![\"Jonah](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2234202643-e1775047190401.jpg\")
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Denver Broncos linebacker Jonah Elliss. <\/p>\n
The Denver Broncos<\/a> signed what appeared to be their starting inside linebacker duo this offseason by giving new contracts to players already on their roster in Justin Strnad<\/a> and Alex Singleton<\/a> while parting ways with a high-priced free agent in Dre Greenlaw<\/a>.<\/p>\n While it seemed on the surface that the Broncos also sacrificed their depth, we found out on Tuesday that\u2019s not really the plan, and that a surprise position switch could add another element to the defense.<\/p>\n \u201c(Broncos head coach) Sean Payton said Jonah Elliss is going to take some snaps at ILB,\u201d The Denver Post\u2019s Luca Evans wrote on X<\/a> on Tuesday from the annual NFL<\/a> owners meetings in Phoenix.<\/p>\n Elliss, 6-foot-2 and 248 pounds, has played his first 2 seasons as an edge rusher in a crowded position group for the Broncos that features NFL All-Pro Nik Bonitto<\/a> and Jonathon Cooper<\/a>, along with an up-and-comer in Que Robinson<\/a>.<\/p>\n Jonah Elliss Could Have Breakout Role at Inside LB<\/p>\n Elliss, a 2024 3rd round pick (No. 76 overall), made the NFL All-Rookie Team with 38 tackles, 5.0 sacks, 7 TFL, 6 QB hits, and 2 pass deflections. He broke his scapula in a blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills<\/a> in the AFC Wild Card Round, missed 4 games in 2025, and saw his numbers dip to 2.5 sacks.<\/p>\n Elliss, the son of 2-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Luther Elliss, is 1 of 4 siblings who have played or are currently playing in the NFL, with older brothers Christian Elliss<\/a> and Kaden Elliss<\/a> both inside linebackers.<\/p>\n \u201cVery, very, very curious about this move of Jonah Elliss to ILB,\u201d Broncos reporter Cameron Parker<\/a> wrote on X. \u201cNo doubt he has ILB in his family with Christian and Kaden. Wonder if they would use him some blitz downhill packages that they wanted Drew Sanders to have. Elliss definitely has an athletic profile.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJonah Elliss playing snaps at ILB has to be great news for Que Robinson,\u201d DNVR\u2019s Zac Stevens wrote<\/a> on his official X account. \u201cBroncos are extremely high on Que, so much so that George Paton said after the season that Que might have the highest ceiling of any player in his Broncos draft class. Having Jonah play some at ILB opens up reps for Que outside.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBroncos need every path possible to upgrading ILB play,\u201d Kodiak Broncos wrote<\/a> on its official X account. \u201cIt gets both Elliss & Que on the field more. He has 2 years of solid rotational EDGE play under his belt, so worst-case scenario, he\u2019s back to full-time EDGE.\u201d<\/p>\n Elliss Pitched for \u2018Change of Scenery\u2019 in Offseason<\/p>\n Seemingly buried behind the depth chart behind Bonitto and Cooper,\u00a0ESPN\u2019s Aaron Schatz<\/a> put Ellis at the top of his list of Broncos who could use a \u201cChange of Scenery\u201d in 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not an issue of a player who has not properly developed,\u201d Schatz wrote. \u201cInstead, Elliss is a talented young pass rusher who doesn\u2019t have a path to start behind veterans Nik Bonitto\u00a0and\u00a0Jonathon Cooper. Last season, Elliss had a 14.1% pass rush win rate and a 12.2% pressure rate. Both numbers were above average for edge rushers, but he played only 38% of snaps in the games for which he was active. It would be intriguing to see Elliss get a chance to start elsewhere in the league. Perhaps alongside his brother\u00a0Christian\u00a0with New England if\u00a0K\u2019Lavon Chaisson\u00a0leaves in\u00a0free agency?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tTony Adame<\/a> covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders, Dallas Cowboys, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles and Denver Broncos. A veteran sports writer and editor since 2004, his work has been featured at Stadium Talk, Yardbarker, NW Florida Daily News and Pensacola News Journal. More about Tony Adame<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Broncos\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Denver Broncos linebacker Jonah Elliss. The Denver Broncos signed what appeared to be their starting inside linebacker…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":847172,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2062],"tags":[232,231,258,2426,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-847171","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-denver-broncos","8":"tag-broncos","9":"tag-denver","10":"tag-denver-broncos","11":"tag-denverbroncos","12":"tag-football","13":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116329739435332969","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/847171","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=847171"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/847171\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/847172"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=847171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=847171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=847171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}