Denver Broncos sign Kevin Vickerson to two-year, $4.75 million contract
The Denver Broncos signed defensive end Kevin Vickerson to a two-year contract extension that will be worth a total of around $4.75 million, according to a league source. The deal includes a $1 million signing bonus and will pay him $2.375 per season.
Vickerson signed the deal before the start of the NFL lockout and is seen as a building block of the Broncos as they try to rebuild their team’s offense. The team released lineman Jamal Williams and Justin Bannan just one week before Vickerson's extension
in an effort to cut the costs of the team, as the veteran lineman were in the last years of their highly paid contracts.
"We would really have been worried if we hadn't got Vickerson signed, but hopefully we still get a chance to talk to Jamal and Bannan down the way," Broncos chief of football operations John Elway said. "But we have to see how this whole thing unravels."
Vickerson had 42 tackles and two sacks during the 2010 season, which is the best season of his five years in the NFL. He looks like a great fit for the Broncos’ new 4-3 defensive scheme after running a 3-4 scheme for the past two years.
"I don't know if he's turned the corner, but he's definitely on the curve and is a guy that we think can definitely help us," new Broncos coach John Fox said. "He's got a lot of the tools physically that we're looking for."
Vickerson will be making $1 million in base salary in 2011 along with a $1 million signing bonus and a $375,000 roster bonus, making his total pay $2.375 million for the 2011 season. In 2012, he will be making $2 million in basic salary and a $375,000 roster
bonus so that he will be making $2.375 million in the 2012 season as well. His total for the two year deal will be worth $4.75 million.
After being picked 216th overall in the seventh round of the 2005 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins, Vickerson did not play in any games during the two years that he was with them. In 2007, he was traded to the Tennessee Titans where he played in
four games during the first season he was there. He finally started some games in his third season with the Titans, which was his fifth in the NFL. He started two of the 13 games that he played in, recording 28 tackles and three passes deflected.
He then joined the Broncos in 2010 and started 12 of the 15 games that he played in. He racked up 42 tackles, two sacks, three pass deflections, one interception returned for four yards and one forced fumble.
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