NFL Rumors: Patrick Surtain II, Broncos Agree to $96M Contract; Highest Paid DB Ever

The Denver Broncos reportedly made Patrick Surtain II the highest-paid defensive back in NFL history on Wednesday.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Surtain and the Broncos agreed to a four-year, $96 million contract extension with $77.5 million in guaranteed money.

Per Schefter, the deal makes Surtain the NFL's highest-paid cornerback annually at $24 million per year, surpassing Jaire Alexander of the Green Bay Packers, who previously held the top spot with a $21 million AAV:

Surtain and the Broncos got the deal done just days before their 2024 season-opening road game against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.

After starring collegiately at Alabama, Surtain went ninth overall to the Broncos in the 2021 NFL draft.

The now-24-year-old made an instant impact at the NFL level, starting 15 of the 16 games he appeared in as a rookie, and registering 58 tackles to go along with a career-high four interceptions and 14 passes defended.

Over the past two seasons, Surtain has played in and started all 34 games for Denver, and he has earned two Pro Bowl nods, as well as an All-Pro First Team selection in 2022.

Surtain was among the lone bright spots on a Broncos team that went a combined 13-21 over the past two seasons. He had 60 tackles, two picks, 10 passes defended and a forced fumble in 2022, followed by 69 tackles, one interception and 12 pass breakups last season.

Back in April, Denver exercised the fifth-year option in Surtain's rookie contract for 2025, but that was clearly only done as a precaution in case a long-term deal could not be agreed upon.

Now, the Broncos have added four more years to the two years left on his current deal, meaning he is under contract through 2029.

After Surtain won the SEC Defensive Player of the Year and a national championship in 2020 in en route to being a top-10 draft pick in 2021, many wondered if he would be able to live up to the solid career his father, Patrick Surtain, carved out for himself.

The elder Surtain spent 11 seasons in the NFL as a corner with the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs, earning three Pro Bowl selections and one appointment to the All-Pro First Team.

Surtain II is close to matching those accolades already, and while he has a long way to go before surpassing his father's 37 career interceptions, he now has bragging rights thanks to the biggest contract in the family.