Nik Bonitto

John Franklin-Myers Not Expecting Broncos Extension; Latest On Nik Bonitto Deal

September 6th, 2025 at 10:26am CST by Sam Robinson

The Broncos have now completed their three top extension priorities, coming to terms with Courtland Sutton, Zach Allen and Nik Bonitto. The Bonitto deal came to pass Thursday, and it marked a fourth contract given to a front-seven starter since November 2024.

Denver also re-upped Jonathon Cooper and D.J. Jones in this span. This spending spree naturally will leave some on the outside looking in. John Franklin-Myers expects to be one of those who miss out, with the Denver Post’s Luca Evans reporting no extension is likely. Franklin-Myers, then, will be on track to hit free agency in 2026. No talks had taken place as of late August.

“Shoot, it’s only a matter of time,” Franklin-Myers said, via Evans, after the Bonitto deal emerged. “You can’t deny me. And a lot of that stuff is circumstantial, is based on circumstances. But after this year, I’m a free agent, and I control the circumstances.”

Acquired in a salary-dump trade with the Jets during the 2024 draft, Franklin-Myers became a full-time starter in the Broncos’ 3-4 defense. The versatile D-lineman played a part in the Broncos leading the NFL in sacks, finishing with seven to go with eight tackles for loss and 18 QB hits. The seven sacks marked a career-high tally for the soon-to-be 29-year-old defender. Another strong year would make him a candidate to land a starter-level deal in free agency come March.

Franklin-Myers has not reached free agency previously. The Jets claimed him from the Rams and later extended him. With the team expecting to have Haason Reddick in Week 1 of last season, it unloaded Franklin-Myers to Denver for a 2025 sixth-round pick. Franklin-Myers joined Allen and Jones as Broncos D-line starters last season but saw the team trade up for D-lineman Sai’Vion Jones (via the Eagles) in the third round this year. With money going to Allen and D.J. Jones (and the two OLBs), Franklin-Myers appears set to play out his two-year, $15MM deal before potentially giving way to Sai’Vion Jones in 2026.

Malcolm Roach joins Franklin-Myers as a contract-year Denver D-lineman, though the ex-Sean Payton Saints charge would be easier to retain by comparison. Roach, though, will not start his second Broncos season on time. The interior defender suffered a grade two calf strain, 9News’ Mike Klis notes. The Broncos have already ruled out Roach and linebacker Dre Greenlaw for Week 1. Spending most of his first Broncos offseason out, Greenlaw is down with a quad issue.

The team was already going to keep Greenlaw on a pitch count to start the year, due to his recent Achilles trouble, but the Broncos’ LB depth will again be tested. Justin Strnad, who replaced Alex Singleton last season, will be the likely next man up. Singleton has returned from the ACL tear he sustained in Week 3 last season.

Circling back to Bonitto’s deal, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reports it contains $38.35MM at signing. The four-year, $106MM extension includes a key 2026 date. If/when Bonitto is on the Broncos’ roster on Day 5 of the ’26 league year, his $24.49MM 2027 base salary shifts from an injury guarantee to a full guarantee, according to OverTheCap.

The Broncos used this rolling guarantee structure in their Allen and Mike McGlinchey contracts, and it effectively ensures Bonitto will be on this deal for at least the next three seasons. Bonitto, who only landed the 10th-largest EDGE deal despite waiting out a market that skyrocketed this offseason, also secured a rolling guarantee structure for 2028. If on Denver’s roster by Day 5 of the 2027 league year, the All-Pro OLB will see $7.16MM of his $20.99MM 2028 base salary become fully guaranteed, per Florio. Bonitto’s 2029 base salary is nonguaranteed.

Broncos, Nik Bonitto Agree To Extension

September 4th, 2025 at 9:26pm CST by Adam La Rose

Work on a Nik Bonitto extension has taken place throughout the offseason. A deal has now been struck between the Broncos and the ascending pass rusher.

