Bronco’s offensive tackle Ryan Clady expressed his willingness to restructure his contract for the upcoming season, according to a report from the Associated Press.
“I’m definitely willing to talk,” Clady told the AP. “I definitely would like to be a lifetime Bronco.”
Hearing Clady’s openness to restructure his deal is certainly good news for the Broncos, but should the team even consider bringing him back for another year?
Clady is heading into the fourth year of five-year contract, which he signed in 2013 for $52 million.
Since signing the deal, however, he has only managed to stay healthy for a full season once. A Lisfranc injury in 2013 limited him to just two regular season games, and a torn ACL has sidelined him this year.
Some have speculated the Broncos may cut Clady at the season’s end due to both injuries and his age. Clady will be 30 at the start of the 2016 season.
However, Clady, when healthy, has been one of the premier tackles in the NFL. According to Pro Football Focus, Clady was among the 15 best OTs in 2009, 2010 and 2012 (was ranked third).
During the 2014 campaign, Clady helped anchor a potent offensive line, which allowed only 18 sacks, but he didn’t show the dominance of his former self.
The Broncos are currently working with about $13 million in cap space for 2016. Should this be Peyton Manning‘s last year as part of the Broncos, which even Manning has admitted is a possibility, the $13 million figure would balloon up to $32 million. Cutting Clady would save the Bronocos just under $9 million.
A chunk of that cap space will undoubtedly be put towards a quarterback, most likely the re-signing of Brock Osweiler.
While a healthy Ryan Clady of years past was a game changer, questions about his age and injury concerns have his future in Denver up in the air. It will no doubt be interesting to see how this situation develops over the summer and through training camp.
