Broncos consider all options

Plummer's wishes to be respected, but team comes first

Jeff Legwold, Rocky Mountain News

Published January 25, 2007 at midnight

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MOBILE, Ala. - The Broncos want to keep Jake Plummer on the roster.

But they are appreciative enough of the veteran quarterback's 40-18 record as a Broncos starter to try to get him what he wants elsewhere for the 2007 season.

Just as long as the Broncos get what they want as well.

"We've got a number of angles we can take," general manager Ted Sundquist said Wednesday at the Senior Bowl. "Certainly, we'd like to have him back. He's been a mainstay for us on the offensive side for four years, took us to the AFC Championship Game (of the 2005 season). And veteran quarterbacks like that, with playoff experience that have a familiarity with the team that we've got right now and the offensive system, they're not out there right now.

"But a lot of that decision hinges on what he wants to do, on where he sees himself at this point in his career.

"Does he see himself as a starting quarterback? Does he see himself as a veteran backup? He's going to have to make that decision."

The Broncos will spend the coming weeks working on Plummer's future. Plummer, who will enter his 11th NFL season in 2007, is looking at a backup role with the Broncos because the offense has been handed over to Jay Cutler.

But the market for veteran quarterbacks is expected to be thin during the offseason, so that makes trying to keep Plummer an attractive possibility for the Broncos. It also means the list of suitors for a trade would be longer.

Plummer made it clear before the end of the season he believes he still can be a starter and told several teammates in the days leading to the regular-season finale against the San Francisco 49ers that he is "playing my last game as a Bronco."

"Certainly, I think it's something we'll have to sit down and talk about," said Plummer's agent, David Dunn. "I'm sure we'll map things out in the coming days and go from there. Jake took some time at the end of the season, but he will be ready to get into that pretty soon, I think."

Dunn said he will sit down with Plummer in Mobile because his client will be there Friday. Plummer, E.J. Junior and Hines Ward will be inducted into the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame during a ceremony that night.

Sundquist said the Broncos have had some preliminary discussions with Dunn and had a discussion with Plummer about his future just before the end of the season.

"So if Jake still believes he is a starter, I think coach (Mike) Shanahan and the organization, myself included, would be flexible and open of a request like that," Sundquist said. "I don't think we'd fight him. But we would want to explore all our options as well because the worst thing we could do is to cut him outright before June 1, take the hit, without any kind of compensation."

And that is the issue. Because of Plummer's original contract with the Broncos and subsequent renegotiations - three years remain on the deal - if the team cut the veteran before June 1, it would take a salary-cap hit of $8,556,000 for the 2007 season.

If the Broncos cut Plummer after June 1, the cap hit would be over two years - $2,852,000 in 2007 and $5,704,000 in 2008.

Because Plummer's salary-cap figure for 2007 is $8,605,000, to cut him after June 1 would give the Broncos $5,704,000 in cap room this year that currently isn't on the books.

The Broncos can get that savings earlier than June 1 if they formally designate in writing Plummer will be a June 1 cut before then.

When the new collective-bargaining agreement was reached in March, it allowed teams to designate two players each year as "June 1" cuts, allowing teams to use the cap savings sooner during the offseason.

If Plummer tells the Broncos he does not want to be their backup, they would prefer to trade him than release him.

The Broncos would take the full salary-cap hit of $8,556,000 if they trade Plummer, but anything they receive in return - most likely a draft pick - has to be worth more to the team than the cap savings it would get this year with a June 1 release.

In the event Plummer stays with Denver, the Broncos would look to redo the final three years of the contract.

"But we've looked at a lot of different scenarios with Jake, as well as our entire roster," Sundquist said. "We feel like we have a good idea about what can be done. We just have to see where Jake is on that and go from there."

Possible suitors

With the quarterback market expected to be thin and the draft a little light, the Broncos could have plenty of suitors for Jake Plummer. Some possibilities.

• Houston Texans: Coach Gary Kubiak is looking for a veteran because David Carr's play regressed and Kubiak likes Plummer as a player. Plummer always has said he enjoyed playing for Kubiak, a former Broncos offensive coordinator.

• Miami Dolphins: Until Daunte Culpepper shows he has recovered from knee surgeries, most in the NFL consider the Dolphins in the market for a quarterback.

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Chris Simms is coming off a spleen injury, and coach Jon Gruden has said "there's a good chance there's another guy in town that'll be competing there."

• Cleveland Browns: Coach Romeo Crennel is taking some serious heat to upgrade the offense.

legwoldj@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2359

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