Bonitto agreed to a four-year extension Thursday, as first reported by NFL insider Jordan Schultz. The pact has a maximum value of $120MM and contains $70MM guaranteed. Bonitto’s extension is now official, meaning he is on the books through 2029. An announcement from his agency notes this pact has a base value of $106MM (h/t Tom Pelissero of NFL Network).

As a result, this latest high-profile piece of Broncos business carries an average annual value of $26.5MM. That figure ranks 10th amongst edge rushers, an indication of the major surge that position’s market has witnessed over course of the offseason. If Bonitto maxes out the value of this pact, he will become the seventh pass rusher to reach $30MM in annual compensation.

In May, it became known talks on a long-term pact were taking place in this case. Since then, Bonitto has increasingly emerged as a priority for Denver, a team which also worked out new deals for receiver Courtland Sutton and defensive lineman Zach Allen in 2025. The latter’s pact is worth $102MM in base value. As such, Bonitto now holds the title as the Broncos’ highest-paid player for the coming season and the top earner for defenders in franchise history.

Starting only five games during his first two Denver seasons, Bonitto showed plenty of potential with eight sacks in 2023. The 25-year-old took another step forward last season, handling a first-team workload and totaling 13.5 sacks. That production resulted in a second-team All-Pro nod along with a Pro Bowl invitation and upped the value of this long-discussed extension. Denver dealt away Baron Browning at the 2024 trade deadline shortly after working out a new deal with Jonathon Cooper. Those transactions confirmed a Cooper-Bonitto pairing was seen as the foundation of the team’s pass rush for years to come.

Bonitto recently expressed optimism about an extension being worked out, with the qualifier that an agreement did not necessarily need to be in place before the start of the regular season. Nevertheless, the Broncos have operated on a similar timeline to the Patrick Surtain negotiations from last summer and finalized a pact days before Week 1. Another member of the team’s core is thus in the fold for the foreseeable future.

The Broncos’ standout 2024 defense contained a league-high six players with at least five sacks. Bonitto led the way in that regard, finishing third in the NFL. Expectations for continued high-end production will be present throughout the length of this pact, especially given his age. The Oklahoma product has amassed 60 quarterback pressures over the past two years, and remaining one of the league’s most disruptive edge rushers would allow for Denver’s defense to continue operating at a high level.

Broncos GM George Paton has been busy retaining a number of core players dating back to the midway mark of last season. The nucleus of a team which reached the postseason in 2024 is even further cemented given today’s news, and Bonitto will look to help lead his team a step further over the coming months with his long-term future secured.

Nik Bonitto Optimistic On Broncos Extension

August 19th, 2025 at 2:38pm CST by Sam Robinson

Returning from a short absence due to a bone spur in his foot, Nik Bonitto is now atop the Broncos’ extension queue. Denver extended Courtland Sutton and Zach Allen earlier during training camp, moving its other extension candidate’s negotiation to center stage.

Bonitto, who is entering the final season of his rookie contract, is optimistic a deal will be completed but said (via the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson) it is not essential the extension comes before Week 1. The Broncos both completed a big-ticket late-summer extension last year and re-upped two starters in-season.

Denver came to terms with Patrick Surtain on a then-market setting payday days before last season, and the team reached an agreement to extend Jonathon Cooper shortly before the trade deadline — preceding a Baron Browning trade. The Broncos finished their 2024 extension business by giving Garett Bolles another deal, which came to pass in December. It would surprise if the Bonitto deal took that long to complete, but it does not appear a lock he will be paid before the season starts.

The Broncos and Bonitto have been in talks since early May, with steady rumors trickling out about the deal being a priority. Considering Bonitto’s breakout 2024, it is natural the Broncos would want to extend him. The team drafted him before Sean Payton‘s arrival, but current GM George Paton pulled the trigger on the second-round pick in 2022. The Payton-Paton tandem signed off on three deals for 2021 draftees (Paton’s first year with the team), extending Quinn Meinerz along with Surtain and Cooper. It stands to reason Bonitto will have a new deal before year’s end.

