Quarterback

Going into 2024, the Broncos looked like they could be one of the worst teams in the league. A failed trade for Russell Wilson cost them a pair of first and a pair of second round picks and, even though he wasn’t even on the roster anymore, Wilson was on the Broncos’ cap for 53 million in 2024. The Broncos also traded away a first and second round pick to get head coach Sean Payton, who didn’t seem to move the needle in his first season with the team in 2023. On top of that, the Broncos used another first round pick to draft Wilson’s replacement, Bo Nix, in the 2024 NFL Draft. With all of those resources spent on the quarterback and head coach, there wasn’t a lot left over for the rest of this roster.

However, head coach Sean Payton and his defensive coordinator Vance Joseph got the most out of this roster in 2024, including quarterback Bo Nix, who exceeded expectations as a rookie. The result is the Broncos made a surprise playoff appearance at 10-7 and, while they were blown out by the Bills in that playoff appearance, this team was clearly ahead of schedule. With their cap clearing out somewhat this off-season, the Broncos had some money to spend to fill out some holes on this roster.

There are some reasons to be concerned the Broncos might not be able to make it back to the post-season in 2025, even with the additions they made this off-season. For one, they figure to have more injuries, after having the 6th fewest adjusted games lost to injury of any team in the league last season. Their injury situation was even better than that suggests, as their top-4 players on offense and on defense in terms of PFF grade last season missed a combined two games, so what few injuries they had did not significantly impact their best players. The Broncos are also starting from a lower base point than their record suggests, ranking 12th in yards per play differential and 15th in first down rate differential, which is even worse if you take out their week 18 win over the Chiefs’ backups, in which the Broncos won the first down rate battle by 14.71% and the yards per play battle by 2.97. 

Beyond the Broncos’ off-season additions, if there is a reason to expect the Broncos to make it back to the post-season, despite the aforementioned things working against them, it is continued development from Bo Nix. Not only did Nix complete 66.3% of his passes for an average of 6.66 YPA, 29 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions as a rookie, ranking 19th among quarterbacks on PFF with a 76.4 grade, but he completed 69.7% of his passes for an average of 7.37 YPA, 24 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions in his final 10 regular season starts, while receiving a PFF grade of 84.6 over that stretch, 11th among quarterbacks. He could easily continue developing and be better overall in his second season in the league in 2025.

Nix will continue being backed up by veteran journeyman Jarrett Stidham, who has made just four starts in six seasons in the league, with a 78.3 QB rating in his career. Even as far as backup options, Stidham is an underwhelming one, so the Broncos would be in trouble if Nix missed more than a couple games this season. Fortunately, he doesn’t have a significant history of injury issues. As long as that continues in 2025, there is a good chance this season is better than last season for him.

Grade: B+

Receiving Corps

One of the big free agent additions for the Jaguars this off-season was tight end Evan Engram. Engram has averaged 1.42 yards per route run in his career and averaged 1.51 yards per route run last season, but he missed 8 games due to injury, which limited him to a 47/365/1 slash line, and now he is going into his age 31 season, so he could start to decline in 2025. However, it wouldn’t be hard for him to be an upgrade over what the Broncos had at tight end last season, when none of their tight ends surpassed 200 yards receiving and the tight end position overall accounted for just 13.1% of the team’s targets, 2nd fewest of any team in the league. The tight end position was a big part of Sean Payton’s offense when he was with the Saints, so I would expect Engram to have a high usage in 2025, even if he’s not quite at his best.

All three of the tight ends who played significant snaps for the Broncos last season, Adam Trautman (572 snaps), Nate Adkins (419 snaps), and Lucas Krull (301 snaps) remain on the roster, but they will obviously play a smaller role in 2025, if they play any role at all. None of them will play a big role in the passing game, with Trautman, Adkins, and Krull averaging 0.97, 0.87, and 0.70 yards per route run in their careers respectively, but Trautman and Adkins were primarily involved as blockers last season and could continue seeing roles in that aspect. 

The Broncos only had one wide receiver with more than 502 receiving yards last season, but that wasn’t because they didn’t have good wide receivers. Instead, it was because only one of their wide receivers played an every down role, with four others rotating snaps. Courtland Sutton was their top receiver, turning 135 targets into a 81/1081/8 slash line with 1.84 yards per route run. In his career, he has a 1.66 yards per route run average and has exceeded 700 yards receiving in every healthy season of his career. Last season was only the second 1000+ yard season of his career, but it was also the first season of his career in which he had a decent quarterback. The bigger problem is he is now heading into his age 30 season and could start declining soon. He’ll likely remain an above average receiver for at least one more season, but he might not be quite as good as he was a year ago.

