If anyone on the Denver Broncos' roster has a right to feel a little left out right now, it's defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers. You can almost say the Broncos are trying to re-sign everybody on the roster to keep the band together beyond the 2025 season, but Franklin-Myers is one pending 2026 NFL Free Agent they have yet to engage in contract talks.
The Broncos recently gave out contract extensions to kicker Wil Lutz, center Luke Wattenberg, and defensive lineman Malcolm Roach. Even though Franklin-Myers has been one of the most consistent and productive players on the team the past couple of seasons, it feels like the team has put the writing on the wall with his future status.
Even though the Broncos have yet to engage Franklin-Myers in contract talks, it's possible that they still could, but they might ask him to do the unthinkable next offseason: Take another haircut on his salary.
Broncos could try to get John Franklin-Myers back at a discounted price in 2026
When the Broncos initially acquired Franklin-Myers in a trade with the New York Jets -- one of the best trades GM George Paton has ever made -- they were able to make that deal happen largely because Franklin-Myers took a significant haircut on his contract to come to Denver.
He was in the midst of a four-year, $55 million deal with the Jets at the time, but when he came to Denver, he signed a restructured contract at two years, $15 million. Some quick math shows us that "JFM" cut his average annual value nearly in half to initially come to the Denver Broncos.
He was getting paid an average annual value of $13.75 million with the Jets, and took a reduction in pay to $7.5 million annually to come to Denver. During the 2025 offseason, Franklin-Myers was arguably the most vocal player on the roster about wanting a new deal, at least on his Twitter/X page. The Broncos showed no signs of giving him a new deal, which got the fan base thinking about his impending departure before the season even started.
Franklin-Myers had 7.0 sacks last year and already has 4.5 sacks this year. He's been a model of durability and consistency since he came into the NFL, and is one of the most impactful players on Denver's defensive line. The idea of the team letting him hit free agency uncontested simply does not make any sense given the way they've operated under GM George Paton.
So what is the "unthinkable" that the Broncos may have to ask of Franklin-Myers whenever they do engage in contract talks? Well, they might just have to ask him to take below market value to stick around. Last offseason, free agent defensive lineman Jonathan Allen received $17 million in average annual value in a contract from the Vikings. Would JFM be looking at a deal close to that as a starting point?
If that's the case, then the Broncos might just have to let him walk and go get paid by the highest bidder. Not that they can't afford to re-sign him, but they have other areas of the roster they might be looking to upgrade.
If the Broncos are going to bring Franklin-Myers back after this season, they may once again have to ask him to take a haircut in the average annual salary department to make it happen.