Renck: Pat and Nik are Ray and Ed. The Broncos’ duo is writing a diary of havoc. Surtain and Bonitto have a realistic chance of becoming the first teammates to win back-to-back defensive player of year awards since the Ravens’ Ray Lewis and Ed Reed in 2003 and 2004. The Broncos were always going to pay Surtain, a 2021 first-round pick. There was consternation about whether they should extend Bonitto, and he suddenly looks like a first-ballot Hall of Famer. When teams go on runs, pieces must fall together. So it raises the question, whose contract is a bigger bargain: Surtain or Bonitto?
Keeler: A.J. Brown wanted to hear his name called. Philly heard crickets instead. The Eagles’ top-targeted receiver was thrown at eight times on Sunday. Per Michael Florio’s charting, Surtain was covering Brown on 91% of his snaps, with five targets, four catches, 40 yards and one bogus pass interference call. Only one Broncos defender erases half the field with his presence alone. Meanwhile, Spotrac.com tells me Surtain is No. 7 in the NFL in guaranteed money at the time of contract signing, and No. 4 in average cornerback salary. Come on. Love watching Casa Bonitto get on a heater. But there’s no Broncos star returning more for their money right now than PS2.
Renck: The easy answer is Surtain. It is also the wrong one. Surtain is underpaid, ranking fifth in average annual value ($24 million) and falling $12 million shy of Derek Stingley Jr. in guaranteed money, according to Overthecap.com. But Bonitto has become a clearance rack bargain this season. He boasts seven sacks through five games, leaving him on pace for a franchise record 24. Even if he starts getting chipped more than a windshield on I-25, he has a realistic shot at 20. That could lead the league for a player who, with an ink-not-dry-contract, sits at 10th highest paid at his position. His guaranteed money of $70 million represents generational wealth, but there are four edge rushers who received over $100 million. Bonitto has evolved from draft steal to budget-friendly star.
Keeler: Speaking of the draft, let’s look at the top 10 from that 2021 class. Trevor Lawrence’s contract has an average annual value (AAV) of $55 million. Micah Parsons’ AAV is $46.5 million. Ja’Marr Chase’s is $40.25 million. Jaylen Waddle’s is $28.25 million. Jaycee Horn’s is $25 million. Surtain II’s AAV? It’s $24 million. Yet according to Pro-Football-Reference.com, PS2 has returned more Weighted Career Value (think WAR for baseball), with a 41 score in weighted career AV, than everybody we’ve mentioned save for Parsons (56) and Chase (48). That’s not just a Broncos bargain, my friend. It’s a generational one.
Renck: Here is why the contract for Bonitto works so well. It seems crazy, but the Broncos will likely have to redo Surtain’s deal in roughly 18 months. The cost certainty Bonitto provides cannot be overstated. And, oh yeah, Denver will likely open the bank vault for Bo Nix after next season. It is not fair to call Bonitto the Broncos’ next Von Miller, even though he should break his single-season franchise record of 18.5 sacks. But he is every bit of Elvis Dumervil. Bonitto is on a career arc that is more surprising than Surtain, and, because of his position, that makes him a better bargain.
Keeler: Nix’s extension is going to require some more fancy math on the Broncos’ part. Bonitto has more than lived up to every inch of that contract so far, no doubt. But here’s the thing: Does he get as many chances to do what he does if Surtain II isn’t locking down the No. 1 guy on the route tree? If PS2 isn’t forcing a QB to spend just a little more time going through his progressions? Pressure off the edge is a symbiotic, complementary thing. And Bonitto and PS2 are as terrifying a tandem as you’ll find in the NFL right now.
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