The path for Denver Broncos nickel cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian to return this upcoming season just got a lot clearer ahead of NFL Free Agency after the team placed a second-round tender on him.
Denver Broncos place second-round tender on CB Ja’Quan McMillian
The rise of Ja’Quan McMillian from late 2022 to now has been incredible to watch. As an undrafted rookie free agent, he immediately stood out in training camp and preseason during Nathaniel Hackett’s tenure with the team, but got his chance to shine in the last game of the regular season, putting the clamps on Mike Williams in the team’s season finale.
McMillian, since then, has emerged as one of the best starting young nickel cornerbacks in the league, an able and willing tackler, a crucial playmaker. Any time the Broncos defense needed a big play, it was McMillian who answered the call.
The Broncos placed a second-round tender on him on Friday, as first reported by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. The second-round tender is worth $5.8M.
This move means that McMillian isn’t likely going anywhere, and the Broncos will more than likely look to work towards an extension during or prior to the season with him, locking him in as their starting nickel for the foreseeable future.
In 2025, he had four sacks blitzing from his nickel spot, two interceptions, nine passes defensed, two forced fumbles, five tackles for a loss, and 56 combined tackles with 40 of them being solo tackles.
As I have discussed on Locked On Broncos, it wouldn’t surprise me if this means that the Broncos hold a competition on the outside with second-year CB Jahdae Barron, Riley Moss, who is entering a contract year, and third-year cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine.
At the NFL Combine this week, general manager George Paton called McMillian a ‘core player,’ which is a high compliment from the front office and typically means he’s viewed favorably in their future plans.
“We’ll see what we do with him,” Paton said. “We’re still working through that. We want him here. Certainly a team could call us, who knows. He’s one of our core players and we love having him here.”
That was from a few days ago. With McMillian planning to sign his tender, it guarantees right now that he’ll be on the roster, although a team could try to trade for him, which would cost a second-rounder.
Denver’s defense is better with McMillian, and he deserves to be rewarded for his impact over the last three seasons.