There are a serious of four contract moves that the Denver Broncos have begun making and should continue to make, as they will pay off big-time for the team. Denver has been a lot more careful with their cap situation this offseason, which is great. The fallout from the Russell Wilson contract is basically forcing the team to take this approach.
However, that doesn't mean they can't do nothing with their current cap figure. The team still has some long-term needs and some contract extensions that need to get done. The process to build a team in the NFL never ends, so Denver should keep making smart contract moves.
Let's look at four contract decisions that will ultimately pay off for the Broncos.
4 contract decisions that will pay off for the Denver Broncos
Extending Patrick Surtain II
Perhaps the most obvious move to be made in the NFL right now is a future extension for Patrick Surtain II. The Denver Broncos are clearly hoping to be competitive this year, so any previous talk of trading the stud CB for a haul will not materialize. At this point, the only way forward here is for Denver to make Surtain the highest-paid defensive back in NFL history.
He'll deserve every single penny, and he's truly a lockdown cornerback. Without Surtain in the secondary, Denver would have perhaps the worst unit in the NFL, and through just three seasons, it's clear that not only is Surtain a perennial Pro Bowler, but he's also someone who has Hall of Fame trajectory.
There really is no other option here than to extend Surtain.
Extending Quinn Meinerz
Another stud Denver Broncos player from the 2021 NFL Draft, Quinn Meinerz most definitely needs a future contract extension. He's the best player on the Broncos offensive line and a top-5 guard in the NFL. And yes, while teams can typically find serviceable enough iOL play on the free agent market or in the NFL Draft, Meinerz is simply several tiers above most of his peers.
He's in the top guard conversation with guys like Zack Martin, Quenton Nelson, and others. There really should not be a downside here. Now yes, extending Meinerz would give the Broncos four big-time contracts along the offensive line, so they'd probably do something with Ben Powers' contract, the Broncos left guard.
However, like Surtain, there really is no other choice here than to extend The Belly.
Cutting Russell Wilson
The decision to cut Russell Wilson was the right move. I advocated for him to not be cut after the 2022 NFL Season, but felt like moving on after 2023 was the way Denver needed to end this disaster of an era. Basically, after the 2025 NFL Season, Wilson's contract will be totally off the books for the Broncos.
they owe him about $40 million this year, but will not owe him anything in 2025, and the dead cap charge they will incur on their 2025 cap goes down to $32 million. So, in 2025, the only thing left of Wilson's contract is the $32 million dead cap hit, and that should not impact the Broncos cap situation too much.
Moving on from Wilson and immediately bringing in a rookie quarterback was just what this franchise needed. The move to cut the veteran quarterback seems to have been unpopular among a section of the NFL fanbase, but who cares?
Potential extension for Garett Bolles
The Denver Broncos only have Garett Bolles under contract through the 2024 NFL Season, so he could hit the free agent market in 2025, but allowing this to happen would be a huge mistake. It's hard enough to find average tackle play in the NFL, but Bolles is one of the 15-best tackles in the entire NFL, and he's shown no signs of slowing down.
So what am I missing here? What reason is there for Denver to let Bolles hit the FA market? The team doesn't need to backup a money truck to get Bolles under contract for another two seasons after 2024, but they do need to pay him the money he has earned.
Bolles was a liability until the tail-end of the 2019 NFL Season, when something started to click. He then turned into one of the best tackles in the NFL in 2020, which earned him the extension that is set to expire after the 2024 NFL Season. A modest extension that goes through the 2026 NFL Season could be a perfect contract for Denver.
Garett Bolles is also the last tackle they took in the NFL Draft, so they do need to begin bringing in some legitimate, developmental tackle options as well. In the meantime, extending Garett Bolles is a move that needs to happen.