General manager George Payton and Sean Payton love their roster. They could pretend that jobs are open, that vacancy lights are flashing. But in reality, there is roughly one starting position up for grabs: defensive end.

John Franklin-Myers, who loved talking, sacking and eating Uncrustables, left as a free agent to the Titans. The Broncos wanted to keep him. But after they signed players to in-house contract extensions for more than $400 million over the last 18 months, JFM had to leave to cash in.

So when the Broncos finally got around to picking in the NFL draft — they had no selection in the first or second round for the first time since 1995 — they plucked Texas A&M defensive lineman Tyler Onyedim.

He might not be a dancing bear. But he can play anywhere up front. Just ask him.

“Man, I feel like I am a versatile player. I can play anywhere on the line,” Onyedim, voice still excited after realizing his dream of reaching the NFL as the 66th selection overall. “I have a good first step. I feel like I am a true defensive lineman.”

The numbers add up for him to push for playing time. He is 6-foot-3, 292 pounds with go-go Gadget arms and a thirst for stopping the run. He provides depth and youth, the type of athlete capable of competing for snaps with Sai’vion Jones, who was taken in the third round last season.

He is also familiar with the Broncos Orange Rush. Before transferring to Texas A&M, Onyedim was a teammate of Denver’s Eyioma Uwazurike at Iowa State. The two have remained close, with Onyedim saying they would be in each other’s weddings.

“That’s my big bro. That’s my dog,” Onyedim said. “I have studied all of those boys, you feel me. I can’t wait to learn from the best.”

It is sure not like it used to be, back in the days of desperation, when the Broncos’ draft felt like an expensive game of pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey. In previous seasons, we would start talking about positioning for picks in October.

This spring, we have groused about the free agent yawnfest — they brought in special teams safety Tycen Anderson — and their desire to keep the band together. This could be a bad thing. But there’s no denying that it is a byproduct of a team that has become really, really good.

The Broncos went 15-4 last year, testing the expiration dates on miracle finishes, while suffocating opponents with a relentless defense.

The loss to the New England Patriots remains burned into memory because there are so many scenarios in which they should have won. Had Bo Nix not broken his ankle, had Jarrett “It ain’t pretty, it’s Stiddy” Stidham not turned the ball over inside the 20, had the Broncos run more successfully than a democrat in Wyoming, had Mother Nature not flexed its muscle with the only snow storm that would appear in months, Denver would have advanced to its ninth Super Bowl.

Instead, the Broncos were left with their noses against the windowpane, two wins shy of the most improbable season in franchise history.

They are banking on players improving, believing success through this path is more likely and preferable to adding outside influences to the locker room. Onyedim is, by all accounts, a good teammate who will fit in their culture.

What happened to Thursday and Friday? Jaylen Waddle. And the AFC Championship Game.

The Broncos chose to be strategic, their offseason a laser, not a crabbing net.

They sent away their first-rounder, 30th overall, to the Dolphins in exchange for an explosive, proven receiver. Waddle is everything the Broncos needed, a receiver capable of stopping and starting more effectively than a New York cabbie.

Indiana wideout Omar Cooper ultimately went to the Jets in that spot. No matter how much you like the Hoosier, there is zero chance he would have had Waddle’s impact this season.

In a Super Bowl window, the Broncos have very specific needs.

Now, this does not make them immune to second-guessing. Could they have packaged picks — there is no way seven new players make their roster — to move up in the second round for Vanderbilt tight end Eli Stowers (Philadelphia traded up and took him at 54), Texas linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. (61st to Titans) or Ohio State’s Max Klare.

With the Rams taking Klare, they now have seven or eight tight ends — lost count — better than anyone on the Broncos. Denver traded back last year and bit them when R.J. Harvey fizzled as J.K. Dobbins’ replacement, making it clear they would have been better off with TreVeyon Henderson.

Listen, I would have preferred they take an offensive player. Payton likes the unit more than the rest of us. And clearly, the Broncos did not think enough of the tight ends to be aggressive. It puts pressure on them, however, to land a running back on Day 3, somebody like Nebraska’s Emmett Johnson or Washington’s Jonah Coleman.

The reality is that the Broncos are now smart and have earned trust. Now that they are a legitimate contender, ¶¶Ňőapountry is willing to give the benefit of the doubt.

They are counting on the Broncos to win a Super Bowl in the next few years. With a roster as stacked as it has been since 2015, these are the expectations.

It also means that Paton and Paton don’t see many open competitions.

So, on Friday, after a nearly hour wait, you get Tyler Onyedim.

It is boring. It is also a byproduct of winning.

It doesn’t always come with a Jaylen Waddle-sized splash or the exhilaration of taking Bo Nix at No. 12 overall in the 2024 draft.

Sometimes, it¶¶Ňőap meat and potatoes.

Sometimes, it¶¶Ňőap patience — or something like it.

Sometimes it¶¶Ňőap waiting 61 picks, trading back four more and then taking a player at what was arguably your deepest position the past two years.

That¶¶Ňőap where the Broncos found themselves Friday night when they used their first pick of the draft at No. 66 on Texas A&M defensive tackle Tyler Onyedim.

Everybody else in the NFL made a selection in the first 56 picks. Denver waited 10 more.

Of course, the Broncos’ big offseason fireworks came more than five weeks ago when they traded their first and third-round picks for Waddle, the explosive wide receiver.

That, combined with their late selections in each round, put them among the teams with the least overall capital in the league.

They committed to waiting it out for No. 62 to roll around. General manager George Paton said last week that Denver had six players it was targeting for its first selection.

That alone took patience.

The Broncos watched all of Thursday night — “that was a boring day,” Paton said — and then saw players at other positions of need come ripping off the board in the middle of the second round. Between picks 43 and 59 alone, four inside linebackers and three tight ends heard their names called.

Then the two picks preceding Denver: Inside linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. to Tennessee, which traded up, and tight end Max Klare to the Los Angeles Rams.

“It’s a typical draft — there’s a run at different positions, which we figured there would be,” Paton said. “It fell like we thought it would. I think I mentioned we had six players and they all started going. Tyler was one of those six, but it fell kind of like we thought it would.”

The Broncos were aware the Rams loved Klare, a source told The Post on Friday, so they either did not like him enough to jump in front of L.A. or thought the Rams would look elsewhere. Tennessee general manager Mike Borgonzi, a former Kansas City executive, explained trading up to No. 60 for Hill by talking about pro scouting and understanding the needs and potential interest of the teams in your part of the draft board.

When Denver’s pick arrived, Paton and head coach Sean PaytonĚýdecided to move back, trading No. 62 to Buffalo for Nos. 66 and 182.

In Onyedim, they leaned into a roster belief they often espouse.

“He plays a position that’s always hard to find at defensive tackle,” Payton said Friday night. “His strike, his shed, the athlete, makeup, those are traits.”

At 6-4 and 292 pounds, Onyedim played four years at Iowa State and then in 2025 for the Aggies. In Denver, he joins All-Pro Zach Allen, veteran D.J. Jones and a room that also features Malcolm Roach, Eyioma Uwazurike, Jordan Jackson and 2025 third-round pick Sai’Vion Jones.

Roach and Uwazurike each are expected to help fill the gap left by John Franklin-Myers, Denver’s lone high-profile free agency departure, but Sai’Vion Jones and Onyedim are the kinds of pieces the Broncos are betting play key roles at some point in the future.

“We typically like to draft high-trait players,” Paton said earlier this month. “Maybe they lack a little bit of polish and it¶¶Ňőap going to take some development. We’ve done a great job with the coaches in developing these types of players. … Sure, we’d like somebody to come in and start right away, but that¶¶Ňőap not always realistic no matter where they’re picked. It¶¶Ňőap just hard.

“With the way our team is built now, it¶¶Ňőap going to be hard to come in and start Day 1.”

