The Broncos are moving on from linebacker Corey Nelson.
The Denver Broncos will not re-sign linebacker Corey Nelson, according to a report from The Athletic’s Nicki Jhabvala.
Nelson (6-0, 231 pounds) is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent on March 18. Nelson originally entered the NFL as a seventh-round pick out of Oklahoma with the Broncos in 2014.
After spending the first four years of his career as a special teams ace and rotational linebacker, Nelson left the team in 2018 in hopes of landing a starting job with the Philadelphia Eagles. After failing to make the Eagles’ roster, Nelson had a brief stint with the Atlanta Falcons.
Nelson went to camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last summer but failed to make their 53-man roster. He then returned to Denver to provide much-needed depth at linebacker after the team suffered a series of injuries at the position.
Nelson played in seven games in 2019, starting two contests. He totaled 10 tackles before suffering a bicep injury that ended his season.
Nelson will now become a free agent, seeking a shot with another team.
Despite losing Bradley Chubb early in 2019, the Denver Broncos’ linebacker corps had a respectable 2019 season.
Denver Broncos fans saw the linebacker position as a highly intriguing part of the roster entering the 2019 NFL season for a couple of reasons. For one, it is an area the team has lacked in for several years and with Vic Fangio coming aboard as the team’s head coach, the hope was that would change.
Before becoming one of the league’s best defensive coordinators, Fangio made his name as the long time linebackers coach of the New Orleans Saints, where he helped create the “Dome Patrol.”
Let’s see how the Broncos’ linebackers each graded out in 2019.
Von Miller
(Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports)
Stats
Tackles: 46
Sacks: 8
Tackles for loss: 11
Miller played well in 2019, but we have come to expect big things out of the former Super Bowl MVP and we just didn’t get big things this past season.
He still led the team with eight sacks, but that was the lowest amount of sacks he put up in a season since he had just five in 2013, the year he tore his ACL.
Miller was adjusting to a new defensive scheme and depending on what side of the fence you’re on, you either believe that Miller isn’t a great fit for this defense or the coaching staff didn’t know how to use him.
While we can’t give him a bad grade for leading the team in sacks, he needs to be a much more disruptive force in 2020.
Grade: B-
Todd Davis
(Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)
Stats
Tackles: 134
Tackles for loss: 6
Not only did Davis lead the Broncos in total tackles, but he was also tied for eighth in the entire league in that category.
Davis was strong in run support for the team and had what was statistically the best season of his career, despite playing in just 14 games.
The Broncos have several key players set to hit free agency. While they work on important deals, they should cut ties with these players.
The 2019 NFL season is not yet officially over as Super Bowl LIV is still yet to be played. But for the Denver Broncos, the focus is already onto the 2020 season.
That shift of focus starts with free agency. The official start of free agency is March 18, but teams can re-sign any of their own free agents prior to that in order to keep them off the open market.
The Broncos have several key players ready to become free agents and the team does have some money to spend. According to OverTheCap.com, the team currently has $61.9 million in available cap space. Only five teams in the league have more.
Not all players need to be brought back. Some better answers for rebuilding the team may exist by signing players from elsewhere. Here, we will talk about some of the team’s unrestricted free agents. Each of these players will be guys that the Broncos should move on from, for one reason or another.
You will not see Chris Harris on this list, even though the Broncos could very well lose him. In his case, the key will be if he still wants to play in Denver, but the team should try to retain him.
1. Devontae Booker, running back
(Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports)
This one isn’t very hard. Booker doesn’t offer the team much in its current form and he was all but phased out on offense this season, getting only two carries in 2019.
If not for a preseason injury to Theo Riddick, Booker might not have even made the 53-man roster.
Riddick should get another opportunity with the team in 2020 to see how he can impact a growing offense while Booker, who has been almost a complete flop since being made a fourth-round pick in 2016, should be playing somewhere else.
2. Corey Nelson, linebacker
(Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)
The Broncos chose to bring back Nelson when he was released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as part of their final roster cuts, but he didn’t offer much beyond emergency depth at the position and he finished the season on injured reserve, having played in only seven games.
Nelson can still provide some help on special teams, but the Broncos don’t need to go out of their way to re-sign him.
