Whether QB or GM, unconventional Elway gets it done

[Denver Native (Carol)]

KUSA - Put him in a grass-stained uniform or suit and tie and it’s the same guy.

He can go from hero on the field to executive in the front office and nothing changes.

The Von Miller negotiations were the latest example of how John Elway the Denver Broncos’ general manager is so much like Elway the quarterback.

As a star player, he fought with management (Dan Reeves). As management, he feuded with his star pass-rusher (Miller).

Elway the gunslinging quarterback was best when the play went off script. However many incompletes or mistakes were made during the game, Elway had a way of pulling out victory in the end.

He retired as the NFL’s winningest quarterback thanks to a record 47 late-game comebacks.

In his five years as a GM, Elway has demonstrated the same flair for the dramatic. He can occasionally become brutally candid as he engaged in his share of contract squawks with the likes of Miller, Elvis Dumervil, Ryan Clady, Brock Osweiler and Colin Kaepernick.

Yet, the Broncos’ record in Elway’s five years includes this: AFC West title, AFC West title, AFC West title, AFC West title, AFC West title.

rest - http://www.9news.com/sports/nfl/denver-broncos/mike-klis/whether-qb-or-gm-unconventional-elway-gets-it-done/276335606

[Denver Native (Carol)]

from same article:


Whether quarterback in the huddle or leader of the football operations department, he is who he is. Elway is the Denver Broncos. He feels that responsibility.

[Simple Jaded]

Championship Tactics.

[tomjonesrocks]

7 got his ass handed to him year IMO. The damage control was very good to great - but I hope this has been a learning offseason for him and he adjusts a few strategies.

He's earned more than his share of mulligans, but gotta call it like I see it.

[TXBRONC]

7 got his ass handed to him year IMO. The damage control was very good to great - but I hope this has been a learning offseason for him and he adjusts a few strategies.

He's earned more than his share of mulligans, but gotta call it like I see it.

His top priority was Miller and he got signed so no he didn't get his ass handed to him. Every GM get some right while getting other wrong.

The only mistake he made and admitted to it is how he valued C.J. Anderson.

I'm glad he's in charge and not armchair GMs.

[BroncoWave]

7 got his ass handed to him year IMO. The damage control was very good to great - but I hope this has been a learning offseason for him and he adjusts a few strategies.

He's earned more than his share of mulligans, but gotta call it like I see it.

In what way did he "get his ass handed to him"? Of the 7 players franchised this year, only 2 got signed and Von was one of them. Yes he misjudged the CJ market, but that cost us only peanuts when looking at the entire cap.

If this offseason is what you would call "getting his ass handed to him" I hope he gets his ass handed to him year after year.

[TXBRONC]

In what way did he "get his ass handed to him"? Of the 7 players franchised this year, only 2 got signed and Von was one of them. Yes he misjudged the CJ market, but that cost us only peanuts when looking at the entire cap.

If this offseason is what you would call "getting his ass handed to him" I hope he gets his ass handed to him year after year.

There was no way Elway was going to be able re-sign every free agent we had. Jackson and Trevathan were the only starters from the defense that lost. They're both very good but they're also a lot easier to replace than Miller. Also, considering that only two of seven franchised players were re-signed I would say that is win.

[BroncoWave]

There was no way Elway was going to be able re-sign every free agent we had. Jackson and Trevathan were the only starters from the defense that lost. They're both very good but they're also a lot easier to replace than Miller. Also, considering that only two of seven franchised players were re-signed I would say that is win.

And the other franchise player who got signed was a kicker, Justin Tucker. So just counting real players, Elway was the only GM able to sign a franchise tagged guy to a new deal this offseason.

[OrangeHoof]

he is who he is.

That's damn fine sportswriting right there. Incredible insight.

[OrangeHoof]

This season, 7 had to gracefully retire his HOF quarterback, find a new QBOTF despite drafting last in the first round, re-sign one of the NFL's top players, fill holes left by cap-mandated free agency losses. Oh, and he also fixed a big hole at LT while saving the team money. I'd say he's done a hell of a job.

