The Denver Broncos are guaranteed to bring back five players from last season who were exclusive rights free agents, including one of the NFL’s top young nickel defenders.
Denver Broncos tender five exclusive rights free agents
The Denver Broncos fully embraced a youth movement last season, and it ultimately paid off for them, securing a 10-7 season, which was the team’s first winning season since 2016. Part of that was due to the contributions of a handful of young and talented players who are continuing to showcase positive development.
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On Monday night, the Broncos tendered five of their exclusive rights free agents. They tendered nickel defender Ja’Quan McMillian, who has emerged as one of the NFL’s best young slot defenders, and safety Devon Key, who stepped up on defense several times last season while maintaining a role as a core four specialist on special teams.
McMillian is in a position to earn an eventual extension with the team and has grown into a household name for Denver’s defense.
Denver also tendered defensive lineman Jordan Jackson, a player who took a massive step forward in training camp and the preseason last year and earned himself a spot on the 53-man roster. Tight end Lucas Krull will be back into the mix for training camp and the preseason after the team tendered him as well. Krull led the Broncos tight end room in overall catches with 19, which is something that ultimately wasn’t good enough for the offense to warrant impactful production regarding the tight end room itself.
Krull will likely compete with Adam Trautman, Nate Adkins, and whoever the Broncos add at tight end either in free agency or the NFL Draft in April.
Outside linebacker and former UFL star Dondrea Tillman also received a tender after his impressive season, coming straight over from another league, impressing during training camp and the preseason, and earning a spot on the roster. He finished 2024 with five sacks in 12 games while playing 29% of Denver’s defensive snaps.
NFL Free Agency officially kicks off next Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. MT, with the legal negotiating period taking place on Monday at 2:00 p.m. MT.
Expect the Broncos to be fairly active next week.