That is true of Onyedim, too. His versatility — he called himself “a true d-lineman” capable of playing every spot — is a virtue and in the Broncos’ mind maximizes the chance he’ll find a home somewhere along the front at some point, whether it¶¶Ňőap in 2026 or beyond.

One source said the club believes Onyedim can play, “across the board.”

They have two players like that, now, that they’ve picked in the third round each of the past two years. They moved up for Jones and back for Onyedim. Each has versatility and traits the Broncos like. Either could be a key for Vance Joseph and defensive line coach Jamar Cain as soon as this fall or either could be insurance while veteran players chew up almost all of the snaps in Denver’s regular rotation.

Either way, the Broncos set themselves up for a draft weekend like this. They may well find flashier help at tight end, running back or linebacker with their now seven slated selections on Saturday. There are starters to be found every year — though clearly at a lower hit rate — in rounds four through seven. Particularly so at the positions that Denver still needs to fortify.

Regardless of what happens over the course of Saturday, Payton, Paton and the players in Denver’s locker room believe the roster is already in a place where it can compete for a Super Bowl.

They made their big splash earlier in the spring. The brass knew it’d be tough to find a player on Day 2 who would step right in and start.

That, Paton said, is particularly true on the defensive line.

“Just going into it, we feel pretty good,” he said a month ago. “We have Sai’Vion and we have our four guys coming back. Our starters and then Eni really came on. Then Sai’vion and Jordan Jackson.”

In the NFL, though, the reality is there is almost no such thing as too much depth on the line of scrimmage.

“We’re looking closely at the grade and at the stack,” Payton said. “We’re never trying to worry about the splash.”

Broncos draft previews
Offense: Quarterbacks | Running backs | Wide receivers | Tight ends | Offensive line
Defense: Defensive line | Outside linebackers | Inside linebackers | Cornerbacks | Safeties

Broncos’ in-house offseason moves:ĚýRe-signed Matt Henningsen to a one-year, vet-minimum deal; re-signed Jordan Jackson to a one-year exclusive-rights deal; re-signed Kristian Williams and Jordan Miller to futures contracts.

Under contract:ĚýZach Allen, D.J. Jones, Malcolm Roach, Eyioma Uwazurike, Sai’vion Jones, Jackson, Henningsen, Williams, Miller

Need scale (1-10): 6. There is a 7.5-sack hole in the middle of Denver’s front, after John Franklin-Myers signed with the Titans in free agency. Replacing Franklin-Myers is a near-impossible task given his symbiotic effect on Allen and Denver’s No. 62 slot in this draft; that being said, it’d make a lot of sense for Denver to bring another body into the room. Uwazurike could reasonably compete for a starting job, and Denver needs to see what it has in Jones, last year’s third-round pick. But there are plenty of solid names available in this crop on Day 2 and Day 3, and George Paton and company will be looking.

The Top Five

Kayden McDonald, Ohio State

A nose tackle, through and through. The 6-foot-2, 326-pound McDonald is a force in the run game, with 65 tackles and nine tackles for loss in an All-American season last year for the Buckeyes. Will he be a truly impactful pass-rusher in the NFL? Unclear. But McDonald should grade out as an immediate starting-ready force in the trenches.

Peter Woods, Clemson

Woods’ production declined this fall after a monster 2024 season, but he still profiles as a versatile havoc-wreaker with plenty of NFL upside.ĚýHe hasn’t run a 40-yard dash, butĚýĚýHe’ll be a fun piece for a late-first-round defensive coordinator to shift around in their scheme.

Lee Hunter, Texas Tech

NFL insiders generally pinpoint a pretty clear gap between the McDonald-Woods tier and the next crop of interior defensive linemen in this class. Hunter’s profile is rather complicated, carrying plenty of power (6-foot-3, 318 pounds) but not much speed (a 5.18-second 40-yard-dash, second-to-last among all defensive linemen at the combine). He’s racked up more than 9.5 tackles for loss in each of his last three seasons between UCF and Texas Tech, though, and the Broncos should be able to piece together a strong evaluation on him after drafting UCF RB RJ Harvey last year.

Christen Miller, Georgia

Here’s a potential Broncos second-round target. Denver hosted the powerful Georgia defensive tackle on a top-30 visit. Miller has a great frame at 6-foot-4 and 321 pounds, and has graded out extremely well as a run defender the past two seasons. Again, though, this is a projected nose tackle in the NFL, and Denver already has two starting-caliber options there in Jones and Roach.

Caleb Banks, Florida

A potential upside play for Denver in the second round, if Banks falls that far. A year ago, it would’ve been a ludicrous proposition for Banks to land anywhere outside Day 1; he’s endured a rocky 2025, though, as he missed all but three games of his final season with a foot injury and then suffered a broken foot at the NFL Combine. If he’s healthy, though, the 6-foot-6 Banks has as much pass-rush upside as anyone in this interior defensive-line group. Denver hosted him on a top-30 visit, too.

More Broncos fits

Chris McClellan, Mizzou

A general pre-draft riser for good reason, McClellan racked up six sacks during his senior year at Mizzou and was one of Denver’s first top-30 visits this cycle. The Broncos scout Mizzou well, as 2023 All-American running back Cody Schrader and longtime Mizzou DT Williams are both on Denver’s roster on futures deals. McClellan would be a strong option to supplement Franklin-Myers’ loss — but he might not be around in the fourth if the Broncos pass on him at No. 62.

DeMonte Capehart, Clemson

A six-year alumnus of Clemson and Woods’ teammate on the line, Capehart didn’t have explosive production in college, with just 16 pressures combined in his last two seasons (according to Pro Football Focus). The raw athleticism here, though, is bonkers: a 4.85-second 40-yard-dash and 33.5-inch vertical, both in the top four at his position at the combine. Denver swung on Alabama’s Que Robinson as a developmental prospect in the fourth round last year on sheer upside, and Capehart could be a similar interior fit in this class.

Landon Robinson, Navy

Denver’s shown some interest here, meeting the 287-pound Robinson at Navy’s Pro Day. He stands 6-foot-0, which isn’t exactly ideal. But Robinson has jaw-dropping strength that stood out from even his military compatriots: squatting 665 pounds and benching 465, . He bulked up from an outside linebacker to a defensive lineman across his collegiate career, and could offer pass-rushing potential in the NFL.

Gary Smith III, UCLA

The Broncos have three seventh-round picks, and could spend one of them here. Broncos general manager Paton is a noted UCLA alumnus, and the 319-pound Smith III could be a run-stopping fit at the next level. He’s been a productive player for three seasons in a Bruins jersey, and his tackle production skyrocketed in 2025.

Uar Bernard, International Pathway Program

Here’s the most athletic player in this draft class. Period. Bernard, a 306-pound prospect discovered at a camp in Lagos, Nigeria, through the NFL’s International Pathway Program, rocketed onto the pre-draft scene thanks to a 4.63-second 40-yard dash and a 39-inch vertical. The only problem? He’s never played a snap of professional football in his life. The upside here, though, is too tantalizing for some team to not swing on Bernard.

They’re moving forward with Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad atop the room after signing both to extensions at the outset of free agency in early March.

They released Dre Greenlaw with a post-June 1 designation after one year, $11.5 million and a pair of injuries that limited him to eight games in the regular season.

Denver could have made a splash in free agency, but general manager George Paton offered a simple explanation Monday for why his team opted for retention.

“Singleton and Strnad are really good players,” Paton said. “Dre — we couldn’t keep the three of them. Dre helped us win a bunch of games, he helped our culture. We wish him the best, but we’re really happy to have Strnad and Singleton.”

Paton, a month ago at the NFL Combine, said he hoped the Broncos could keep both, and ultimately they did,Ěýsigning Strnad to a three-year, $18 million dealĚýandĚýSingleton to a two-year, $15 million deal.

