According to John Elway and his Twitter account, the Denver Broncos have signed cornerback Champ Bailey to a four-year contract.
“We’re fortunate to have Champ with the Broncos for a long time,” Elway wrote on his Twitter account. “This is a GREAT day for our entire organization and our fans.”
Terms of the deal have yet to be disclosed.
Bailey is a fan-favorite so this will earn Elway some brownie points, but signing a 33-year old cornerback to a four-year deal carries a ton of question marks — even if that guy is a future Hall of Famer like Bailey.
Like Ronde Barber, who signed an extension with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier Tuesday, Bailey earned an extension because his great play is accompanied by reliability and durability.
Bailey missed seven games due to injury back in 2008, but other than that has never missed more than two games in a season. He also continues to shut down an entire side of the field and make big plays. Over the past two seasons, Bailey has missed only one game and has racked up 28 passes defended and five interceptions.
The key to whether or not this was a good move will be contingent upon the structure of the contract. If the deal includes an out for the Broncos after a year or two and about $8-10 million per season, it’s a pretty good deal. If it’s anything more than that, it’s a very questionable move for a team that will be rebuilding for about the life of this contract.