Riley Moss spent last season seeing the football come his way more than any other cornerback in the NFL, and that workload says as much about Denver’s defense as it does about him. His 114 targets led all cornerbacks, a byproduct of lining up across from Patrick Surtain II and of quarterbacks believing they could draw a flag more easily than they could land a clean completion.
That gamble came with some ugly numbers early on. Moss had 12 penalties, tied with two other cornerbacks for the most in the league, but he made a point of cleaning up his “grabiness” during the Broncos’ Week 12 bye. From there, the penalties disappeared down the stretch and stayed away through Denver’s playoff run.
Now he’s back in the spotlight for a different reason: a contract year with plenty riding on it. That’s why he lands at No. 15 in the Broncos’ 2026 countdown.
Moss’ path to this point started at Iowa, where he starred before Denver traded up to grab him in the third round in 2023, one of the first draft picks of the Sean Payton era. As a rookie, he played through lingering effects from a college injury and still got into 14 games. By Year 2, he was pushing for a full-time starting role and won it.
The Broncos paired Moss with Surtain as their starting boundary corners in 2024, and the defense immediately felt the impact. Moss held up well, even while the penalty issue remained part of his profile.
He also helped Surtain take a major leap, with Surtain going on to win Defensive Player of the Year in 2024. Moss recorded his first career interception in Week 5 against Gardner Minshew - the NFL’s first interception by a white cornerback since Jason Sehorn in 2002.
Moss missed three starts because of injury in 2024, but he still started 14 of 17 games and finished with 86 tackles, including 65 solo stops, plus a forced fumble, an interception and eight passes defensed.
In 2025, he took another step. Moss started all 17 games, again reached the 80-tackle mark and showed just how active he is in run support.
He finished with 114 targets against him, but according to Pro Football Focus, he allowed only 65 catches. His 57% completion rate allowed was extremely low for a corner handling that kind of volume.
He also broke up 19 passes and added the second interception of his career. The Broncos’ pass defense jumped from 19th in the league the year before to No. 7, and Moss was a major reason why. When Surtain missed three weeks with a pectoral injury, Moss moved into the No. 1 corner role and Denver didn’t miss a beat.
That kind of versatility has made him a valued piece inside the building. The Broncos like Moss because he sets the tone with his effort and brings a fiery edge to the defense. He’s one of the NFL’s best No. 2 cornerbacks, and if he had reached free agency this offseason, projections had him in the $20 million-per-year range.
That creates the tricky part for Denver. Surtain is already paid at the top of the market, and another deal in that neighborhood would be a tough number to stack on the cap. At the same time, this secondary has something special going, and it would not be a shock if the Broncos moved quickly to extend Moss after veterans report for training camp on July 28.
There is another layer here, though: Jahdae Barron. Denver took him in the first round for a reason, and with Moss on the boundary and Ja’Quan McMillian in the slot, Barron had a hard time finding snaps as a rookie.
During Surtain’s three-game absence, the Broncos split the No. 2 boundary corner job between Barron and Kris Abrams-Draine, while Moss handled the No. 1 spot and McMillian stayed in the slot. Barron also got used as a tight end neutralizer in key moments, with one-on-one assignments designed to take away the position.
Moss enters Year 4 at 26, which puts him right in his prime. The penalty issue is the one blemish, but after the bye last season he largely cleaned it up. The Broncos could choose to see whether that change holds before rushing into an extension, maybe even waiting until their Week 10 bye to make a call.
What Denver does next will come down to how it values Moss’ combination of production, toughness and room for growth. In both seasons as a starter, he finished third on the team in tackles, which is rare for a boundary corner. That speaks to both his team-first mentality and his physical style.
If the Broncos believe the penalties are behind him and the takeaway production can keep climbing, then re-signing him should be straightforward. Barron would have to wait his turn, and McMillian is also in a contract year, but the best players have to play, no matter where they were drafted.
And with Bo Nix’s extension likely coming in 2027, Denver has some time before the quarterback deal hits hard against the cap, especially if the Broncos pick up his fifth-year option next offseason. That extra runway could let the team keep building around him on both sides of the ball. If that’s how the front office sees it, Moss could be part of the plan for a while - especially if he approaches the next negotiation with the team in mind.
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The 2025 numbers back up the argument. The Broncos were stout against the run, disruptive in the pass rush and steady in pass protection, a combination that gives them a foundation few rivals can match. Even with J.K. Dobbins part of the conversation before his injury, the larger picture is the same for Denver: if the trenches stay dominant, the path to the top of the division gets a lot clearer. [Read more 🡒]