The Denver Broncos have made the move to secure star cornerback Pat Surtain II to a new extended deal, worth $96 million and running for four years, in a move that their general manager George Paton had previously stated was a ‘no-brainer’.
The 24-year-old was selected by the Broncos as the ninth overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft and is a two-time Pro Bowl pick and a player of obvious value to the Empower Field at Mile High franchise.
The deal makes Surtain the highest-paid defensive back of all-time, and Sean Payton will hope that holding on to his top performers will help the Broncos continue their improvement as they push for a first postseason run since 2015 when they won the Super Bowl by beating the Carolina Panthers.
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Since being drafted by Denver, Surtain has played 50 of the team’s 51 games and is clearly a key part of Payton’s plans, hence the deal he’s been handed.
Clearly there are moves by the franchise to reward their top players with big new contracts, as opposed to overly investing in new additions. Guard Quinn Meinerz received a four-year deal worth $80 million in July, and others may follow.
Though the size of the deal given to Surtain is not one you’d usually associate with a defensive back, he is, without doubt, one of the best in his position in the NFL and is ready to continue his ongoing upward trajectory. As for talk of whether he is indeed the best in the business, the Crimson Tide graduate commented,
“Of course I’m going to see myself in that regard. I definitely take that role upon my shoulders, for sure, but everybody is going to have their own opinions about it. At the end of the day, I’m just here to play my game and do what’s best for the team.”
Last season, he recorded a career-best 69 tackles, 59 of those solo, after recording consistent numbers in his first two NFL campaigns.
Surtain is not short of praise when it comes to those within the Broncos organization and defensive coordinator Vance Joseph is very effusive in his assessment of the player, saying he is “special” before adding,
“I think it’s my responsibility, our responsibility as coaches, to make sure people can’t just avoid him and stay away. We have ways, and will have ways, to get Pat involved even when offenses don’t want him to be.”
The Broncos will need to start their season strongly if they are going to put an end to their lean spell of the past few years. In 2023, they got off to a poor opening, losing their first three games and finding themselves 1-5 before they finally started to get going.
In 2024, they open at Lumen Field with a tricky trip to the Seattle Seahawks before hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers in gameweek two.