Greenlaw, meanwhile, re-signed with San Francisco a year after the Broncos won a heated battle between the clubs for his services.

“Just how much we love Dre as a person and as a player,” San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday when asked about the rationale for bringing Greenlaw back. “He’s one of the best linebackers I’ve ever coached and I’ve been around some good ones. What he’s meant to the Niners organization.

“We hated being away from him for a year and we’re pumped he’s back.”

Singleton and Strnad are part of a broader pattern of retention in Denver this spring. The Broncos signed or tendered 13 of their 17 restricted and unrestricted free agents, plus all four of their exclusive rights players.

“We like our players,” Paton said. “We compare all our players to what¶¶Ňőap there in free agency and our guys were up there pretty high.

“We’ve won a lot of games with these guys. They fit the culture and not everyone does.”

Paton extension a ‘when,’ not if

The Broncos general manager is entering the final year of his original six-year contract he signed when he was hired in January 2021.

CEO and owner Greg Penner reiterated Monday that finalizing an agreement to keep Paton in Denver is a matter of when, not if.

“We want to have George here long-term,” Penner said. “He’s been a terrific partner for Sean and how they work together. I’m sure we’ll get that sorted out.”

Broncos ‘haven’t heard’ on international game in ’26

Broncos president Damani Leech said the club has not heard anything about playing an international game in 2026.

That doesn’t categorically rule out Denver landing a game as a visiting team, but typically teams are at least aware of the possibility by this point a little more than a month before the schedule is released. By this time a year ago, the Broncos knew they were in the mix to play either in Berlin, Germany or London. They ended up playing the New York Jets at Tottenham Stadium in London.

One potential this year would be playing San Francisco in Mexico City, but so far, there has been no indication that Denver will be placed in that game.

“Technically, we are (in the mix), but we haven’t heard anything yet,” Leech said.

Before joining the Broncos as team president in 2022, Leech was the COO of NFL International in the league office.

“Selfishly, I personally love the international ambitions of the league, Greg and Carrie support it, Sean’s a big fan of it,” Leech said. “So anything we can do to support the overall league initiative, we’re on board.”

Training camp update

The Broncos are set to move into their new team headquarters in June.

That project is on time and on budget, Penner said. Fans, however, will not be back on a grass berm for training camp come July. Instead, the club will once again use temporary bleachers for fans attending camp practices.

Leech said he expects capacity to be about double what it was last summer, so somewhere in the 1,500 neighborhood.

“And then shortly after camp ends, we’ll start to build the berm back up and it will be more similar to what fans are used to,” Leech said. The new berm will go where the Broncos’ current building is, to the East of Denver’s practice fields.

DL a free agent possibility

Paton and the Broncos think they are well-situated to make up for the loss of defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers.

Franklin-Myers, of course, signed a massive three-year, $63 million deal with Tennessee when free agency opened.

Even though Denver is confident in its depth beyond the starting trio, thanks to Malcolm Roach, Eyioma Uwazurike, Jordan Jackson, and second-year man Sai’Vion Jones, Paton left the door open to adding from the outside still in the coming weeks or months.

“We have pretty good depth, but you are always looking for big guys on the offensive and defensive lines,” he said.

How rare is this retention?

Paton said he hadn’t exactly crunched the numbers on just how many of their own the Broncos have brought back this offseason — but admitted the front office’s approach was “pretty unique.”

“It’s not for everyone, what we’re doing,” Paton said.

Indeed, in recent history, it really hasn’t been for anyone. According to some numbers crunched by The Denver Post, the Broncos currently have 94% of their 2025 snaps under contract heading into their 2026 offseason program. Denver has added only one external free agent, safety and special-teams player Tycen Anderson, and Paton made clear Monday that this was an intentional approach centered on preserving what’s already in the building.

“The culture — and the guys we have really fit it,” Paton said. “It just, it¶¶Ňőap kinda worked out that way.”

Well, much of the Broncos’ 2026 NFL Draft capital has up and Waddled away.

Denver’s entire outlook come April is radically different, now, after the Broncos gambled a first-round, third-round and fourth-round pick in 2026 for the dynamite addition of star receiver Jaylen Waddle (and a fourth-round pick). Suddenly, general manager Paton has significantly fewer picks to work with, as the Broncos now face the increased importance of hitting a few key roster needs in this year’s class.

The organization’s current arsenal of picks is all over the place: No. 62 (second round), No. 108 (fourth round, from Saints), No. 111 (fourth round, from Dolphins), No. 170 (fifth round), No. 246, No. 256, and No. 257 (seventh round). The clusters there strongly hint that Denver will make some sort of move up or back in the draft order. And with the haul given up for Waddle, it’s easy to see Paton wanting to take advantage of a needy franchise and moving back in April to accumulate some more mid-round capital.

With that in mind, Broncos beat reporters Parker Gabriel and Luca Evans took a new approach to this iteration of The Post’s mock draft: trades were on the table. And very much encouraged.

Once again, The Post used Pro Football Focus’s mock-draft simulator — which also allows trades and approximates fair value in pick swaps — for this exercise. The last mock draft in this space, in early March, had the Broncos selecting Indiana receiver Omar Cooper Jr. at the end of the first round. This one is … rather different.

Round 3, pick No. 70: RB Jonah Coleman, Washington

OK, let’s break this down.

There’s a realistic scenario in which the Broncos, now lacking a first-round pick, end up throwing a package together to try and move up for a gem like Notre Dame running back Jadarian Price or Vanderbilt tight end Eli Stowers. But it’d be difficult to see Paton, who has historically preferred trading back rather than trading up, taking that kind of swing after the Broncos’ trade for Waddle. Instead, The Post explored a scenario in which Paton and the Broncos trade back from No. 62.

In this PFF-massaged but not-impossible development, the Broncos find a trade partner in the Cleveland Browns, who are evidently eager to jump up a few slots to take their guy at the back of the second round. Here, Denver trades pick No. 62 and pick No. 170 for pick No. 70 and pick No. 107 from Cleveland, .

Coleman would fit neatly into the Broncos’ current running-back room, which still needs an injection of juice after re-upping with J.K. Dobbins, Jaleel McLaughlin and Tyler Badie during free agency. If Denver is still confident in the Dobbins-RJ Harvey tandem, it’ll need a durable running back who can pick up first-down work between the tackles, bruise at the goal line, and bring some third-down heft. Coleman checks every box.

The 5-foot-8, 220-pound back is solid in pass protection, and broke down schemes with Denver’s offensive staff during his NFL Combine meeting with the Broncos. He’s not especially explosive outside the tackles, but ran for 5.5 yards per carry across his collegiate career and had 15 touchdowns on the ground in 2025. He fumbled twice in 551 collegiate carries and dropped one pass in 109 total targets, according to PFF. That’s an NFL-ready ceiling-raiser right there.

Other options considered: RB Mike Washington Jr., Arkansas.ĚýWashington is shooting up draft boards after a monster performance at the combine, with a class-leading 4.33 40-yard-dash and a 39-inch vertical jump. The issue for Denver: he hasn’t been good in pass protection in college, and the Broncos need a third back whom Nix trusts in that area.

Round 4, pick No. 107: DL Chris McClellan, Mizzou

Here’s the other Browns slot, which kicks off a hilarious run of three Broncos selections in the span of five picks.

McClellan was Denver’s first known top-30 visit of the pre-draft process, and could factor into Denver’s plan to replace the departed John Franklin-Myers. He projects as more of a nose tackle at 6-foot-4 and 313 pounds — which the Broncos don’t necessarily need, with D.J. Jones and Malcolm Roach on multi-year deals — but McClellan has clear pass-rushing upside, with six sacks in 13 games last year. He’d bring another talented young body to compete in the room with veteran Eyioma Uwazurike and 2025 rookie Sai’vion Jones.

