5-Time Pro Bowl ILB Would Be an Ideal Insurance Policy for Broncos

You can't have Pro Bowlers or All-Pros at every position on an NFL roster. And yet, teams are always in pursuit of perfection when it comes to roster-building.

The Denver Broncos have cultivated a talented and balanced roster, with depth at every position. However, there are lingering questions surrounding one position group.

Inside linebacker.

The Broncos paid Dre Greenlaw a handsome sum to spurn the San Francisco 49ers and bring his talents to the Mile High City. He wanted a chance to go "be [Michael] Jordan," instead of serving as the second fiddle (or "[Scottie] Pippen") to Fred Warner.

However, Greenlaw came with a serious injury jacket, and he's already hurt. He suffered a quad injury during offseason workouts that could keep him away from some of the Broncos' voluntary workouts.

The Broncos plan for Greenlaw's inside linebacker partner is Alex Singleton, who enters his age-32 season coming off a torn ACL. The Broncos say they still have high hopes for 2023 third-rounder Drew Sanders, but potential doesn't pay the bills. Production does.

What if Denver made one last calculated free-agent move to address the depth and experience concerns at inside linebacker? If the Broncos were of a mind to, I'd suggest former Baltimiore Ravens and New York Jets linebacker C.J. Mosley.

The Jets released Mosley earlier this offseason, after a toe and neck injury caused him to miss 13 games last season. His prime playing days may be behind him, but he started all 17 games in 2022 and 2023 for the Jets, totaling 310 tackles (110 solo) over that span.

A Baltimore first-round pick out of Alabama in 2014, Mosley is a five-time Pro Bowler and All-Pro. And he's still lingering on the free-agent market. He'd make for one heck of an insurance policy at inside linebacker.

Mosley's previous annual average was $8.6 million. He's not worth that level of salary at this point, but the Broncos have more than twice that number in available salary-cap space.

If the Broncos could work out a deal that made sense, Mosely would not only upgrade the team's inside linebacker depth, but he'd also make the team far less dependant on the vagaries of the injury bug (in Greenlaw's case) or the possibility of recovery setbacks (in Singleton's case).

After finishing as a top-10 defense in scoring and points last year, and also leading the league in sacks, the Broncos' 2025 unit is expected to be among the NFL's best, if not the best, as is. Mosley would only bolster that outlook.

If the Broncos had a big defensive weakness last year, it was against the run. That defense chose some poor moments to suddenly spring leaks in the running game.

Mosley would plug them with gusto and bring a decade of experience and leadership to Vance Joseph's already stacked defense. Food for thought.