Few people knew who cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian was before this season, but now everybody knows the name of the Denver Broncos' nickel back. He’s not the best player in the secondary, nor does he relay signal calls from defensive coordinator Vance Joseph.
But he is responsible for communication between the middle of the field and the perimeter, according to Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post, and this year he earned a reputation as one of the group’s best playmakers.
McMillian had a breakout season with four sacks and five tackles for losses, and he made what was arguably the biggest play of the Broncos’ season when he intercepted quarterback Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills in Denver’s 33-30 overtime win in the divisional round.
“You’ll go five, 10 years before you see a turnover like that one,” head coach Sean Payton said of the interception, as McMIllian outwrestled receiver Brandin Cooks for the ball.
But McMillian is an unrestricted free agent this season, and that puts the Broncos in an interesting position. He should unquestionably get a big raise, and maybe even a top-of-the-market extension.
“Best in the world,” linebacker Alex Singleton said after McMillian’s game-saving pick against the Bills. “Someone should pay that dude $16 million a year and it still won’t be enough. He’s the best nickel in the world.”
Top of the market for nickel corners is about $13 million, and according to Gabriel, Denver has three options going forward: (1) work out an extension before free agency begins (2) put a free agent tender on McMillian (3) trade him.
McMillian’s agent is Deryk Gilmore, and he things an extension makes sense.
“He’s a proven guy, he’s come in and he’s battled through,” Gilmore said. “They’ve drafted people over him and he’s never complained. He’s embraced the challenge and risen. … He loves it there. It’s a great fit. It’s all stuff that we all know.”
If the extension doesn’t get done by mid-March, Gilmore thinks the most likely outcome is a second-round tender. McMillian was an undrafted free agent, so the original round is out of the question, according to Parker.
The tender amounts will be set up once the NFL finalizes its cap numbers for 2026, but OvertheCap estimates the second-round number at $5.81, with the first-round number being $8.11 million. Denver would have the right to match, but if they passed they’d get the commensurate draft pick from the team that signs McMillian.
The Broncos have used the second-round tender on just four players since 2020, and GM George Paton was noncommittal about how this might play out.
“I remember his first year, we started him outside against the Chargers in the last game of the year,” Paton said last month. “And I’m just like, ‘Oh man, he’s 5-9, he’s going to play outside against his receivers.’ He played a great game, and you’re like, ‘Wow, maybe we have something here.’ Then he’s just gotten better, in the run game, pass game.
“We’re going to work through that as a staff in that (roster) deep dive and kind of go through that and just keep that in-house.”
The impact of whatever they do will also be felt by the likes of cornerbacks Riley Moss and Jahdae Barron, with the latter being the team’s top draft pick in 2025, so the decision is the first domino to fall in a series of secondary moves that will play out in over the course of this calendar year.