They may sputter at first because of the limitations of Sanchez and the hangover of a Super Bowl win but they have a good chance to be back on top within two years if Paxton Lynch is as good as I think he can be.

[TXBRONC]

This season, 7 had to gracefully retire his HOF quarterback, find a new QBOTF despite drafting last in the first round, re-sign one of the NFL's top players, fill holes left by cap-mandated free agency losses. Oh, and he also fixed a big hole at LT while saving the team money. I'd say he's done a hell of a job.

They may sputter at first because of the limitations of Sanchez and the hangover of a Super Bowl win but they have a good chance to be back on top within two years if Paxton Lynch is as good as I think he can be.

He did a great job. I'm glad you mentioned the left tackle situation. He got legitimate left tackle to replace Clady for far less granted. Just so Joel won't come in do one of his Captain Obvious routines I'll also mention(as we all know) that Okung didn't have agent to negotiate for him so Elway got the better of that situation. Which goes to the main point that Elway didn't get ass handed to him. They lost two starters from the defense, both of them are excellent players but Denver has players by their (coaches namely Phillips) replacement should be put up comparable production.

Some of the best deals are those that are not made. Not getting Kaepernick wasn't a loss because he was able to draft a quarterback with much higher ceiling.

[Tned]

In what way did he "get his ass handed to him"? Of the 7 players franchised this year, only 2 got signed and Von was one of them. Yes he misjudged the CJ market, but that cost us only peanuts when looking at the entire cap.

If this offseason is what you would call "getting his ass handed to him" I hope he gets his ass handed to him year after year.

I've heard arguments (Pat Kirwin among them if I recall correctly) that sometimes when you have a player like CJ, who is very hard to value and there is a big gap between the sides, that the best option is to let the player test the market, and then choose whether you want to sign them at the market value.

[LawDog]

7 got his ass handed to him year IMO. The damage control was very good to great - but I hope this has been a learning offseason for him and he adjusts a few strategies.

He's earned more than his share of mulligans, but gotta call it like I see it.

Ignoring all the other stuff which Orangehoof deftly pointed out and looking only at the Miller negotiation, I would much prefer the way Elway handled it than a situation like what Houston used to slobber all over themselves while ball-washing Osweiller and paying him way over (Way. Over.) what he is worth by any conceivable measure. If Elway would have stubbornly stuck to the original offer, refused to compromise, and then helped pack up Von's house as he moved to another team - that would have been having his ass handed to him. As it was, not at all. Good job John.

[TXBRONC]

Ignoring all the other stuff which Orangehoof deftly pointed out and looking only at the Miller negotiation, I would much prefer the way Elway handled it than a situation like what Houston used to slobber all over themselves while ball-washing Osweiller and paying him way over (Way. Over.) what he is worth by any conceivable measure. If Elway would have stubbornly stuck to the original offer, refused to compromise, and then helped pack up Von's house as he moved to another team - that would have been having his ass handed to him. As it was, not at all. Good job John.

I think people look at $70 million in guaranteed cash look at is as the epitome of Elway getting bent over the table. Just from what I've heard it looks like Elway has actually done of making it managable. The cap is going to go up which will also help.

[TXBRONC]

I've heard arguments (Pat Kirwin among them if I recall correctly) that sometimes when you have a player like CJ, who is very hard to value and there is a big gap between the sides, that the best option is to let the player test the market, and then choose whether you want to sign them at the market value.

I've heard Kirwin talk about it on Sirius XM.

[LTC Pain]

7 got his ass handed to him year IMO. The damage control was very good to great - but I hope this has been a learning offseason for him and he adjusts a few strategies.

He's earned more than his share of mulligans, but gotta call it like I see it.

Why don't you explain, O'wise one, what you would have done differently than #7 to NOT get your ass handed to you? Please be specific within salary cap constraints.

[Valar Morghulis]

People seem really defensive of an opinion that Miller bested Elway.

I share it.

