Tag: Alex Forsyth

What is the Broncos’ plan at center after losing Lloyd Cushenberry in free agency?

After losing Lloyd Cushenberry to the Titans, the Broncos have two in-house candidates (Alex Forsyth and Luke Wattenberg) to replace him.

The Denver Broncos will need a new starting center in 2024.

The Tennessee Titans are expected to sign Broncos pending free agent center Lloyd Cushenberry after the NFL’s new league year begins on Wednesday. Cushenberry had the best season of his career last year in Denver.

All four of the team’s other starting offensive linemen — Garett Bolles, Ben Powers, Quinn Meinerz and Mike McGlinchey — are set to return in 2024, but the Broncos will now need to find a replacement in the middle.

Denver has two in-house candidates in Luke Wattenberg and Alex Forsyth. The Broncos could also consider moving Meinerz to center and then starting a different guard, but that seems unlikely.

Wattenberg (6-4, 300 pounds) is a 26-year-old lineman who was drafted by Denver in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL draft. He has dressed for 23 games over the last two seasons as a backup swing guard/center, starting one game (at guard) in 2022.

Forsyth (6-4, 312 pounds) is a 25-year-old lineman who was picked by the Broncos in the seventh round of last year’s draft. He was inactive for all 17 games as a rookie last season, but Forsyth was highly touted coming out of college. Earlier this year, general manager George Paton said the team views Forsyth as a starter in the NFL.

Based on that remark from Paton and Wattenberg’s history at guard, Forsyth might be the early in-house favorite to replace Cushenberry. Denver might still bring in more competition, but at the moment, Forsyth are Wattenberg appear set to compete for the starting center job in 2024.

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Titans expected to sign Lloyd Cushenberry to 4-year, $50 million contract

The Titans are expected to sign Broncos free agent center Lloyd Cushenberry, leaving Denver with Luke Wattenberg and Alex Forsyth.

The Tennessee Titans are expected to sign Denver Broncos pending free agent center Lloyd Cushenberry, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports first reported on Monday. The deal will not become official until the NFL’s new league year begins on Wednesday.

The Titans will pay Cushenberry $50 million over the next four years with $30 million guaranteed, according to Brad Spielberger of ProFootballFocus.com. That’s much more than Denver can afford.

Cushenberry (6-4, 315 pounds) entered the league as a third-round pick out of LSU in 2020. He started all 16 games in 2020 and 2021 and he began 2022 as the team’s starter before suffering a groin injury eight games into the season.

Cushenberry returned from that injury in 2023 and started all 17 games and had a career year, allowing just one sack, according to Pro Football Focus.

Cushenberry earned just over $4.5 million on his rookie contract with the Broncos from 2020-2023. He’s now set to get a massive raise.

Following Cushenberry’s departure, the Broncos are left with centers Luke Wattenberg, a fifth-round pick in 2022, and Alex Forsyth, a seventh-round pick in 2023. Wattenberg has dressed for 23 games over the last two seasons as a backup swing guard/center. He started one game in 2022. Forsyth was inactive for all 17 games of his rookie season last year, but GM George Paton has said the team views Forsyth as an NFL starter.

Denver will presumably go into training camp this summer with Wattenberg and Forsyth set to compete for the starting center job.

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Broncos seem to be preparing to lose 2 starters in free agency

The Broncos view Drew Sanders and Alex Forsyth as starters, perhaps a sign they’re preparing to lose Josey Jewell and Lloyd Cushenberry.

The Denver Broncos have already braced fans for limited signings in free agency this spring. Fans should also expect the team to lose several key in-house free agents this offseason.

The Broncos have 18 players scheduled to become free agents in March and with a tough salary cap situation, Denver won’t be able to re-sign all of them. During his end-of-season press conference last week, general manager George Paton might have hinted that two starters could be leaving this offseason.

Paton was asked about the performance of the team’s 2023 rookie class and he said the team views cornerback Riley Moss as an NFL starter. He then said the “same” applies to linebacker Drew Sanders.

The team viewing Sanders is a starter is notable because Josey Jewell is set to hit free agency this spring.

“Big upside,” Paton said of Sanders. “He played inside, and he played outside. He started to come on late in year, and he was really good on special teams.”

Broncos center Lloyd Cushenberry is also scheduled to become a free agent and this is what Paton had to say about Alex Forsyth: “We feel he’s a starter in this league at center.”

