Mark Schlereth has some notes for Sean Payton and the Broncos for this offseason. Surprisingly, the team made the playoffs this season after eight long years, thanks to Bo Nix. The Bills ended their journey in the wild card. But the team reaching the playoffs after such a long drought was a colossal achievement. Now, they are all in on picking the best squad for the upcoming season to ensure they go deep into the playoffs.
So the team faces offseason challenges, including player contracts, and the upcoming draft. And the coaching carousel, a former Broncos player, had a piece of advice for Denver. Enter Mark Schlereth, the Broncos’ football guard from 1995 to 2000. Mark’s straight, no-BS approach to advice for the team is not just about drafting a player. But ensuring they get placed in a system that suits their strengths.
He said, “The draft thing is interesting to me. Because you got to not only draft a guy, but you got to develop a guy and you got to put a guy in the right system to succeed.”
Talking about how teams can “mitigate potential disasters,” the 59-year-old added, “You got to take some of the problems away from a young player and say, Hey man, we’re not going to ask you to do X, Y, and Z, but we think you can be really good in A, B, and C.”
The Broncos are already ‘on top of it,’ as coach Sean would put it this offseason. Their GM, George Paton, is as clear as water, about what the team is looking for this season.
“It’s kind of like the Loch Ness Monster of trying to find a ‘Joker.’” That’s right, George is looking for a player who straight-up has qualities like the mythical creature from Scotland, the Loch Ness Monster. The team will keep an eye on the RBs in the upcoming draft.
“A lot of different backs. I think it’s a good year to maybe go get a back because there are so many,” said Paton as he appeared in front of the media at the NFL Scouting Combine. Paton might also want to keep Mark’s advice in mind as he searches for their Loch Ness Monster. Well, that’s not the only advice the former Broncos player had for the team.
So, what’s advice number two?
Mark Schlereth’s warning for Sean Payton
Well, advice number two is a warning for the Broncos team. So, as Mark appeared on The Rich Eisen Show, guest host Suzy Shuster asked him a question about Broncos free agency: How should the team approach it? The 59-year-old gives the team a heads-up before they throw money at a player who might not be worth it.
His statement about free agency players might not sit well with everyone, but he said what he said. Mark advises the Broncos not to spend “A+ money on a B minus player.” That’s right, Schlereth said it, not us.
He says teams won’t let truly valuable players hit free agency. “When you’re allowed to hit free agency, the team that knows you best decides you’re not worth the money to spend on you.” But that’s not always the case.
Sometimes, teams have to part ways with their best talent because they can’t negotiate a deal, just like what happened between John Mara’s Giants and Saquon Barkley. Other times, a tight salary cap leaves teams with no choice but to let go of key players. It’s something most teams dread.
So, what should Sean Payton and the Broncos’ approach be? Well, Mark says it’s always better to wait for the “second wave” of free agents. Schlereth’s golden advice is that instead of throwing money around and chasing big names in free agency, the team should look for options in the later stages of the market. There’s a chance they might find promising young talent or experienced veterans who can still contribute. “We saw that with Zach Ertz and how great he was in Washington this year, especially converting fourth downs,” Schlereth explained.
So, that was the former Broncos player’s word of advice for Sean Payton and the team. Now, how do they go about it? Well, we’ll just have to wait and see.
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