ENGLEWOOD, Colo. --On the same day the Broncos visited with Ravens safety Darian Stewart and signed defensive lineman Vance Walker, they lost two defensive starters on the unrestricted market.
Nose tackle Terrance Knighton told ESPN.com that he would sign a one-year, $4 million contract with Washington, while safety Rahim Moore signed a reported three-year, $12 million deal with the Houston Texans.
Moore became the third member of the 2011 draft class to sign with another team this week, joining tight end Julius Thomas and offensive lineman Orlando Franklin.
"He's a good friend of mine; he's a good player," said safety T.J. Ward. "I had the pleasure of playing beside him last year, and I'm proud of what he's done ... I hope he does great things with the Texans."
The contracts of Moore, Thomas and Franklin could be be worth up to $94.5 million, with guaranteed outlays of $20 million to Franklin and $24 million to Thomas.
Knighton's contract with Washington gives him the same on a per-year basis as Moore, although just for a single season. Knighton was a stalwart on the Broncos' defensive line the last two seasons, but given the nature of his position and his style of play, saw action on just 48 percent of the snaps last season.
After introducing tight end Owen Daniels on Wednesday, Executive Vice President/General Manager John Elway indicated that Sylvester Williams, Marvin Austin and a potentially re-signed Mitch Unrein could be the answer going forward to replace Knighton at nose tackle.
"I think they've got to get a feel for it, but there's no question, whether they're nose or a three-technique on the back side, we're looking in that area, also," Elway said.
"We're working on getting Unrein back, and then we'll continue to look at the market."
