The Denver Broncos lost a cavalcade of starters in free agency.
The list of key losses includes tight endJulius Thomas, defensive linemanTerrance Knighton, guard Orlando Franklin, safetyRahim Moore, linebackerNate Irving, receiver Wes Welker, among others.
The losses were only supplemented by several veteran additions who could be viewed as downgrades, such as tight endOwen Daniels or guardShelley Smith.
Speaking Sunday at the NFL Annual Meeting in Phoenix, general manager John Elway dismissed any concern about his roster.
The answer he gave when discussing bringing in a veteran to compete for the starting center spot says all you need to know about how Elway views the current makeup of his team.
"There's plenty of guys out there and there's plenty of time," Elway told The Denver Post. "What you have to keep in mind is we think we're going to get 10 (draft) picks and we only have 53 (roster) slots. So it's hard to bring these guys in and give them a lot of money up front to compete because what do you do if one of those young guys prove they're ready? We'll do something. We're just not in a rush."
With little salary-cap space, Elway didn't pay to keep his veterans, instead he sounds confident that his new coaching staff will be able to plug in young players into the gaps left by veterans without the Broncos' Super Bowl chances wilting.
The latest Around The NFL Podcast makes some bold free agency predictions and discusses Adrian Peterson's future. Find more Around The NFL content on NFL NOW.
