Denver

Broncos

The signing reunites Rizzi with Broncos head coach Sean Payton, who hired him with the Saints back in 2019. The Broncos already featured a solid special teams unit, ranking eighth in the NFL with an 87.5 PFF special teams grade. Rizzi’s top-tier coaching should only further strengthen it. The assistant head coaching role will help Rizzi develop his leaderships skills and increase his odds of securing a future head coaching role.

Singleton suffered a torn ACL in Week 3 but has vowed to be ready by the start of training camp. The 31-year-old linebacker is in the final year of a three-year, $18 million deal he signed in 2023, and totaled 31 tackles and three interceptions in the three games he appeared in last season. Assuming he’s at full health in 2025, his return will be a welcomed one by a Broncos defense that finished third in points allowed last season.

Eight different players received first-place votes, but Surtain II took home 26 of those tallies. The 24-year-old corner was outstanding in 2024 with four interceptions, 11 passes passes defended and a forced fumble while helping the Broncos reach the postseason. Trey Hendrickson finished second with 11 first-place votes, with Myles Garrett finishing third with five of his own.

Good luck, coach! The best tight end that will hit free agency is probably Tyler Conklin, while the easiest third-down back to forecast into a Darren Sproles role in free agency is likely Kenneth Gainwell. The Broncos probably will have to scour trades and the draft to dig up a player like, as Payton forecasted in his “joker” explanation, Reggie Bush or Jimmy Graham. Payton also said that the Broncos are “stronger [at receiver] than some would think,” explaining that he considered a veteran receiver a “need” rather than a “must-have” for the team.

In other words, he’ll want a raise or an extension. Kosmider compares Sutton to Calvin Ridley and notes that an extension could help lower his $20.2 million cap figure for 2025. Sutton will enter his age-30 season in 2025 and spent OTAs last offseason working out on his own to send a message about wanting a new deal, getting only some bandaid incentives, so a holdout can’t be completely ruled out. Kosmider also notes that the Broncos could also consider trading Sutton if they believed in the growth of their other young receivers like Marvin Mims Jr., Troy Franklin, and Devaughn Vele. “The Broncos received significant interest in Sutton as a potential trade target last offseason, and his value will likely increase if Denver wants to revisit that market this offseason,” Kosmider adds.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero was the first to report. Shaw spent last season in the Broncos’ front office as a senior personnel executive but will now join a revamped Lions staff to assist with their passing game. It’s Shaw’s first job as an NFL coach since 2005, when he served as the Ravens’ wide receivers coach. He will be reunited with new Lions offensive coordinator John Morton, who spent last season as the Broncos passing game coordinator. Shaw has fielded several NFL interviews for various positions since departing from Stanford after the 2022 college football season. At just 52 years old, there is plenty of time for Shaw to coach his way into a head coaching role at the NFL level if he’s interested in doing so.

It sounds like this one could be finalized soon. According to Schefter, Morton is traveling to meet with the team for a second time after interviewing with them recently. Morton’s last offensive coordinator role came in 2017 with the Jets, where Josh McCown was the team’s QB1. Since that season, Morton has gone on to work for the Raiders, Lions, and Broncos in a variety of roles and spent 2022 as the Lions’ senior offensive assistant. His familiarity with Dan Campbell and several key figures on Detroit’s roster should make for a seamless transition as he hopes to provide more of a spark than he did in his lone year with the Jets.

He recently interviewed with the team and was on Dan Campbell’s staff a few years ago. Morton was the Jets offensive coordinator in 2017 and drew mixed reviews for finishing 24th in points scored while starting Josh McCown and relying on Matt Forte (yes, he played for the Jets, really), Jermaine Kearse, and Robbie Chosen as main targets. This would be a somewhat more talented roster to inherit.

It’s the second interview for Banjo this week after he interviewed with the 49ers on Monday. Banjo seems to be a hot commodity after also being linked to the Jets and new head coach Aaron Glenn. It remains unclear if Sean Payton and the Broncos would promote Banjo to special teams coordinator this offseason, something that could influence Banjo’s coaching scenery heading into 2025.

Shaw previously interviewed with the franchise for their head coaching gig, a position that ultimately went to Ben Johnson. With their new head coach locked up, the franchise’s attention now turns to filling out their coaching staff as a slew of requests and interviews have taken place on Saturday.