Other options considered: TE Michael Trigg, Baylor.ĚýTrigg will likely be sitting there for Denver in the middle rounds of April’s draft. He had terrific production last season, with 50 catches for 694 yards and six touchdowns. He played more from the slot than at in-line tight end in 2025, though, which would overlap with the strengths Denver already has at receiver.

Round 4, pick No. 108: S Bud Clark, TCU

The Broncos just signed a safety Thursday, agreeing to a one-year deal with former Bengals reserve Tycen Anderson. Anderson will likely compete for Denver’s third-safety job in 2026, but he profiles more as a special-teams ace. And the Broncos will have some decisions to make regarding Brandon Jones in the upcoming season, as the veteran starter enters the final year of his contract.

Enter Clark, who brings good size (6-foot-1 and 188 pounds), program loyalty (six seasons at TCU) and elite collegiate ball production (15 interceptions and 21 passes defensed across his last four seasons). His abilities in coverage would be an excellent complement next to hard-hitting chaos agent Talanoa Hufanga, and Clark’s lengthy stint in college would likely help his evaluation here in Denver’s eyes.

Other options considered:ĚýNobody. The Post likes Clark.

Round 4, pick No. 111: G Beau Stephens, Iowa

It’s high time for the Broncos to actually spend some draft capital on an offensive lineman: they’re set to keep the same starting front around Nix for the third straight year, but have several aging starters and upcoming contract questions in that mix. It’s almost a certainty that Denver looks to their offensive line in this class, and Stephens would be a solid option.

Denver scouts Iowa well (see: Riley Moss, 2023 third-round pick), and Stephens grew from a reserve into a top-end starter across five years with the Hawkeyes. He allowed just four quarterback pressures in 304 pass-blocking snaps in 2025, according to PFF, an absurd number. Plus, he’s started solely at left guard the past two seasons — where incumbent Ben Powers’ contract is set to expire after the 2026 season. The only issue here: the arm length and overall athleticism aren’t strong.

Other options considered: LB Bryce Boettcher.ĚýAt present, it’d probably be strange for the Broncos to go through April without drafting a linebacker, after cutting Dre Greenlaw at the start of free agency. Boettcher would bring another Oregon standout into the fold, and profiles similarly in makeup and play-style to current Broncos captain Alex Singleton.

Round 6, pick No. 209: FB Eli Heidenreich, Navy

This might require some tequila to be wheeled into the draft room to even think about pulling this off. But, presto! Denver suddenly has a sixth-round pick again.

At the present moment, the Broncos are sitting with three not-especially-valuable picks at the back of the seventh round. It’d be quite hard to imagine Denver taking the second-last and very-last players of April’s draft back-to-back, at compensatory picks No. 256 and No. 257. Therefore, The Post looked for a deal to move up and add an impact Day 3 skill player, and couldn’t pass up on Heidenreich here after packaging all three seventh-rounders for

Heidenreich could be Payton’s new Taysom Hill, in all but size. He has one of the more unique profiles of any player in this 2026 class, running for 499 yards and catching for 941 in his senior season in Navy’s triple-option offense. Is he a receiver? Is he a running back? Is he a fullback with slot-receiver flex? Who knows. But he ran a 4.44-second 40-yard-dash at the combine.

Perhaps Heidenreich could be an eventual replacement as both a returner and gadget weapon for Marvin Mims Jr., who’s currently slated to hit free agency after 2026. The potential here in Denver’s offense was too great to pass up.

Other options considered:ĚýTE Oscar Delp, Georgia.ĚýDelp was often stuck at the back of the pecking order of Georgia’s pass-catching options, and never caught more than 24 passes in a single season in college. His stock should rise , after being held out of the combine with a hairline fracture.

Denver’s third-year cornerback finished No. 12 in performance-based pay and brought home an extra $1,136,103 because of it.

That nearly doubles Moss’ pay for the 2025 season considering he had a base salary of $1,245,266.

Performance-based pay is supplemental income distributed each year to players by the based on a formula that weighs playing time against base salary. It is part of the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and the and has been in place since 2002.

The Broncos are the only NFL team to not yet sign a free agent. What’s the strategy?

Any player who plays a snap is eligible and many players receive at least some money, but players who have low salaries and end up playing a lot are typically in line for the biggest distributions.

Moss started all 17 regular-season games for the Broncos and logged 97% of Denver’s defensive snaps while also chipping in 15% of the club’s special teams snaps.

The performance-based pay pool continues to rise across the league. After distributing a total of $452 million a year ago, the league distributed $542 million this year. That means each club’s roster received a total of $16.65 million, up from $14.13 million a year ago.

Behind Moss, four other players topped $800,000: Center Luke Wattenberg ($887,647), nickel Ja’Quan McMillian ($866,178), offensive lineman Alex Palczewski ($853,302) and outside linebacker Dondrea Tillman ($808,853).

Most of the top of the list is young players on rookie contracts or former undrafted free agents. The rest of Denver’s top 10 went WR Troy Franklin, OLB Jonah Elliss, All-Pro special teamer Devon Key, RB Tyler Badie and DL Eyioma Uwazurike.

Established players and top draft picks can earn a good bit of extra money too, though.

Safety Talanoa Hufanga logged 97.7% of playing time based on the calculations and took home an extra $427,726. Starting quarterback Bo Nix got $369,400 and all-pro left guard Quinn Meinerz was right after him at $308,969.

A year ago, only five players league-wide topped $1 million in PBP. This year, 25 players topped that mark.

Last year Moss was third on the Broncos at $650,787, trailing McMillian ($773,090) and Wattenberg ($662,587).

The Broncos, ultimately, checked the temperature on several big names who flew off the market early in Monday’s legal-tampering period of free agency. But the organization prioritized retention — a notable departure from head coach Sean Payton’s comments at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, when he acknowledged that Denver “won a lot of games by one score or less” and rattled off a list of areas that needed improvement.

“I think that¶¶Ňőap the only way to look at it, relative to this team writing its own chapter,” Payton said then.

Thus far, Denver appears to be trying to re-write its 2025 chapter in a different font. The Broncos re-upped with inside linebacker Alex Singleton and running back J.K. Dobbins Monday to continue a run of re-signings, and didn’t agree to terms with a single external free agent. The club did create $6 million in cap room by cutting oft-injured ILB Dre Greenlaw, however — and the Broncos head into Day 2 of free agency poised to still add some impact pieces.

Running backs Kenneth Walker III, Travis Etienne Jr. and Tyler Allgeier are off the market, as are pass-catchers Alec Pierce, Wan’dale Robinson and Cade Otton. There are still plenty of gems left to be mined. Here’s a rundown of 5 potential Broncos-specific fits left on the market.

Romeo Doubs, WR

Denver didn’t poke around much on Doubs early on Monday, but the organization has interest in the former Packers receiver, as an NFL source previously told The Denver Post. The 25-year-old Doubs isn’t a high-upside play in the WR market, but he has many of the traits of a Payton-favored wideout: 6-foot-2, a good blocker, good red-zone production (18 receiving touchdowns in the last three years).

A potential issue here, however, is that Doubs overlaps similarly in profile to ascending second-year wideout Pat Bryant. If Denver is comfortable with their Courtland Sutton-Troy Franklin-Bryant-Marvin Mims quadrant as their top four receivers entering 2026, there’s little reason for them to pay up for Doubs.

Kaden Elliss, ILB

Would the Broncos spend top dollar — likely between $15 and $17 million annually — on Jaguars All-Pro linebacker Devin Lloyd after re-signing Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad? Probably not. Now, could they still get in on a starting-level linebacker to compete with Strnad and fill out a room thinned by the Greenlaw cut? Absolutely.

