The Denver Broncos have largely done an outstanding job at rewarding their own players. The Broncos have clearly embraced a 'draft and develop' mindset, but the front office has also never had a problem finding players via trade or free agency.
Based on the team's recent history, performing well does typically lead to a nice payday, and with how never-ending the NFL is, the front office never really gets to rest with their roster-building. With three games before the Week 10 bye, the Broncos could begin to amp things up again.
And if we take just last year as an example, the Broncos could be approahing a time where contract extensions are handed out to certain players.
Denver Broncos could be approaching contract extension territory in a few weeks
Following their Week 11 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs, the Broncos entered their 2025 bye at 9-2. The bye game in Week 12 last year. During the bye, the Broncos were pretty active in getting contract extensions done with players who were slated to hit the free agent market.
Kicker Wil Lutz, defensive tackle Malcolm Roach, and center Luke Wattenberg all got deals last year during the bye week, ensuring the trio remained in Denver and didn't get a chance to depart Denver. While Wattenberg's performance this year has been less than ideal, he was largely a good player in 2024 and 2025.
And the practice of re-signing players before they hit the free agency market is straight-up smart business by the front office. Lutz has not necessarily been great this year, but he's also been a very accurate kicker for the Broncos and has truly turned into a really solid clutch-time performer with his plethora of late-game kicks.
Roach has absolutely been worth every penny thus far. He's playing the highest percentage of defensive snaps of his career and is on pace for nine tackles for loss and 20 quarterback hits this year.
With Denver's bye coming after Week 10, which is nearly the same exact time as last year, it is worth wondering if the team could again come to the table with 2027 free agents and get some contract extensions done.
Of note, all of Riley Moss, Ja'Quan McMillian, Brandon Jones, and Marvin Mims Jr are slated to be free agents this coming offseason.
Other players like Evan Engram, Ben Powers, and Jarrett Stidham will also be free agents, but there is reason to believe that they won't be a huge priority. Much of what the Broncos could focus on in terms of in-season extensions could be for one or more of Moss, McMillian, and Jones.
Given the Broncos already have guys like Patrick Surtain II and Talanoa Hufanga on big-time deals, and both Jahdae Barron and Kris Abrams-Draine showing starting-caliber play, it might not be likely that the trio of Moss, McMillian, and Jones all get new deals.
We could spend another 800 words discussing who should get an extension, but based on performance and age, McMillian's chances at a deal feel rather high. He's come up with a series of big-time plays for the Broncos and does genuinely seem to be a player who thrives in clutch moments.
The Broncos also did give McMillian a significant raise from 2025 into 2026, and he's also just 26 years old, his youth would match up nicely for an in-season deal.
But both Moss and Jones have a ton of value in the team's secondary and could be worth investing in beyond 2026.
It remains to be seen if the Broncos even give consideration to in-season deals at the bye, but they invested in a trio of players during last year's bye and have every reason to again operate similarly when the team's Week 10 bye comes this year.
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