AFC West News as Free Agency Ramps Up: Denver Broncos Re-Sign Justin Strnad
The Denver Broncos re-signed Justin Strnad per a report. That, and the many other moves in the AFC West in the lead up to NFL Free Agency.
NFL Free Agency begins on Tuesday, and in all the excitement, there's a lot of news floating around.
For one, the Denver Broncos have re-signed linebacker Justin Strnad per James Palmer.
Also, the Broncos and Chiefs have been linked, once again, to Travis Etienne and Kenneth Walker.
This, from Friday, predicting the Broncos will sign Etienne:
Rich Kurtzman
AFC West News as Free Agency Ramps Up
News and rumors abound this time of year, with the NFL league year kicking off on Thursday and the legal tampering period starting on Tuesday.
And we've seen a lot happening in the AFC West.
Denver Broncos re-sign Justin Strnad
As mentioned before, the Broncos re-signed linebacker Justin Strnad. Palmer has the details of the deal being a 3-year contract for $18 million.
Two weeks ago, I wrote for Mile High Sports that Strnad is one of three players the Broncos must re-sign this offseason.
Why he was a priority is three-fold.
One, he's really stepped up as a starting linebacker, specifically when Dre Greenlaw was injured last year, and when Alex Singleton was injured in 2024. Strnad also enjoyed a career year last season, racking up 4.5 sacks, 8 QB hits, and picked off a pass.
Secondly, Strnad has become a valuable special teams contributor. If he is now the starter alongside Greenlaw, it will be interesting to see if he still gets special teams snaps or not.
Third, he gives the Broncos flexibility to move away from Alex Singleton, who's older and would've been more expensive to re-sign.
Over the Cap hasn't updated the Broncos cap space yet because no official deal has been shared by the Broncos. But if Strnad is $6M per year, that would give Denver $18.5M to still play with this offseason. And that's before restructuring anyone, which could happen.
Denver Broncos interested in Travis Etienne
The Broncos have been on the hunt for a new starting running back to rush in front of RJ Harvey. And Etienne may be the guy.
Early Sunday morning, Jeremy Fowler says the Broncos and Chiefs both have interest in Etienne and possibly Kenneth Walker.
"I'm hearing Walker will consider the Giants and Commanders among his options, with the Titans as a possibility, too," Fowler said. "Etienne has AFC West love via Denver and Kansas City . Both of those teams could check on Walker and others, too, depending on price ranges."
All offseason, Etienne has been linked with the Chiefs. But now that Kenny Walker is a free agent, I'm seeing Kansas City getting Walker, leaving Etienne for Denver.
Or, they could both compete for Etienne's services; that would be really juicy.
Kenneth Walker would be a great back for the Broncos, but I think Etienne fits what Denver needs better in being an inside runner with amazing pass-catching abilities.
Both of them could command around $12-16M per year, with Walker likely being more expensive than Etienne. Denver has the cap space and needs a dynamic back badly.
Chiefs trade Trent McDuffie for picks and to free up cap space
Last week, Kansas City sent their No. 1 corner back Trent McDuffie to the LA Rams for a first-round pick this year, No. 29, the 2026 fifth- and sixth-round picks from LA and a 2027 third-round pick.
Ironically, that No. 29 pick is exactly one spot ahead of the Broncos at No. 30.
Losing McDuffie is a huge blow to KC. He was the 17th-highest graded cornerback per Pro Football Focus, which was a down season because he was 4th-best in 2024.
Meanwhile, their other starting cornerback Jaylen Watson is currently a free agent, too.
What the Chiefs are doing in their secondary is anyone's guess, but by trading away McDuffie, they freed up $14M in cap space. That's almost the exact number they'll need to sign either Walker or Etienne. Plus, by restructuring Patrick Mahomes' contract, they have gone from the worst cap situation in the league to having just more than the Broncos at $24.9M currently.
Raiders trade Maxx Crosby to the Ravens for two firsts
Maxx Crosby wanted out of Las Vegas; who could argue with him? They are a complete mess, going through coaches on a yearly basis as the worst team in the league.
Crosby was traded to the Ravens for two first-round picks on Saturday; Baltimore's 2026 and 2027 first-rounders. Las Vegas now has the Nos. 1 and 14 selections in the first round.
The Raiders are in full-on rebuild mode. They now have Klint Kubiak at head coach, Fernando Mendoza will be their starting QB soon as the No. 1 pick, and their best defender is gone.
Plus, Tom Brady's right-hand man, some wellness influencer dude named Ales Guerrero, is running the franchise into the ground. Things you love to see.
It's pretty clear Tom Brady is running the Raiders straight into the ground. The "wellness" grifter who has worked closely with Brady over the years is standing in for Brady and helping to run the damn team. It's bad.
— Denny Carter (@dennycarter.bsky.social) 2026-03-04T14:18:57.438Z
Chargers re-sign Khalil Mack
Khalil Mack was considering retirement, but L.A. lured him back in.
With a huge 1-year, $18M contract for 2026.
Return of the Mack.
The 12-year veteran had a so-so season for the Chargers last year; he started 12 games, forced 4 fumbles, and totaled a second-lowest of his career 5.5 sacks.
Over the Cap hasn't included his deal yet, but LA will still have an astronomical $74M to play with after the deal. Part of all that money is because Bradley Bozeman retired and guard Mekhi Becton was released by LA. They will be busy rebuilding that offensive line's interior this offseason. Plus, they need more receivers.
Mike Evans could be a fit there. You never know.
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Rich Kurtzman was born and raised in Denver Colorado and attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins in the aughts. He's been a professional writer since 2011, covering Colorado State football and men's basketball, as well as the Denver Broncos, for many outlets. Current Denver Broncos work can be found on Mile High Sports. Previous credits include CBS Denver and The USA TODAY Sports Media Group.
Pro Football Reference Links
Travis Etienne Kenneth Walker Justin Strnad Mekhi Becton Maxx Crosby Trent McDuffie Alex Singleton
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