The deadline for NFL teams to use the franchise tag comes later on Monday afternoon, but the Denver Broncos took care of things early, as they secured Peyton Manning's biggest protector by tagging left tackle Ryan Clady.
According to ESPN.com, the Denver Broncos used their franchise tag on Friday for the All-Pro left tackle, ensuring the team that they will keep him and giving Clady a salary of $9.828 million for the 2013 season. The Broncos are planning to work with Clady on a long-term deal and the franchise tag allows them to do that while ensuring that he will not leave the team.
Last season, the team tried to extend his contract with a five-year, $50 million offer with $28 million in guarantees, but like Joe Flacco did to the Ravens, Clady decided to reject the deal for a possible bigger pay day down the line. That appears to be the course of action for the Broncos, who did not want to lose their most valuable offensive lineman to free agency.
Clady has been one of the most consistent left tackles in all of football during his time with the Broncos and he has played in every game over the past five years since being drafted. He had offseason surgery on his right shoulder and will miss some offseason workouts.
The 26-year-old lineman has been a stalwart for the Broncos since being drafted out of Boise State and he has made the Pro Bowl three times. Last season he made $3.5 million and he has played in 83 games for the Broncos over his career.
According to the Denver Post, Clady was one of five players to get hit with the tag, as were Cincinnati defensive end Michael Johnson ($11.175 million), Chicago defensive tackle Henry Melton ($8.45 million), Buffalo safety Jairus Byrd ($6.9 million) and Indianapolis punter Pat McAfee ($2.98 million).
Clady helped the Broncos finish 13-3 last season and he was a huge reason why Peyton Manning was able to come back from his neck surgeries, as he did an excellent job at keeping defenders away from the quarterback. Manning passed for 4,659 yards and 37 touchdowns and led the Broncos to the playoffs, where they lost to the Baltimore Ravens in double overtime.
The Broncos had the fifth-rated passing offense in the league and one main reason for that was the play of Clady. Other teams can negotiate with Clady and give him a higher contract than the Broncos, but chances are he will remain in Denver for the long haul once the two sides can work out a contract agreement.
The team now can concentrate on other areas and that might include names like Wes Welker or Ed Reed. The team could use a new safety after Rahim Moore gave up a long touchdown pass to allow the Ravens to tie the game in the playoffs and Welker could add to an already potent offensive attack for Manning.
