ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Everyone knew the cap consequences from the release of Russell Wilson would be severe and felt throughout every corner of the Denver Broncos’ locker room.
The Broncos moved to execute the necessary if nevertheless painful moves to dig out from their salary cap hole Thursday by releasing star safety Justin Simmons.
Simmons, 30, was due to make a non-guaranteed $14.5 million this season in what was to be the final year of a four-year, $61 million extension he received prior to the 2021 season.
Upon releasing the quarterback Wilson on Tuesday, a joint statement by Broncos head coach Sean Payton and general manager George Paton provided a hint of things to come.
“We are excited to improve this offseason and will have the flexibility to get better through the draft and free agency,” said the statement.
The key words there being, “will have the flexibility.”
While any veteran making decent money is vulnerable to such a transaction in light of the Wilson fallout, there was reason to believe Simmons would be an exception. Since he was the Broncos’ third-round draft pick out of Boston College in 2016, he has been one of the NFL’s best ballhawks. He had at least two interceptions in each of his 8 seasons with the Broncos and his 30 picks overall are No. 1 among all NFL players since 2016.
Simmons was named second-team All Pro in four of his last five seasons and was twice a Pro Bowler. He was also considered the most active Bronco player in charitable, community and volunteer endeavors.
"Justin Simmons' impact as a Denver Bronco extends far beyond his exceptional play during eight seasons with our organization," the Broncos said in a statement before acknowledging he was three times nominated as the team's Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year and work with the Denver Broncos Boys & Girls Club. "Justin will always be a Bronco, and we thank him for the outstanding manner in which he represented our organization on and off the field. We wish Justin, his wife Taryn, and their children Laney, Shae and Kyler the very best in the future."
The feeling up and down the Broncos’ roster must be: If Simmons can be cut, anybody can.
"This one hurt, man,'' wrote cornerback Pat Surtain II on his X account.
It’s been a tough few days for some of the most recognizable NFL safeties as Kevin Byard, Jamal Adams, Quandre Diggs and Jordan Poyer were also released.
The Broncos did let teams know Simmons was avaliable for trade but because the safety market had become so depressed, he didn't draw much interest given his salary. And it's always difficult to ask a player of such prominence to take a pay cut.
While the Broncos have yet to determine whether to absorb $35.4 million or $53 million of Wilson’s dead-cap hit for the 2024 season, either way the team as of Thursday morning has the NFL’s greatest cap debt. According to Spotrac, the Broncos were at negative $19 million not counting Wilson’s release that will officially come after the new league year opens at 2 p.m. Wednesday.
Despite all of Simmons' accomplishments, it's almost shocking given the Broncos' strong tradition from 1973-2016 that he never played in the postseason during his 8 years with the team. And he was part of just one winning season - his first when his remarkable leap-over-the-line to block an extra point turned defeat into victory against Sean Payton's New Orleans Saints and helped the Broncos finish 9-7 -- during his stay here.
Simmons and Kareem Jackson were the Broncos' opening day starting safeties the past five seasons but there will be a new duo in 2024 as both have now been released. The team is hoping to re-sign P.J. Locke, a free agent who replaced Jackson in the starting lineup the final month of the season, for one spot. The other is tentatively held for Caden Sterns if the fourth-year safety can shake the injury bug that has plagued him the past two seasons.
The free-agent market is also now flooded with established starting safeties.
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