Russell Okung to visit the Broncos

[Mingo]

Report: Russell Okung to visit the Denver Broncos

Calling Ryan Clady.......

The Denver Broncos do not miss a trick. They can sign Okung for less than they are on the books for paying Clady - and Okung's not injured (but hasn't played as well for the last 3 years). Smart management move - even if they don't sign him.

 

[cdumler7]

This has me giddy. Yes I used that word! I would love to see this happen. I know he hasn't been his best but he has also been playing with a terrible group around him and a QB that loves to run around. I think in a more typical offense like we would have here he could thrive once again! Please make this happen Elway!

 

[HaroldSeattle]

This has me giddy. Yes I used that word! I would love to see this happen. I know he hasn't been his best but he has also been playing with a terrible group around him and a QB that loves to run around. I think in a more typical offense like we would have here he could thrive once again! Please make this happen Elway!

Who knows maybe Broncos sign Okung, cut Clady and he signs for cheap with the Seahawks.

 

[SpringStein]

Who knows maybe Broncos sign Okung, cut Clady and he signs for cheap with the Seahawks.

could happen. There is a pipeline of (non NFL) people between Colorado and Seattle!

 

[randymon]

Why cut Clady? This line needs all the help it can get. Those two alone would be upgrade. Wow??

 

[WalkerBoh]

Why cut Clady? This line needs all the help it can get. Those two alone would be upgrade. Wow??

Okung would represent a younger and healthier option. Schofield sucked last season, and was still more help to the Broncos than Clady was. Plus, Clady is not currently worth the contract he is under, and yet he may not want to cut his salary down. I'd rather take my chances on Okung at a cheaper price, than pay A player who has played less than a third of Denver's games the past three years.

 

[jakedog56]

Okung would represent a younger and healthier option. Schofield sucked last season, and was still more help to the Broncos than Clady was. Plus, Clady is not currently worth the contract he is under, and yet he may not want to cut his salary down. I'd rather take my chances on Okung at a cheaper price, than pay A player who has played less than a third of Denver's games the past three years.

The fact that you are touting Okung as the healthier option is just plain scary. He is constantly banged up and has missed a lot of games in recent years. That is why no one is willing to offer the $11-13 million he is asking.

Plus I see the Broncos signed Stephenson so I guess Okung is not an option now?

 

[WalkerBoh]

The fact that you are touting Okung as the healthier option is just plain scary. He is constantly banged up and has missed a lot of games in recent years. That is why no one is willing to offer the $11-13 million he is asking.

Plus I see the Broncos signed Stephenson so I guess Okung is not an option now?

That just goes to show how much time Clady has missed recently. Okung played in 35 regular season games the past 3 seasons. So, yeah, he has gotten dinged up a bit. But still healthier than the 18 games in 3 seasons Clady played. Plus the ACL has me wondering if Clady will ever really return to form.
As for settling for just Stephenson, Denver needs all the help it can get, and will likely bring in more o-line help.

 

[jakedog56]

That just goes to show how much time Clady has missed recently. Okung played in 35 regular season games the past 3 seasons. So, yeah, he has gotten dinged up a bit. But still healthier than the 18 games in 3 seasons Clady played. Plus the ACL has me wondering if Clady will ever really return to form.
As for settling for just Stephenson, Denver needs all the help it can get, and will likely bring in more o-line help.

Still, do you want to pay $11 million plus to a guy who is going to miss about 5-6 games a year? It is a risky proposition for anyone, which is why Okung is still on the market after visiting Pitt, NY, Denver, etc. etc.

 

[cdumler7]

The fact that you are touting Okung as the healthier option is just plain scary. He is constantly banged up and has missed a lot of games in recent years. That is why no one is willing to offer the $11-13 million he is asking.

Plus I see the Broncos signed Stephenson so I guess Okung is not an option now?

Stephenson was signed before the Broncos elected to bring in Okung so I don't view it as they can't or won't sign Okung. To me this decision serves up 2 purposes...

1) Right now they are at a stalemate in contract negotiations with Ryan Clady of how much of a cut he should take. Clady will not be back with the Broncos at the contract he has now on the books. That much is obvious. The fact that he is pushing back so much is probably not sitting well with Elway and he has shown in the past that he can and will move on from a player. So this could be trying to get Clady to speed up his decision and agree to the contract the Broncos are wanting.

2) Yes I understand Okung hasn't been the best at staying healthy but to a Bronco fan he is the definition of healthy when it comes to the LT spot as Clady is missing entire seasons with a huge cap hit. So even getting that 11 games a year from your LT would be huge for us. I also think Okung is the better player of the two right now. Clady when he did play 2 seasons ago was a shell of himself. Right now even at a higher price I would much rather have Okung than Clady.

