17-Game Starter Predicted to be Broncos’ ‘Biggest Breakout’ Player

The Denver Broncos ranked 22nd in sacks in 2023 despite two players – Jonathon Cooper and Nik Bonitto – setting career highs in sacks on the campaign.

They were also 22nd in passing yards allowed. Improving their sack production would help improve their passing defense. Outside additions from the 2024 offseason will help. But they also need some of their homegrown talent to take another step.

Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder believes Cooper could do just that.

“After getting limited playing time during his first two years in the league, Cooper finally became a full-time starter and made the most of it with career highs in total tackles (72), sacks (8.5) and tackles for loss (eight),” Holder wrote on July 20. “He also logged 55 pressures after only racking up 42 during seasons one and two combined, according to Pro Football Focus.”

Cooper added two forced fumbles, one recovery, and returned an interception for a touchdown.

The Broncos drafted Cooper with the No. 239 overall pick of the 2021 draft. He was one of seven Broncos players to start all 17 games.

The list also includes offensive lineman Ben Powers, Garett Bolles, Lloyd Cushenberry – who signed with the Tennessee Titans in free agency – Quinn Meinerz, cornerback Pat Surtain II, and defensive lineman Zach Allen.

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar named Cooper as the Broncos’ “most underrated player.”

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Jonathon Cooper Outperformed Broncos Contract in 2023

“Cooper lasted until the seventh round of the 2021 draft despite a somewhat productive career at Ohio State in which he broke through the Buckeyes’ insane pass-rush depth to show what he could do,” Farrar wrote on May 24.

“Cooper had the same challenge early on in the NFL, as he once again had to break through limited reps to prove that he belonged. It all kicked in last season.”

A breakout season could land Cooper a big payday.

He is in the final year of a four-year, $3.5 million contract. But he carries a $3.1 million cap hit in 2024, per Over The Cap. Cooper’s contract ranks 245th out of 267 edge rushers, per OTC, who also valued him as a $12 million player in 2023.

“Eventually, Cooper tends to prove that he should be playing more often than he is, and he does it against the best possible competition,” Farrar wrote.

Cooper will get help from fellow edge rushers Bonitto and Baron Browning and others.

“The 2021 seventh-round pick projects to be a starter in Denver again this season and the addition of John Franklin-Meyers, as well as last year’s free-agent signing Zach Allen, should lead to more one-on-one opportunities for Cooper this fall,” Holder wrote.

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Broncos Retooled Defensive Line Could Benefit From Mutual Respect

Allen and Franklin-Myers are first-time teammates. But they have a pre-existing relationship that could bode well for the Broncos in 2024.

“I remember watching his tape and thinking that I liked the way this guy plays,” Allen told The Denver Post’s Parker Gabriel in an interview published on June 30. “Then you see him get paid. So I just shot him a DM on Instagram and said, ‘Hey congratulations on everything.’ That gave me a lot of hope, like, OK, a guy that plays a similar style is getting recognized and respected in this league. That gave me a lot of confidence.”

“Basically, like, game recognize game.”

The Broncos acquired Franklin-Myers from the New York Jets during the 2024 draft. He spoke about wanting to player for Head coach Sean Payton. But he also noted his bond with Allen and connecting with nose tackle D.J. Jones.

“Me and Zach have been following each other for a while. Great player,” Franklin-Myers told Broncos.com’s Aric DiLalla on April 29. “D.J. Jones reached out to me yesterday. And, man, what opportunity I have. I’ve heard such good things from him. My coaches coached him and teammates played with D.J. Jones, so what an opportunity I have to come in and just help.”

“Every day we’re talking for like an hour just on our own,” Allen told Gabriel. “When we get this, we should do this. What we see. Things we like, things we don’t like. It’s been a really, really good process.”

The process could pay dividends for Allen, Cooper, Franklin-Myers, and the rest of the Broncos.

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