Analyzing Broncos Cash Commitments to Safety Room in 2024

Are the Denver Broncos under or over-spending at safety?

Dec 24, 2023; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos safety P.J. Locke (6) tackles New England Patriots wide receiver Demario Douglas (81) in the second quarterf at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports / Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The roster-building stretch of the Denver Broncos offseason is in the books, so we're continuing to analyze the cash resources the team has invested in each position. Today, we're wrapping up this series by looking at the safety position, in which the Broncos made a significant offseason change — releasing Pro Bowl safety Justin Simmons.

The Broncos replaced Simmons with 2024 free-agent signing Brandon Jones and re-signed P.J. Locke, who claimed the other starting safety job during the 2023 season. Jones and Locke represent the Broncos' biggest cash commitments at the position.

Jones is due $7 million in fully guaranteed money in 2024 while Locke is due $3.5M in fully guaranteed money. After that, the Broncos have hardly any cash commitments to the position. Here's a snapshot of the remaining safeties on the roster and the cash they're due in 2024.

• Caden Sterns: $1.055M.

• Delarrin Turner-Yell: $985K.

• Tanner McCalister: $925K.

• JL Skinner: $915K.

• Omar Brown $815K ($245K fully guaranteed).

• Devon Key: $795K.

What happens next on the Broncos beat? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second, sign up for our free newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

The cash commitments to the safety position total about $16M, which isn't a lot. As with the other positions, the cash commitments will change depending on who makes the final roster.

Sterns has missed the bulk of the past two seasons with injuries, so he'll need to prove he's worth keeping or the Broncos could go with somebody else, even if it's not a big difference in terms of cash saved. Turner-Yell injured his ACL late in the 2023 season and might open training camp on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list if he hasn't fully recovered.

Regardless, the Broncos will see a significant difference in cash commitments for the safety position now that Simmons is gone. Although Simmons was a popular player who did good things, the Broncos ultimately decided they could get similar production for less money.

Only time will tell whether that was the right decision.

Follow Mile High Huddle on X and Facebook and subscribe on YouTube for daily Broncos live-stream podcasts!