Denver Broncos

The Broncos are keeping their quarterback room intact.

Third-string quarterback Sam Ehlinger, who was slated to hit free agency this week, has agreed to a new contract to remain with the Broncos, the Denver Post reports.

It’s a one-year deal that will pay Ehlinger $2 million for the 2026 season.

Ehlinger seems to like it in Denver; he reportedly turned down multiple offers to sign with other teams’ active rosters when he was on the Broncos’ practice squad last season. Both Broncos head coach Sean Payton and offensive coordinator David Webb have spoken highly of Ehlinger and said they believe Denver is a place where he’ll continue to develop as a quarterback.

Broncos starting quarterback Bo Nix is heading into the third year of his rookie contract and backup Jarrett Stidham is in the second year of a two-year he signed last offseason.

Tight end Nate Adkins is returning to the Broncos on a one-year deal, Parker Gabriel of The Denver Post reports.

Adkins was a restricted free agent.

Denver now has Evan Engram, Adam Trautman, Adkins and Caleb Lohner under contract at the position for 2026. Trautman agreed to a three-year deal earlier Sunday.

Adkins, 26, played only nine games in 2025, undergoing tight-rope surgery for a high-ankle sprain in training camp and then straining his posterior cruciate ligament in an Oct. 26 game against the Jaguars.

Adkins is used on offense for his blocking ability, and he played 33 percent of the offensive snaps in the games he appeared last season. He has only 24 receptions for185 yards and four touchdowns in his three seasons.

In 2024, Adkins played 420 offensive snaps and 280 on special teams.

Broncos tight end Adam Trautman won’t test free agency.

Trautman has agreed to a new three-year contract to remain in Denver.

According to Mike Klis of 9 News, it’s a three-year, $17 million contract for Trautman, who has an important role as a blocking tight end in Sean Payton’s offense and also caught 20 passes for 195 yards last season.

Trautman was a 2020 third-round pick of the Saints and played two seasons for Payton in New Orleans, and when Payton became the head coach in Denver, the Broncos traded for Trautman. Although Trautman could have hit free agency this week, he’s a good fit for what Payton likes to do on offense, and it’s no surprise that he’ll be staying in Denver.

Trautman is the second impending free agent the Broncos re-signed to a three year deal today; Broncos linebacker Justin Strnad also agreed to a three-year deal.

Three days before he was set to become a free agent, Broncos linebacker Justin Strnad has agreed to remain in Denver.

Strnad and the Broncos have reached an agreement on a three-year, $18 million deal with $10 million guaranteed, according to James Palmer.

The 29-year-old Strnad was a 2020 fifth-round pick of the Broncos who has played his entire career in Denver. After playing out his rookie contract, Strnad signed one-year deals with the Broncos in both 2024 and 2025. Now he’s signing a deal that should keep him in Denver through his prime.

Last year Strnad played about half the Broncos’ defensive snaps and about a third of their special teams snaps, and he’ll likely play a similar role on defense and special teams again this year.

The Broncos won’t be doing the restricted free agent dance with offensive lineman Alex Palczewski.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that they have agreed to a new deal with Palczewski on Wednesday. It will be a two-year deal for Palczewski in Denver.

Palczewski signed with the Broncos after going undrafted in 2023 and spent his rookie season on injured reserve. He made his regular season debut in 2024 and has appeared in 31 games over the last two seasons.

Palczewski started three times in place of Mike McGlinchey at right tackle in 2024 and 10 times in place of Ben Powers at left guard in 2025. Both of those players remain under contract for 2026 along with the team’s other three starting linemen, so Palczewski will likely be back in a reserve role to start out in 2026.

Von Miller had nine sacks with the Commanders last season and he said early in January that his preference would be to remain with the team in 2026.

If that doesn’t work out, Miller would like to take a walk down memory lane. Miller reiterated his love for playing in Washington while on The Rich Eisen Show this week and then shared that his second choice would be a return to his first NFL team.

“If something were to happen and I’m not a Washington Commander, then I would love to go to the Denver Broncos,” Miller said. “I didn’t get that chance to have closure. I didn’t get to walk into the stadium and be like, ‘OK, this is my last game’ or ‘I’m gonna do this with the fans.’ I didn’t get that closure. So, I would love to have closure with the Denver Broncos. And if, hey, the Commanders don’t want me, the Denver Broncos don’t want me, there’s a team out there that’s gonna pick me up that would love to have my tricks on their roster. I just play it by ear. This is my second time around doing it. I kind of know what to expect. Just got to make the best out of whatever decision I get.”

Miller played 142 games, made three All-Pro teams and was named the Super Bowl 50 MVP after being drafted second overall by Denver in 2011. Current Broncos GM George Paton was in his first year with the team when Miller was traded to the Rams in 2021, but the franchise made a significant shift in direction by hiring Sean Payton as their head coach in 2023 and they were the top seed in the AFC playoffs last season.

If they see Miller as a piece that can help them remain in that kind of position, we could see the edge rusher’s career come full circle before it comes to an end.

Broncos running back Jaleel McLaughlin is set to hit the open market next month.

According to multiple reports, the Broncos will not tender McLaughlin a contract as a restricted free agent. Absent a change of heart, that will make McLaughlin an unrestricted free agent in March.

McLaughlin played in 33 games over his first two seasons in Denver, but he only appeared in eight regular games for the team in 2025. He also played in both playoff contests.

