{"id":205038,"date":"2025-07-13T23:01:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-13T23:01:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/205038\/"},"modified":"2025-07-13T23:01:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-13T23:01:12","slug":"extension-candidate-courtland-sutton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/205038\/","title":{"rendered":"Extension Candidate: Courtland Sutton"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the Broncos have rebounded from their disastrous 2022 situation, some of the key players to help them climb out of that hole are entering contract years. Nik Bonitto<\/a> is a traditional extension candidate<\/a>, coming off a breakout season ahead of the final year of his rookie contract, while Zach Allen<\/a> jumped a level ahead of his age-28 season. A significant raise will be necessary for the Broncos to keep<\/a> the ascending interior D-lineman on a third contract.<\/p>\n

Denver, however, has a homegrown player residing as a more interesting extension candidate. Courtland Sutton<\/a> carries a few unusual markers along his journey to another extension case. Even though Bonitto and Allen qualify as higher-value players due to their ages, Sutton stands as a pivotal piece considering the Broncos\u2019 plan on offense. The former John Elway draftee has waited patiently for a deal, reporting to both OTAs and minicamp after skipping some offseason work while pursuing a raise last year. But he looks to have seen the younger defenders leapfrog him in Denver\u2019s extension queue<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Sutton is going into his age-30 season, and he carries an atypical resume for a No. 1 receiver. The 2018 second-round pick\u2019s two 1,000-yard seasons are spaced five years apart. He helped build an initial extension candidacy by eclipsing 1,000 yards in 2019. That 1,112-yard season still stands as Sutton\u2019s career high; it came with Joe Flacco<\/a>, Brandon Allen<\/a> and a rookie-year Drew Lock<\/a> making starts. A 2020 ACL tear paused Sutton\u2019s ascent, and Denver\u2019s QB quagmire lowered the receiver\u2019s ceiling for an extended stretch.<\/p>\n

As the Broncos assembled a low-octane Teddy Bridgewater<\/a> offense, Sutton and Jerry Jeudy<\/a> became info-graphic fodder due to Aaron Rodgers<\/a>\u2018 interest in being traded to Denver in 2021. The Packers held onto the reigning MVP that year and in 2022, leading the Broncos to their blockbuster Russell Wilson<\/a> trade. That move brought a spectacular failure, as an overmatched Nathaniel Hackett grounded Denver\u2019s offense to 32nd in 2022. Sean Payton elevated Wilson back to respectability in 2023, however, and that season effectively launched Sutton\u2019s second extension campaign.<\/p>\n

Wilson\u2019s 26-touchdown pass, eight-interception season ended ugly, with a contract-based benching taking place. But Wilson-to-Sutton became the team\u2019s most notable connection since the Peyton Manning days; the 6-foot-4 WR totaled 10 TD receptions, displaying a penchant for acrobatic grabs. Sutton then submitted a second 1,000-yard season, being a linchpin on a 2024 offense bereft of other reliable pass catchers. This helped Sutton post a 1,081-yard 2024 season, boosting Bo Nix<\/a> to 29 TD passes \u2014 the second-most by a rookie QB in NFL history.<\/p>\n

So much happened between the Rodgers rumors and Nix\u2019s rookie season, though. Sutton signed a four-year, $60MM extension<\/a> days after Tim Patrick<\/a>\u2018s three-year, $30MM deal. While injuries dogged Patrick in the years that followed, Sutton remained a productive starter. Being an Elway-era draftee extended under George Paton, Sutton became a trade-rumor mainstay during Payton\u2019s initial months on the job. The Broncos listened closely on Sutton and Jeudy during the 2023 offseason, aiming for a second-round pick for Sutton<\/a> and a first for Jeudy. Nothing on that level emerged, but the Ravens came close to acquiring Sutton<\/a> \u2014 before pivoting to Odell Beckham Jr.<\/a>\u2018s $15MM guarantee.<\/p>\n