One tie is obvious here, as former Falcons linebacker Elliss is brothers with Broncos outside linebacker Jonah Elliss. Elliss also was drafted by Sean Payton in New Orleans in 2019, and spent three years as a special-teamer before blossoming as an off-ball linebacker in 2022. He’s a dynamic run-stopper who’s also a menace on inside-linebacker blitzes, with 3.5 sacks and 10 quarterback hits in 2025. That could be music to the ears of defensive coordinator Vance Joseph.

Dallas Goedert, TE

Denver, still, has the resources to upgrade at tight end, even after re-signing blocking specialists Adam Trautman and Nate Adkins. The Broncos clearly need a piece in the room who can either stay on the field in rotating personnel groupings and complement Evan Engram as a receiver, or supplant Engram if Denver chooses to move on from the veteran and save roughly $3.8 million in cap room.

This would likely be a high-upside swing on a short-term deal, as the 31-year-old Goedert isn’t getting any younger. But the Super Bowl champion was still an integral piece of Philadelphia’s passing game in 2025, catching 60 balls for 591 yards and a career-best 11 touchdowns. He’s declined as a run-blocker since his younger years with the Eagles, as Pro Football Focus grades indicate, but no tight end left on the market boasts Goedert’s all-around resume and red-zone ability. He’d fit a clear need for Denver.

Andrew Wingard, S

Here’s a native of Arvada, a Wyoming graduate, and a former undrafted free-agent grinder who could easily step in as Denver’s third safety in 2026. It’s likely that reserve P.J. Locke hits the open market after six seasons in Denver, and several NFL sources have told The Post across the last week that the Broncos would be in the market for a safety.

Denver could easily nab Wingard at third-safety value and receive a piece who could start in a pinch or even push Brandon Jones at free safety during training camp. His numbers in coverage were solid in 2025 — a 61% catch rate and 89.2 passer rating allowed when targeted, according to NFL’s Next Gen Stats — and Wingard would also bring special-teams value after seven seasons as a depth safety in Jacksonville.

Logan Hall, DE

The John Franklin-Myers era is over in Denver, leaving the Broncos with a gaping hole at defensive end next to Zach Allen. Denver could easily look to fill the departed Franklin-Myers’ shoes with a combination of reserve Eyioma Uwazurike, rookie Sai’vion Jones and key defensive tackle Malcolm Roach — or look back to the market for a bargain body to add to the room.

The 6-foot-6, 275-pound Hall would be one of the Broncos’ best options if they turned to free agency here, a 2022 second-round pick with a similar frame to Franklin-Myers and similar versatility to line up inside or on the edge. He finished with just 1.5 sacks in 17 games in 2025, but recorded six quarterback hurries. Hall would offer another skilled, young body in the room at a reasonable price.

“It’s past the point of like, getting the league to notice,” Franklin-Myers told The Denver Post in early September. “Now it¶¶Ňőap just like, I’m going to make it undoubtable, you know? And I’m just — I’m going to do what I know I can do, but I’ma play harder than I have because I know I can.

“And shoot, I owe it to this team, owe it to my teammates, fans, my family, you know what I’m saying?”

Broncos NFL free agency 2026 tracker: J.K. Dobbins is back and JFM is gone

He, indeed, made his value undeniable in 2025, with a career-best 7.5 sacks in 16 games for the Broncos. And Franklin-Myers is now headed for a monster payday elsewhere, signing a three-year deal worth a total of $63 million with Tennessee, a source confirmed to The Post on Monday.

Denver ultimately never put an offer in front of Franklin-Myers, after sensing his value would inflate too high beyond the front office's price point. In the past year, the Broncos have signed nose tackle D.J. Jones, outside linebacker Nik Bonitto, defensive end Zach Allen, and defensive tackle Malcolm Roach to long-term deals. Allen was the highest priority in the summer of 2025, followed by Bonitto; Roach is a high-quality reserve who ultimately signed for less than half of what Franklin-Myers commanded in free agency.

Even as nearly every impact name in the room around him received a nice handout from the Walton-Penner ownership group, Franklin-Myers continued to remain gracious to Denver and never careened around in public with his demands for a new contract.

“Man, I don’t care, shoot," Franklin-Myers told reporters after the Broncos' season ended in January. "I mean, I’m so happy for these dudes, and they changed they lives — they changed their family’s life. And these people work hard, as hard as I’ve ever seen in my life. And man, anybody that gets that opportunity to change their life, I can’t be mad at.

"When my time comes, it comes," Franklin-Myers said, a few words later. "And man, I’m happy. I’m happy to be here. I was happy to be able to play football for the Broncos this year. And we’ll see what happens.”

His time has come in Tennessee, now, where the 29-year-old Franklin-Myers will join the same team his contract year began against. The Titans' writing was on the wall, really, since former Jets defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton was hired by the Titans before the 2025 season; Whitecotton coached Franklin-Myers for three years in New York, and made clear in an August conversation with The Post that he still loved Franklin-Myers.

Tennessee also traded for Franklin-Myers' former Jets teammate Jermaine Johnson a week ago, and Johnson's set about not-so-subtly recruiting Franklin-Myers on Twitter since. Johnson, in fact, called Franklin-Myers during the week of the NFL Combine -- on the very same day he was traded.

The 29-year-old Franklin-Myers was a key contributor to the Broncos' NFL-best pass rush in 2024 and 2025, racking up a total of 14.5 sacks and 33 quarterback hits across his two years in Denver. He had a "low-key telepathic" connection on the interior with Allen, as rookie Jordan Miller told The Post at one point last season. And he served as a mentor for Denver's 2025 third-round pick Sai'vion Jones, even with Jones likely in a position to compete for Franklin-Myers' vacant job come 2026.

"It just shows his character,” Jones told The Post. “To me, it¶¶Ňőap clear what he values. He doesn’t value football more than his teammates."

With Franklin-Myers now gone, the attention invariably turns to Jones, who will become a key part of Denver's 2026 plans. The Broncos need either Jones or reserve Eyioma Uwazurike to assert themselves come training camp; it's possible Roach also gets more rotational looks in a by-committee approach. Denver, too, could look to bring another cheap veteran piece in the room in free agency.

Broncos land two comp picks.ĚýMr. Irrelevant in the 2026 draft may just don Broncos colors.

Denver on Monday was officially awarded two compensatory seventh-round picks by the NFL and they're the final two selections of the draft.

The pair of picks is due to the Broncos losing more players in free agency than they gained last spring.

Denver is expected to add the picks. Now they are finalized: Nos. 256 and 257 overall in the 2026 draft. The Broncos have nine overall selections now, beginning with No. 30 near the end of the first round.

The Broncos are currently in line for a likely fourth-round comp pick in 2027 for losing Franklin-Myers, though a major free agency signing could cancel that out should Denver make one.

Adkins near minimum.ĚýThe Broncos' one-year deal with tight end Nate Adkins, agreed to Sunday, is for $1.635 million total, according to OvertheCap data. That breaks down as follows: $1.165 million base salary, just above league minimum, a $300,000 signing bonus and $170,000 in per-game roster bonuses. Adkins will count $1.555 million against Denver's 2026 cap.

The thing about windows, though, is that they close. Denver has two more seasons before it has to start thinking about a massive extension for quarterback Bo Nix, which will put considerable strain on their long-term cap. It’s no secret. The world knows it. Those inside the Broncos’ facility know it. Their time to strike is now, heading into 2026 free agency with roughly $28 million in current cap room — — and plenty of levers to pull to create more space and throw money around in the market.

It’s also no secret that the Broncos need more skill talent. They need to add a running back, tight end, and potentially wide receiver. They need a linebacker either in free agency or the draft, and quietly have some options at safety. In January, owner Greg Penner described Denver’s approach with a phrase that’ll come to define this offseason, whatever size of swing the front office takes: “We’ll be opportunistically aggressive.”

The legal tampering period of free agency, when teams can officially make contact with players and agents, begins at 10:00 a.m. MT Monday. New contracts can officially be signed come 2:00 p.m. MT on Wednesday. Here’s The Denver Post’s position-by-position Broncos guide to 2026 free agency, informed via numerous conversations with NFL agents and sources across the past two weeks.

