Broncos: Denver Add Menelik Watson To Offensive Line
The Denver Broncos have signed their second offensive lineman in as many days, adding Menelik Watson on a three-year deal.
The Denver Broncos have continued to bolster their offensive line this free agency period by signing offensive tackle Menelik Watson to a three-year deal.
Watson joins OG Ronald Leary as the only two free agent acquisitions in the first 48 hours of the signing period for the Broncos. This signals that GM John Elway and his team have clearly identified the offensive line as the most important area of need for the Broncos.
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Watson comes to Denver having spent four years with the Raiders, where he started in 17 out of his 27 games for the franchise.
He was selected in the second round (42nd overall) in the 2013 NFL draft by the Raiders after having an exceptional season with Florida State where he surrendered just one sack all season.
Previous to his time with the Seminoles, Watson played football at Saddleback College and also spent time playing college basketball at Marist College.
Watson was an avid soccer and basketball player growing up in England, and only took up football in 2011.
Watson joins Denver just a day after Russell Okung left the Broncos as a free agent to join the Los Angeles Chargers. While Watson has traditionally played on the right side of the line, it may not be out of the question for Watson to move to the left tackle position to replace the outgoing Okung.
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Watson has suffered a plethora of injuries in his young NFL career and it will be paramount that he remains healthy for Denver. He battled a number of foot and ankle injuries in his rookie campaign before tearing his Achilles in 2015, causing him to miss the entire season that year. He is an extremely talented and agile offensive lineman who plays with a nasty streak. If healthy, Watson may be a big factor for Denver.
The deal for Watson is for three years, and is worth a reported $18.3 million dollars.
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While the Broncos have yet to make a major splash in free agency, they have gone a long way to addressing the teams biggest needs. It has been a successful 48 hours for Elway and hopefully it will continue in the coming days.