That does not mean in any way I devalue all the other stuff he has done....as pointed out in this thread. Or that somehow I want to negotiate like the dolphins, Texans or browns in future

I think he made mistakes by not locking him up early before the franchise tag with an offer in the region of 60 guaranteed.

........Then he done what was necessary to keep a game changing player. Props to him for getting it done, but I still think miller played the better game over the whole negotiation process.

[Denver Native (Carol)]

People seem really defensive of an opinion that Miller bested Elway.

I share it.

That does not mean in any way I devalue all the other stuff he has done....as pointed out in this thread. Or that somehow I want to negotiate like the dolphins, Texans or browns in future

I think he made mistakes by not locking him up early before the franchise tag with an offer in the region of 60 guaranteed.

........Then he done what was necessary to keep a game changing player. Props to him for getting it done, but I still think miller played the better game over the whole negotiation process.

I disagree - the offer Von and Co accepted was the offer given to them on July 7th & 8th. They had more demands after that offer, but #7 said NO. IMO, #7 had "the most figure" in his mind all along, and he did not budge.

[Valar Morghulis]

I disagree - the offer Von and Co accepted was the offer given to them on July 7th & 8th. They had more demands after that offer, but #7 said NO. IMO, #7 had "the most figure" in his mind all along, and he did not budge.

I guess it's an issue that will never be agreed upon by those ib either camp.

That offer in early July was after a stand off in negotiations.

The first part of today negotiations Elway offered low amount of guarantees for a player of Miller's calibre. Had he been offered more before Fletcher Cox, it could have avoided the whole issue. In the end he paid 70- because I think he got his first offer wrong.

I think because Elway is Elway there is a risk that everything he does is beyond reproach.

Usually he nails negotiations.....His offer to drc for example was a fair reflection of his market value and that's why he never budged. His first offer to von however was nowhere close to what he would get elsewhere and I think that approach removed any chance of a hometown discount

[BroncoWave]

I think the fact that the offer was leaked to the media made von more angry than the offer itself. Letting the offer leak was probably the one mistake Elway made during the negotiations.

[Denver Native (Carol)]

I think the fact that the offer was leaked to the media made von more angry than the offer itself. Letting the offer leak was probably the one mistake Elway made during the negotiations.

I don't remember, but was it confirmed that it was Elway who leaked the initial offer?

[Valar Morghulis]

I think the fact that the offer was leaked to the media made von more angry than the offer itself. Letting the offer leak was probably the one mistake Elway made during the negotiations.

I forgot about the leak

[TXBRONC]

I think some people assume at least in part because Miller just became highest paid defensive player in the League. That would mean Miller got more out of Broncos than Elway wanted give up because feared Miller actually holding out. From what has been reported it sounds like Miller tried a scare tactic just to see if they could get one more concession and Elway didn't buy it.

[BroncoJoe]

I forgot about the leak

That's what she said.

:drum:

[Simple Jaded]

I don't remember, but was it confirmed that it was Elway who leaked the initial offer?

Nope, I think Miller's camp was just using process of elimination.

[Cugel]

7 got his ass handed to him year IMO. The damage control was very good to great - but I hope this has been a learning offseason for him and he adjusts a few strategies.

He's earned more than his share of mulligans, but gotta call it like I see it.

I've been more than critical of Elway but he definitely didn't "get his ass handed to him" at all.

Take the FAs he lost:

1. Malik Jackson. That was planned, they knew going into the off-season that it was unlikely they could (would) afford both Derek Wolfe and Malik, and Elway said during the season that it would be hard to keep both and that they had hard decisions to make. They re-signed Wolfe during the 2015 season to a cap friendly deal. They offered Malik a reasonable contract, but the Jagwads offered $15M a year. No way the Broncos should have matched that offer and they didn't.

2. Omar Bolden and David Bruton. These were role players. I believe both actually turned down contracts with the Broncos because they wanted to start. Only the Broncos starting secondary is set with better players. So, they left. No loss there.

