The Denver Broncos have one clear priority this offseason: get a quarterback. They’ve been heavily linked with impending free agent Kirk Cousins, but signing him to a massive contract that’ll fit their cap would require them to make some sacrifices in other positions. The name of wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, in particular, has come up as a potential casualty.
But according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Broncos don’t appear to be looking at wide receiver as the position to make any significant moves.
“From my understanding, the Broncos do not want to deal him. He's got a $10 million cap number, which is a lot for a receiver who's kind of getting up in age. But remember, they want to lure a big-time free-agent quarterback to the team. They've got Demaryius Thomas, they've got Emmanuel Sanders. This quarterback – maybe it's Kirk Cousins, maybe it's someone else – needs someone to throw to. Sounds like the Broncos want to keep both their receivers in the fold.”
It certainly makes a good deal of sense for the Broncos to want to surround their next quarterback with as many top weapons as possible. In Thomas and Sanders, the Broncos have one of the best one-two wide receiver combos in the league. It would be counterintuitive for them to break up that pairing just to acquire a quarterback who wouldn't be able to take advantage of that big strength.
Sanders had a down year in 2017 as he had just 47 catches for 555 yards and two touchdowns in 12 games. Those were his lowest numbers in each category in his four years in Denver. However, it can’t be overstated just how bad the Broncos’ quarterback situation was last season with Trevor Siemian, Brock Osweiler, and Paxton Lynch all struggling to put Thomas and Sanders in positions to succeed.
The Broncos need to make some tough decisions if they do want to land that top QB like Cousins. Although, it shouldn’t be at the expense of one of his top weapons like Sanders.
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