After once fighting to get the value he felt he deserved from the Denver Broncos, two-time Pro Bowler Courtland Sutton has gotten a strong endorsement from the NFL at large.
However, not everyone agrees with how that praise has manifested.
Sutton is heading into his ninth season with the Broncos, and he is coming off his second straight 1,000-yard season, the third of his career. Still, when it was announced that he finished ahead of some notable peers in the NFL Top 100 Players list, ridicule ensued.
Courtland Sutton Gets Blowback Over Lamar Jackson
GettyCourtland Sutton ranked ahead of a pair of Baltimore Ravens, drawing more attention to the Denver Broncos’ star.
Sutton finished 68th in the annual player ranking, which is voted on by their peers. He ranked higher than, among many others, Lamar Jackson and Zay Flowers of the Baltimore Ravens, which caused strong reactions from fans and even media members.
“Ahead of Lamar?!” the Sun Sentinel’s David Furones posted on X in the comments of the NFL’s post announcing the vote.
Jackson finished 69th, but that minor flip was enough to evoke strong feelings.
Even Broncos Super Bowl champion (turned media personality) Tyler Polumbus weighed in, using it as an opportunity to put the onus on the Broncos’ trade for now-former Miami Dolphins wideout Jaylen Waddle.
“Courtland cracks the top 100 for the first time. Good for him man. He has always been underappreciated,” Polumbus posted.
“Waddle & Sutton need to both be on this list next year to make the Waddle trade worth it!”
Rankings are subjective. No two will ever look the exact same, especially when the pool of options is over 2,000 players under contract and hundreds more hoping for opportunities in free agency (and even more in other leagues).
Courtland Sutton Praised Over Top 100 Honor
GettyCourtland Sutton received strong praise amid his top-100 ranking.
Despite the outcry, the clip from the NFL featured telling commentary about Sutton. It drew the attention of Broncos teammate and outside linebacker Nik Bonitto. Bonitto called Sutton “Him!” in a post on X.
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel can be heard emphasizing to cornerback Christian Gonzalez that Sutton “can run” during the highlight package.
Fellow veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen spoke at length about Sutton.
Allen said that Sutton “has a lot of technique,” and that the Broncos wideout “comes to play every week. He’s always got that dawg mentality,” adding, “He’s a competitor. Another one of those 70/30 guys when you throw it up.”
Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson noted their similar body types, saying that Sutton “plays perfectly to his body type.
Watson called Sutton a “bigger, stronger receiver, kind of like me.”
“Regardless of where the ball is thrown, he’s going and getting it. Whether it’s a back shoulder, he’s going up, catching it,” Watson said. “Anywhere the quarterback seems to put it, he finds a way to come down with it.”
Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers admitted that facing Sutton and the Broncos can be “kind of frustrating.”
Sutton was ninth in first downs and 13th in targets during the 2025 regular season.
“They just throw it up to him on the edge,” Bowers said of Sutton’s impact, noting the frustrating part is “when you think you have this third-and-long, and they throw it up to him, and he makes a play.”
At one point, a clip of Sutton making a catch along the sideline against the Buffalo Bills. Former NFL quarterback and current CBS Sports announcer Tony Romo called it “incredible.”
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