3. OL Losers: Elway totally rebuilt the horrible OL from a year ago, getting rid of all the high priced players: Clady and his $10M, Evan Mathis and his $4M, Louis Vasquez and his $6M. They brought in Donald Stevenson for 3 years, $10M guarantee - or $3.3M a year. Russell Okung is getting $2M this year and they have no commitment to him beyond that. Michael Schofield is getting $600k and is now on the bench. Vasquez's place is taken by 2nd year Ty Sambrailo who is only earning $1.5M. The savings on the OL is gigantic and they didn't lose anybody of quality except Clady, who has been injured and ineffective the last 3 years and cost them $30M.

4. Osweiler. The Osweiler situation was predictable, that some team would over-pay for Osweiler, and losing him might hurt the team this year, but long term? Does anybody really think Osweiler is worth $18M a year after starting 7 games? Or that the Broncos lost a potential future top 10 QB in this league? Probably not.

Elway's one mistake was offering Osweiler $16M a year for 4 years, with $30 M guaranteed. He lucked out that the Texans outbid him there. If Osweiler would have taken that deal, the Broncos would not have had the money to re-sign Von Miller.

5 Paxton Lynch. Jerry Jones was whining after the draft how unfair it was that the Broncos swooped in ahead of the Cowboys and grabbed Paxton Lynch before he could up his trade offer. That just shows you that Elway out- maneuvered the league. Everybody is still going on about how terrible an off-season the Broncos had, but Elway never panicked and managed to move up in the 1st round and draft a future franchise QB.

The best thing about this is that Paxton Lynch will be earning an average of $2.3 M over the next 4 years - which is how the Broncos can afford the Von Miller contract. The Broncos copied the tactics of the Seahawks here - they managed to re-sign Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas, Michael Bennett, Bobby Wagner, Cliff Avril and KJ Wright to long term deals. How did they afford it? They were paying Russell Wilson less than $1 M a year for 4 years, instead of $22 M like he's earning now. The Broncos are doing the same with Paxton Lynch.

6. Von Miller. For all the fans complaining about the Miller contract, this was the most brilliant move of all by Elway. Von Miller is a potential Hall of Fame player - you cannot replace his talent. After DeMarcus Ware retires at the end of this year he's going to be the unquestioned leader of this defense for years to come.

The Broncos can afford one $19M player, just not a bunch of them.

I could go on about how the Broncos defense is set for the foreseeable future, but you get the picture. Elway cleaned up this off-season in brilliant fashion.

[Simple Jaded]

Elway lost in the Miller negotiations, that's about it, in the end it was never going to be cheap to keep Miller. Elway tried and failed, his only mistake was letting it get to the point where he needed damage control.

Brent? Nope, Elway's mistake there was budging off mid-level starting QB pay scale. They can't ALL make $20-plus MM, I'd rather take my chance with a rookie and a Veteran QB with starting experience than give unproven QB's the kind of money Manning was making 3 years ago while breaking every record in the book.

Jackson? Nah, he priced himself out of Denver's plan when he balked at the contract they offered him and Wolfe.

Trevathon? No, they kept the right ILB, imo.

Anderson? Yup, should've let him walk.

Clady? Yup, should've made that work considering what he's getting in NY. Yeah, I know, "he plays LT".......blah, blah, chuckle, chuckle, ****.

[Simple Jaded]

As far as the leak, if Miller thinks this is anything but S.O.P then his agent is filling his head full of shit, his camp would've used the same tactics (and did, with regards to info they wanted leaked) if they felt the need.

On the surface the offer the Broncos leaked was fair, made him the highest paid defensive player and the gauranteed money paid out the same way they always have. They weren't asking Miller to take less money so much as they were asking him to take the same risk as almost any other NFL player. That was never going to get it done with Miller, he wanted every stinkin penny he could get.

He got it, he just didn't want it to be public knowledge that he wasn't going to settle for anything less than every stinkin penny he could get.

In that sense, I think Elway wins.

Edit:

Oh, and the Franchise Tag is alive and well, chalk another one up for the bad guys.

[broncofaninfla]

Hands down we have the best GM in football.