Broncos center Connor McGovern will play in the final game of his rookie NFL contract on Sunday against Oakland and becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

Will McGovern re-sign with the team or agree to a deal elsewhere?

“I’d love to be here,” McGovern told The Denver Post on Thursday. “Four years is a long time to be in one place and I like it here. But we’ll see how the offseason goes.”

McGovern, a 2016 fifth-round draft pick from Missouri, has been the starting center in 35 of the last 36 Broncos games, including every game this season (and all 964 snaps) amid constant injury turnover on the offensive line.

Per the Denver Post’s game charting, McGovern has been booked for 12 1/2 “bad” run blocks (gain of one or fewer yards), but only eight pass protection “disruptions” (2 1/2 sacks, 2 1/2 knockdowns and three pressures). He has no penalties.

“I think (he) did fine (this year),” coach Vic Fangio said. “The center has to be quarterback of the O-line with a lot of the calls. He handles that job well and you have to be able to block, too. Overall, I think he’s had a good season.”

McGovern’s cap hit this season was $2,090,875 and it’s safe to assume he’ll get a much larger payday on his next contract, wherever it might be.

McGovern called offensive line coach Mike Munchak “the best in the league” and lauded the growth of quarterback Drew Lock, with whom McGovern shared a locker room for one season at Missouri in 2015.

It all gives McGovern hope for a Denver return in 2020 and beyond.

“(Lock) went from being pretty much a kid to playing like a man. It’s been really fun to see how much he has matured physically and mentally over the last couple of years,” McGovern said. “When you’ve got a young team playing with a lot of confidence, and starts understanding the scheme, you’re going to have something special.” Related Articles “South Park” citizens fill stands at Empower Field at Mile High for Broncos-Buccaneers game

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Gruden feisty. During a conference call with the Denver media, Raiders coach Jon Gruden was asked about Will Compton, who has filed in for suspended linebacker Vontaze Burfict. Burfict was banned for the year after Week 4 due to multiple dirty hits.

“It still really angers me and makes me sick about what happened to Burfict,” Gruden said. “I’m really not happy at all about his situation and the way the league handled that, Jon Runyan and Derrick Brooks. I’m not really happy about him being suspended for 12 games. I think that’s ridiculous but that’s another story.”

Runyan and Brooks work for the NFL and opted to uphold Burfict’s suspension in its entirety.

Miller’s offseason plan. Broncos outside linebacker Von Miller has already decided part of his offseason training will include a return to the San Francisco Bay Area.

“I want to get back on the sand and stairs and stuff and mix the high-intensity training with basic weight-room training,” he said. “I want to go to Cal and work out in the weight room and do simple football drills and stay on the field.”

Before the 2017 season, Miller spent several weeks training in California.

Fangio on Bolles. Asked about left tackle Garett Bolles’ season, Fangio cited Bolles’ durability, which can be seen as a compliment (he has played every offensive snap) and avoiding the issue (no gushing over his performance).

“The one thing about Garett that gets forgotten about and not mentioned much — he’s there every day,” Fangio said. “Every day in practice. Every game we play, he plays every play. He’s reliable in that regard and I think that’s an important quality that you’re looking for in any player. And he has played better this recent past.”

According to the Denver Post’s charting, Bolles has not allowed a sack in the last seven games after getting booked for five in the first eight games.

Penalties remain an issue. Bolles has been called for an NFL-high 13 holding penalties (six enforced), five more than any other player.

Jersey gifts. Lock had the blue jersey from his first start (win over the Chargers) and the white jersey from his first road start (win at Houston) framed and let his father, Andy, get first pick for a Christmas present. Andy chose the blue jersey.

After Sunday’s game, Lock and Miller swapped their Broncos’ orange jerseys.

“I just wanted a Drew Lock jersey,” Miller said. “I know how valuable it will be in the future I wanted to add it to my collection.”

Lock has been impacted by Miller’s leadership this year.

“It’s hard to put into words how much Von has meant to me, from the first time he talked to me on draft night to the first day I stepped into this facility … and how much confidence he has instilled in me,” Lock said.

Vic’s eventful holiday. Fangio got into the holiday spirit on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“I ended up here a good bit of (Wednesday), but on Christmas Eve, at night, I watched a Hallmark movie in bed and (on Christmas) Night, I watched another Hallmark movie in bed just to get into the Christmas spirit,” he said.

Fangio said his movie choice on Tuesday was “Christmas Under The Stars.”

Footnotes. Left guard Ron Leary (concussion) and right tackles Ja’Wuan James (knee) and Elijah Wilkinson (ankle) did not practice. Fangio said Wilkinson is “pretty iffy” to play against Oakland, which means Jake Rodgers would get his first start. … James has ruled himself out of the finale, but Fangio said moving him to injured reserve is a “possibility, but only if we can find somebody worthy of bringing up.”