For the past five seasons, Darren Rizzi got an up-close look at Sam Franklin. Now he will get to coach him.

The safety on Friday signed a one-year deal with the Broncos. He gets a guaranteed $1.17 million, a signing bonus of $167,500, and incentives could bring the total deal to $1.5 million.

Franklin, considered an ace on special teams, played the past five years for the Carolina Panthers. During that time, he went nine times against the New Orleans Saints, who had Rizzi as their special teams coordinator. Rizzi now holds position with Denver.

Rizzi, hired in February by head coach Sean Payton, was said to have pushed for the signing of Franklin as the Broncos continue to beef up their special teams. Last month, they signed wide receiver Trent Sherfield primarily due to his play on special teams.

Franklin, undrafted in 2020 out of Temple, played in 74 games for the Panthers with just nine starts. Franklin was limited to just 10 games in 2024 after suffering a broken foot in training camp. In those games, he played just four snaps on defense but got in for 241 on special teams.

Rumph tryout

The Broncos brought in veteran edge rusher Chris Rumph for a tryout, but a source said he does not at this point have an offer.

Rumph was taken by the Los Angeles Chargers in the fourth round of the 2021 draft out of Duke and played in 37 games as a reserve in his first three seasons and had three sacks. He missed all of last season due to a foot injury before becoming a free agent.