It represents a bit of a risk for Bonitto to play out a contract year, but his breakthrough 2024 points to an injury not derailing his place in the organization. The edge rusher market could soon have a new ceiling, however, should the Cowboys pay Micah Parsons before the season starts. Bonitto will not be a candidate for a deal in the Parsons-T.J. Watt–Myles Garrett range, but Parsons raising the bar would stand to help the Denver edge rusher.

Aidan Hutchinson may not have a deal done by Week 1, but if the Lions do come to terms with their ascending 2022 draftee, Bonitto would also benefit by waiting that negotiation out. The Oklahoma alum referenced the rising EDGE market Tuesday, pointing to a potential interest in waiting out the Parsons situation. If the sides do not hammer out an extension by early March, the franchise tag would assuredly come out here.

The Broncos are at just $5.6MM in cap space, but they also have the Russell Wilson dead money coming off the books come 2026. With Bo Nix not extension-eligible until 2027, the team’s recent extensions have capitalized on the rookie-QB contract window. Even though Denver’s window with Nix rookie money is narrower than most such situations (due to the historic dead money from the Wilson mistake), the team has paid several core players since last summer.

In less promising news, the Broncos placed backup interior offensive lineman Nick Gargiulo on IR over the weekend. Payton said Tuesday (via 9News’ Mike Klis) the 2024 seventh-rounder suffered an ACL tear. Denver has the likes of Alex Forsyth and Calvin Throckmorton as interior swingmen, and the team gave UDFA Clay Webb a $225K guarantee this offseason.

AFC West Notes: Broncos, Adams, Perryman

August 14th, 2025 at 6:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

Nik Bonitto played in the Broncos‘ preseason opener but will miss some time leading up to the season. The 2024 All-Pro selection is down because of a procedure to have a bone spur removed in the top of his foot, per 9News’ Mike Klis. Sean Payton expects Bonitto to be ready to return by next week, though it can be safely assumed the edge rusher’s preseason is over. The Broncos also have an extension to sort out with Bonitto, who is entering a contract year. Denver has reached agreements with Courtland Sutton and Zach Allen during training camp, and a few Bonitto contract rumors have circulated this offseason.

This injury rehab stretch could give Bonitto’s camp time to hammer out a deal before the team’s top sack artist returns to practice, though the prospect of a Micah Parsons Cowboys extension raising the market’s ceiling — and thus the kind of deal Bonitto could command south of Parsons’ price point — could factor into the proceedings here.

Here is the latest from the AFC West:

Another injury development coming out of Denver is not as kind. Fullback/tight end Nate Adkins will miss regular-season time due to a tightrope procedure to address a high ankle sprain, Payton said. Adkins could be a candidate for one of the Broncos’ two allotted August IR-return slots. Teams must announce the players for those spots by roster-cutdown day August 26. Those moves count toward teams’ eight injury activations — whether the player is eventually activated or not — in-season. Adkins played a healthy amount of snaps last season, logging 420 during a 10-start season. He caught 14 passes for 115 yards and three TDs last season, his second with the Broncos.
The Broncos might need to consider a fourth active-roster RB due to J.K. Dobbins‘ injury history; their early hierarchy may exclude a 2024 draft pick. Audric Estime did not enter the team’s preseason opener until the third quarter, as his entrance came after Jaleel McLaughlin and Tyler Badie saw action. The Broncos also have Blake Watson as a candidate, and the 2024 UDFA entered the game in the second half as well. Estime is firmly on the roster bubble, the Denver Post’s Parker Gabriel notes. It would not surprise if the team aimed to trade one of its options before cutdown day later this month, but ensuring two of these players are rostered behind Dobbins and R.J. Harvey would make sense as well.
Jamal Adams is vying for a Raiders roster spot and doing so, technically, at a new position. Adams is giving linebacker another try, confirming (via the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vincent Bonsignore) Pete Carroll told him immediately he would be working there. The Seahawks had asked Adams to play linebacker before, but he declined at the time. The 2024 Seattle cap casualty played sparingly as a backup with the Titans and Lions, representing a steep fall from formerly signing a safety-record extension. Adams’ best work has always come in the box or as a safety blitzer, making a linebacker transition more natural. On a one-year, $1.26MM contract with no guarantees, the ninth-year vet is also not exactly in a position to refuse such a request.
The gun charges against linebacker Denzel Perryman has been dropped, The Athletic’s Daniel Popper notes. Perryman was arrested on felony weapons charges during a traffic stop earlier this month. Five firearms, including two assault-style rifles, were found in the Chargers defender’s vehicle. He was initially held without bail, but ESPN.com’s Kris Rhim notes Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman declined to file charges. Perryman is on a one-year, $2.66MM deal to continue a second Chargers stint.