Quarterback

Who Denver has: QB1 Bo Nix, QB2 Jarrett Stidham

Who Denver could lose: QB3 Sam Ehlinger

What Denver needs:ĚýAnother QB in the room, and to re-sign Ehlinger

Key market options (former team in parenthesis): Zach Wilson (Dolphins), Sam Howell (Eagles), Teddy Bridgewater (Buccaneers)

This will depend entirely on whether the Broncos actually shop Stidham, and potentially save themselves $6.5 million in corresponding cap room. If they trade Stidham to a quarterback-needy team for some draft capital, Denver could easily look to re-sign Ehlinger and promote him to Nix’s official backup, after Ehlinger stuck to Davis Webb’s hip in 2025. The Broncos would clearly need another name to push Ehlinger in such a circumstance, though.

If that wouldn’t be a young draft pick, the Broncos could look to bring back Zach Wilson, who was part of a tight-knit group with Nix and Stidham in Denver in 2024. Paton also did plenty of work on longtime backup Howell in the 2022 draft, and former Bronco Bridgewater was Sean Payton’s trusted backup in New Orleans in 2018 and 2019.

Running back

Who Denver has: RB1/RB2 RJ Harvey, RB3 Tyler Badie (likely to sign ERFA deal)

Who Denver could lose: RB1/RB2 J.K. Dobbins, RB4 Jaleel McLaughlin

What Denver needs:ĚýA true RB1 or Harvey complement, and depth

Key market options: Kenneth Walker III (Seahawks), Travis Etienne Jr. (Jaguars), Rico Dowdle (Panthers), Tyler Allgeier (Falcons), Kenneth Gainwell (Steelers), Emanuel Wilson (Packers)

Here’s the spot that’ll draw the most buzz next week. The Broncos have already been connected to some of the top names on the market, clearly needing an upgrade in the room even if Denver brings back Dobbins on the cheap; the oft-injured veteran simply can’t be relied upon to play a full season. The Seahawks elected not to give Walker a one-year, $14 million franchise tag after a Super Bowl MVP, and the star RB could easily command upwards of $12 to $14 million on the market.

Would Denver swing on that price, though? Walker wasn’t good in pass protection last year (two sacks and nine pressures in 51 pass-blocking snaps, per PFF), and the Broncos need a third-down back whom Nix trusts. The 5-foot-11, 215-pound Etienne is a highly intriguing fit for Denver, a bigger back who’s dynamic in the passing game (six receiving touchdowns in 2025). The 25-year-old Allgeier is a power back without excessive tread on the tires who could be available at a lower price, but expect Denver to look elsewhere.

Don’t be surprised if the Broncos walk away with Dobbins, Harvey and a supplemental piece instead of swinging big here. Wilson is an interesting name, a 226-pound RB who ran for 496 yards in Green Bay last season.

Wide receiver

Who Denver has: WR1 Courtland Sutton, WR2 Troy Franklin, WR3 Pat Bryant, WR4 Marvin Mims Jr.

Who Denver could lose: WR5 Lil’Jordan Humphrey

What Denver needs:ĚýA high-upside complement to Sutton, or at least another trustworthy WR4/5 option

Key market options:ĚýAlec Pierce (Colts), Jauan Jennings (49ers), Wan’Dale Robinson (Giants), Rashid Shaheed (Seahawks), Mike Evans (Buccaneers), Stefon Diggs (Patriots), Romeo Doubs (Packers), Jahan Dotson (Eagles), Jalen Nailor (Vikings)

The Broncos like their current receiver room. The Paton-Payton braintrust has made that clear this entire offseason, and their firing of receivers coach Keary Colbert and hire of longtime Payton associate Ronald Curry signal that Denver believes in unlocking the potential of its current group rather than needing a drastic personnel overhaul. That being said, they need to add a piece here, whether in free agency or via a deep draft class.

Pierce is the true difference-maker on the market. There are few in the NFL like him, a 6-foot-3 deep-ball extraordinaire who racked up 1,003 yards last year on 21.3 yards per catch. Denver got an up-close look at him in a Week 2 loss to Indianapolis. But one agent The Post spoke with pinpointed Pierce’s likely market value at $27 to $30 million, which would be a steep price for a team already giving Sutton $23 million yearly. Don’t expect Denver to get into a bidding war for him.

The rest of the market is somewhat iffy. Jennings has the frame (6-foot-3), blocking prowess and red-zone ability (nine TDs in 2025) that Payton would love. Robinson will likely land somewhere in the $10 to $15 million range, and would bring a high-volume slot weapon that Denver doesn’t currently have.

Doubs is a definite potential fit for the Broncos here; Denver has interest in the former Green Bay receiver, an NFL source told The Post. He’s a big-bodied target who doesn’t demand the ball but has good red-zone production and can play in a variety of alignments. Keep an eye on Dotson as a potential depth piece, too, as Dotson’s agency CAA also represents Nix. He’s a former 2022 first-round pick whose production stalled out in Philadelphia, but he can block, play from the slot and hasn’t dropped a pass since 2023.

Tight end

Who Denver has:ĚýTE1/TE2 Evan Engram

Who Denver could lose:ĚýTE1/TE2 Adam Trautman, TE3 Nate Adkins, TE4 Lucas Krull

What Denver needs:ĚýA legitimate in-line TE who can complement Engram as a pass-catcher, and stay on the field on any down

Key market options:ĚýDavid Njoku (Browns), Isaiah Likely (Ravens), Cade Otton (Buccaneers), Chig Okonkwo (Titans), Dallas Goedert (Eagles), Daniel Bellinger (Giants), Charlie Kolar (Ravens)

Denver can’t simply run it back from 2025 and expect better production from Engram, who caught 50 passes for 461 yards in 2025, under new play-caller Davis Webb. The Broncos need a versatile weapon whom they trust as both a blocker and a matchup-threat receiver. Otton might just be that guy: he played in-line (attached to the offensive tackle) on nearly half his snaps in Tampa Bay in 2025, according to Pro Football Focus, and has caught 59 passes in each of the last two seasons.

Otton’s yearly value has been pinpointed in NFL circles somewhere around Jake Ferguson’s four-year, $50 million extension with Dallas in 2025. If Denver wants to spend at TE, he and Likely would be the most well-rounded options on the Market. Njoku and Goedert are likely past their primes, and Okonkwo’s not a blocker.

Bellinger had 88 yards and a touchdown for the Giants against Denver in Week 7, and is seeking $7 to $8 million yearly. Kolar is the most intriguing upside swing here, a 6-foot-6 blocker who was stuck behind multiple TEs in Baltimore in the receiving game.

Offensive line

Who Denver has:ĚýLT1 Garett Bolles, LG1 Ben Powers, C1 Luke Wattenberg, RG1 Quinn Meinerz, RT1 Mike McGlinchey, OL2 Alex Palczewski, OT2 Matt Peart, OT2 Frank Crum, C2 Alex Forsyth

Who Denver could lose:ĚýNobody

What Denver needs:ĚýMaybe another swing tackle

Key market options:ĚýWide-open

Denver doesn’t need to spend here, with its current starting offensive line set again for 2026. The Broncos could always look to cut or deal Powers to create cap room and have a ready successor in Alex Palczewski, whom they inked to a two-year extension Thursday. It’s more likely they look to the draft to bolster depth here, although they could certainly cut Peart to save over $3 million in cap room and target another backup tackle in free agency. Players like former Vikings veteran Justin Skule or Seahawks backup Josh Jones could be good value there.

