ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — If there were questions about whether Denver Broncos edge rusher Nik Bonitto is weighed down by contract negotiations or increased expectations, Bonitto clearly offered his answer in three parts.
Three plays in the preseason opener against the San Francisco 49ers last Saturday night was all anyone needed to see. As 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan put it; “He did ruin that whole series … Bonitto is a hell of a player.”
In the span of 88 seconds, Bonitto had a sack, a near-sack that forced 49ers quarterback Mac Jones to step up into a sack by John Franklin-Myers, and a heated pursuit that resulted in Jones throwing the ball away to avoid a 25-yard loss.
“I felt quick, 100%,” said Bonitto, who played 12 snaps against the 49ers. “I feel like I’ve done the work.”
Bonitto had a bone spur removed from his foot earlier this week, so he won’t play Saturday night against the Arizona Cardinals. But he has shown throughout the Broncos’ offseason program and the early part of training camp that he is ready to maintain the career momentum he has created.
Bonitto has steadily moved himself into the conversation regarding the NFL’s most impactful edge players. He was a second-team All-Pro last season and earned his first Pro Bowl selection while leading the Broncos with 13.5 sacks, part of Denver’s league-leading 63.
He also finished with career bests in tackles (48) and quarterback hits (24) while scoring touchdowns on an interception return and a fumble return. Denver’s coaches also said Bonitto played the run better than ever last season. It’s the continuation of a career arc that has seen him develop from a 1.5-sack season as a rookie, when he played 357 snaps, to the high-end disrupter who made the most of his 708 snaps in 2024.
Bonitto, the Broncos’ second-round pick in 2022, said he approached the offseason intending to ratchet up his play even more. Not only is he set to be an unrestricted free agent after the season, but he also anticipates getting the full attention of every Broncos opponent in 2025.
“I felt like I made it almost until the end of season last year, and then I started to see more chips, a few more double teams,” Bonitto said. “I sort of expect people to take that approach right away this year. Which is good, look at our defense, more attention anywhere is less attention somewhere else … we just all will make plays.”
Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph has called Bonitto “a special player” in the pass rush who is still ascending as “he learns to attack the ball, to finish, more and more.”
Bonitto said he arrived for the Broncos’ offseason program in April about eight pounds heavier than last season — calling it “good weight” — because he wanted to test how he felt in his movements in drills. He liked what he saw and how he moved, and he said he arrived at training camp at around 248 pounds.
“I tried it in the spring when we worked because I wanted to see how it felt,” Bonitto said. “I was still quick, so I’ve kept it there throughout camp so far. That and I’ve looked at the film, see how guys around the league deal with all of the chips and double teams. I know it’s coming.”
Denver coach Sean Payton has said that the Broncos plan to be cognizant of Bonitto’s snap count, both to take advantage of their depth on the edge with players such as Jonathon Cooper and Jonah Elliss while keeping Bonitto fresh for maximum impact late in the season.
“I think it’s just being mindful of going into a game with your depth and how you want that to unfold,” Payton said. “There may be a game where it gets a little higher … I think it’s easy to monitor.”
Bonitto’s 708 snaps were on the lower end of players who finished in the top 10 in sacks — slightly ahead of Micah Parsons‘ 696 snaps. But Parsons’ snaps came in 13 games, while Bonitto played every game in 2024.
But Bonitto is fine with Payton delegating his workload.
“I don’t mind that discussion at all,” Bonitto said. “I want to be as fresh as possible when I’m in and as effective as I can be. I feel like we have such a good room with so many guys, we can swarm. We can all be effective, so I don’t mind having that discussion with [the coaches]. It’s about winning, it’s about our defense making havoc.”
As he talks about the upcoming season, Bonitto is aware of the contract elephant in the room. Since training camp started, Denver has completed lucrative extensions with wide receiver Courtland Sutton and defensive tackle Zach Allen. So Bonitto’s contract is the biggest looming business for the team to address.
Parsons and Trey Hendrickson, last season’s sack leader, have not signed deals, so the edge rusher market is still in flux. Bonitto has participated throughout the Broncos’ offseason and in camp — Payton called his approach “fantastic” — and said he fully expects a deal to get done.
“When I’m on the field, I don’t think about it at all,” Bonitto said. “I want to be ready to play no matter the situation, whether the contract is done or the contract is not done. I don’t want to be a liability ever; I want to perform and help us win games.
“I leave it all to my agent, but 100%, I know something will eventually get done. … This defense is where I want to be.”