Broncos, OLB Nik Bonitto Working Towards Extension

July 20th, 2025 at 9:57pm CST by Ely Allen

PFR identified Broncos outside linebacker Nik Bonitto as an extension candidate back in December, and three weeks later we saw reports that the team had interest. In May, it was reported that talks had begun with some anticipation of things heating up coming late last month. In the wake of his fellow 2022 NFL draftee George Karlaftis getting a four year, $88MM extension today, Bonitto gave reporters some insight on his own extension talks.

In an interview with Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette, Bonitto responded to a question concerning the timing of when an extension may occur. “No time period,” Bonitto said. “I know these things can happen tomorrow or happen months from now. I kind of just keep it day by day and keep the focus on football.”

Karlaftis’ new deal puts him at 10th in the NFL in terms of average annual value. He hasn’t been a perennial Defensive Player of the Year candidate, but he’s been the top sack-getter on a Super Bowl team for the past two years, topping out at 10.5 in 2023 and 24.5 for his career. Bonitto’s output has been a bit different.

Playing behind Baron Browning, Jonathon Cooper, and Bradley Chubb in his rookie season, Bonitto became a bigger part of the pass rush once Chubb was traded to Miami midway through the season, though he was still coming off the bench. With only one start in 15 games, Bonitto only tallied 1.5 sacks, one tackle for loss, and three quarterback hits as a rookie. In Year 2, Bonitto benefitted from an early-season absence from Browning. With four starts in 15 games, Bonitto delivered a much-improved eight-sack performance with 13 tackles for loss and 20 quarterback hits.

2024 was the breakout season for Bonitto, though. Another early-season injury to Browning opened the door for Bonitto to work as a full-time starter, and when all was said and done, Browning was traded to Arizona, while Bonitto started the remainder of the season. On a defense that finished seventh in yards allowed, third in points allowed, and led the NFL in sacks, Bonitto has the leading sack-getter, logging 13.5 sacks, 16 tackles for loss, and 24 quarterback hits, not to mention two forced fumbles, four pass deflections, and a 71-yard interception return for a touchdown.

With Bonitto’s clear upwards progression season after season, the Broncos would do well to lock him down for Karlaftis-esque numbers before he adds another 5.5 sacks to his prior year total and costs himself out of Denver. And they may do just that. Some have speculated, though, that Bonitto’s extension may come in a similar fashion as did Cooper’s last year. Cooper signed his four-year, $60MM deal in November, showing that Denver had no objections to working towards big deals midseason.

Based on Bonitto’s quote, he’s seeing the same things we are. Like Karlaftis’ deal, Bonitto offers that an extension could “happen tomorrow.” Or like Cooper’s deal, an extension could “happen months from now.”

Broncos Eyeing Nik Bonitto Extension?

June 26th, 2025 at 10:00am CST by Ben Levine

JUNE 26: While a Bonitto deal could be worked out prior to Week 1, Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post writes a repeat of the Jonathon Cooper situation could be in store. The latter’s four-year, $60MM extension came about in November, a sign of Denver being willing to work out lucrative deals in season. It will be interesting to see how urgently both sides approach an extension in Bonitto’s case.

