After earning $4,710,139 over the first four years of his career, Denver Broncos safety Justin Simmons is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in March. Denver could place a one-year franchise tag on the defensive back but general manager John Elway would prefer to give him a long-term extension.
“We want him back,” Elway said during his end-of-season press conference Monday. “You know the option’s there. Before we came down, I talked to Justin and said, ‘You know what, we want you back.’ He’s a great football player, but he’s a better man.
“What he does outside of this building and what’s done in Denver has been tremendous. Just the type of guys he is. These are the type of guys that we want on this football team. Obviously, we have the franchise option there, but we’d like to get something done with Justin for the long term.”
Simmons, 26, had a brilliant year this season, totaling 93 tackles and a career-high four interceptions. He also broke up 15 passes.
“I love the defense,” Simmons said Monday. “It works for me; I think I make it work just as well. I think it’s a good relationship. With that being said, it just has to work out. There’s no hiding that I want it to work out. I just hope it does.
“It’ll be exciting regardless. Whatever happens, I know it’s all on the Lord’s will. If it does happen, I’ll just further his kingdom, so it’ll be good.”
Broncos coach Vic Fangio believes that Simmons could show even more improvement in 2020 if he stays in Denver.
“I think he’ll still at the stage of his career where he can still improve more, especially within the inner workings of our defense and mastering some of the things we do even better, which will only come through reps — it won’t come through meetings,” Fangio said.
“Really good football player, a really good person and a really good teammate. He’s everything we want in a player.”
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