Of the four wide receivers who rotated snaps last season, two of them were significantly better than the other two, as Marvin Mims (297 snaps) and Devaughn Vele (448 snaps) averaged 2.57 and 1.51 yards per route run respectively, while Lil’Jordan Humphrey (545 snaps) and Troy Franklin (386 snaps) averaged 1.01 and 0.99 yards per route run respectively. In 2025, Humphrey is gone, but he was replaced by third round rookie Pat Bryant, so the Broncos could continue rotating wide receivers heavily, but they might be better off making Mims and Vele their primary #2 and #3 receiver and leaving Bryant and Franklin as reserves, even if Franklin is a 2024 4th round pick who could take a step forward in his second season in the league.

Vele is also a second year receiver, only being selected in the 7th round last season, but he well exceeded his draft slot as a rookie. He’s still pretty inexperienced and might not be able to translate last season’s promising season into a larger role, but he should at least be given a chance to. Mims, meanwhile, was a 2nd round pick in 2023 and hasn’t played more than a situational role yet, but he also averaged 1.54 yards per route run as a rookie before taking a step forward in his second season in the league in 2024. 

Mims probably wouldn’t be as efficient in a bigger role in 2025 as he was in a smaller role in 2024, but he could still be an above average #2 wide receiver even if he’s not quite as efficient. Massively talented and still only in his age 23 season, he has obvious breakout potential if he plays an expanded role this season. The Broncos may continue rotating these young wide receivers, but they would probably be better off not doing that. This receiving corps has a lot of upside, but it’s worth noting that their top wide receiver and top tight end are both on the wrong side of 30.

Grade: B+

Running Backs

Running backs were a big part of the Broncos’ passing game last season, as they ranked 5th in the NFL with 21.4% of their targets going to running backs. I would expect that number to come down this season, in part because the Broncos’ receiving corps should be better, but also in part because Javonte Williams, their top passing down back last season with 1.22 yards per route run, is no longer with the team. Williams has been replaced by 2nd round rookie RJ Harvey, who has some pass catching upside and who should be an upgrade as a runner over Williams, who averaged just 3.69 YPC on 139 carries as the lead back last season, but I wouldn’t expect Harvey to be quite as productive in the passing game as Williams was.

Even as a second round rookie, Harvey has a clear path to a big role in this backfield. Their other running back options are Audric Estime, a 2024 5th round pick who averaged 4.08 YPC on 76 carries with just 0.68 yards per route run as a rookie, and Jaleel McLaughlin, who has averaged 4.79 YPC in two seasons in the league, but only across 189 total carries and, at 5-7 187, it’s unlikely he’s capable of handling a significantly bigger workload than that. McLaughlin will likely remain involved as a change of pace back, but he’s not a candidate for a significant workload and the same is probably true of Estime, who was underwhelming overall as a rookie. Unless Harvey breaks out as a talented feature back right away, this is an underwhelming backfield.

Grade: B-

Offensive Line

The Broncos’ offensive line was the strength of their offense last season, ranking 1st in pass blocking grade and 11th in run blocking grade on PFF. The good news is they return all five starters from a year ago. The bad news is two of their starters are on the wrong side of 30 and could decline in 2025, perhaps significantly, as left tackle Garett Bolles is in his age 33 season and right tackle Mike McGlinchey is in his age 31 season. They had PFF grades of 78.8 and 74.0 last season, but it’s pretty unlikely that both are as good again in 2025 as they were in 2024, given their ages.

Bolles has finished above 70 on PFF in all eight seasons in the league (116 starts), so he’s starting from a pretty high base point and would likely remain a solid starter at the very least even if he declines, but any significant decline from him would have a noticeable effect on this offensive line. McGlinchey hasn’t been quite as good in his career, but he’s finished above 65 on PFF in all seven seasons in the league (98 starts), including four seasons above 70. He’s a couple years younger than Bolles, so he’s less likely to decline and, even if he does, he could remain a solid starter, but, like with Bolles, any significant decline from him would have a noticeable effect on this offensive line.

This offensive line should still be pretty good though. Right guard Quinn Meinerz was their best offensive lineman last season and, still in his prime in his age 27 season, he should continue dominating in 2025. A 3rd round pick in 2021, Meinerz has finished above 65 on PFF in all four seasons in the league and has developed into one of the best guards in the league over the past two seasons, ranking 3rd and 2nd respectively among guards on PFF with PFF grades of 83.7 and 88.2 respectively, while making all 34 starts. He should continue playing at a similar level in 2025.

Center Luke Wattenberg and left guard Ben Powers were their weakest starters last season, with PFF grades of 63.3 and 63.9 respectively. Wattenberg was a 5th round pick in 2022 and only played 129 mediocre snaps in his first two seasons in the league prior to last season, so he’s a one-year wonder in terms of even being a decent starter and could regress somewhat in 2025. Powers, on the other hand, is at least more proven, making 63 starts over the past four seasons and finishing above 60 on PFF in all four seasons, but he’s maxed out with a 66.3 PFF grade, so he hasn’t shown much upside. Already in his age 29 season, Powers is who he is at this stage of his career and will likely have a similar season again in 2025.

