Broncos LT Garett Bolles Ranked as 16th-Best Free Agent in 2025

The Denver Broncos would be unwise to let this happen.

Oct 6, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos offensive tackle Garett Bolles (72) celebrates following the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Empower Field at Mile High. / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Denver Broncos have been taking care of their own players this season well before they're set to hit the market. After the Broncos paid three players from their 2021 draft class — guard Quinn Meinerz (four-year, $72 Million), cornerback Patrick Surtain II (four-year, $77.5 million), and rush linebacker Jonathon Cooper (four-year, $60 million) — the team has started to reward the cream of the crop that has emerged from GM George Paton's very talented inaugural draft class.

The Broncos valued these players enough to get a deal done before they hit the market, but perhaps more interestingly, which soon-to-be free agents haven't they prioritized? And who should take precedence?

According to Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox, Broncos left tackle Garett Bolles is currently slated to be the 16th-highest-rated free agent in the upcoming 2025 class. Listed only behind Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley, Dallas Cowboys guard Zack Martin, and Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith, Bolles is one of the premier offensive linemen who could be available in March 2025.

"The only real concern with Boles is his age, as he'll turn 33 in May. With tackles like Trent Williams playing well into their 30s, though, it's not a major concern. Bolles should compete with Ronnie Stanley to be the top tackle in the 2025 market," Knox wrote.

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Playing on the last year of a four-year, $68 million extension starting back in 2020, Bolles' seven years of experience and 32-year-old body are set to earn a massive payday if he is able to hit the open market. There is an absolute dearth of talent at offensive tackle across the league and Bolles, as maligned as he can be by Broncos Country for his penalties, has been an overly healthy and reliable left tackle.

Even if he is “above average,” those players get massive contracts on the open market in a league starving for baseline serviceable offensive tackle play. The vast majority of those who cover the NFL draft with direct connections inside the league have also begun to ring the alarm bell that the upcoming 2025 class looks thin at quality offensive tackle prospects.

Some may yet emerge, but the media consensus seems to be that many potential tackles in the 2025 class will be viewed more as guards by those in the league. 

If the Broncos let Bolles walk, it would create a hole upfront potentially more detrimental than this team’s current lack of playmaking weapons on the offensive side of the ball. Therefore, what happens to Bolles is likely the main determining factor of the direction the Broncos might go this offseason and in the draft.

If Bolles walks, he will get paid, and the offensive line-oriented Sean Payton may prioritize the line of scrimmage and protecting Bo Nix in the draft, as opposed to a premium investment at receiver, tight end, or running back.

The Broncos have a number of starters playing in the last year of their contracts in Denver. Defensive tackle D.J. Jones was floated in trade rumors and is possibly playing his final stretch of a three-year deal in Denver.

Starting running back Javonte Williams (also a 2021 draft pick) is set to hit free agency and will have a mixed market following a ho-hum season and two years after suffering a significant knee injury. The Broncos also will have to find a new backup quarterback if both Zach Wilson and Jarrett Stidham hit the market.

There is one pending free agent that stands out above all the rest: Bolles.

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