a team option about whether or not they want to keep the player around, for one more season, at the league-minimum rate, with zero guaranteed money.
It is literally the most team-friendly contract possible. Unless you actively want to dismiss a locker room cancer, there’s no real reason to not use it.
Grade: A
Still on the market
- Quinn Bailey, G/T
- Zach Cunningham, LB
New Additions
Reportedly Visiting the Broncos/Broncos Have Interest
- Evan Engram, TE
- Per 9News’ Mike Klis, Evan Engram spent all of Monday at the Broncos’ facility, after having dinner with Broncos coaches and front office figures on Sunday night. He left the facility without a contract though.
- Signed with the Denver Broncos. More info below.
- Cooper Kupp, WR
- Signed with the Seattle Seahawks on a four-year, $45 million deal.
- Talanoa Hufanga, S
- Signed with the Denver Broncos. More info below.
- Denzel Perryman, LB
- Signed with the Los Angeles Chargers on a one-year, $2.3 million deal.
- Dre Greenlaw, LB
- Signed with the Denver Broncos. More info below.
- Juwan Johnson, TE
- Signed with the New Orleans Saints on a three-year, $30.8 million deal.
- Ryan Stonehouse, P
- Per Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson, Ryan Stonehouse has worked out at Will Lutz’s kicking camps in the past, giving the Broncos a connection.
- Mark Andrews, TE (Still under contract with the Baltimore Ravens)
- Per 850KOA’s Benjamin Allbright, the Broncos would be interested in signing Mark Andrews if he became available.
Signed With the Denver Broncos
Matt Haack
Contract terms: $1.26 million over one year
This might be the Denver Broncos’ first real ‘miss’ of the offseason, and even then, it seems like a fairly inconsequential one.
With Riley Dixon packing his bags for the wonderfully swampy assisted living communities of Tampa Bay to mingle with the snowbirds, the Broncos had to find a new answer at the punter position, and it seems like they were ultimately forced to settle for an uninspiring option.
Matt Haack only appeared in five games over the past two seasons, serving as a backup punter, and therefore, seemingly isn’t one of the world’s 32 best punters. The data supports that conclusion too, as he ranked 30th out of 34 qualifying punters in 2024 in net punt average. That’s an important metric to note, because, while a weaker-legged punter, like Haack — whose selling point is ‘hang time’ or ‘directional punting’ — might lag behind their peers, they’ll make up for it when you factor in how much return yardage they’re limiting.
The Broncos have a punter. He is veteran Matt Haack who is getting a 1-yr deal with Denver, source tells 9NEWS. Haack was Darren Rizzi’s punter in Miami. A left-footed, directional, hang-time type that is preferred in altitude environment.
— MikeKlis9NEWS (@mikeklis9news) March 19, 2025
Unfortunately for Haack, that framing really doesn’t help him any.
Now, on the positive end of the spectrum, Haack is on a veteran-minimum deal and could be easily cut in training camp. So, if the Broncos stumble upon a better option in the NFL Draft or while watching the UFL this spring, they can upgrade without issue. It also literally would have been impossible to pay Haack less, so you can’t get overly upset about the final price.
This lands as a negative grade though because the Broncos are seemingly replacing an above-average punter with one who has the potential to be the worst starter in the league, and they have no alternative plan at the moment. How do you give that a positive grade?
Broncos are expected to bring in competition at some point. Perhaps late-round/undrafted rookie. Haack has punted previously for Rizzi though so he’d have to be the favorite. https://t.co/MJ1IhuFCsY
— MikeKlis9NEWS (@mikeklis9news) March 19, 2025
Considering they at least are planning to bring in competition, special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi hand-selected him, and the inherently low value of the position keeps it from stooping below a C- though.
Grade: C-
Evan Engram
Contract terms: $23 million over two years, with $16 million guaranteed
The Denver Broncos finally got Bo Nix the weapon that the fanbase has been clamoring for, and helped fill Sean Payton’s desire for a ‘joker’ in the process.
Although the ‘joker’ role has been over-discussed to the extent that almost any Broncos fan will role their eyes upon reading it, the obsession over that particular void in the roster was largely spearheaded by Payton himself. Despite being a head coach who hates divulging what color socks the Broncos will be wearing on gameday, let alone his opinions on the roster’s greatest needs, Payton couldn’t help but gush to Kay Adams about how desperately he wanted a ‘joker’ — defined by him as an elite receiving threat at RB or TE who can feast in the middle of the field.
Evan Engram fits that bill to a tee.
He might not be a well-rounded tight end, and it’s hard to imagine him lining up much inline, considering how much he struggled with that in Jacksonville, but he absolutely still presents matchup problems as a pass catcher. He’s too fast for the overwhelming majority of NFL linebackers, and too large and strong for most defensive backs to match up with.
From day one, Engram will make the Broncos’ tight end room the best it’s been since at least 2021, maybe even longer.
That said, there are a few hiccups in this deal that prevent it from being graded higher. For starters, Engram will turn 31 next season, and with a game largely predicated on high-end athleticism, we have already seen some slight decline in his game. He was also released from Jacksonville with the Jaguars citing a failed physical as the reason behind the move.
Now, that easily could have been an accounting measure, but it is a red flag to keep an eye on.
With those concerns, it would have been preferable to sign Engram to a deal with a slightly lower annual average, or without guarantees past the second season. Unfortunately, it seems like this was the going rate for Engram, so if Denver wanted him, this is what they would have to offer.
Ultimately, this is a quality signing at a position of need that should instantly improve the team but it also isn’t some absurd steal or bargain that deserves an “A” grade.
