Broncos Urged to Allow CB Pat Surtain II Play Olympic Flag Football

Flag football was always coming to the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, but on Wednesday, the NFL owners greenlit the possible participation of their players. 

Several big names, like Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill, have previously lobbied for the opportunity to go for a once-in-a-lifetime gold medal in flag football. While the availability of certain players will always come to bear, NFL.com's Nick Shook took an early stab at who might form an ideal 10-man flag football lineup, tapping Denver Broncos All-Pro cornerback Patrick Surtain II for a chance to represent his country in 2028 on a condensed 50-yard field in the City of Angels

"The 2024 NFL Defensive Player of the Year earned the award with his blanket coverage skills, which are even more important in flag football. Drape Surtain over the opposition's best pass catcher and watch him erase its top weapon," Shook wrote, echoing our Erick Trickel.

Surtain's ability to relentlessly cover receivers makes him an ideal fit for the non-contact derivative of the game. After all, no offensive or defensive line distractions get in the way of the constant aerial bombardment of flag football. 

Surtain is also keen to morph into a wide receiver at some point during his phenomenal career trajectory, and were he to play in the Olympics, he might just get his opportunity to do so, and without worrying about keeping his head on a swivel. 

While the lack of tackling greatly reduces the likelihood of serious injury, it comes as no surprise to hear that the league will hash out the finer details of protecting its prime assets. That insurance policy strategy will include how financial settlements would work, but it will also cover the medical supervision on hand at games.

"We want the best possible health and safety standards, just like we do in a [NFL] game," Jeff Miller said, the NFL's executive VP for communication, public affairs and policy. "So, we want to talk to the players association about the fields, we want to talk to the governing body and others who may be in the business of regulating that to make sure that we get that right." 

Such due diligence will be welcomed by the owners and the fans in general, and the product would stand to benefit from it. Broncos Country would be absolutely devastated to be minus their star cornerback if Surtain were to somehow get injured pulling double duty in the Olympics.

Hopefully, the injury concerns can be mitigated moving forward, but it still doesn't account for the fact that Surtain would miss a large part of the Broncos' offseason training program in 2028. NFL training camps traditionally run during the same period — mid-to-late July — when the Olympics will be contested, so a clash of schedules would be unavoidable. 

Surtain may need an employer's letter to excuse his participation, but he's already well-versed in the Broncos' defensive scheme, so Denver most likely wouldn't lose too much sleep over that aspect of a potential Olympic participation. 

When you consider that only one player from each NFL team, and also one with international designation, will be allowed to participate in the Olympics, it might be sensible if teams were flexible in letting a guy compete.