The Eagles just released Evan Mathis
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 11, 2015
I share this mainly because I’m sure there would be questions about whether or not the Denver Broncos would be interested in his services.
Briefly, while Mathis is a good fit for a zone-blocking scheme, he is 33 years old. Thus, the Broncos would likely only want him if he was willing to take a low-cost deal, and very likely a one-year deal.
Considering that Mathis was holding out for more money from the Eagles, it doesn’t sound like he’d take less money to play for the Broncos. I suspect Mathis, considered one of the best guards in the NFL, is looking to cash in while he still can, because he might not have get a better deal if he waits a year or two (he had two years left on his deal with the Eagles).
If Mathis was willing to take a one-year, low-cost deal, I would have just two words: “Sign him.” But that appears highly unlikely to happen.
Therefore, I wouldn’t expect the Broncos to pursue Mathis. He’s more likely to sign with a team that has more cap space and/or has the “win now” mindset and doesn’t care what it does with its cap space… and the latter is definitely something we don’t want the Broncos to become.
