DENVER—The Denver Broncos signed fourth-round draft pick Marcus Thomas on Wednesday to a deal that will pay him $3 million over four years.
The defensive tackle, who had 14 sacks in 41 games for the University of Florida, likely would have been selected much higher than 121st in the April draft were it not for the trouble he got into last year.
Thomas was suspended from the national champion Gators last season by coach Urban Meyer after failing two marijuana tests. He was reinstated but then kicked off the squad permanently in early November for violating curfew and drug rehab class provisions of a contract he signed to remain with the team.
“Marcus was hands down the best football player on our national championship team. He’s definitely a top-10 pick in my eyes,” said defensive end Jarvis Moss of Florida, whom the Broncos selected with the 17th overall pick in this year’s draft.
The Dallas Cowboys had their eyes on Thomas when the Broncos moved up in the draft to select him, sending Minnesota their sixth- and seventh-round selections along with a third-rounder in 2008 to pick a player that coach Mike Shanahan agreed had first-round potential.
Thomas (6-foot-3 and 296 pounds) has said he appreciates the Broncos giving him a second chance and will repay them by staying clean. On the day he was drafted, he said, “I feel like I’m already on 2.9 strikes. Anything else I’m out.”
“I’m going to make a good story out of it. Happily ever after—that’s what I’m going to try to do; (make a) Cinderella story out of it,” he said.
Agent Richard Burnoski said the Broncos and their fans have absolutely nothing to worry about.
“The Broncos did a very thorough job of looking into the circumstances and they feel very confident in him. As I told them in negotiations, Marcus should have been a first-rounder. No one did us a favor by taking a first-rounder in the fourth round,” Burnoski told The Associated Press from his Jacksonville, Fla., office.
“Everyone should be confident Marcus is not a high risk. He’s never been in trouble with the law, never had a speeding ticket. Just this marijuana thing. People are comparing him to Maurice Clarett, who is a criminal and is doing time. That’s not fair. This kid is a good kid who would have been the first defensive tackle taken in the draft.”
The Broncos selected Clarett in the third round of the 2005 draft but a groin injury in camp led to his release. The former Ohio State football star is serving a 3 1/2-year prison term on charges of aggravated robbery and carrying a concealed weapon.
Thomas’ deal includes a signing bonus of more than $425,000.
The team is in early talks with Moss and its other two draft picks, Texas defensive end Tim Crowder and Notre Dame tackle Ryan Harris, with the goal of having them signed by July 28, when players report to training camp.
