According to Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton, 2025 1st-round pick Jahdae Barron is going to get the chance to compete at the outside cornerback position in 2026, but after OTAs and mandatory minicamp, the status of that competition is clear as mud.
Nobody knows the answer to the question: Is Riley Moss's job really in jeopardy?
After two years of starting for Vance Joseph's defense -- and being picked on by opposing teams to the tune of 221 targets over the last two years -- Moss is entering a contract year. He's struggled some, but also shown progression. He was tied for the NFL lead last year with 19 passes broken up.
So everyone in Broncos Country has been wondering if Barron is actually going to see the field as a starter and not just a package player or backup. As a 1st-round pick entering his second NFL season, the expectation is that Barron will play...a lot. But after the Broncos' offseason program, no clear path has been paved.
Denver Broncos' cornerback position battle still not clear after OTAs, minicamp
Although Sean Payton acknowledged Barron would be competing on the outside, his mention was somewhat vague. He never said anything about Barron competing for a starting job, although many assumed that was implied.
There has not been any sort of definitive statement made -- even in the slightest -- casting doubt over Riley Moss's job. If the Broncos are opening up a competition at training camp for Moss's job, they've been coy about it.
To be fair, it would have been difficult to make any sort of determinations based on OTAs and minicamp, because Barron has been working his way back to full team work after an offseason procedure on his knee. As he's gotten back to a full practice load, nobody has made any sort of observation that Moss was working with the second defensive unit or that Barron was taking his reps on the practice field.
If anything, it's feeling more and more likely by the day that Barron isn't going to be taking Moss's starting job this season unless it comes by way of injury, which nobody wants to see.
Perhaps Moss will enter the offseason program on a shorter leash than usual. After leading the NFL last year in penalty yardage (even if some of the infractions were bogus), the Broncos have to be ready to rotate someone else in in the event Moss struggles that badly.
Part of the issue is the perception this situation has created with the way the Broncos spent their most valuable draft capital. Since taking Pat Surtain in the 1st round of the 2021 NFL Draft, the Broncos have only made two picks in the 1st round: Bo Nix in 2024 and Jahdae Barron in 2025.
The idea that one of the team's two first-round picks over the last five years wouldn't be contributing to the starting lineup in his second NFL season is a little bit frustrating. Barron is also going to turn 25 later this year, so it's not as though he's a young, raw prospect. He came into the NFL as an older rookie and was supposed to be the top corner in his class.
And that still could turn out to be the case, but the clock is ticking. The Broncos have the luxury of patience and it seems they are choosing to exercise that. We'll have a much better idea when training camp rolls around what the plan at cornerback actually is, but for the time being, there has been very little clarity about what the coaching staff wants to do with that "competition" this offseason.
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