Denver would not need to view Sanders and Forsyth as anything more than depth pieces if Jewell and Cushenberry both returned in 2024. While he did not directly say so, Paton seemed to hint that the Broncos are preparing for the possibility of Jewell and Cushenberry leaving the club in March.

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Broncos roster series: No. 76, OL Alex Forsyth

Alex Forsyth is a versatile offensive lineman who will compete for a role as a center/guard with the Broncos this summer.

Broncos Wire’s 90-man offseason roster series continues today with a look at rookie center Alex Forsyth, No. 76.

Before the Broncos: Forsyth (6-4, 312 pounds) played college football at Oregon, beginning his time with the Ducks as a guard and tackle before ultimately settling in at center. After starting 28 games as a center at Oregon, Forsyth slipped to the seventh round of this year’s NFL draft.

Broncos tenure: The Broncos picked Forsyth 257th overall in April’s draft. A potential future starter, Forsyth could prove to be a steal as a seventh-round pick.

Chance to make the 53-man roster: Forsyth won’t be a lock to make the Week 1 active roster, but he will have decent odds. If there’s not room for him on the 53-man roster, Denver will undoubtedly try to stash Forsyth on the practice. As a versatile, promising offensive lineman, though, Forsyth should be able to impress during training camp this summer.

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Alex Forsyth brings versatility to Broncos’ offensive line

The Broncos view Alex Forsyth as a center who can flex to guard when needed, adding valuable flexibility to the team’s depth chart.

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The Denver Broncos used their final pick in the 2023 NFL draft to select Oregon center Alex Forsyth in the seventh round last month.

Forsyth spent the last three years as a center with the Ducks, but he also spent time at tackle and guard in college. The Broncos plan to give him reps at both center and guard this summer.

“With Forsyth, we see him as a center who can flex,” general manager George Paton said after the draft.

The offensive lineman said he can play any of the interior three positions, but he seems to be most comfortable at center.

“I think I can play all interior three, but definitely spending the past three years in Oregon and starting at center — that’s been kind of my home for the past couple of years,” Forsyth said.

Switching to center was a smooth transition for Forsyth at Oregon.

“I obviously played guard and tackle my first couple years at Oregon,” he said. “The last three years playing just center, it plays into my strengths because I think I’m a real cerebral player. Just understanding the offense and the schemes — all that, for me, is really important. I think I have good leadership qualities, so I think that’s kind of played into my strengths.”

Forsyth is unlikely to start at center for the Broncos in Week 1, but he will get a chance to compete for a role this summer.

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Broncos’ drafted rookies pick jersey numbers

Broncos rookie wide receiver Marvin Mims has picked jersey No. 83.

The Denver Broncos announced jersey numbers for their five-player draft class on Thursday.

Here they are:

37 CB Riley Moss
41 LB Drew Sanders
46 DB JL Skinner
76 OL Alex Forsyth
83 WR Marvin Mims

Keep in mind that these numbers are subject to change, and some of them likely will change when Denver reduces the roster from 90 players down to 53 players later this summer.

The Broncos have not yet officially announced their undrafted free agent signings. Once those UDFA deals become official, those rookie jersey numbers will be announced as well.

Denver previously announced jersey numbers for veteran additions:

4 QB Jarrett Stidham
11 WR Marquez Callaway
17 WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey
19 P Riley Dixon
20 FB Michael Burton
23 CB Tremon Smith
25 RB Samaje Perine
26 RB Tony Jones Jr.
55 C Kyle Fuller
69 T Mike McGlinchey
70 T Isaiah Prince
74 G Ben Powers
82 TE Adam Trautman
84 TE Chris Manhertz
90 DL Jordan Jackson
99 DE Zach Allen

Defensive lineman D.J. Jones (from 97 to 92) and quarterback Jarrett Guarantano (from 11 to 16) previously changed their numbers as well.

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Broncos signing center Alex Forsyth to 4-year rookie contract

The Broncos are signing center Alex Forsyth to a 4-year rookie contract. Spotrac estimates it will be worth just under $4 million.

The Denver Broncos have agreed to terms on a four-year contract with rookie center Alex Forsyth, according to KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis.

Forsyth, who was picked by the Broncos in the seventh round (257th overall) of the NFL draft out of Oregon, is now under contract through the 2026 season.

Based on the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement with players, Spotrac.com estimates that Forsyth will receive $3,917,777 over four years. With an estimated $77,777 signing bonus and a $750,000 base salary, Forsyth is projected to have a total salary cap hit of $769,444 in 2023.

