Julius Thomas has been one of the NFL's most prolific tight ends over the past few seasons, but now that he's entered free agency it is looking increasingly unlikely he will remain a Denver Bronco.
According to The Denver Post, the Broncos aren't even scheduled to meet with Thomas' agent Frank Bauer as it appears the team is focused on a slew of other free agents, most notably wide receiver Demaryius Thomas. Julius Thomas reportedly turned down a multi-year contract worth $8 million this summer.
Julius Thomas is apparently not beloved by his teammates, with one of them accusing him of being only interested in a payday, as well as sitting out of games when he was healthy enough to play.
"Julius is here to get his money and get out," one anonymous teammate said. "That's just how some guys are. He didn't grow up playing this game and it's just not in his DNA to put it all out there."
The teammate also discussed Thomas' injuries last year. "Where there's smoke, there's fire."
Despite those remarks, Thomas was an extremely productive player at a position in which fantasy football players know there is plenty of week-to-week volatility. Despite some injuries, Thomas has put up back-to-back 12-touchdowns seasons, and it may be in Denver's best interest to retain both Thomases. These are the top three reasons.
Load Up For Peyton Manning's Last Push
2015 could be the final push for Peyton Manning. Julius Thomas was a nobody before he exploded onto the scene with Peyton Manning at QB, and at his advanced age surrounding Manning with the most talent possible is wise. The Broncos are expected to work out a long-term deal with Demaryius Thomas, and still have Emmanuel Sanders in the mix, as well as Wes Welker.
There are no tight ends available that can be expected to duplicate Julius Thomas' production though, who still caught 62 balls and scored 12 times while fighting injuries. Once Manning is gone, a rebuild may be in order. Why not franchise tag one of the NFL's best red zone targets?
He's An Elite Player At His Position
Rob Gronkowski is the consensus top tight end when healthy, and when he's not that title goes to Jimmy Graham. He has battled injuries in his career as well, and last year caught 85 passes for 889 yards and 10 scores. Those numbers aren't too far off from what Thomas has provided for the last two seasons, and after those top three nobody is particularly close. That's an edge Denver has every week, and they shouldn't be dismissing it so quickly.
The First Offer Was A Lowball
It's not clear what Thomas' asking price is right now, but the initial multi-year offer for $8 million was rightly rejected. Thomas has put up similar numbers to Gronkowski and Graham for two straight seasons, and both of those guys got paid with injury risk attached to them. Graham will be making more than $8 million a season in 2016 and 2017, as will Gronkowski in 2018 and 2019.
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