Broncos' patience with Jonah Elliss is finally about to pay off in Week 1

Nobody in the NFL world is talking about the player who could be one of the top breakout candidates on the defensive side of the ball during the 2026 season.

Denver Broncos outside linebacker Jonah Elliss was an All-Rookie performer in the 2024 season as a rotational piece, and he's been somewhat quietly waiting in the wings over the last two years, but he's ready to absolutely burst onto the scene in Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Broncos have been patient in their process with Elliss. He's played 30 games over the last two seasons combined, and has played exactly 38 percent of the defensive snaps in that timeframe. Broncos fans have gotten the chance to see glimpses of Elliss's potential, but with Jonathon Cooper starting the year on the Commissioner's Exempt List, it's Elliss's time to shine entering his 3rd NFL season.

Jonah Elliss is primed for a big breakout year with the Denver Broncos in 2026

In 30 games (752 total snaps), Elliss has racked up 7.5 sacks, 12 tackles for loss, 11 QB hits, and 24 pressures. He's battled through some injuries, including a shoulder injury he dealt with prior to even getting to the NFL.

He's been fully healthy this offseason and has been disruptive all throughout the Broncos' offseason program and into training camp and the preseason.

It's probably a little bit of the pre-Week 1 hyperbole, but it feels like Elliss has a real shot to reach double-digit sacks if he ends up playing a starting role on the Broncos' defense this season. Seeing the impact he made as a rotational player coming in for less than 40 percent of the snaps has proven the Broncos might be sitting on a goldmine.

Their patience with his development (and injuries popping up) is about to pay off in a big way.

Elliss comes from a football family, and you can see the way football is in his DNA in the way that he plays the game. He's so instinctive and has a natural feel for the game, even if his aggressiveness can get the better of him at times.

He's got a full arsenal of weapons to get to the quarterback, including the ability to convert speed to power. There was a specific play in the preseason opener against the Atlanta Falcons that really showcases what kind of impact Elliss can make as a pass rusher on a consistent basis.

He's coming off the left edge in this particular play, and his quickness off the ball immediately gets the offensive tackle on his heels while trying to get into a pass set. Elliss uses that quickness to his advantage, using his upper body strength to quickly shove the offensive tackle out of his way, then redirecting inside to affect the quarterback by getting hands into his throwing lane.

The result of this particular disruption is an interception by Riley Moss, but a lot of quarterbacks will see Elliss coming out of the corner of their eye and try to quickly tuck the ball away to prevent this disaster scenario. The only problem with that is that tucking the ball in this instance makes the QB susceptible to a strip-sack.

Either way, the result is an impact play made by Jonah Elliss.

And these are the types of things we can consistently expect from him, because he plays with violent intent. Even though he can use speed and quickness to his advantage, his game is anything but "finesse" off the edge. He's a bully in the trenches.

The Broncos have seen Elliss's skill set grow to the point that there isn't expected to be any sort of drop off in the level of play off the edge without Cooper in the mix.

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