The Denver Broncos have multiple contracts to address over the next year, including wide receiver Courtland Sutton, rush linebacker Nik Bonitto, and defensive end Zach Allen. Broncos GM George Paton and head coach Sean Payton spoke on the Sutton and Bonitto subject during their Tuesday press conferences at the NFL Combine, but Allen went unmentioned.
Could that be a sign that Denver may not see an Allen extension as part of the big picture?
Simply put, no. The reason Payton and Paton didn't mention Allen's name on Tuesday was because they weren’t asked any questions about him.
The Broncos brass couldn’t talk about each player and every little thing with a limited window to take questions from a media corps that included local and national press. The expectation is that Denver will get a deal done with Allen, who has become one of the best interior defensive linemen in the NFL, so it may not have been on any media member's mind to broach the topic.
But Payton and Paton did have opportunities to mention Allen. One example was in response to a question about whether Bonitto is a priority to extend.
Paton talked about taking care of his own as a priority and the philosophy of drafting and developing players through multiple contracts, using left tackle Garett Bolles as an example. Allen was a free-agent signing in 2023, so maybe Paton doesn’t view him through the lens of home-grown, drafted talent like Bolles and Bonitto.
Since Tuesday's press conference, some Broncos fans have voiced concerns about Allen's name going unmentioned, but there's nothing to worry about. Now, this isn't a guarantee that Denver will extend Allen for the long haul, but it's very much in the team's best interest to do so.
The Allen omission understandably raised alarm bells within Broncos Country, but the time isn't right for such business. He is under contract for 2025 and the team has typically worked on new deals for its own players in July and August under Paton as GM.
If we get to the regular season and there's been no movement on the Allen front, it would be fair for fans to worry a little and question what's going on. For now, it's just a situation to monitor as we inch through the 2025 offseason because he's an integral cog in the Broncos' top-notch defensive machine.
