Broncos DPoY Patrick Surtain II Explains His Goal for 2025

Many players would regard winning the AP Defensive Player of the Year award as the crowning moment of an individual's career, but Denver Broncos All-Pro cornerback Patrick Surtain II is built differently. Basking in the glory of earning the prestigious honor would be entirely understandable, but Surtain quickly pivoted to lay out his goals moving forward.

His mind is on the Super Bowl.

“It definitely feeds the hunger. It’s somewhere where I want to be through the duration of my career," Surtain said after bringing home the DPoY award. "That’s the next big achievement that I want to get to, the Super Bowl. The main thing is winning in this league, and I want to reach that point where I’ll be able to have a chance to hoist a Lombardi. That’s something that I’ll look forward to for sure.”

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If you take Surtain out of the Broncos lineup for any significant period of time, making the playoffs would become somewhat of a pipedream. Surtain secured generational wealth right before the 2024 season started, and he more than lived up to his lofty price tag as the highest-paid cornerback in league history, as temporary as the distinction was.

Broncos GM George Paton made a safe bet to put his chips squarely on Surtain in Denver. If Surtain can remain injury-free, the sky becomes the limit over the next few years.

Indeed, the next front office move is to continue assembling quality defensive pieces around Surtain. A prime case in point was how Riley Moss flourished last season opposite Surtain on the boundary.

Of course, getting after the quarterback is much easier when Surtain can throw a blanket over one side of the field. The proof in that pudding came in the form of the Broncos leading the NFL in sacks (63).

That hugely beneficial scenario should afford Paton and company the freedom to attack players at different spots in free agency and the draft. Defensive coordinator Vance Joseph will doubtless be licking his chops at the prospects of new blood.

The center of the Broncos' defensive universe rotates around what Surtain provides in terms of both scheme and individual performance. Like all great cornerbacks who live out on an island, he is well aware that chasing and achieving his goals will directly benefit his team in the long run.

“Before the season even started, it’s something that I manifested—having a great year, having these expectations, reaching the playoffs, getting All-Pros, getting Defensive Player of the Year," Surtain said. "This is something that I manifested and had goals of. It’s definitely a blessing at the end of the day, but I always tell myself, ‘There’s more work to do.’ I’m looking forward towards more success later on in my career.”

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