Anchored by edge rusher, the Denver Broncos boasted one of the NFL’s top defenses in 2024, giving up just 18.3 points per game.
He paced the team with 13.5 of Denver’s 63 total sacks, earning second-team All-Pro honors and a Pro Bowl nod in the process. It marked a huge leap in production for the 2022 second-round pick, who had just 1.5 sacks as a rookie and eight in 2023.
You might be surprised to learn that He ranked third in the NFL in sacks last season, trailing only high-priced stars Myles Garrett (14) and Trey Hendrickson (17.5).
Hendrickson is currently holding out in pursuit of a new contract — and according to NFL.com’s Tom Blair, He should consider doing the same.
The 25-year-old Oklahoma product is still on his rookie deal, earning under $1.5 million this season.
Blair highlighted the disparity:
“Dividing Bonitto’s average yearly salary ($1.45 million) by his 13.5 sacks in 2024 comes out to $107,407 per sack. That might sound fine—until you compare it to Trey Hendrickson’s $1.2 million per sack,” Blair noted.
Given that Hendrickson is already viewed as underpaid, Bonitto is earning nearly 10 times less than what he could command on the open market. That gives the Broncos little financial motivation to negotiate a new deal early, but they’ll eventually have to make a decision—Bonitto’s contract is set to expire after the 2025 season.
Now it’s up to head coach Sean Payton and GM George Paton to determine how they’ll handle their rising defensive star moving forward.
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