JUNE 23: The Broncos could be looking to lock up one of their top pass rushers as soon as possible. Nick Kosmider of The Athletic says “it’s fair to assume talks will heat up” between the Broncos and Nik Bonitto as training camp approaches.

Kosmider points directly to last offseason, when the team signed offensive lineman Quinn Meinerz and cornerback Patrick Surtain II just before the start of the regular season. The front office may be following a similar timeline with Bonitto, and Kosmider believes it isn’t in the team’s best interest to drag negotiations into the regular season.

Specifically, the writer is wary of Bonitto quickly compiling some early-season sacks that “could further drive up his asking price.” The former second-round pick is already eyeing an average annual value of at least $20MM, with Kosmider citing Greg Rousseau‘s four-year, $80MM deal and even Brian Burns‘ five-year, $141MM extension.

Bonitto doesn’t have the same starting track record as those two pass rushers, but he is one of the ascending players at his position. After collecting eight sacks in a part-time role in 2024, the linebacker collected 13.5 sacks in his first full season as a starter. That performance earned him second-team All-Pro honors, and Bonitto’s camp will surely be pushing for him to be among the highest-paid players at his position.

Bonitto may also be inclined to see where extensions land for the likes of T.J. Watt, Micah Parsons, and Trey Hendrickson come in, which could slightly delay negotiations between the two sides. Either way, it sounds like the 25-year-old will eventually be signing a lucrative contract, and the Broncos are hoping he’ll put pen to paper as soon as possible.

Zach Allen, Nik Bonitto Higher Broncos Extension Priorities Than Courtland Sutton?

June 13th, 2025 at 1:05pm CST by Sam Robinson

When the Broncos agreed on merely an incentive package with Courtland Sutton last year, they are believed to have targeted 2025 as the window for their top wide receiver to be paid. But big seasons from younger players may affect the receiver’s place in a growing Denver extension queue.

Helping the Broncos’ defense become a top-five unit in 2024, Zach Allen and Nik Bonitto earned second-team All-Pro acclaim. A 2023 free agency addition, Allen is entering an age-28 season. Bonitto joins the disruptive interior D-lineman in a contract year; the former second-round pick will turn 26 in September, soon before Sutton will turn 30 (October).

While Sutton has been an integral part of the Broncos’ offense since they traded Super Bowl-era stalwart Demaryius Thomas at the 2018 trade deadline, it is now possible he has lost ground in a push for an extension due to the level jumps Allen and Bonitto made. The two defenders are considered higher extension priorities compared to Sutton, the Denver Post’s Troy Renck notes. Sutton extension talks dragging would bring another complication to what has been a successful but complicated partnership.

The 2018 second-round pick became a mainstay on the trade block between the 2022 and ’24 trade deadlines. The Broncos dangled Sutton during trade windows between this point, nearly sending him to the Ravens (before the AFC North club’s 2023 Odell Beckham Jr. signing) and discussed him with the 49ers last year. Other discussions undoubtedly occurred since 2022, but it was certainly notable when the Broncos turned down a third-rounder from the 49ers for Sutton. The 6-foot-4 performer then became an integral part of Bo Nix‘s rookie-year emergence, cashing in on incentives during his second 1,000-yard season.

Sutton also has run into a timing problem, which we have outlined previously. His four-year, $60MM extension — agreed to in November 2021, before Sean Payton‘s arrival — appeared in step with the market at that time. But after Davante Adams and Tyreek Hill‘s March 2022 extensions brought a sea change, Sutton’s pact began to look Broncos-friendly. The 2024 WR market boom only made matters worse for a player who is now the NFL’s 25th-highest-paid receiver. Sutton posted a 10-touchdown 2023 season, helping Russell Wilson rebound from a disastrous 2022 slate, and helped Nix finish with the second-most rookie-year TD passes (29) in NFL history.

