Rumor: Broncos have expressed interest in Chiefs pending free agent cornerback L’Jarius Sneed

There are rumors swirling that the Broncos are showing interest in Chiefs pending free agent cornerback L’Jarius Sneed

The Broncos are not expected to be big players in free agency this year according to General Manager George Paton, as expected. He told reporters today at the NFL Scouting Combine that they are not going to be as aggressive as last year and will be more measured trying to find specific needs and positions to improve the team.

However, rumors are still swirling that the Broncos could make a big splash in free agency.

According to Sportskeeda’s Tony Pauline, the Denver Broncos are reportedly showing interest in Kansas City Chiefs pending free agent, L’Jarius Sneed. He states that “some are speculating” that pairing Sneed with Surtain would give them one of the better cornerback duos in the league. However, others have “outright told him” that Sneed would offer the Broncos some insurance if they dangled Surtain in a package to move up for a quarterback in the draft.

Another team that has expressed interest in Sneed is the Denver Broncos, which is interesting on a number of fronts. Some speculate partnering Sneed with Patrick Surtain would give Denver a formidable duo at the cornerback position. Yet others have told me outright that Sneed would offer insurance if they dangled Surtain as part of a package to move up and draft one of the top-rated quarterbacks, something I originally reported from Shrine Bowl practices.

Sneed has been a key member of the Kansas City Chiefs‘ defense during their back-to-back Super Bowl run and would be an instant upgrade to the Broncos’ secondary, but this doesn’t seem to make sense.

First off, the Broncos have already stated that they do not plan to be aggressive in free agency and paying CB1 money to Sneed in the opening days of free agency would well, be an aggressive move. Plus, they are a team who will be in a cap crunch, even with the $13 million extra because of the pending Russell Wilson release. It would not make sense for them to throw a ton of money at Sneed when they have a ton of needs throughout their roster. Oh, and they have Patrick Surtain, arguably the best corner in the league, entering the fourth year of his deal, one year away from an expensive fifth-year option cap number and a pending mega contract on the horizon. A move like this just does not make sense for the Broncos.

Well, unless they do plan on trading Surtain as part of a package to move up for a quarterback. He is their most valuable asset on the team and would help them move up for a quarterback if needed. However, this would leave a gaping hole in their secondary and this is where Sneed’s presence would make sense.

However, General Manager George Paton told reporters today that the team will “look into” a contract extension for their talented cornerback and that picking up Surtain’s fifth-year option is all but guaranteed to happen.

At the end of the day, this is just a rumor and I love a good rumor but this doesn’t seem to make sense for the Broncos unless they do indeed include Surtain in a trade-up package. That possibility seems unlikely as of now but this is just something to keep an eye on as we head into the offseason. If Payton wants to be aggressive for a quarterback, anything is possible but I would be surprised by this outcome.