Grade: B
Trent Sherfield
This is an unexciting signing, sure, but it fills a freshly opened need on the Denver Broncos roster, while potentially upgrading on a problem area from 2024.
Tremon Smith was arguably the Broncos’ best player on special teams, and with him leaving for the Houston Texans, Denver’s third phase immediately got much worse. Sherfield is an addition focused primarily on solving that void and maintaining the team’s special teams play.
Some might roll their eyes at the idea of shelling out coin for a premium special teams player, but under-investing in special teams is how you wind up with the woeful unit that the Broncos rolled out in 2022, and no one should want to go back to that.
As an added bonus, Sherfield is a tremendous blocker at the wide receiver position, which could lead to him replacing Lil’ Jordan Humphrey as well as Smith.
The additional non-special-teams value that Sherfield brings, paired with the fact he’s making less than Smith, makes this a quality signing.
The only reason this doesn’t earn a higher grade is that, until we see otherwise there’s some concern that this is the plan to help Bo Nix in year two, and that’s not gonna cut it. If the Broncos make other signings that are focused on upgrading the offense more than the special teams, this grade could climb to a B.
Grade: B-
Dre Greenlaw
Contract terms: $34 million over three years with unknown guarantees
The Denver Broncos have made three big-name moves this offseason, with all three being members of the loaded 2021 San Francisco 49ers defense.
First, Payton, Paton and Co. re-signed DJ Jones, then they signed Talanoa Hufanga, and now, they land hyper-talented linebacker Dre Greenlaw to complete their collector’s set.
Greenlaw fits a similar mold to Hufanga, as one of the most talented and brightest young stars at his position, but he’s on the market and available at this price because of health concerns. He tore his achilles tendon in the 49ers’ latest Super Bowl loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, and subsequently missed almost the entirety of the 2024 campaign.
Then, when he did finally return, Greenlaw was almost immediately re-sidelined for the remainder of the season with a calf strain injury. Now, outside of those injuries, the newly-minted Bronco has been healthy pretty consistently, but as Broncos Coutry learned first-hand with Tim Patrick, an achilles injury and the natural physical compensation that results from it can lead to additional lower-body ailments.
One calf strain is just one calf strain, but it does still feel like an ominous return from his prior wounds.
Thankfully for Denver, Greenlaw looked like his old self during his brief return to the field, and the Broncos have also had one of the league’s best injury track records since Sean Payton arrived. While practice schedules and the new training staff are definitely factors in the improvement, the luck element that is always a factor with injuries shouldn’t be overlooked. The Broncos have been lucky recently, and, while that streak could easily continue, it could also end in 2025.
At the end of the day though, the Broncos signed the most talented safety and linebacker that were available on the free-agent market. Both players still boast All-Pro potential, and that’s hard to come by once in free agency, let alone twice. That said, you don’t get talents like that at a reasonable price without a catch, and the injury gamble is a legitimate snag here.
Pre-March 24 Grade: B+ (could drop to a B- or climb to an A depending on guarantees)
Greenlaw Update (March 24)
The largest remaining variables regarding Dre Greenlaw’s contract were the amount of guaranteed money and how easy it would be for the Denver Broncos to terminate the deal after a single season.
Greenlaw is an amazing talent with a lot of upside, but if he continues to suffer injuries in the wake of his torn Achilles, the Broncos might have buyer’s remorse after just one season, so building an escape hatch into the contract was a matter of extreme importance.
Now that we have the contract specifics, it’s safe to say that George Paton and Sean Payton authored a masterstroke with this deal.
Greenlaw can be cut 12 months from now in a move that would free up nearly $7 million in cap space for the Denver Broncos, which should be enough for them to find a competent veteran replacement to tide them over until a long-term replacement emerges. This deal deserves to be bumped up to an “A” grade.
Final Grade: A
Talanoa Hufanga
Contract terms: *Up to* $45 million over three years with $20m guaranteed
The Denver Broncos made their first big splash of free agency by signing star safety Talanoa Hufanga away from the San Francisco 49ers.
Safety was a major need for the Broncos after PJ Locke was victimized by opposing offenses for much of last season, and Hufanga should immediately solve that defensive shortcoming.
Hufanga plays with his hair and fire and has a magnetic attraction to wherever the ball is at any given moment, regularly making splash plays both in coverage and around the line of scrimmage. Hufanga is especially deadly when playing underneath, where he’s proven to be sticky in man coverage, an eraser of space in zone coverage, and an impactful pass-rusher and run-defender.
That deadly and well-rounded skillset resulted in Hufanga being named a First-Team All-Pro in just his second NFL season.
The deal also appears pretty team-friendly. The reporting of ‘up to’ $15 million means the reality is probably more in the $12-$13 million range, plus, the guaranteed dollars are low enough that the Broncos could feasibly move off Hufanga after one year if the contract goes bust.
And it should be noted that there’s a very real chance of that negative outcome coming to fruition. Hufanga suffered an ACL tear in 2023, which ended his season early, and his 2024 campaign was cut short by a wrist injury. The wrist shouldn’t have long-term effects, but the ACL could.
Staying healthy has been a consistent problem for Hufanga, as he’s only played one complete season in his career — the 2022 run that earned him All-Pro honors — and has missed nearly 30 percent of games during his four years in San Francisco.
The signing is ultimately very similar to the one the Broncos signed with Brandon Jones a summer though, except with much greater upside potential. That said, this is still a gamble, and just because the Broncos hit on the gamble last time and have generally had good injury luck doesn’t mean it’s going to hit this time.
Still, this has the potential to be the best signing any team makes in free agency.
Grade: A-