Not only is Sutton the last WR holdover from the John Elway GM period, none of the Broncos’ other wideouts were around before Payton’s 2023 arrival. Denver is betting on development from some younger players at the position, with 2024 seventh-rounder Devaughn Vele at the front of that line. Before missing minicamp, Vele had turned heads during Broncos OTAs, Renck adds.

An unconventional rookie due to serving a Mormon mission while at Utah, Vele will turn 28 this year. He would make for an unusual extension candidate down the road, but for now, Renck offers that the 6-5 target could be viewed as a post-2025 Sutton replacement if extension talks go south. Vele, who caught 41 passes for 475 yards as a rookie, is signed through 2027. He is not expected to miss any training camp time, Payton said (via the Denver Post’s Parker Gabriel). Vele joins Marvin Mims, Troy Franklin and third-round rookie Pat Bryant as Sutton’s rookie-contract supporting cast.

Sutton reported for Broncos voluntary work this offseason and did say extension talks had yielded progress. The Broncos under GM George Paton have also done plenty of extension business during the summer and into the season. Between mid-June and mid-December last year, the team extended Quinn Meinerz, Patrick Surtain, Jonathon Cooper and Garett Bolles. Allen is interested in an extension, and the team has begun talking to Bonitto about a second contract. A host of post-draft priorities are in place after the team’s first playoff berth in nine years.

Bonitto’s market will come in higher than Sutton’s, while Allen leading all interior D-linemen in QB pressures (47) last season will spike his value as well. Sutton would be in good position to be paid as a 30-year-old free agent in 2026, but cashing in ahead of his age-30 season would help. This will be a summer storyline to monitor for a rejuvenated Broncos team.

Broncos, Nik Bonitto Begin Extension Talks

May 6th, 2025 at 4:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

Nik Bonitto picked a good time to deliver a breakout season. The edge rusher market is amid an offseason surge, after a bit of a lull (Nick Bosa‘s contract excluded) in recent years. More deals topping $40MM per year should emerge once T.J. Watt, Micah Parsons and Aidan Hutchinson are extended. Hutchinson is not a lock to be paid this year, but the Lions dynamo’s trajectory places him as a clear candidate to be paid the new going rate for All-Pro-caliber edge rushers.

Becoming a second-team All-Pro in 2024, Bonitto may not be aiming as high. But it will still cost the Broncos to keep him on a second contract, as the team will seek to do. The former 2022 second-round pick is eyeing a deal at least north of the $20MM-per-year barrier, the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson notes. Bonitto, 25, has said he wants to stay in Denver long term, Tomasson adds. The sides have begun extension talks.

For the Broncos to have Bonitto extension talks start near $20MM AAV would probably be a win for the team, which saw its top edge rusher zoom to a 13.5-sack season that featured defensive touchdowns in back-to-back games. Bonitto, however, displayed difference-making potential in 2023 as well. His 2024 season included only four more QB hits (24) than he racked up in 2023. The Oklahoma product also tallied only three more tackles for loss (16-13) compared to 2023, when he only started four games.

Denver made a key decision about its EDGE future by trading Baron Browning and extending his former Ohio State teammate, Jonathon Cooper, before last year’s deadline. Cooper is signed to a team-friendly accord — four years, $54MM. It will cost far more to extend Bonitto, whose age and early-career production would give him a case to check in much higher than $20MM per year. Another impact season would crystalize that value and likely drive up the price, especially should Watt, Parsons and Hutchinson make $40MM-AAV deals a true salary bracket rather than a Myles Garrett-only zone. Twelve edge rushers are tied to deals worth at least $20MM per year now.