Defensive line

Who Denver has: DE1 Zach Allen, NT1 D.J. Jones, OLB1 Nik Bonitto, OLB2 Jonathon Cooper, DE/DT2 Eyioma Uwazurike, DT2 Malcolm Roach, OLB2 Jonah Elliss, OLB2 Dondrea Tillman (likely to sign ERFA deal), OLB3 Que Robinson, DE/DT3 Sai’vion Jones

Who Denver could lose:ĚýDE1 John Franklin-Myers, DE/DT3 Jordan Jackson

What Denver needs:ĚýA cheap, productive interior defensive lineman to push Uwazurike, Roach and Jones

Key market options:ĚýLogan Hall (Buccaneers), David Onyemata (Falcons), Calais Campbell (Cardinals), Sebastian Joseph-Day (Titans), Rakeem Nunez-Roches (Giants)

The Broncos already have massive amounts of money tied up in their defensive line, and Franklin-Myers is already all but gone. His likely landing spot is Tennessee, where recently-acquired defensive end The thinking from agents who spoke with The Post is that Denver could bring in depth to help supplant Franklin-Myers, but will likely rely on its pieces already in the building to fill the void.

Ironically, the Broncos’ movements in the defensive-line market will depend on Franklin-Myers’ own movements. Agents are completely across the board on projecting Franklin-Myers’ yearly value in a weak class; one suggested $12 to $14 million, one suggested $16 to $18 million, and one went as high as $20 to $22 million. If teams end up bidding closer to that higher end, it could price the Broncos out of what they’d be willing to spend for another body in the room. Onyemata, Joseph-Day and Nunez-Roches could all offer cheap, veteran depth.

Inside linebacker

Who Denver has:ĚýLB1 Dre Greenlaw, LB2/LB3 Karene Reid, LB2/LB3 Jordan Turner, LB2/LB3 Levelle Bailey, LB2/LB3 Drew Sanders

Who Denver could lose:ĚýLB1 Alex Singleton, LB1/LB2 Justin Strnad

What Denver needs:ĚýAn instant-impact starter, or at the very least a high-end LB3.

Key market options:ĚýDevin Lloyd (Jaguars), Nakobe Dean (Eagles), Quay Walker (Packers), Quincy Williams (Jets), Kaden Elliss (Falcons), Alex Anzalone (Lions), E.J. Speed (Texans), Bobby Okereke (Giants)

It’s a great year to need a middle linebacker. Denver could certainly look to a strong draft class to address this spot. But an NFL source who met with Denver at last week’s NFL Combine told The Post that the Broncos will have a “significant appetite” in the free-agent linebacker market.

That could mean they’ll take a monster swing on Lloyd, a 2025 All-Pro and the kind of playmaker that Vance Joseph would have a field day with in the middle of Denver’s defense. It could also mean they’ll re-sign Singleton as their green-dot defensive leader — he’s been pinpointed by multiple NFL sources at somewhere between $5 to $8 million yearly — and add another piece to compete for a starting job. Strnad is likely headed for new pastures, as he told The Post after the season he wouldn’t be back in Denver unless it was in a clear starting role.

The Broncos have interest in Anzalone and Speed, sources said, both potential green-dot options or LB3 pieces who will come in below the top of the market, where NFL sources pinpointed Lloyd likely to come in between $15 and $17 million annually. Dean is another interesting and versatile option who told The Post at the Super Bowl he likes watching the Broncos’ defense and would be interested in Denver in free agency if the price was right.

Secondary

Who Denver has:ĚýCB1 Pat Surtain II, CB1 Riley Moss, NB1 Ja’Quan McMillian, NB2/CB2 Jahdae Barron, CB2 Kris Abrams-Draine, S1 Talanoa Hufanga, S1 Brandon Jones, S2 Devon Key (likely to sign ERFA deal), S2 JL Skinner

Who Denver could lose:ĚýS2 P.J. Locke

What Denver needs:ĚýA third safety to replace Locke and potentially push Jones

Key market options:ĚýTony Adams (Jets), Dane Belton (Giants), Kyle Dugger (Steelers), Andrew Wingard (Jaguars), Alohi Gilman (Ravens), Ifeatu Melifonwu (Dolphins), D’Anthony Bell (Panthers), Rodney Thomas II (Colts)

A notable Broncos development to track in free agency: Denver has expressed interest in adding a safety, several NFL sources told The Post this week. Locke is likely headed elsewhere after a nice fill-in stretch for the injured Jones late in 2025, and the Broncos want to add another piece to replace him, as Hufanga and Jones are both injury risks. Wingard is a name to watch here, a seven-year Jaguars veteran who recorded 84 tackles and nine passes defensed as a full-time starter in 2025.

The Broncos also did work on Melifonwu in last year’s free agency, and Denver tracked Bell’s status on the waiver wire as the Seahawks pulled him between the practice squad and active roster in 2025, sources said. At the very least, expect Denver to sign a depth safety who can also be a special-teams contributor.

Special teams

Who Denver has:ĚýK1 Wil Lutz, P1 Jeremy Crawshaw, LS1 Mitchell Fraboni

Who Denver could lose:ĚýNobody

What Denver needs:ĚýNothing

Key market options:ĚýWide open

Denver need not spend much time here on specialists.

The Denver defense will look at least a little different come the 2026 season, but it has a deep, talented core set to return.

The 2025 group was a unique one, disruptive to an elite level and good at virtually everything except taking the ball away.

Here is a look back on the regular season and what can be learned for the future.

Five key defensive numbers

18.3 —ĚýPoints per game allowed (No. 3 in the NFL)

4.5 —ĚýYards per play allowed (No. 1)

68 — Sacks (Franchise record and most in the NFL)

34.6% —ĚýRate of drives against that ended in a score (No. 7)

6.8% — Turnover rate forced (No. 28)

High Point

There are a few to choose from over the regular season. Denver’s return from the bye week in Washington was anything but pretty defensively until Nik Bonitto made one of the plays of the season, batting down a deciding two-point conversion attempt in overtime and sealing the Broncos’ eighth straight win. Pat Surtain II’s flying interception against Green Bay sparked a dominant second half. Joseph’s group held five opponents overall to less than 200 yards, then recorded five takeaways against Buffalo in the divisional round of the postseason and kept New England to 206 yards in the AFC title game. No game was more dominant, though, than the Broncos’ 13-11 win against the New York Jets in London. Denver racked up nine sacks, including three in the final 4:19 alone. Jonathon Cooper and Brandon Jones closed the game out with a fourth-and-10 sack of Justin Fields, who finished with minus-10 net passing yards. The Jets’ offense stunk all year, so it wasn’t the highest degree of difficulty, but the win got Denver back across the ocean with a three-game streak in hand. That run, of course, eventually ballooned to 11 games.

Low Point

The Broncos had a formula that worked most of the season: Win on third down and in the red zone and pressure the heck out of opposing quarterbacks. Week 16 against Jacksonville and Trevor Lawrence provided a bit of a scare heading into the postseason. Denver’s defense had already lagged a bit after the bye week — the Commanders and Packers each scored 26 points and at times gave the Broncos fits — but Lawrence led one of the few offensive outings that really cracked this group open. The Jags went 4 of 5 in the red zone at Empower Field. They converted 8 of 15 on third down. Lawrence was sacked five times but hardly seemed to notice, throwing for 279 yards and three touchdowns and rushing for another. That made him and the Jags offense one of only two to score more than three touchdowns on the regular season against Denver’s defense — rookie Jaxson Dart and the New York Giants were the other and it prompted head coach Sean Payton to issue a warning: Force turnovers in the postseason or else.

MVP: DT Zach Allen. There are several worthy candidates in this group. Bonitto came up one vote shy of All-Pro status and logged a career-best 14 sacks. Pat Surtain II missed 3.5 games with a partially torn pec but carried on as the finest corner in football when healthy. What Allen did in the middle of the Broncos’ defense, though, is difficult to overstate. He led the NFL in quarterback hits with 47, eight more than Cleveland defensive end Myles Garrett in his record-setting 23-sack campaign. It¶¶Ňőap the most hits credited to a player since Nick Bosa’s 48 in 2022 and the second straight year Allen’s led the NFL. He had the second-most pressures (59) among defensive tackles, too. In three years with the Broncos, Allen has posted an 11.3% pressure rate or better, hit the quarterback 112 times, averaged 63.3 pressures per year and missed just one game. A foundational player.