Denver declined a Jeudy offer that included third- and fifth-round picks before the 2023 deadline, holding onto Sutton as well. That Jeudy decision became a mistake, as the team both sold low in March 2024 (fifth- and sixth-round picks) before seeing him post a Pro Bowl season in Cleveland. Jeudy\u2019s departure solidified Sutton\u2019s WR1 standing, to the point the Broncos declined a third-round pick from the 49ers during<\/a> the summer 2024 Brandon Aiyuk<\/a> saga. Sutton more than doubling any other Broncos pass catcher in yardage last season strengthened his extension case.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Missing out on Emeka Egbuka<\/a> in the draft<\/a>, the Broncos did not address the receiver position until Round 3 (Pat Bryant<\/a>). The Illinois prospect\u2019s 4.61-second 40-yard dash time docked his value, and while Marvin Mims<\/a> has flashed, the Broncos have mostly deployed him as a gadget cog on offense<\/a>. The team\u2019s 2024 rookies (Devaughn Vele<\/a>, Troy Franklin<\/a>) also appear role players, even if Vele\u2019s skillset resembles Sutton\u2019s (Vele is also set to turn 28 before year\u2019s end, complicating the second-year player\u2019s long-term NFL future).<\/p>\n

Everything since the 2023 season has boosted Sutton\u2019s price, but finding that price may be proving tricky. The Broncos agreed to only an incentive package with Sutton last year<\/a>, telling his camp 2025 would be the window for true extension talks<\/a>. We are here now, and nothing has transpired since Sutton labeled the 2025 talks positive in April<\/a>. Denver completed summer extensions with Patrick Surtain<\/a> and Quinn Meinerz<\/a> last year; Sutton drama could resurface if no deal emerges this summer.<\/p>\n

It would surprise if the Broncos revisited trade talks in the event they could not come to terms with Sutton before Week 1. The SMU product remains valuable due to the dearth of proven WR help ahead of Nix\u2019s second season.<\/p>\n

Finding contractual comps does prove difficult. Mike Evans<\/a> and Davante Adams<\/a> signed similar deals \u2014 two years, $41MM (Evans) and 2\/44 (Adams) \u2014 while Calvin Ridley<\/a>\u2018s resume did not match Sutton\u2019s ahead of a four-year, $92MM Titans deal. Ridley signed that contract months before his 30th birthday, though his standing as last year\u2019s top WR free agent \u2014 after the Tee Higgins<\/a> and Michael Pittman Jr.<\/a> tags \u2014 boosted his value. Evans and Adams are much more accomplished players, both of whom also being more than two years older.<\/p>\n

Jeudy signed a Browns-friendly extension (three years, $52.5MM), but it came after the Broncos\u2019 QB struggles suppressed his stats. Sutton is in a similar boat, but after being tied to an AAV ($15MM) outside the top 20 at the position \u2014 following market booms in 2022 and \u201924 \u2014 it would surprise if the eighth-year vet settled for anything south of $20MM per year.<\/p>\n

Pittman\u2019s three-year, $70MM accord could be a comp for Sutton, as the Colts\u2019 No. 1 target is just two years younger and agreed to that deal before another salary cap spike commenced. Jeudy fetched $41MM guaranteed at signing, Pittman $46MM. That is probably beyond where the Broncos will go regarding locked-in compensation, though Sutton residing in a gray area due to age, production and importance makes that number harder to peg as well.<\/p>\n

A short-term extension seems the most likely outcome here. The sides\u2019 price points will be interesting to learn. Sutton would command reasonable value as a 2026 free agent, but will he want to chance negotiating ahead of an age-31 season? Many variables have led to this point, as the next several weeks figure to determine where this years-long saga ends.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the Broncos have rebounded from their disastrous 2022 situation, some of the key players to help them…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":127843,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2062],"tags":[232,1270,231,258,2426,40422,7,6,4442],"class_list":{"0":"post-205038","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-denver-broncos","8":"tag-broncos","9":"tag-courtland-sutton","10":"tag-denver","11":"tag-denver-broncos","12":"tag-denverbroncos","13":"tag-extension-candidate","14":"tag-football","15":"tag-nfl","16":"tag-pfr-originals"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114848418037509105","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205038","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205038"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205038\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127843"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205038"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=205038"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=205038"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}