The Broncos carried a top-market OLB salary on their books for five-plus seasons, after having paid Von Miller before the 2016 franchise tag deadline. Denver used the pick the Rams sent over for Miller (No. 64 overall) on Bonitto and then passed on paying Bradley Chubb, trading him in 2022. Thanks to recent salary cap spikes, Bonitto will almost definitely land a higher AAV than Miller’s Broncos or Bills deals produced. When Denver extended Miller at $19.1MM per year nine summers ago, the cap stood at $155.3MM. It is now $279.2MM, creating a landscape in which a $40MM-per-year deal for a top-tier pass rusher can happen. Bonitto can make a case to secure a second-tier EDGE pact.

Bonitto may be the Broncos’ top extension candidate, in terms of earning potential, but the team has both Zach Allen and Courtland Sutton on the re-up radar this year. Sutton talks have begun, while Allen has expressed interest in staying beyond his 2025 contract year. Both players are tied to $15MM-per-year deals, and each has outplayed them. Allen having joined Bonitto as a second-team All-Pro last season offers a complication for the Broncos, who paid Patrick Surtain a then-market-setting rate at cornerback and gave eight-figure AAVs to D.J. Jones, Talanoa Hufanga and Dre Greenlaw in March.

The Broncos were able lock in Surtain at a favorable rate ($24MM) on a deal that runs through 2029, but if they run into a value gap with Bonitto, a 2026 franchise tag would stand to be in play. While Allen and Sutton money will need to be factored in — if/once extensions are hammered out — the team is projected to hold $69MM-plus in cap space next year. It will carry more flexibility in 2026, as the Russell Wilson dead money will be off the books. Bo Nix must stay on a rookie contract through at least the 2026 season. Though, Nix’s progress — re: a potential 2027 payday — will become a factor as the Broncos consider long-term deals this offseason.

Broncos To Table Extension Talks Until After Draft; RB Quinshon Judkins On Team’s Radar

March 29th, 2025 at 10:04am CST by Sam Robinson

Playing central roles in the Broncos’ first playoff berth since their Super Bowl 50 victory, Courtland Sutton, Nik Bonitto and Zach Allen reside as the team’s top extension candidates this offseason. No deals should be expected for a bit, however.

As the draft nears, the team will prioritize its next wave of rookie-scale contracts rather than divert attention to veterans seeking new deals. The Broncos are tabling all extension talks until after the draft, per the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson. While also naming John Franklin-Myers and Malcolm Roach as extension candidates, Tomasson points to the Allen-Bonitto-Sutton trio as key options here. Although extensions regularly take place in March and April, Denver completed four notable deals (with Quinn Meinerz, Patrick Surtain, Jonathon Cooper and Garett Bolles) last year, with none coming before July.

Out of the trade-rumor cycle for the first time in ages, Sutton posted his second 1,000-yard season and helped Bo Nix finish with the second-most touchdown passes (29) by a rookie in NFL history. The team has tabbed 2025 as the window for a Sutton payday, after merely agreeing to an incentive package after the veteran receiver pushed for a deal last year, and is planning talks. Still tied to a contract signed in 2021, Sutton resides as the NFL’s 27th-highest-paid wideout. The John Elway-era draftee is going into an age-30 season and will be prepared to force the extension issue as the season nears.

Allen and Bonitto each surged to the All-Pro tier last season, both landing second-team honors while powering the Broncos’ pass rush. A former J.J. Watt sidekick in Arizona, Allen has played in Vance Joseph‘s defense throughout his six-year career. He broke through with a career year in 2024, leading all interior D-linemen in pressures (47) and finishing second overall. Allen, 27, finished with a career-high 8.5 sacks and a staggering 40 QB hits from his 3-4 D-end position. Signed to a three-year, $45MM deal, the former third-round pick is interested in a second Broncos contract.

That production helped Bonitto’s breakout, and the Broncos saw their 2022 second-rounder raise his value considerably last season. The Oklahoma alum produced 13.5 sacks and two defensive touchdowns, helping swing late-season wins against the Browns and Colts. Denver already extended Jonathon Cooper in 2024, giving him a four-year, $54MM deal just before trading Baron Browning. Bonitto’s price, especially after this offseason has already brought monster EDGE deals to raise that market’s ceiling, will check in much higher on a second contract. The team is naturally interested in paying Bonitto.

