In a decision similar to the first fifth-year option call in Broncos history (Von Miller‘s), the team will extend Patrick Surtain‘s contract through 2025.
The Broncos will make the “easy decision” to exercise Surtain’s fifth-year option, GM George Paton said Tuesday. The No. 9 overall pick in the 2021 draft, Surtain has become one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks. He is almost definitely the Broncos’ top player, and the team is naturally interested in a long-term extension.
Picking up Surtain’s option will buy the Broncos time on that front; he will have two more years of control remaining as a result of the long-expected transaction. The salary cap coming in at a surprising $255.4MM will bump Surtain’s option number a bit. Because Surtain is a two-time Pro Bowler, his option price lands on the top tier of the layered option structure. For cornerbacks, that number checks in at $19.8MM, matching this year’s CB franchise tag tender.
Criticized for passing on Justin Fields three years ago, the Broncos joined the Panthers in choosing a corner over the Ohio State QB prospect. Injuries have impacted Jaycee Horn‘s ascent, while Surtain has stayed healthy thus far. Denver has been unable to solve its long-running quarterback issue, but Surtain has become one of the 2021 draft’s top players. He earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2022 and was named a 2023 Pro Bowler. Following the likes of Champ Bailey, Chris Harris and Aqib Talib as All-Pro Broncos corners over the past two decades, Surtain will likely see his extension talks begin with the clear expectation of him becoming the NFL’s highest-paid corner.
Surtain, 23, drew trade interest at the deadline. The Broncos set the price at two first-round picks to initiate a conversation, and while multiple teams were believed to have made offers, none came in on that level. Surtain trade rumors may persist, and the 49ers were among the teams to have reached out about the second-generation NFL corner, but the team as of now is planning to move forward with its top cover man.
And water is wet.