Tough Season:Ěý ILB Dre Greenlaw. This is more about injuries and availability than about performance. In fact, Greenlaw himself described his first year with the Broncos as being “very tough.” It started only a month after signing a three-year deal in free agency with a quad injury. Greenlaw and the Broncos thought he was past it when training camp start, but recurring issues ended up costing him the first six games of the season. At the end of his first game of the season, he got suspended for a game. Then a Week 16 hamstring injury cost him the final two games of the regular season. In between, Greenlaw was a force against the run and not used a ton in coverage. It sets up an open question about whether he’s in the Broncos’ defensive plan going forward.

Under the radar: ILB Justin Strnad. Greenlaw’s addition got a ton of offseason attention, but Strnad just quietly keeps getting better and better. He played the best football of his career in 2025 and stamped himself as a bona fide starter going forward. Good timing, too, considering Strnad’s a free agent and should command solid money either from Denver or elsewhere. The 2020 fifth-round pick is strong enough to play against the run, has improved in coverage and is a terrific blitzer. He logged a career-best 4.5 sacks this year. Pretty impressive for a player who went nearly three full years without playing a single defensive snap from mid-2020 into early 2024.

Overall conversion rates allowed – Broncos under DC Vance Joseph

Run Defense

Five Key Numbers

3.9 —ĚýYards allowed per rush (T-2 in the NFL)

18.8% —ĚýRush attempts against that went for loss or no gain (No. 6)

30 — Rushes of 10-plus yards allowed (No. 2)

0.87 —ĚýYards before contact allowed per rush (No. 2)

0 — 100-yard rushers allowed the final 15 games of the regular season

The Good

They are not the most heralded players on the roster, but Denver’s interior, primarily the early down trio of defensive linemen D.J. Jones, Malcolm Roach and Eyioma Uwazurike, did a lot of heavy lifting in 2025. Jones was a key, last-minute retention before free agency began back in March and he rewarded the Broncos with high-level play and leadership in Year 9. Roach’s game continues to expand, but he did his normal terrific work against the run. Uwazurike was suspended for the 2023 season, played 63 snaps in 2024 and then broke out this year. All three are under contract for 2026 and they will all have key roles, not just against the run but likely also in making up for the seemingly inevitable loss of John Franklin-Myers to free agency. Roach and Uwazurike, in particular, will likely see upticks in their roles. In 2025, though, this trio provided stalwart work against the run.

The Bad

It didn’t go bad on the Broncos against the run very often in 2025, but they got an early wake-up call from Jonathan Taylor and the Indianapolis Colts in Week 2. Taylor ripped off a 68-yard run and racked up 167 overall in Indy’s walk-off win against Denver. After that, Denver didn’t allow a rusher more than 80 yards. The Broncos overall did a good job against mobile quarterbacks, though Washington’s Marcus Mariota gave them fits with his legs in Week 13. And though this is primarily a regular-season retrospective, it¶¶Ňőap at least worth mentioning that Buffalo’s James Cook ran for 117 in the divisional round and that the Bills and Patriots averaged 163 rushing yards in the playoffs after Denver went from Week 3 onward not allowing more than 143 in a game. Patriots QB Drake Maye’s five first downs plus a touchdown on seven carries in the AFC title game were critical.

The Unknown

The Broncos do have a talented core set to return in 2026, but there are some holes to fill in the run game. Franklin-Myers is primarily a pass-rusher but his likely departure via free agency will mean changing roles for guys who have been counted on to stop the run. One of the biggest uncertainties defensively is what will happen at inside linebacker, where Strnad and Alex Singleton are free agents and Greenlaw is under contract but would not be difficult to move on from. Any substantial change in personnel, particularly in the middle of the field, can alter the chemistry of a group. Communication originates from the ILBs and emanates outward. If that group is overhauled and JFM departs, there will be a lot of learning to do through the spring and summer. Still, this is a unit that¶¶Ňőap well-positioned to be stout against the run again in 2026.

‘Stop’ rate played among NFL DLs

*A ‘stop’ is a tackle on a winning defensive play (negative EPA). Rates among top 70 DLs in stops.Ěý

Credit: Next Gen Stats dataĚý

Pass Defense

Five Key Numbers

62.3% —ĚýPass rate against Denver in 2025 (Second-highest in the NFL)

40.7% — Pressure rate generated by the Broncos (No. 2)

4.8 —ĚýPassing yards per play allowed (No. 1)

-0.17 —ĚýEPA per pass attempt allowed (No. 7)

10 — Interceptions (T-18)

The Good

Not many teams rush and cover better than the Broncos. They broke a franchise record in sacks for the second straight season, got at least half a sack from 17 different players and paired that fearsome rush with one of the deepest sets of cornerbacks and best overall secondaries in football. They have transformed in the past two years from a mostly anonymous group to one that features four players named to All-Pro teams in the past two seasons — Allen, Bonitto, Surtain and safety Talanoa Hufanga —Ěýand is widely recognized as one of football’s best.

They’ve got more cornerbacks than they can get on the field, nickel Ja’Quan McMillian has solidified himself as one of the best in the business and even when safety Brandon Jones went down with a torn pectoral late in the year, P.J. Locke filled in admirably. On the front seven, Denver has developed enviable depth at outside linebacker. GM George Paton called fourth-round rookie Que Robinson the 2025 draft pick with maybe the most upside of the class and he was behind the second-line pair of Jonah Elliss and Dondrea Tillman this fall. This is not an easy group to throw the ball against and the challenge may not get much easier in 2026.

The Bad

Two buckets here. The Broncos, for all their strengths and elite numbers overall in pass defense, struggled to deal with opposing tight ends. Denver allowed the seventh-fewest passing yards overall in the regular season and the sixth-most yards to opposing tight ends. Especially after Jones got hurt, teams tested Hufanga and Locke in coverage as often as they could. Joseph talked in detail about how he tries to combat the issue and part of the susceptibility is just how aggressive and man-heavy Denver plays. Still, it is an unsolved issue at this point.

The second is penalties. The Broncos committed a lot in 2025 and among the most high-profile were a series of defensive pass interference penalties against cornerback Riley Moss. The group took issue with more than one, but Moss also acknowledged a need to play with better technique and grab less. The penalty total dropped as the season hit the back stretch and Moss played well overall as the most-targeted corner in football, but he had occasional lapses in tackling, too, especially against Jacksonville.

The Unknown

The Broncos have an interesting set of decisions to make in the secondary and it could lead to either major change this offseason or could still be a year away yet. They revolve around McMillian, Moss and rookie first-round pick Jahdae Barron. Barron was drafted as a nickel primarily who can also play outside. McMillian is a restricted free agent whom teammates think should have been an All-Pro in 2025. Moss is a really good player — talented, athletic and wired to handle the attention opposite Surtain — but also at times got himself in trouble in coverage. He’s going into the final year of his rookie contract.

McMillian is going to command top-scale money, if not in the form of an extension this offseason, then a year from now as an impending unrestricted free agent. Barron’s going to play at some point, but in April, he looked like a potential McMillian replacement and now McMillian looks like exactly the type of player you want to extend and keep around. So does Barron compete with Moss outside? Do they keep it status-quo this year, let Moss walk in free agency and turn loose Barron and Kris Abrams-Draine to compete for the job across from Surtain? Do they entertain the idea of trading McMillian?

Nothing except putting a premium tender on McMillian has to happen in the coming months, but the way the Broncos sequence their moves here will be interesting nonetheless.

A record sack season