The Palm Beach sun smiled down on the Broncos brass in late March, the organization’s decision-makers plenty cheery at owners meetings in Florida because they had no reason for anything else.

Head coach Sean Payton and general manager George Paton had put together a free-agency plan, owner Greg Penner noted then, and executed it. Safety, tight end, linebacker. In came Talanoa Hufanga. In came Evan Engram. Linebacker Robert Spillane, who a source said the Broncos made a “competitive offer” to, ended up with the Patriots; the Broncos still nabbed standout Dre Greenlaw. Things went off without much of a hitch, and deep into May — depending on your outlook on Denver’s offensive weaponry — it’s hard to find fault with any aspect of the Broncos’ dealings this offseason.

That all said, the toughest offseason development for Denver over the past few months might’ve been a completely unrelated signing 1,760 miles east.

Meet 26-year-old Milton Williams, a former Philadelphia Eagle, perhaps the biggest beneficiary of a defensive-line free agent class fairly light on top-heavy talent. After the Patriots extended DL Christian Barnmore in 2024 to a four-year deal worth $20.75 million annually, Williams’ team set his free-agency floor at $20 million per year. And as a perfect storm converged between the Eagles’ Super Bowl run, Williams’ production and age, and a previously inflated market, Williams signed a monster four-year, $104 million deal with the Patriots.

In many ways, Williams’ deal — and other signings — created a complicated market for the Broncos. They’ll be confronted with a heap of questions around defensive-line extensions in the coming months. Circumstances are certainly different, and free agents typically command more money in open waters than in negotiations with one franchise. But it’d be difficult to justify, say, handing second-team All-Pro Zach Allen less money annually than Williams.

“If I’m representing Zach — yeah, I’m gonna try to get him more,” one league source told The Post.

In Allen, receiver Courtland Sutton and outside linebacker Nik Bonitto, the Broncos have three stars on expiring deals who could command upwards of $20 million a year. Cornerback Pat Surtain II and tackle Garett Bolles are already locked up on similar long-term deals. And if Denver wants to keep all, Penner will have to crack open the checkbook. Only four NFL teams (Detroit, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Tampa Bay) currently have five or more players making $20 million or more annually.

The Post reviewed a slew of relevant recent contracts and spoke with several league sources to look at market value for Allen, Sutton and Bonitto. Here’s a breakdown of a few deals (data from Spotrac) among players with somewhat similar profiles.

Zach Allen, DE/DL

Name*
Age
Team
Year
Contract
Games
Sacks
(Pressures)
TFLS

Zach Allen
27
Broncos
TBD
TBD
16
8.5 (75)
15

Maxx Crosby
27
Raiders
2025
3 yrs, $106.5m
12
7.5 (54)
17

Chris Jones
29
Chiefs
2024
5 yrs, $159m
16
10.5 (75)
13

Milton Williams
26
Patriots
2025 (FA)
4 yrs, $104m
17
5 (40)
7

Jonathan Greenard
26
Vikings
2024 (FA)
4 yrs, $76m
15
12.5 (48)
15

Chase Young
26
Saints
2025 (FA)
3 yrs, $51m
17
5.5 (66)
8

* All figures tied to contract year. (Click here to view chart in mobile)

Allen’s value is the hardest to pinpoint, factoring in a fairly inconsistent market for defensive linemen and the breadth of his abilities to play both from the interior and off the edge. He also made a massive leap in 2024 relative to previous seasons. Still, he was one of the best pass-rushers in the league and is still fairly young, entering his age-28 season in 2025.

Young just commanded $17 million a year from the Saints and wasn’t nearly as effective at stopping the run or smacking opposing quarterbacks as Allen last year. Jones’ extension in 2024 — a perennial All-Pro on the interior — “set the floor” in some ways for defensive tackle Williams’ extension at $20 million per year, too, as Williams’ agent Rick Roberts told The Post. It’s likely any extension for Allen, despite operating as a DE, would have the same baseline.

Nik Bonitto, OLB

Name*
Age
Team
Year
Contract
Games
Sacks
(Pressures)
TFLs

Nik Bonitto
25
Broncos
TBD
TBD
17
13.5 (57)
16

Brian Burns
25
Giants
2024
5 yrs, $141m
16
8 (40)
16

Andrew Van Ginkel
29
Vikings
2025
1 yr, $23m
17
11.5 (49)
18

Greg Rousseau
25
Bills
2025
4 yrs, $80m
16
8 (63)
16

Josh Sweat
28
Cardinals
2025 (FA)
4 yrs, $76m
16
8 (54)
9

Jonathon Cooper
27
Broncos
2024
4 yrs, $60m
17
8.5 (55)
8

* All figures tied to contract year. (Click here to view chart in mobile)

The market for outside linebackers is more straightforward, but Bonitto enters 2025 in an interesting spot: Still young at 25, coming off arguably a more productive season than any recent OLB around his age who signed an extension or free-agent deal. Rousseau is probably the best comp here as a former high draft pick (Rousseau first-round, Bonitto second-round). He signed an extension after his fourth year (Bonitto’s fourth year is upcoming) at the same age.

If the Broncos wait on extending Bonitto, though, and he racks up another heap of sacks in 2025, his value could break through the roof.

Courtland Sutton, WR

Name*
Age
Team
Year
Contract
Games
Rec.-Yds-TD

Courtland Sutton
29
Broncos
TBD
TBD
17
81-1,081-8

DK Metcalf
27
Steelers
2025 (FA)
4 yrs, $132m
15
66-992-5

Michael Pittman
26
Colts
2024
3 yrs, $70m
16
109-1,152-4

Calvin Ridley
29
Titans
2024 (FA)
4 yrs, $92m
17
76-1,016-8

Chris Godwin
28
Buccaneers
2025
3 yrs, $66m
7
50-576-5

Stefon Diggs
31
Patriots
2025 (FA)
3 yrs, $63m
8
47-496-3

* All figures tied to contract year. (Click here to view chart in mobile)

Sutton’s value is the easiest to project, with a fairly ready-made comparison in Godwin, who inked a free-agent deal worth $23 million annually in 2024 after posting nearly identical numbers in ’23 to Sutton last year. His value would likely sink lower in negotiating solely with Denver. Pittman’s 2024 extension, when the 26-year-old signed for $23.3 million annually after a 109-catch season, is a solid reference point.

The receiver market, though, has exploded in recent years. The 49ers’ Brandon Aiyuk, coming off a 1,342-yard season in 2023, inked an extension worth $30 million annually. The Bengals’ Ja’Marr Chase, arguably the best wideout in the league, just re-upped with Cincinnati for $40 million a year. And Sutton sits in a fluid space, on the fringes of presenting a resume as a WR1.

“I’ll put it this way,” a league source told The Post, speaking on WR deals. “$20 million-$25 million is the new $10 million-$15 million.”

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Originally Published: May 23, 2025 at 10:27 AM MDT