Denver Broncos cornerback and former Defensive Player of the Year Pat Surtain penned an open letter in The Players' Tribune to fans ahead of the 2026 season.
Surtain began his letter where the 2025 season ended: The AFC Championship loss to the New England Patriots.
"I’ll never forget that silence," Surtain wrote. "As long as I live, I’ll always remember what it felt like in our locker room after that loss to the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.
"You know how sometimes people say: 'You could hear a pin drop'? Well, this was that, but even more extreme. Like if there’s something even quieter than a pin dropping … that’s what you would’ve been able to hear in that room. We all had such high hopes, and in that moment, it just felt like everything
we had envisioned disappeared in a flash. It’s like you’re writing a book, and you know you have some pages left to go, like one more chapter to write, and then … the book basically catches on fire and that’s it."
Surtain wrote about his football journey from Florida to the University of Alabama, and how it all brought him to Denver.
"Just being real with you, I gotta say, growing up in Plantation, Florida, and playing college ball in Tuscaloosa … I never in a million years would’ve thought I’d be feeling anything anywhere near that way about Denver, Colorado," Surtain joked. "Looking back on it now, and knowing what I know about this city, and how much there is to do here, and how many opportunities there are in Denver in terms of entertainment and food and everything else, I can’t help but laugh about how uninformed I was."
At the end of his letter, Surtain turned to the 2026 season. "I truly hope you all have really high expectations for our team this year, because I know that I do," Surtain wrote. "I can’t wait for us to take that next step … maximize our weapons, play complete games, start fast, build on last year, all of that. Plus, Bo’s back, and he’s looking better than ever. I see it every day at practice. That guy, I can’t even begin to tell you how special he is. And I’m not just talking about his arm or his accuracy or anything like that. I mean just as a human being. As a leader. He’s always positive. Always doing everything he can to get better. Always putting in the work and lifting everyone up.
"It’s funny, in some ways, I almost feel like this team … we’re kind of in the same situation we were in last year, where people are still thinking we somehow lucked into things, or that we weren’t as good as our record said we were. And that’s perfectly fine with us. Everyone on the outside … keep on doubting us all you want. But let me just tell you straight up: You’re making a big mistake if you’re trying to write off Denver.
"There’s a reason this city is so much higher up than everyone else’s."
Fans will also love this message from PS2: "Bo’s about to truly take off this season, and we’re all ready to follow his lead."
You can read Surtain's full letter on The Players' Tribune
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: Pat Surtain writes letter to Broncos' doubters in The Players’ Tribune
