At a time when the Denver Broncos, Colorado Avalanche and Denver Nuggets are all rising in their respective leagues, there isn’t much room in the Colorado sports media market for the worst team in Major League Baseball.
The Rockies are trying to build a new foundation to change that reputation, led by president of baseball operations Paul DePodesta. While the changes to the front office have overshadowed the lack of roster moves, those changes and the new coaching staff are building a foundation to try to truly become a draft and development team.
If DePodesta – who comes from Chief Strategy Officer for the Cleveland Browns in the NFL – wants to continue moving in the right direction and help the Rockies rejoin the conversation as a competent organization in the Mile High City, he must follow the example set by the Broncos.
Over the past three and a half years, the Broncos have embraced change with new owners, a new head coach and a new team culture. The Rockies already have a new front office and a new manager, so now it’s about developing a good roster and creating a winning culture.
Former general manager Bill Schmidt’s infamous seven-year, $182 million contract to Kris Bryant has been the anchor dragging Colorado’s sinking ship down since 2022, resulting in 2025’s franchise-worst 119-loss season.
Many in the Rockies fan community and sports media community have advocated for the Rockies to part ways with the injured Bryant, who has played in just 170 games with a -1.6 rWAR in four seasons in Colorado, including Purple Row’s own Evan Lang in November. While Bryant’s injuries are tragic and I truly feel sorry for him, it just doesn’t seem like Bryant will ever return to the field in a serious manner.
In March 2024, when it was clear that Russell Wilson had reached his peak and was not the franchise quarterback the team needed, the Broncos released him. The organization also decided to have dinner $85 million to not have Wilson on the roster. It may have been an unconventional move, but it didn’t take long to pay off.
After the cut, Denver shifted its focus to the draft and acquiring key players through free agency. Through the draft they got QB Bo Nix, running back RJ Harvey, wide receivers Troy Franklin and Pat Bryant, and more. Through signings, they improved their offensive line and strengthened their defense.
Two years later, the Broncos have a promising QB, won the AFC West for the first time in a decade, earned the No. 1 seed in the AFC and had six players selected to the NFL Pro Bowl, tied for the most of any team in the league. Even with all those accolades, guess who is the top earner on that playoff-bound, first-round bye team’s roster?
Wilson made $32 million this season, not including the $10.5 million the New York Giants paid him for actually being on their team. The next highest salary, which is almost $9 million less, belongs to Mike McGlinchey, who is $23.8 million.
Bryant’s annual salary of $26 million has topped the Rockies’ payroll for the past four seasons. Coming in second in 2022 and 2023 was Charlie Blackmon with $18 million. In 2024 it was Blackmon’s $13 million. Last season it was Germán Márquez’s $14 million. Blackmon is retired and Márquez is a free agent. No one even comes close to Bryant’s salary.
The Rockies owe Bryant $26 million per season for the next three years. That’s a total of $81 million. It’s eerily similar to the $85 million the Broncos paid Wilson to leave. No one expects the Rockies’ fortunes to change so drastically that they’ll even be in the playoffs in two seasons, let alone win their first-ever National League West title.
But the Broncos’ bold move proved that similar measures can be useful.
The Rockies should follow suit.
The action would speak louder than any words that the Rockies are taking responsibility for past mistakes and turning the page on the past for the promise of a better future.
On Wednesday, DePodesta made a promising first addition to the Major League roster by signing RHP starter Michael Lorenzen. Not only did this move immediately improve the starting rotation, but it was also done for the low price of $8 million on a one-year deal. This is a good step in the right direction.
Releasing Bryant would also put the Rockies back in the sports media conversation, if only for a day, and increase excitement for Opening Day.
Come on, Rockies. Let’s ride and set Bryant free!
While the Rockies’ rookies need time to establish their philosophies when it comes to drafting and developing more success to win at altitude and at sea level — which will also determine what types of players they want to target in trades or free agency signings — they also need leaders who can help manager Warren Schaeffer create a winning culture.
Broncos KOA Radio announcer Dave Logan described Broncos head coach Sean Payton’s approach to this process perfectly in his weekly Broncos X’s and O’s podcast on DNVR Sports this week. After interviewing numerous players and people in the game, he said he believed Payton’s approach to roster building came down to finding players who love football and then making sure they were “smart” additions to the team.
“You can look at how this roster has been shaped over the last three years, especially with the free agents [the Broncos] brought in, and they identified guys who a) love football; that b) guys are of good character – you’re not going to read about them or hear about them doing things they shouldn’t do on social media. They’re good guys in the locker room, good leaders. And so you get a handful plus of those guys, and then the rest of the team identifies those guys as leaders and… [they say] “This is the way we do things.” So it doesn’t necessarily come from the coaches; the leadership comes from the guys in the locker room.”
This is exactly the kind of thoughtful, long-term planning the Rockies need to do. Kyle Freeland is one of those leaders, but the Rockies need more. With a young team and the stench of six straight seasons of losing in the clubhouse, the Rockies need to bring in a veteran or two known for their outspoken leadership. They should also focus on design leaders.
The Broncos have developed a beautiful blueprint for turning a struggling franchise into a winning franchise in a relatively short period of time.
Who better to help the Rockies do the same than a football/baseball manager like DePodesta?
Arbitration tracker Colorado Rockies 2026 | Purple row
The Rockies avoided any drama by reaching contract agreements with all six of their arbitration-eligible players on Thursday. Mickey Moniak, Brenton Doyle, Ryan Feltner, Jimmy Herget, Tyler Freeman and Brennan Bernadino all settled.
Tanner Gordon on Warren Schaeffer’s leadership, more | MLB.com
In an interview with MLB Network Radio, Rockies starting pitcher Tanner Gordon talks about training with Kyle Freeland in Arizona this offseason, enjoying watching his Indiana Hoosiers in the College Football Playoff and loving manager Warren Schaeffer’s leadership.
MLB Midwinter Power Rankings: Where Every Team Stands in 2026 | ESPN.com
The Rockies finished last in 2025 and remain there as we enter 2026. Since most of the changes have taken place behind the scenes and the roster doesn’t seem all that different yet, this is understandable. Even a successful turnaround will take time.
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