Should Broncos approach Emmanuel Sanders about contract restructure?
Feb 18, 2019, 5:10 PM | Updated: Feb 19, 2019, 7:15 pm
Among the many difficult decisions facing the Denver Broncos this offseason is how to move on with — or possibly move along from — veteran wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders.
Sanders has played an integral part of the Broncos offense since joining the team in the 2014 offseason, helping Denver to a Super Bowl 50 win in 2015 and being selected to the Pro Bowl twice (2014 and 2016).
But heading into his 10th NFL season, Sanders, who turns 32 next month, is coming off an Achilles injury that prematurely ended his 2018 season in Week 14.
On Monday, 104.3 The Fan’s Orlando Franklin said, though it’s difficult to talk about someone he loves and respects, if he were the Broncos he’d go to Sanders and ask him to restructure his contract.
“If I’m the Broncos, I’m going to Emmanuel and I’m telling him, ‘Hey, listen, you’re 31 years old. You just had an Achilles injury. We want to restructure you. We want to bring you back but for less money,” Franklin said.
In 2019, Sanders is due to make a base salary of $10.25 million, according to Spotrac.com, which is good enough for 12th in the NFL.
Comparatively, Super Bowl LIII MVP Julian Edelman is slated to make $2 million.
Franklin said that he would offer Sanders roughly a two-year, $12 million deal — which would be comparable to Edelman’s two-year, $11 million deal he’s currently under — along with incentives that could bring his total money earned.
“I’m going to get him some more incentives where he has the opportunity to make some extra money and get closer to that $10 million range, where now only $6 million counts against the cap,” Franklin said. “We’re able to go and invest and get some other players in here to benefit this team.”
Also, Franklin would argue to Sanders that taking a cut in pay might allow Denver to go after the requisite players to make another championship run.
“I’m bringing up the argument to Emmanuel that you’ve been here when we were great on offense, you’ve been here when we had a great defense,” Franklin said. “You could look in this locker room and see that we do not have the talent that we need to go the distance. You’ve seen the talent that we have to have in order to go the distance.
“So, that’s why we need you to take this pay cut for the team.”
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.