McLaughlin ran 37 times for 187 yards and a touchdown in 2025 and he had 226 carries for 1,093 yards and three touchdowns overall. He also caught 59 passes for 263 yards and two scores.

Teams making decisions about picking up the fifth-year options on the contracts of their 2023 first-round picks now know how much that will cost.

The NFL revealed the values on Friday afternoon. There are four levels of compensation at each position. Players who have made multiple Pro Bowls as an original selection are at the top followed by players with one Pro Bowl selection and players who have hit playing time milestones before reaching the lowest level.

Panthers quarterback Bryce Young and Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud were the first two picks of that draft and both of them reached the playing time level of compensation. That will leave them with fully guaranteed salaries of $25.904 million if the teams decide to exercise the options, but longer-term extensions are also a possibility now that they have finished their third seasons.

The full list of 2023 first-rounders — there were 31 that year because the Dolphins were stripped of their pick — and their fifth-year option salaries appears below:

1. Panthers QB Bryce Young — $25.904 million (playing time).
2. Texans QB C.J. Stroud — $25.904 million (playing time).
3. Texans DE Will Anderson — $21.512 (Pro Bowl).
4. Colts QB Anthony Richardson — $22.483 million (base).
5. Seahawks CB Devon Witherspoon — $21.161 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
6. Cardinals OT Paris Johnson — $19.072 million (playing time).
7. Raiders DE Tyree Wilson — $14.475 million (base).
8. Falcons RB Bijan Robinson — $11.323 million (Pro Bowl).
9. Eagles DT Jalen Carter — $27.127 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
10. Bears OT Darnell Wright — $19.072 million (playing time).
11. Titans OG Peter Skoronski — $19.072 million (playing time).
12. Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs — $14.293 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
13. Packers DE Lukas Van Ness — $14.475 million (base).
14. Steelers OT Broderick Jones — $19.072 million (playing time).
15. Jets DE Will McDonald — $14.475 million (base).
16. Rams CB Emmanuel Forbes — $12.633 million (base).
17. Patriots CB Christian Gonzalez — $18.119 million (Pro Bowl).
18. Lions LB Jack Campbell — $21.925 million (Pro Bowl).
19. Buccaneers DT Calijah Kancey — $15.451 (playing time).
20. Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba — $23.852 million (Pro Bowl).
21. Chargers WR Quentin Johnston — $18 million (playing time).
22. Ravens WR Zay Flowers — $27.298 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
23. Vikings WR Jordan Addison — $18 million (playing time).
24. Giants CB Deonte Banks — $12.633 million (base).
25. Bills TE Dalton Kincaid — $8.162 million (base).
26. Jets DT Mazi Smith — $13.391 million (base) Smith was traded to the Jets by the Cowboys.
27. Jaguars OT Anton Harrison — $19.072 million (playing time).
28. Bengals DE Myles Murphy — $14.475 million (base).
29. Saints DT Bryan Bresee — $13.391 million (base).
30. Eagles LB Nolan Smith — $13.752 million (base).
31. Chiefs Felix Anudike-Uzomah — $14.475 million (base).

Cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian has moved into a prominent role for the Broncos over the last three seasons and the team is moving to hold onto him for a fourth season.

McMillian’s agent Deryk Gilmore told Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette that the Broncos have extended a second-round restricted free agent tender to his client.

The tender carries a salary of $5.853 million for the 2026 season. Other teams will be able to negotiate with McMillian and can sign him to an offer sheet that the Broncos will have a right to match. If they pass on that opportunity, they will get a second-round pick as compensation.

McMillian appeared in every game last seasona nd played two-thirds of the team’s defensive snaps in the regular season. He had 56 tackles, four sacks, two interceptions and two forced fumbles. He also came up with a much-discussed interception of a pass by Bills quarterback Josh Allen to wide receiver Brandin Cooks to set up the winning score for Denver in overtime of the divisional round of the playoffs.

Four weeks ago today, the latest release of the Epstein files implicated Giants co-owner Steve Tisch. Three days later, Commissioner Roger Goodell said the NFL will “look at all the facts.”

Since then, the NFL has said nothing.

More facts have emerged, including reporting that contradicts Tisch’s claim of a “brief association” with Jeffrey Epstein and an item from The Athletic that characterizes Tisch’s behavior as a potential instance of quid pro quo sexual harassment.

Through it all, the league has referred reporters to Goodell’s comments from February 2. That’s the message the league recently repeated to Dan Wetzel of ESPN.com.

The league could be waiting for it to all blow over. Alternatively, the NFL could be hoping that the Tisch family will nudge Steve out of the spotlight as the representative of the folks who own the 45-percent share of the Giants.

Regardless, it’s not going away. As one high-level employee with another team told PFT on Friday, “Steve has to go.”

The league’s inaction makes even more clear the double standard between the Personal Conduct Policy that applies to owners and the one that applies to everyone else. Although the league claims owners are held to a higher standard, that rarely happens in practice. (For more, get yourself a copy of my 2022 book, Playmakers.)

Generally speaking, silence, inaction, and distraction have proven (so far) to be a useful strategy for more than a few of the men whose interactions with Epstein cry out for investigation and, possibly, consequences. Few seem to be buying the notion that it’s a hoax or a witch hunt or whatever other label would be used to dismiss something that should never be dismissed.

Whatever the outcome, the NFL must investigate Tisch. Until it does, it’s impossible for any league investigation of a player or any other non-owner to have a shred of credibility.