Demaryius Thomas, Broncos haven't exchanged proposals in month

ESPN logo
Wednesday, July 15, 2015

The Denver Broncos and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas have not exchanged contract proposals or had any dialogue in more than a month, sources tell ESPN's Adam Schefter.

This despite a report from KUSA-TV in Denver, which, citing sources, said the Broncos recently exchanged proposals with Thomas' agent, Todd France, and the team offered Thomas more than $12 million per year.

Thomas carries Denver's franchise tag, which is worth $12.82 million. He has until 4 p.m. ET Wednesday to sign a long-term deal with the team, or play the 2015 season under the tag salary.

The NFLPA has informed the Broncos and theDallas Cowboysthat it plans to move ahead with collusion charges against the teams if Thomas and Dallas' Dez Bryant don't agree to long-term contracts before Wednesday's deadline, a source close to the situation told ESPN.com's Dan Graziano.

Thomas said earlier this year that while playing under the franchise player tag was not preferable, he would do it because he believes the team is a Super Bowl contender.

"As a player, you want to get a deal, but if it doesn't happen you just got to deal with it," Thomas said. "You just go out and play. I'm still going to play, still going to put my best game up, not going to do anything to hurt the team. I'm going to go out and put my best game up and have another great year."

Since the start of the 2011 season, Thomas, 27, is second in the NFL with 28 100-yard receiving games in the regular season and postseason combined, including 10 100-yard games last season, seven in consecutive weeks. His 226 yards in the Broncos' Oct. 5 win over the Arizona Cardinals is a single-game franchise record. His 1,619 receiving yards last season set a single-season franchise record.

With Peyton Manning at quarterback, Thomas has had three consecutive seasons with at least 92 receptions, 1,430 yards receiving and 10 touchdowns. He is only the third player in league history to have three consecutive seasons of at least 1,400 yards receiving and at least 10 touchdowns; Jerry Rice and Marvin Harrison are the others.

While Thomas had said he didn't see any scenario where he would miss any time in the regular season, it remains to be seen if he will report to training camp on time. The Broncos report July 30 and practice begins July 31.

Thomas skipped the team's offseason program with the idea that he would sign a long-term deal before training camp.

ESPN.com Broncos reporter Jeff Legwold contributed to this report.

Related Video