After Denver was embarrassed thoroughly on Defense by Miami in week 3 of the 2023 season, they made some big personnel changes. The first of these was promoting Ja’Quan McMillian to their starting slot corner. McMillian responded to the opportunity by instantly upgrading the position, helping Denver’s defense throughout the season. All eyes were on him going into 2024, wondering what level of improvement we might see in his first full year as a starter.
While he had some gaffes, 2024 was a good year for McMillian. He continued to prove himself as a starter in the league. While he did not grow into an elite counterpart to Pat Surtain, he was a consistent contributor on an elite defense and not at all a liability of one the way that Levi Wallace was in his limited opportunities.
Going into his 25 year old season, and playing on a cheap ERFA tender, he looked to be a critical core component of Denver’s defense over the next few years. Then came draft day.
Denver had a top 10 ranking overall for Jahdae Barron, and when he was available at Denver’s slot, they happily pulled the trigger. Barron has played lots of wide and slot cornerback, along with a decent amount of snaps as a box safety, but the general assumption is that he would primarily be competing against McMillian.
**Player Profile**
**Ja’Quan McMillian | Cornerback | Broncos | #29**
**Height:** 5-10 inches
**Weight:** 183 pounds
**Experience:** 3rd year
**Age:** 25 years old
[**2024 stats**](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/M/McMiJa00/gamelog/2024/)**:** 81 Tackles, 75.3% of defensive snaps.
**Ja’Quan McMillians outlook for 2025 with the Broncos**
There are a lot of ways this season could go for McMillian. Its expected that he will lose his starting position to Brown, but there is no guarantee that occurs. McMillian is very talented, and its tough to come into the league and excel, especially right away. Barron could end up playing primarily outside. Some first round picks bust, and Barron could have those problems (I hope not). Injuries could reshuffle the depth chart in many different ways.
Even if those scenarios unfold, I expect him to provide depth, and possibly to see substantial playtime in dime packages. Denver has not used dime much with Joseph at coordinator, but the absurd level of talent and depth in the secondary combined with two interior linebackers returning from injury could lead to dime making more sense.
**Final Thoughts**
There is also the unexpected possible scenario where McMillian outplays Barron by so much, and Barron outplays Riley Moss enough that Barron gets moved outside full-time and McMillian remains a nickel starter, getting about three quarters of the defensive snaps. The bottom line with McMillian is he gives the Broncos options. Because of this, I would be stunned if McMillian’s roster spot was in danger. However, I would not be surprised to see other teams reach out about trades for him when invariably some teams slot plans get upended. I am not sure McMillian would be cheap for another team, but desperation happens in the NFL. For the Broncos, I would not let him go for less than a day 2 pick, and probably insist on a high one. I do not expect a trade, and that is ok. McMillian is talented, and incredibly cheap, so it makes sense for the Broncos to want the valuable depth he provides this year.