NFL Notes: Safety Market, Defenses, Broncos

Safety Market

Free agent S T.J. Ward said during an interview with Sirius XM NFL Radio that he isn’t sure what’s happening in terms of the safety market.

“It’s been a strange offseason, especially for the safety market,” Ward said. “There’s some great talent out there, some guys that have been around and done great things in this league and for whatever reason, we’re on the outside looking in right now, looking to get on a team that we can help. And I know this group of players really can help a team, especially myself. I’m eager to get with a team that’s looking for my type of leadership and my type of quality of play. For whatever reason, it’s just been strange. I don’t know what’s going on.”

Meanwhile, free agent S Tre Boston explained it’s been a “rough” market for him the other available safeties this offseason, which has forced them to stay in contact to ensure that they aren’t accepting minimum salaries.

“It’s kinda rough man, they got us where they think they want us,” Boston tells Sirius XM NFL Radio. “For us, we have to communicate with each other so we don’t take this minimum wage.

Boston added that some safeties have low-level offers while others have no offers from NFL teams.

“None of us are getting close to what we want,” Boston said. “A couple of us have no offers, a couple of us have a couple offers. And the rest, we’re just trying to hear what the rest will do. But if I told you the guys that you named off are only worth a million dollars, what would you tell me? It’s that kind of predicament we’re truly in. You’re talking about guys who made $6 million, $5 million, now being offered a $1 million. Why do you do that? You do that to keep the cattle where they’re at.”

We have a number of notable safeties featured in our Top 50 Available 2018 NFL Free Agents list.

Defenses

Bucky Brooks of NFL.com rates the top five defenses in terms of having the best balance of players at all three levels of a defense:

1. Jaguars: DE Calais Campbell, LB Telvin Smith and CB Jalen Ramsey (or CB A.J. Bouye)
2. Vikings: DE Everson Griffen, LB Eric Kendricks and S Harrison Smith (or CB Xavier Rhodes)
3. Cardinals: DE Chandler Jones, LB Deone Bucannon and CB Patrick Peterson
4. Ravens: DE/OLB Terrell Suggs, LB C.J. Mosley and S Eric Weddle
5. Falcons: DE Vic Beasley, LB Deion Jones and S Keanu Neal

Broncos

• Broncos HC Vance Joseph said G Ron Leary (knee) and OT Jared Veldheer (foot) will be fully recovered in time for the start of training camp. (Jeff Legwold)
• According to Joseph, Broncos WR Jordan Taylor (hip) will “probably” start camp on the PUP list.