The 2023 season may not have shaken out the way the Denver Broncos had hoped, but if the Pro Bowl selections are any indication, head coach Sean Payton has moved the needle for the organization. After only one Bronco was selected to the Pro Bowl last year, three players were tapped for the NFL’s 2024 All-Star game.
The Broncos announced that cornerback Patrick Surtain II, safety Justin Simmons, and rookie kick/punt returner Marvin Mims Jr. have been selected to the Pro Bowl. Right guard Quinn Meinerz and fullback Michael Burton were selected as third alternates.
This marks Surtain’s second consecutive Pro Bowl nod, making him just the second cornerback in Broncos history to earn the accolade in two of his first three seasons, joining Pro Football Hall of Famer Willie Brown (1964-65). Along with Brown, Hall-of-Famer Champ Bailey, Ring-of-Famer Louis Wright, Chris Harris, Jr., and Aqib Talib, Surtain is now part of an elite fraternity of Broncos cornerbacks to garner Pro Bowl accolades in consecutive years.
The former Alabama star has been reliable this year, starting all 16 games. Surtain boasts a team-high 11 pass break-ups, plus 63 tackles (54 solo) and an interception this season. He’s now the only Bronco to ever total double-digit pass break-ups in each of his first three years with the team.
For Simmons, this is the second Pro Bowl nod of his career. It puts Simmons in the company of Hall-of-Famer Steve Atwater and Ring-of-Famer Goose Gonsoulin as the only Broncos safeties to net multiple Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors with the club.
Mims becomes the first Bronco since running back Phillip Lindsay to earn a Pro Bowl nod as a rookie. Selected as a returner, Mims is only the fifth Broncos rookie to earn Pro Bowl honors, joining the ranks of the aforementioned Lindsay, linebackers Von Miller and Jim Fraser, and fullback Donnie Stone.
Mims is also just the third Broncos to earn Pro Bowl accolades as a kicker returner, joining Glyn Milburn and Ring-of-Famer Rick Upchurch. Mims has been a dynamo as a returner for the Broncos.
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