Forsyth slipped to the seventh round of the draft despite being graded as a fifth-round prospect by The Athletic’s Dane Brugler. He is unlikely to start over Lloyd Cushenberry in Week 1, but Forsyth projects as a potential future starting center in Denver.

Before moving to center at Oregon, Forsyth spent time at tackle and guard with the Ducks, and that positional flexibility could prove to be valuable for the Broncos.

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Broncos may have found a 7th-round steal in Alex Forsyth

“[Alex] Forsyth is going to play 10 years in the NFL,” former offensive lineman Georff Schwartz tweeted after the Broncos drafted the center.

Last week, the Denver Broncos traded a sixth-round draft pick to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for tight end Adam Trautman and a seventh-round pick.

Broncos coach Sean Payton is eager to reunite with Trautman, and he’s also excited about who Denver landed with the seventh-round pick: Oregon center Alex Forsyth.

“We felt really fortunate to have a chance at that center that late in the draft, considering that was a pick that we had swapped for the tight end,” Payton said. “In some of our mocks, we had actually seen that center possibly as a sixth-round player. It works out where you end up with the tight end and you still end up with the center. It doesn’t always work out that way.”

Denver thought Forsyth might go off the board in the sixth round, and The Athletic’s Dane Brugler had a fifth-round grade on the center. Landing him late in the seventh round could prove to be a steal for the Broncos.

“[He is] just tough and smart,” general manager George Paton said of Forsyth. “[We just] love the way he plays the game.”

Geoff Schwartz, a former seventh-round pick who went on to have an eight-year career as an offensive lineman in the NFL, took to Twitter last week to give Forsyth a strong endorsement.

If Forsyth does go on to play a decade in the NFL, selecting him in the seventh round will undoubtedly be looked at as a steal in the future.

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Check out these highlights of new Broncos center Alex Forsyth

He might not start in Week 1, but Alex Forsyth certainly looks like a future starting center for the Broncos.

The Denver Broncos picked Oregon center Alex Forsyth in the seventh round (257th overall) of the 2023 NFL draft last weekend.

The Broncos acquired the seventh-round pick they used to select Forsyth when they traded a sixth-round pick to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for tight end Adam Trautman and the pick that ended up being Forsyth.

Coaches voted Forsyth a first-team All-Pac-12 player last year after he started 12 games for the Ducks. He missed five games due to injury and 2021 and one game due to injury in 2022, which might have hurt his draft stock.

Here are highlights from Forsyth’s time at Oregon:

Forsyth started his career with the Ducks as a backup swing tackle/guard before later moving to center. He started 28 games at the position over the last three years at Oregon.

Forsyth seems unlikely to start over Lloyd Cushenberry in Week 1, but he has long-term potential to eventually become the team’s starting center.

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Broncos rookie OL Alex Forsyth will compete at center this summer

The Broncos view Alex Forsyth as a center who also has the ability to play at guard. He’ll get a chance to win a spot on the line at camp.

The Denver Broncos picked Oregon center Alex Forsyth in the seventh round of the NFL draft last week, a pick that could end up being a big steal.

Forsyth is a versatile offensive lineman but the Broncos view him primarily as a center who has the ability to play as a guard when needed. He will get an opportunity to compete for the center job this summer.

“With Forsyth, we see him as a center who can flex,” general manager George Paton said after the draft. “He’s going to compete just like all the rookies and the entire team. I was able to see him play at ‘CU’ this year. He was a pet cat for the online coaches. [He is] just tough and smart. [We just] love the way he plays the game, and he’s going to compete like everyone else.”

Forsyth (6-4, 303 pounds) started his career with the Ducks as a backup swing tackle/guard before moving to center. After starting 28 games at center over the last three seasons, Forsyth seems to be most comfortable at center, but he’s willing to contribute wherever given an opportunity.

“I think I can play all interior three [positions], but definitely spending the past three years in Oregon and starting at center — that’s been kind of my home for the past couple of years,” Forsyth said.

The Broncos want their backup offensive linemen to be versatile so if Forsyth doesn’t win a starting center job right away, he will likely be viewed as a swing center/guard as a rookie. Given how many injuries can happen on the line, Forsyth’s positional versatility will be valued in Denver.

Right now, Lloyd Cushenberry seems to be the favorite to start at center in Week 1, but Forsyth will get a chance to compete for the job this summer.

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