One of the thing doing so well during the regular season glossed over for the Denver Broncos were the struggles of some of their highest paid players — on defense that was most pronounced with inside linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
Greenlaw’s health was an issue beginning in the preseason, which he missed almost the entirety of with a mysterious injury issue, and also led to him missing 9 regular-seaosn games.
Even when he was healthy, Greenlaw couldn’t seem to get right, including serving a one-game suspension for a postgame confrontation with a game official.
Now, with the Broncos still reeling from a 10-7 loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game, Greenlaw’s underwhelming time with the Broncos could be coming to a quick end.
Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine put Greenlaw at the top of his list of possible salary cap casualties for the Broncos this offseason, and just one year after he signed a 3-year, $31.5 million contract.
The Broncos could save $6 million if they cut Greenlaw before June 1.
“The Broncos are in a nice spot financially so they don’t have to get too ruthless to clear space.” Ballentine wrote. “However, it’s worth revisiting the Dre Greenlaw signing. The Broncos inked him to a three-year, $31.5 million contract, but they’ve left themselves wiggle room to get out of it. The signing was a bet that Greenlaw could put his injury issues behind him, but that wasn’t the case. The 28-year-old was in and out of the lineup this season with groin, ankle, hamstring and quad injuries. He ultimately wound up only playing 58 percent of the snaps in eight games.”
The Broncos bet on Greenlaw returning to the form that made him a star for the San Francisco 49ers in 2023 — a year that ended with a freak injury in a Super Bowl loss to the Kansas City Chiefs when he tore his Achilles tendon as he slipped running onto the field.
In the 2 seasons before his injury, Greenlaw had 247 tackles and 8 TFL in 30 games. In the 2 seasons since his injury, he’s played in just 10 games with 52 tackles and 2 TFL.
There is no universe in which the Broncos should be paying Greenlaw the $9 million he’s scheduled to make in 2026, much less the $11 million he would be on the books for in 2027.
Another issue at the position is the Broncos’ other, best inside linebacker is Alex Singleton, who is also about to become a free agent, is 32 years old and has dealt with his own injury and health issues over the last few years. That includes a torn ACL suffered in 2024 and surgery for testicular cancer in 2025.
The Broncos might have to just bite the bullet and figure out a way to exist with Greenlaw and Singleton as their inside linebackers in 2026 because they need so much help at the offensive skill positions.
Starting quarterback Bo Nix is coming off surgery to repair a fractured ankle. The Broncos don’t have running back depth — or an elite running back — and are also lacking any elite talent at wide receiver or tight end.
After wasting their 2025 first round pick on defense with cornerback Jahdae Barron, any more help for the defense might have to wait.
