Report: Broncos Placing Franchise Tag on S Justin Simmons Again

The Broncos have made their decision on free-agent safety Justin Simmons but it might not be the final decision.

The Denver Broncos are placing the franchise tag on free-agent safety Justin Simmons for a second straight season. After the two sides have failed to come to an agreement for a long-term deal, GM George Paton has extended the team's exclusive negotiating window, utilizing the franchise tag on the 27-year-old star safety.

The news was first reported by KOARadio's Benjamin Allbright and confirmed by Ian Rapoport.

Breaking: Per league source Broncos all pro safety Justin Simmons will be getting the franchise tag today.

— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) March 5, 2021

"Breaking: Per league source Broncos All-Pro safety Justin Simmons will be getting the franchise tag today," Allbright tweeted Friday afternoon. 

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Paton gushed on Simmons during his Thursday pre-draft/pre-free agency press conference in lieu of what would be his traditional NFL Combine appearance. 

“Justin is one of our core guys," Paton said. "Our goal since I got here is to sign him to a long-term deal. We have had discussions with his agent. I don’t know if we’ll get a deal done or not, but that’s our goal. He’s the type of guy we want to extend.”

The franchise tag for Simmons will count for a fully guaranteed $13.73 million against the cap in 2021. While that is no small chunk of change, $13.73M would rank Simmons as the sixth highest-paid safety in the NFL behind Arizona's Budda Baker, Chicago's Eddie Jackson, Tennessee's Kevin Byard, Kansas City's Tyrann Mathieu, and Washington's Landon Collins.

This seemed inevitable for the two sides given the bargain that is the franchise tag for safeties in comparison to other higher-paid positions such as defensive ends, defensive tackles, offensive tackles, cornerbacks, and wide receivers. The open market does not tend to value and pay safeties as some other positions, leading to a lower franchise tag cost in comparison to other positions.

According to 9NEWS' Mike Klis, the two parties are not far apart on a long-term deal, with a deadline of July 15, 2021, to come to a new accord, rather than Simmons having to play under the franchise tag in 2021. A new deal could be helpful for the Broncos in the present, given that the salary cap will be constricted this offseason. 

A multi-year contract can give Simmons higher guarantees and long-term security while also lowering his cost against the cap in 2021. With Simmons receiving the tag in back-to-back seasons, if he and the Broncos do not come to a long-term contract agreement, the team will not be able to use the tag in the 2022 offseason which would almost certainly lead to him becoming an unrestricted free agent next offseason.

While the Broncos and Simmons have failed to reach a long-term agreement before the franchise tag deadline, there is still ample hope for him to land a new contract in Denver given historical precedence for the Broncos. The Broncos were also forced to use the franchise tag on Demaryius Thomas and Von Miller in the past, only to have both sides come to a long-term contract agreement before the mid-July deadlines.

What would a long-term deal look like for Simmons? Given his youth, versatility, and accolades (both on and off the field), it would not be surprising at all if he landed a market-shifting deal for the position.

The tag officially being placed will likely be the only Simmons contract update until this upcoming summer, but hopefully, this is just a step in the process to the two sides coming to a new contract to keep the All-Pro safety in Denver for years to come.

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