Even with tight-end additions, Nate Adkins remains valuable to Broncos

Nate Adkins can slip under the radar of many observers — but not those within the halls of Broncos headquarters. And when he missed time last year due to a pair of injuries, the team was so keen on getting him back on the field that it elected to go week-to-week with him and not place him on injured reserve, rather than risk having him unavailable when he was healthy.

So, it was no surprise that the Broncos re-signed him to a one-year deal in March — although the value came in under what the restricted free-agent tender designation would have been had he hit the market.

That deal came with a $300,000 signing bonus, a guaranteed chunk of change that wouldn’t have existed on the RFA tender, creating a dead-money hit if he doesn’t make the 53-player roster.

But that seems highly unlikely — even after the team drafted a pair of tight ends in Justin Joly and Dallen Bentley and re-signed Adam Trautman. Adkins remains a roster unicorn with his specific versatility and the ability to play in-line tight end, H-back and fullback effectively. That doesn’t even account for his potential use on special teams, although that dropped last season, as he fell from participating in 59 percent of the snaps in games he played in that phase to 18 percent, a career-low.

He’s not used frequently in the passing game, but he is used effectively; he has a 63-percent success rate over the last two seasons, and in that span, four of his 20 catches have resulted in touchdowns.

COULD BRONCOS’ PICKS IMPACT ADKINS’ LONG-TERM STATUS?

The primary lingering question for Adkins when training camp begins is this: Will Bentley — the penultimate pick in this year’s draft — or 2025 seventh-rounder Caleb Lohner show signs of being able to assume the same type of all-around role as Adkins has? If that is the case, he could find himself in a tough spot in his contract year.

But if not, it would come as no surprise if the Broncos continue opting for continuity and re-sign Adkins, who has been with the team for as many seasons as Sean Payton, and appears to fit a well-defined role for which the coach likes to carve out a roster spot.

Related

Broncos and Adam Trautman have been an ideal match, as his contributions go beyond on-field workPump the brakes on any bold Troy Franklin predictions in 2026Jahdae Barron should be on notice during Broncos training campBroncos Camp Day 2: Three big things from the dayBo Nix on extension talk: ‘You got to go out there and continue to earn it’The Broncos have a real battle for backup quarterback