The Denver Broncos Have the Most Underrated Pass Rusher In the NFL
The Denver Broncos have been through a lot over the last decade, but George Paton has made crucial decisions to save the franchise. After trading for Russell Wilson, the Broncos were short on draft capital and needed to hit on their late-round draft picks. In 2022, he did just that, drafting OLB Nik Bonitto out of Oklahoma with the 64th overall pick.
Broncos Have a Star
When they drafted Bonitto, he was very far down the depth chart. The Broncos already had Bradley Chubb, Randy Gregory, Malik Reed, and Jonathan Cooper. Bonitto wasn’t going to see much time on the field during his rookie season, but he was able to get more playing time in 2023. Denver traded Bradley Chubb to the Miami Dolphins for Sean Payton and released Randy Gregory due to many issues on and off the field.
Bonitto was thrown into the fire and had to step up on what was an already weak defensive line. In his second season, Bonitto had eight sacks, taking a huge step forward, and became an immediate starter the following season. In his first full season as a starter, Bonitto had 13.5 sacks, emerging as a young star alongside Zach Allen and Jonathan Cooper on the defensive line. The pick of Bonitto looked even better for George Paton, as he took one of the best edge rushers in the entire draft in the second round, with limited room to work with.
Bonitto Is Extremely Underrated
When talking about the best edge rushers in the NFL, many point to T.J. Watt, Myles Garrett, and Maxx Crosby. A name that needs to be mentioned more is Bonitto. Through five games, Bonitto has 7 sacks, which leads the NFL. He is currently on pace to set an NFL record, with 24 sacks in a single season. The current record is held by T.J. Watt and Michael Strahan, who both had 22.5 sacks.
Not only is he racking up sacks, but he is putting an immense amount of pressure on opposing quarterbacks. According to Adam Levitan, Nik Bonitto leads the NFL in quarterback pressure, with 31. In quarterback pressure rate, Bonitto’s (28.4%) is higher than Micah Parsons’ (22.4%), Aidan Hutchinson’s (18.2%), and Myles Garrett’s (16.2%).
Bonitto’s style of play is truly unstoppable, and reminds me of Von Miller. His ability to time the center and jump the line of scrimmage is truly unmatched, and no other edge rusher can do it like him. Against the Eagles, the Broncos’ star had 2.5 sacks, along with 5 pressures.
George Paton Paid Him Early!
One of the main priorities heading into the offseason was paying his young players on defense and getting ahead of the market. He was able to extend Bonitto on a four-year, $120 million deal with $70 million guaranteed. Right now, his contract makes him the 10th-highest-paid Edge Rusher in the NFL, which is an absolute steal.
If Paton had waited any longer to pay him, his price would’ve skyrocketed. Over the next two seasons, the Broncos will pay him just over $13 million, with his extension starting in 2027. This move allows them to allocate money to other areas of the team, and capitalize on what Head Coach Sean Payton calls “A Super Bowl window.”
The Broncos could join a list of a few teams that have had two different players to win Defensive Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons. If Bonitto can win it, he would be the second Bronco to win the award since Patrick Surtain did it last season. The only teams to do so are the 1974-1976 Pittsburgh Steelers, 1995-96 Buffalo Bills, and the 2003-04 Baltimore Ravens.
Proposed NFL Trade Has Packers Acquire $19 Million Star Before Deadline
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Packers quarterback Jordan Love.
The Green Bay Packers are coming out of their bye week looking to get back on track after failing to win their last two games, prompting speculation that they might make another move for a playmaker before the NFL trade deadline.
The Packers are well-stocked at the wide receiver position ahead of Week 6’s matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals at home, especially after they opened the activation window for starter Christian Watson on Monday and welcomed him back to the practice field.
Even still, some NFL analysts remain convinced that the Packers must seek out another reliable veteran for their receiver room to make up for starter Jayden Reed’s prolonged injury absence. And with the New Orleans Saints slumping after a 1-4 start to the year, Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame believes their target should be star Chris Olave.
Verderame proposed that the Packers trade their 2026 second-round pick to the Saints in exchange for Olave, who put up 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first two seasons.
“Jordan Love needs another reliable playmaker, especially with Jayden Reed sidelined due to injury and rookie Matthew Golden still finding his footing in the NFL,” Verderame wrote last week. “A trade for Olave would stretch the field for Love and extend the playbook for coach Matt LaFleur. Olave has 26 catches for 184 yards and one touchdown this season.”
Chris Olave Trade Makes Less Sense After 2025 Draft
Olave — the No. 11 overall pick in 2022 — is a talented receiver who would improve the firepower of the Packers offense. Earlier this year, it would have also made a lot of sense for the Packers to target him in a trade when they were still seeking more pass-catchers.
After the 2025 draft, though, the Packers have little reason to make a receiver trade.
In the spring, the Packers broke their decades-long trend of not selecting a receiver in the first round of the NFL draft when they selected Golden — a standout at Texas — with the No. 23 overall pick. They also circled back to the receiver position for TCU’s Savion Williams in the third round, significantly improving the quality of their position group.
While neither Golden nor Williams had their breakout moment through the first four games of the 2025 season, it is far too early for the Packers to be scrambling for more help, especially with Romeo Doubs, Dontayvion Wicks and tight end Tucker Kraft in place to offer Love more reliable and experienced targets in the passing game.
Additionally, Olave is not quite the knock-out trade target that Verderame pitched him to be. He has been impressively consistent for the Saints when healthy, catching 244 passes for 2,809 yards in 44 career games, but “when healthy” is an essential phrase. Olave played just four games in 2024 due to an injury, and he dealt with concussions a whopping
That’s a considerable red flag for a receiver who will cost roughly $15.49 million against the salary cap in 2026 — and plenty of reason alone for the Packers not to target him.
Could Packers Make WR Trade … to Offload a Talent?
The Packers seem highly unlikely to make a trade for another wide receiver in 2025, but could they consider trading one away
At the very least, it is more realistic than a trade for Olave.
The Packers are once again looking at a crowded receiver picture with Watson back at practice this week. Once he returns to the roster, they will need to figure out how best to divvy up the reps among Doubs, Watson, Wicks, Golden and Williams — and that only gets more challenging for them when Reed returns to the mix later on in the season.
While the Packers won’t want to jump the gun, there is logic in them offloading one of their wide receivers before the deadline. Doubs is the most likely candidate, given that he is in the midst of a contract year, but he has been Love’s most reliable receiver over the first four games. A strong offer could persuade them to trade him away, but it would almost certainly take a Day 2 pick for the Packers to even consider dealing away Doubs.
Alternatively, Wicks could make more sense. He has another season left on his rookie deal, but the Packers already have Reed, Golden, Williams and Watson signed for 2026. If the right offer comes in, the Packers could justify offloading Wicks at the deadline.
