And then there was one.
Broncos fourth-round picks Kage Casey and Jonah Coleman have signed their rookie contracts, the organization announced Wednesday morning. According to slot values set by the NFL’s rookie wage scale, Coleman’s deal at pick No. 108 will go for four years and $5.61 million, with a signing bonus of $1.23 million; Casey’s deal three slots lower at pick No. 111 is worth $5.58 million with a $1.2 million signing bonus.
Casey, an offensive lineman out of Boise State, is a versatile piece who can play both inside and outside across the front and figures to factor heavily into the Broncos’ future plans for their offensive line. Coleman, meanwhile, could step in right away for significant touches in Denver’s backfield after impressing at the Broncos’ rookie minicamp two weekends ago.
“He’s looked really good,” head coach Sean Payton said.
The club, now, has officially inked six of its seven 2026 NFL Draft picks to their rookie deals, starting with its three seventh-round picks. The last remaining name to put pen to paper is defensive lineman Tyler Onyedim, whom the Broncos took two picks into the third round at No. 66.
Onyedim’s deal, though, has some intrigue to it — and could take some time to come together — because of league circumstances.
In 2025, Broncos second-round pick RJ Harvey didn’t officially sign his rookie deal until a day into training camp, as a league-wide standoff over guaranteed contract money for second-round picks dragged on for months. When the dust cleared, Harvey wound up with 64% of his four-year rookie contract in guaranteed money at pick No. 60, a major increase from Bills safety Cole Bishop’s deal (53% guaranteed) at the same pick slot in 2024.
Inflation could continue into this year’s rookie-contract cycle. Multiple league sources told The Denver Post that draft picks around the top of 2026’s third round are watching Cardinals quarterback Carson Beck, the first pick (No. 65) in the third round, to see how his negotiations with Arizona play out. If Beck’s representation manages to negotiate for any guaranteed money on his base salary, that could establish a new precedent — the previous year’s first pick in the third round (Giants defensive tackle Darius Alexander) didn’t have any money guaranteed besides his signing bonus — and trickle down to Onyedim at No. 66.
Any third-round holding pattern couldn’t drag on too far, though. Only six players at the top of the third round remained unsigned, with Onyedim among them.
Once Onyedim officially agrees to terms, he’ll sign a standard four-year deal with a total value of $7.39 million and a signing bonus of $1.83 million. The Broncos envision Onyedim as a younger but similar piece to the departed John Franklin-Myers in the heart of their defensive line, and Onyedim spent much of rookie minicamp lining up at a variety of different slots across the Broncos’ defensive front.
“He kinda fit the total package we were looking for, inside,” Broncos assistant general manager Reed Burckhardt said, after this year’s draft.
Burckhardt advancing through Vikings’ GM process
Minnesota’s interest in Broncos assistant GM Reed Burckhardt for its open general manager spot wasn’t just a formality out of familiarity.
The Vikings have tabbed Denver’s assistant general manager for a second round of interviews, after first interviewing Burckhardt virtually last week. Minnesota is flying out Burckhardt for an in-person second interview, a source told The Post.
Burckhardt, of course, has a long history with the Vikings’ organization, having grown up in Minnesota and spent 13 years advancing through the Vikings’ scouting department before Broncos general manager George Paton hired him away to Denver in 2022. Burckhardt was promoted as the Broncos’ assistant GM last year.
