2016 NFL free agency: Who will Danny Trevathan sign with?
Denver Broncos linebacker Danny Trevathan will have a number of suitors in free agency.
The 2015 Denver Broncos’ defense cemented its place in history with a dominating effort in Super Bowl 50 against the Carolina Panthers. Now, Denver faces the challenge of trying to retain the key pieces of the unit in free agency, including an outstanding inside linebacker in Trevathan.
Vitals
Age: 25
Notable stat: 282 career tackles
All-Pro teams: 0
Pro Bowls: 0
Contract comparisons
Trevathan may not grab a lot of headlines compared to other members of the Denver’ defense, but has been a very productive and valuable piece in his four years with the team. After a pair of excellent performances against the New England Patriots and Panthers to close out the postseason, Trevathan’s stock is on the way up heading into his free agency.
Add in the fact that Trevathan is still in his prime at 25 years old, and he should end up with one of the biggest free-agent contracts among inside linebackers. A contract similar in AAV to that of Mychal Kendricks ($2.9 million guaranteed per year) or Karlos Dansby ($3 million guaranteed per year) should a starting point for Trevathan’s contract.
Estimate: 5 years/$32 million/$18 million guaranteed
Will he stay?
Denver would obviously love to hang on to a player of Trevathan’s caliber, and could free up some cap space quickly if Peyton Manning and DeMarcus Ware retire. However, the Broncos have a number of other defensive players who are free agents, and Trevathan could end up being the odd man out.
Von Miller isn’t going anywhere in free agency, so that’s going to use up a lot of Denver’s available cap space. Beyond that, the Broncos have decisions to make on other defensive starters Brandon Marshall and Malik Jackson, plus Brock Osweiler on the offensive side of the ball.
Keeping all three of Marshall, Jackson and Trevathan is very unlikely, and even retaining two of them could be hard. Jackson is probably going to be the toughest to replace, while the Broncos are likely going to retain Marshall, who is a restricted free agent. It’s hard to say which of those players Denver might be prioritizing and Trevathan could very well re-sign, but some other teams may be able to outspend the Broncos.
If he leaves…
If the cap situation doesn’t work out for the Broncos, quite a few teams will be lining up for Trevathan’s services. That versatility, youth and playmaking ability will help Trevathan fit in with a number teams. The clear fit is the Jacksonville Jaguars, who will be in the market for almost every defensive free agent. Jacksonville has a promising offense, a poor defense, and could be setting records for cap space, so Trevathan would be a logical target.
If Jacksonville passes, look out for the New York Giants as a solid fit. The New Orleans Saints could also really use a player like Trevathan, although they have quite a lot of work to do with their salary cap situation to make that a possibility.