Plummer Expects Broncos Will Go After Playmakers, Defenders

DENVER (CBS4) - As the Denver Broncos enter the NFL's free agency period the dark cloud of the Super Bowl loss to the Seattle Seahawks last month still looms large.

The question is how much will that loss play into their game plan as they seek to sign free agents across the league.

"It's tough to say, I'm not in the building there analyzing the game and seeing where the weaknesses were, where they broke down," former Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer told CBS4's Vic Lombardi on Xfinity Monday Live. "I think they need to go get a few playmakers, because you can't have too many of those.

"You want guys who can take that ball and go a long ways real fast. They could use a great running back to get some of the weight off Peyton's back. And you can't have enough defense, as Seattle showed."

Plummer said gathering defensive players with speed and size is the "new trend" that the Seahawks are leading the charge on.

"But I don't think (the Broncos) are far away. They ran into a buzzsaw -- a young, confident team that was playing really, really good. And sometimes that happens," Plummer said.

The biggest name on the Broncos roster who might be lured by another team during free agency is receiver Eric Decker, and Plummer thinks it would be a mistake to let him go.

"You don't want to do too much change," he said, referring to last season's record-setting offense. "You want to keep it in tact."

"Decker is a guy that Peyton has confidence in, and he doesn't want go get some young kid to start working with. I don't know that for sure, but I'd keep him around."

Plummer said it sounds like there's a better chance running back Knowshon Moreno will wind up with a different team, despite a breakout 2013 season.

"Sometimes it's just that you're at an age and they've maybe made a decision when you weren't playing the way you were ... when he had a little bit of a lull, that they drafted some young kids and those kids have shown enough potential and ability that they save some money having younger guys sign and he can go on now and continue his career (elsewhere)," Plummer said.

That said, Plummer said he "likes unity" and would like as a Broncos fan to see Moreno stay.

Plummer was a free agent in 2003, and told Lombardi he had a tough time deciding between the Chicago Bears and the Broncos.

He said all highly sought after free agents have an opportunity to "have some fun" and go through something similar to what a high schooler goes through when they are being recruited by college programs.

"I did a trip to Chicago and and trip here. We had a great time. I ate a lot of steak and drank some wine and did a lot of thought," Plummer said.

Plummer said ultimately a player's choice of what team they sign with should come from the heart.

"The main thing is the chance to win and win right away and come into a team with established leaders, plus some younger players that are getting better every year and ownership that wants to win and put the money out there and do whatever it takes. And they've got that all in Denver," he said.

See more video with Plummer in the Xfinity Monday Live section.