Horse Tracks: Broncos best free agent fits

Good Morning Broncos Country!

Good Morning Broncos Country!

Free agency will be here before we know it and the Broncos could be major players in the market. They have the extra cap space, a cash-rich owner, and a motivated Sean Payton looking to build around quarterback Bo Nix.

While potential offensive additions will get most of the attention, the Broncos’ defense could see some major additions via free agency. One player who could be added is Miami Dolphins safety Jevon Holland who Pro Football Focus says his best landing spot would be with the Denver Broncos.

Holland, who was teammates with Broncos safety Brandon Jones in Miami is coming off a down year according to their grading. However, they believe reuniting him with his former teammate in Denver could elevate the Broncos secondary to an elite level.

S JEVON HOLLAND, MIAMI DOLPHINS: 81.3 PFF GRADE

Best Landing spot: Denver Broncos

Overall Free-Agent Rank: 3

After ranking among the top five safeties in PFF grading in two of his first three seasons, Holland experienced a dip in performance in 2024, earning a career-low 63.0 overall grade. Still just 25 years old and with an impressive early-career résumé, Holland will likely attract significant interest in the free-agent market.

A key factor in Holland’s decline may have been the absence of his former running mate, Brandon Jones, who joined Denver last offseason and had a career year. Reuniting the pair in Denver, which already boasts a top-five coverage unit, could elevate the Broncos’ secondary to an elite level.

Holland is one of the better young safeties in the league and would be a significant upgrade over P.J. Locke who struggled this past season. Adding another young and top talent to the Broncos’ secondary should make this unit one of the better ones in the entire league. The offense needs help, but a player like Holland has to be high on the Broncos’ wish list this offseason.

One analyst does see the Broncos improving their offense via free agency this offseason. NFL Network’s Maurice Jones-Drew believes Steelers running back Najee Harris’s best fit in free agency is with the Denver Broncos.

The Broncos haven’t had a 1,000-yard rusher since Phillip Lindsay in 2019. Harris, meanwhile, became the third player in the past 20 seasons to hit the 1K mark in each of his first four NFL campaigns (joining Adrian Peterson and Chris Johnson). Sean Payton’s offense has steadily improved over his first two seasons in Denver, and the future looks bright with Bo Nix at quarterback. What’s missing now is a run game. Harris is a physical, downhill rusher who consistently breaks tackles. That’s the type of back Payton (and Nix) would welcome.

Harris is a bit of a polarizing player for Broncos Country. Some believe the team should sign him while others do not think he’s an upgrade over Javonte Williams and want nothing to do with him.

I get why people would not want to sign him. He has a career 3.9 yards per carry and the 1,000-yard benchmark is not what it used to be with teams playing one more game than they used to. On the other hand, a change of scenery and pairing with Sean Payton could help him have a career year. It’s not like the Steelers have been great on offense or at the offensive line in recent years.

Depending on the price, I would be okay with the Harris signing if it did not remove them from the Jeanty sweepstakes in the draft. I am hoping the Broncos adopt a bit of the Lions’ run game philosophy and pair an explosive rookie (Jeanty?) with a powerful between-the-tackles runner (Najee?) and have an elite running game. I am not sure if Najee Harris can be David Montgomery, but I would not be against them signing him to a team-friendly deal.

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