No guarantees for Miami and C.J. Anderson
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins are waiting for the Denver Broncos and John Elway to make a decision on running back C.J. Anderson but there are no guarantees that Miami will end up with the versatile runner.
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Currently there are multiple reports hitting the rumor mill regarding Anderson’s immediate future. And for every rumor that says the Broncos won’t match the offer, there is another that says the will. Denver has time. They have until 4:00 p.m. eastern time Tuesday to make a decision and rushing that decision isn’t needed.
On one hand, Denver can wait until the last few hours to match the Dolphins offer. The guaranteed portions of the deal would come due upon the acceptance of that deal. Thus the money would immediately count on Denver’s salary cap.
Miami structured the deal with front loaded money. Paying Anderson around $6 million for the 2016 season. Denver tendered Anderson, a restructured free agent, at around $2.5 million. Another $800K and Denver would have received a 2nd round pick for him if he signed a deal with another team.
The emphasis on the money is important because many believed that the Broncos didn’t want to pay Anderson almost $3 million for the 2016 season but if they match the Miami offer they will pay almost $3 million more than they would have. The Broncos have money to spend right now and they restructured contracts to create a little more. Many believe those restructures are to get cap space for Anderson’s first year salary.
Of course the other side of that coin is Denver doesn’t need to make a decision immediately. They can talk it out and decide what their best future is. The Broncos are in need of a quarterback after seeing Peyton Manning retire and Brock Osweiler leave via free agency for Houston. They have also seen starters on their top rated defense leave via free agency as well. In other words they have holes to fill.
Having those holes to fill is important in this process with Anderson. Not matching his deal will not actually create another hole. The Broncos believe that Ronnie Hillman can carry the load and they can supplement him with a mid-round running back in next months draft.
Regardless of what the rumors are now, tomorrow is the absolute deadline for a resolution or rather a decision. If the Broncos match, Anderson goes back to Denver. If they don’t he joins the Miami Dolphins. Anderson is very high on the talents and coaching of Adam Gase and wanted to join his team. His five day wait is almost over.