Denver Broncos' Top Free-Agency Targets at Tight End

The Denver Broncos have only one tight end under contract for 2015. Julius Thomas, Virgil Green and Jacob Tamme are all scheduled to be unrestricted free agents this year. Only Dominique Jones is signed in 2015 on the Broncos roster at the tight end position.

Clearly, the Broncos need to address the position in free agency or the 2015 NFL draft (or both).

When free agency opens up in early March, the Broncos need to snare a tight end or two. With new head coach Gary Kubiak, the tight end is an important part of the offense.

In this article, we take a look at the best options for the Broncos this offseason. Some players are currently on the roster, while others would come over from different teams. The Broncos need to leave no stone unturned when searching for tight ends who can be big contributors in 2015.

Here are the top free-agent targets for the Broncos at the tight end position.

Virgil Green

USA TODAY Sports

Virgil Green has worked hard to become a solid all-around tight end at the NFL level. When he came out of Nevada as a seventh-round pick, Green was known mostly as a great receiving tight end who struggled to block. Now, Green is arguably the best all-around tight end the Broncos had in 2014.

Green was a favorite target of Colin Kaepernick in college. He tied for the lead in touchdown receptions with Nevada in 2010. Green is a seriously underrated receiver who could easily exceed his 24 career catches in a single season if featured more.

I interviewed former Broncos tight end Joel Dreessen on my ESPN Denver radio show last week. He told me that Green could have 30-40 catches as the second tight end in the Gary Kubiak system.

In the Kubiak system, the offense will feature plenty of two-tight end sets. Tight ends who play under Kubiak must be good blockers if they want to see the field. Green is a dominant blocker, and he is better as a receiver than some think. The fit for him in the Kubiak system is perfect.

Green had a cap number of $661,236 in 2014. His salary this year should put him over the seven-figure mark.

This is an easy decision for the Broncos. They must re-sign Green so he doesn’t leave in free agency.

Owen Daniels

Nick Wass/Associated Press

The Broncos could certainly have Daniels near the top of the list. Daniels followed Gary Kubiak from Houston to Baltimore in 2014. He was originally a fourth-round pick by the Kubiak-led Houston Texans in 2006. Daniels has been able to shine under Kubiak during his pro career.

His best season under Kubiak was 2008, when he was targeted 101 times, caught 70 passes for 862 yards and two touchdowns. Last year under Kubiak, Daniels bounced back after an injury-shortened (five games) 2013. Daniels was targeted 78 times, caught 48 passes for 527 yards and four touchdowns.

Daniels knows the Kubiak system like the back of his hand. If added, he would be a great mentor for any of the other tight ends on the Broncos roster. Daniels is a fine blocker, and that is a must for any tight end who works successfully in the Kubiak system.

Garrett Downing, from BaltimoreRavens.com, reports that Daniels would like to stay with the Ravens and believes he can play a few more years.

Daniels had a cap number of $1 million in 2014. As a free agent this year, his cap number might not be greatly increased. There’s a good chance the Broncos could sign Daniels for around $2 million per season.

Even though Daniels may want to stay with Baltimore, the Broncos have something the Ravens don’t have anymore—Kubiak.

Jordan Cameron

David Richard/Associated Press

The Broncos could be considering Jordan Cameron as an option at tight end. Like Julius Thomas, Cameron was a basketball star in college (at USC) with only one year of college football experience. In fact, I watched Cameron and Thomas on the same field during the week of practice for the 2011 East-West Shrine Game.

The similarities go beyond that game and the basketball background. Like Thomas, Cameron has never played a full season during his four-year career. In 2014, Cameron suffered a concussion in Week 8 against the Oakland Raiders and only played in 10 games total.

He finished a disappointing 2014 with only 24 catches for 424 yards and two touchdowns. This poor season was following up a breakout 2013 where Cameron had 80 catches for 917 yards and seven touchdowns.

Cameron had a cap number of $1.6 million in 2014. Like Thomas, Cameron is a top-five tight end when healthy. If the Broncos feel that Cameron’s upside is worth the price, he could be getting an offer. Any team that pays Cameron will have to take the risk that he’ll stay healthy while also rewarding potential upside.

Charles Clay

Steven Senne/Associated Press

Versatility is the name of the game for Charles Clay—and it always has been. Clay played seven different positions in college at Tulsa, and the Miami Dolphins liked him enough to select him in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL draft.

During his four-year pro career, Clay has worked hard to become a quality contributor for the Dolphins.

In 2013, Clay was targeted 102 times and caught 69 passes for 759 yards and six touchdowns. In 2014, Clay’s numbers came down a bit. He was targeted 84 times and caught 58 passes for 605 yards and three touchdowns. Like other free-agent tight ends, Clay has potential, but there is some risk associated with lack of durability.

According to Barry Jackson, from the Miami Herald, the Dolphins want to re-sign Clay and they should offer him a contract in the next few weeks. James Walker, from ESPN, believes the Dolphins won’t use the franchise tag on Clay this offseason. If used, the franchise tag would pay him a one-year salary of approximately $8.2 million, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports.

Clay had a cap number of $1.5 million in 2014. After struggling through a nagging knee and hamstring injury last season, Clay’s price tag could be held down. As nice of an addition as Clay would be, it seems like the Dolphins are going to wrap him up in the near future.

Julius Thomas

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

Re-signing Julius Thomas may prove to be difficult this offseason. When healthy, Thomas is one of the best tight ends in the game today. However, staying healthy has been a problem for Thomas during his career.

In four years, Thomas has played in 36 games while missing 28 contests. In addition to 28 missed games, Thomas has done little in a few games he’s appeared in.

After his breakout performance in 2013 (65 catches, 788 yards, 12 touchdowns), Thomas started off this season on a hot streak—especially as a red-zone threat. He scored nine touchdowns in the first six games of the 2014 season, but then an ankle injury slowed him down in Week 11 against the St. Louis Rams. He missed three games after that, but in the three games to finish the season Thomas played and only had three catches for 63 yards.

Ankle problems essentially cost him the first two seasons of his pro career. A minor knee injury knocked him out of a couple of games in 2013, and now this ankle problem in 2014 kept him out (or down) for six weeks.

Durability is a huge concern for Thomas. He’s never played a full season, and that could keep contract offers lower than his talent level dictates.

Thomas had a cap number of $741,000 in 2014. He’s unlikely to get $9 million annually like Rob Gronkowski, and he certainly won’t approach the $10 million annual number that Jimmy Graham gets. Thomas could be looking for a contract similar to what Kyle Rudolph signed with the Minnesota Vikings last year.

Rudolph signed a five-year, $36.5 million contract with an average annual salary of $7.3 million.

I interviewed Mike Klis, from The Denver Post, on my ESPN Denver radio show and he said the Broncos could extend an offer to Thomas before he hits the open market.

“I do think they’re going to try and sign Julius Thomas. They may not offer him the deal he’s already turned down. That package may come down a couple million dollars from what he turned down back in July. But maybe his expectations in light of the injury have come down too.”

I would love to see Thomas stay with the Broncos. However, I would be surprised to see him return to Denver unless it’s at a complete discount.

All contract and salary-cap information is provided by Spotrac.com. Any college football statistics provided by CFBStats.com.