 

[randymon]

Okung would represent a younger and healthier option. Schofield sucked last season, and was still more help to the Broncos than Clady was. Plus, Clady is not currently worth the contract he is under, and yet he may not want to cut his salary down. I'd rather take my chances on Okung at a cheaper price, than pay A player who has played less than a third of Denver's games the past three years.

Obviously Am figuring Clady coming back at reduced salary like is being reported and yes he missed all last year so there is also chance he is in good condition and ready to get back to his old self. Yeah it's a crap shoot but if he comes with a reasonable salary it certainly can't hurt. In case you might of missed it,we've lost a few guys already.

 

[cdumler7]

I do agree that Okung is not going to get his asking price. I think he has been somewhat smart in trying to take some visits but his problem is he took too long to get all these visits lined up. If he wanted top dollar he needed his contract to be signed week 1 of FA. Prices drop dramatically as the big money is now gone. Yes there are teams that can still afford him at the big contract he is wanting but he has really limited his field now. Only 4 teams have more than $30 million in cap space and all but the Titans have that LT spot figured out.

 

[cdumler7]

Obviously Am figuring Clady coming back at reduced salary like is being reported and yes he missed all last year so there is also chance he is in good condition and ready to get back to his old self. Yeah it's a crap shoot but if he comes with a reasonable salary it certainly can't hurt. In case you might of missed it,we've lost a few guys already.

Okung would be subbing one player for another though that has a lot less risk injury wise. To me it has come down to either we get Okung or we hold onto Clady. I can't see us not having one of those guys on our roster week 1.

To me it boils down to Okung will cost more but has a lot less injury risk. He knows the system as he is coming from a ZBS system so it wouldn't be a crazy transition.

Clady will be cheaper and knows the organization and has been a very well respected player in the locker room. Still we are not just talking about being injured but of actual serious injuries. I mean he tore his Patella Tendon, tore his labrum in his right shoulder, Lisfranc injury, and then this past season tore his ACL. That does not look good.

 

[jakedog56]

One big problem for Okung is that he is currently recovering from shoulder surgery. The word is that they won't have a recovery progress report or a timetable for his return to 100% until late May or early June. Additionally, he is acting as his own agent so he was not allowed to talk with teams as a player until after the agents were already in negotiations with teams (At least that is my understanding of the situation. Seems like a screwed up rule if that is the case).

Add that to his injury history (glass ankles, shoulder issues, etc.) and his high demands and it seems like a lot of teams are wary in their offers.

My guess is that he ends up taking a 1 year "prove it" deal somewhere for $6-8 million. Not a horrible price for one year for the team that lands him.

It will be interesting to see where he lands. I wish I had details on the offers that he has been given that he has already walked away from.

 

[cdumler7]

One big problem for Okung is that he is currently recovering from shoulder surgery. The word is that they won't have a recovery progress report or a timetable for his return to 100% until late May or early June. Additionally, he is acting as his own agent so he was not allowed to talk with teams as a player until after the agents were already in negotiations with teams (At least that is my understanding of the situation. Seems like a screwed up rule if that is the case).

Add that to his injury history (glass ankles, shoulder issues, etc.) and his high demands and it seems like a lot of teams are wary in their offers.

My guess is that he ends up taking a 1 year "prove it" deal somewhere for $6-8 million. Not a horrible price for one year for the team that lands him.

It will be interesting to see where he lands. I wish I had details on the offers that he has been given that he has already walked away from.

Oh I have seen his injury history as well. Most of his have not been season ending though like that of Clady. That is why I would rather have him if I have a choice between the two players.

You are right he might end up playing on a prove it deal as my guess is he is getting nowhere near what he is wanting. If he gets $8 million a year I would be a bit surprised. I mean the guy when healthy is one of the best LT's in the game. Still he has yet to play 16 games in a season. I do think being his own agent was a terrible decision as most likely if he has an agent he is already signed to a multi-year deal and somebody has paid him $10 million a year if not more with the crazy contracts teams are handing out this year.

 

[Malibu]

No thanks to Okung and Clady can go as well. To many injury issues with both.

 

[cdumler7]

No thanks to Okung and Clady can go as well. To many injury issues with both.

So who is our LT then?

 

[CEH]

This is funny. Both CD and Malibu freak me out because they have very similar avatars yet their opinions are normally 180 degrees apart so when they post back to back it confuses the hell out of me.

 

[cdumler7]

This is funny. Both CD and Malibu freak me out because they have very similar avatars yet their opinions are normally 180 degrees apart so when they post back to back it confuses the hell out of me.

Just that wonderful split personality coming through!

 

[MileHigh64]

This is funny. Both CD and Malibu freak me out because they have very similar avatars yet their opinions are normally 180 degrees apart so when they post back to back it confuses the hell out of me.

Haha! I can't tell you how many times that I've read a post from Malibu and thought to myself "CD must be hittin' the bottle, because he's really flipped his position" only to figure it out when more closely studying the Broncos logos.