Derek Wolfe is 29 years old, has had numerous injuries in his career and is set to have a salary cap hit of $10,925,000 this season.
So do the Broncos expect to bring him back for the 2019 season?
“Sure,” coach Vic Fangio said at the NFL combine Wednesday. “I don’t see anything changing our stance there with him.”
If Denver cut Wolfe, the team would have a “dead money” hit of $2,375,000 and a net salary cap savings of $8.55 million. Fangio seemed to imply that Wolfe will return, though, so we can probably rule out the possibility of the defensive lineman being cut this offseason.
The Broncos may try to restructure Wolfe’s contract — Fangio wasn’t asked about that, but it remains a possibility.
Wolfe was healthy for all 16 games last year, marking the first time he’s played an entire season since 2014. He totaled 43 tackles, 1.5 sacks and one interception. The veteran defender also broke up six passes.
Wolfe will likely remain one of the team’s starting defensive ends in 2019. Adam Gotsis is a candidate to start on the other side of the defensive line. Wolfe and Gotsis are both scheduled to become free agents in 2020, so Denver needs to add more depth this offseason.
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