The Denver Broncos hit the offseason in dire need of a tight end. Would the team sign one in free agency or use a first-round pick on Colston Loveland or Tyler Warren?
That was a legitimate question, and before free agency started, most analysts expected the team to go the draft route and take one of the top guys on the board. Instead, the Broncos were able to swing a deal for Evan Engram, something that not many saw coming, but a move that instantly made the team much better.
Engram is the perfect tight end for Sean Payton's offense, able to stretch the field with his athletic frame as he is built much more like a big wide receiver than a traditional tight end. Bill Barnwell of ESPN recently scoured the league and named 15 players and coaches facing the most pressure this coming season. Because of the contract he signed at his age, Barnwell added Engram to that list.
Here was Barnwell's analysis on the subject:
"If you think the NFL is loath to pay players over 30 at key positions, just wait for positions on the bottom of the spectrum. Tight end is a spot in which players often struggle to make an impact as they pass 30, either by slowing down or not staying on the field. When they do have an exceptional season, as Zach Ertz did with Washington in 2024, veterans often struggle to parlay their performance into a multiyear guarantee.
One of the few potential exceptions to that rule might pop up in 2025. Entering his age-30 season, Engram is joining the best situation of his career. Having toiled with the Giants and Jaguars, he's joining a Denver team coming off a playoff berth. Coach Sean Payton will be the best offensive playcaller he has ever played for. Bo Nix might end up being the best quarterback he has ever caught passes from on a regular basis (although I'm still holding out hope for Trevor Lawrence in Jacksonville). There are plenty of other options in Denver, but outside of Courtland Sutton, none of them is a surefire bet to lock up significant target share.
And after years of being a safety valve and underneath option for the Jaguars, Engram appears to be in line for a role with some verticality up the seam, playing to what was once 4.42-second 40-yard dash speed. If he develops a quick rapport with Nix and carves out a significant role in the offense, a Broncos team with a quarterback on a rookie deal might not want to mess with a good thing and keep him around for years to come. Otherwise, Engram is probably looking at one-year deals for the remainder of his career".
There are some good points in there, but the Broncos did sign Engram to a two-year deal, and unless this season is just an abject disaster for him, the team will likely give him those two seasons to play his best football.
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When you consider some of the other names on this list (Brian Schottenheimer, Shedeur Sanders, Anthony Richardson), it seems a bit odd that Engram is on there. Sure, the Broncos are taking a chance on a player who has entered the dreaded 30-year age mark, but it's not as if it would destroy the team if things don't work out.
“Evan Engram might be the best receiver of all of these guys.”
— DNVR Broncos (@DNVR_Broncos) July 2, 2025
What are reasonable expectations for the Broncos’ new joker? pic.twitter.com/hVT9ZJsD7O
It won't destroy Engram, either. In eight NFL seasons, he's played in a total of two playoff games. He's been on some bad Giants and Jaguars teams, so coming to Denver has to look like a big promotion. If it doesn't go the way many envision that it will, he will still have put together a very respectable career.
Barnwell suggests that Engram may be feeling a lot of pressure heading into the 2025 season, when in fact, it may be the exact opposite. Instead, he is likely feeling loose and excited, ready to make an impact in the best situation he's had as a professional. That's not pressure. That's excitement and anticipation.
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