Denver Broncos sticking with status quo at this position would be giant mistake

The Denver Broncos struck gold in 2024 NFL free agency when they brought in safety Brandon Jones from the Miami Dolphins. Jones, a young player who came with an inexpensive price tag, ended up earning All-Pro votes as well as finishing in the top five among AFC safeties in the Pro Bowl.

Jones was a ball-hawk for the Denver defense, and he looks like he'll continue to be a key piece of the team's secondary going forward. The jury is still out, however, on fellow starter PJ Locke on the back end of the secondary. Locke was re-signed by the Broncos in 2024 free agency after proving he could handle a bigger workload in 2023, and he got a shot to be a full-time starter for the entire year as opposed to just taking over as an injury replacement.

But Locke's play in 2024 shouldn't prevent the Broncos from pursuing upgrades in 2025. In fact, sticking with the status quo at the safety position could be a grave mistake for this defense after the collapse we witnessed late in the year. Locke was credited with allowing a QB rating into his coverage of 125.8. He missed two games due to injury on top of it, and while perfect attendance is an unreasonable expectation, it's one of a number of reasons an upgrade must be pursued.

Broncos need to add to the safety position yet again in 2025

Once again, the list of potential free agent safeties appears to be very favorable in a buyer's market. In fact, there are already rumblings that veteran safety Justin Simmons, who is still a Denver resident, would be interested in returning to the Broncos this coming season.

And why not?

The breakdowns in coverage late in the season were not all the fault of PJ Locke, but Locke has one career interception and only had two passes defensed on 54 passes thrown into his coverage this past year. It's not acceptable for the Broncos to rely on the status quo and there's nothing wrong with Locke being your third safety going into the 2025 season.

In fact, that would be a tremendous advantage for the Broncos.

Denver could look to bring back Simmons or bring in a variety of the other top-flight free agent safeties available and really upgrade the ball skills of the defensive backfield. Even as a member of the Atlanta Falcons, Simmons was good for his annual interception off of Patrick Mahomes...

Besides Simmons, there are guys like Julian Blackmon, Jevon Holland, Richie Grant, Trevon Moehrig, and others who could upgrade the secondary. It's going to be absolutely crucial for the Broncos to address that position group and to do it in free agency because the going rate for safeties is very team-friendly.