Cornerback · Denver Broncos

Pat Surtain II

No. 2 · 6th season

They're already talking about Champ Bailey's name in the same breath

In Denver, there is one name that ends every cornerback conversation. Champ Bailey played in an era when this franchise built its identity around stopping the other team's best receiver, and he did it better than almost anyone in the sport's history. His name is the ceiling.

Pat Surtain II has been in Denver long enough that people are looking up.

Some who watch this team closely already put Surtain in the top five cornerbacks this franchise has ever had. That's a short list with a very tall shadow. The question being asked now isn't whether Surtain belongs in that conversation — it's how high he goes in it.

For a cornerback, that kind of comparison is the whole thing. You spend your career trying not to get beat, and the reward, if you're good enough and stay healthy long enough, is someone finally saying the name you grew up hearing. Surtain is young. The comparison is already on the table.

What happens next is the part worth watching.

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