As the Broncos’ focus shifts to rookies, the team used a “30” visit on one of this deep running back class’ top names. Former Ohio State and Ole Miss RB Quinshon Judkins is stopping through Denver for a meeting, 9News’ Mike Klis notes. A 2024 teammate of fellow high-end RB prospect TreVeyon Henderson, Judkins cut into the former five-star recruit’s workload with the national champion Buckeyes. The two formed a productive partnership, with Judkins using the transfer portal to finish a dominant college career.

Judkins finished 3-for-3 in 1,000-yard seasons in college. A 1,567-yard rusher as a freshman in 2022, Judkins formed a rare 1,000-1,000 pair with Henderson last season. The Columbus import led the Buckeyes with 1,060 yards (5.5 per tote) and 14 touchdowns last season. While Henderson brings a bit more to the table as a receiver, a trait Sean Payton prioritizes, Judkins produced better college rushing numbers. Daniel Jeremiah’s NFL.com big board ranks Henderson 33rd and Judkins 36th among a strong RB class.

With the Broncos losing Javonte Williams in free agency, they are expected to draft a running back. Denver could go with a back early, as the team may be lacking a starter-level runner even as it returns Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime. Holding the Nos. 20 and 51 overall picks to start the draft, Denver is unlikely to see the Ohio State duo available in Round 2 barring a trade-up move.

Broncos Interested In Nik Bonitto Extension

January 15th, 2025 at 2:22pm CST by Sam Robinson

At this time last year, George Paton expressed interest in a Patrick Surtain extension. Although it took several months, the Broncos finalized a contract with their top player. They hammered out a few more extensions in the process, including one for soon-to-be first-team All-Pro Quinn Meinerz.

The Broncos paid their right guard before his true breakthrough; they will not have that advantage with Nik Bonitto, who turned the corner as a pass rusher before becoming extension-eligible. The 2022 second-round pick stormed to a second-team All-Pro honor, registering 13.5 sacks — the Broncos’ most since Von Miller‘s 2018 season — and scoring two defensive touchdowns. As we discussed in December, Bonitto’s extension price spiked after his 2024 performance.

As could be expected, the Broncos are interested in keeping their top edge rusher around beyond his 2025 contract year. Paton confirmed (via the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson) the team wants to keep him around long term, but no talks have begun yet. The Oklahoma product has only been eligible for a new deal for a week. The Broncos will hold exclusive negotiating rights with Bonitto until March 2026.

Bonitto will be an interesting extension candidate, as the Broncos paid their other OLB starter — former seventh-round pick Jonathon Cooper — on a team-friendly deal that checked in at less than $14MM per year. In addition to the Surtain and Meinerz accords, Denver also re-upped left tackle Garett Bolles in what became a busy year for the franchise on the extension front.

The team is not free of the Russell Wilson dead money; $30MM-plus awaits on this year’s payroll, interfering with the advantage gained from Bo Nix‘s rookie contract. But a Bonitto deal would begin its extension years when the Wilson contract is off the books. Nix is tied to rookie terms through at least 2026, giving the Broncos a bit of a window to have another high-end defender payment on their cap sheet.

As for the 2025 offseason, the team is projected to carry more than $52MM in cap space. While the Broncos have some need to address — at the skill positions, linebacker and perhaps a replacement for free agent D-tackle D.J. Jones — the Bonitto matter will be important.

Denver would have a 2026 franchise tag at its disposal if Bonitto talks do not progress to the sides’ liking. Although that would be a pricey cap hold next year, the second-rounder (obtained via the Rams selection in the Miller trade) may have shown himself to be too valuable to lose in free agency. The Broncos will have some time on this front, as the team took care of several extension priorities — save for perhaps Courtland Sutton, who did lobby for a raise last year ahead of a 1,000-yard season, and Zach Allen — in 2024.

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