The Broncos’ depth last season also played pretty well when needed, as backup center/guard Alex Forsyth had a 65.2 PFF grade in four starts and backup tackles Matt Peart and Alex Palczewski had PFF grades of 67.4 and 63.4 in two starts and three starts respectively. Forsyth and Palczewski were 7th round picks and undrafted free agents in 2023 and didn’t play a snap as a rookie, so they’re both very unproven, but they did at least flash some upside last season. 

Peart is the most experienced of the bunch, making nine starts in five seasons in the league since going in the 3rd round in 2020, and he’s been decent, if inconsistent, with PFF grades above 60 on PFF in three of five seasons in the league. They might not be as good again in 2025 if forced into significant action, but they’re not bad depth. This offensive line is likely to not be quite as good as it was last year, but this is still a well above average group.

Grade: B+

Edge Defenders

The Broncos’ defense was the strength of this team last season, ranking 3rd in yards per play allowed and 6th in first down rate allowed, as opposed to the offense ranking 20th in yards per play and 22nd in first down rate. One very impressive aspect of this defense was their pass rush, which led the NFL with 63 sacks, nine more than any other team. Starting edge defenders Jonathan Cooper and Nik Bonitto both had double digit sacks, with totals of 10.5 sacks, 11 hits, and a 13.0% pressure rate and 13.5 sacks, 11 hits, and a 14.0% pressure rate respectively, while receiving PFF grades of 71.8 and 77.5 respectively. 

For both players, it was a career best year, especially for Bonitto, who had PFF grades of just 52.4 and 64.0 on snap counts of just 357 and 524 respectively in his first two seasons in the league prior to last season. Bonitto was a 2nd round pick in 2022 and has always had upside, so it’s possible he has permanently turned a corner, but he also could regress a little bit in 2025, though I wouldn’t expect him to regress all the way back to his 2022-2023 form. Cooper, meanwhile, is a 2021 7th round pick who has finished above 60 on PFF in all four seasons in the league, though he only combined for 13 sacks, 17 hits, and a 11.0% pressure rate in 47 games in his first three seasons in the league, so last season was definitely his best season in that aspect. Like Bonitto, he could regress a little, but he also could have permanently turned a corner.

Jonah Elliss (436 snaps) and Dondrea Tillman (243 snaps) were their top reserves last season and had different results. Elliss had 5 sacks in a part-time role, but only added one quarterback hit and a 8.3% pressure rate, while Tillman also had 5 sacks, but added 3 hits, and a 13.7% pressure rate. Both were rookies, but Elliss went in the 3rd round, while Tillman went undrafted, so Elliss may still have the higher upside long-term and could continue playing a bigger role than Tillman. Elliss could take a step forward in his second season in the league, while Tillman has yet to show enough that we can ignore that the whole league passed on him in the draft just a year ago. The Broncos also added Que Robinson in the 4th round of this year’s draft to give themselves some more depth, but he would likely need at least one, if not multiple significant injuries ahead of him on the depth chart to play a significant role in year one. This is a talented position group overall. 

Grade: B+

Interior Defenders

The Broncos also got a great pass rush from the interior. John Franklin-Myers and Zach Allen, their top-2 interior defenders, had their issues against the run, but as pass rushers they had 7 sacks, 10 hits, and a 14.4% pressure rate and 8.5 sacks, 31 hits, and a 11.7% pressure rate respectively. For both players, it was a career best year, but both have been good pass rushers in the past as well, as Allen combined for 10.5 sacks, 32 hits, and a 9.6% pressure rate in 30 games from 2022-2023, while Franklin-Myers combined for 17.5 sacks, 43 hits, and a 13.5% pressure rate in 65 games from 2020-2023. Both are still on the right side of 30, in their age 28 and age 29 seasons respectively so, while they might not quite repeat the best season of their career again in 2025, both should remain high level pass rushers.

Malcolm Roach (489 snaps) also was a useful pass rusher as a reserve, with 2.5 sacks, 5 hits, and a 9.1% pressure rate. That was out of character for him though, as he finished above 60 on PFF in pass rush grade and in overall grade in three of his first four seasons in the league prior to last season, on an average of just 258 snaps per season, while managing just a 5.3% pressure rate across those four seasons. It’s very possible the 2020 undrafted free agent proves last season to be a little bit of a fluke, but he’s not a bad reserve option to have. 

With Franklin-Myers, Allen, and Roach all being better pass rushers than run defenders, DJ Jones (465 snaps) was probably the Broncos’ best interior defender against the run last season and he added a 6.7% pressure rate as well, leading to a decent overall PFF grade of 64.1. Jones has mostly been a solid rotational player in recent years, exceeding 60 on PFF in five of the past six seasons on an average of 478 snaps per season, but he’s now going into his age 30 season and could start to decline soon. 

The Broncos also have Jordan Jackson, but he struggled mightily with a 40.5 PFF grade across 310 snaps last season in the first action of the 2022 6th round pick’s career. The Broncos return all five of their top interior defenders from a year ago, but with Roach being a one-year wonder, Jones going into his age 30 season, and Jackson struggling, the Broncos felt they needed more depth and added Sai’Vion Jones in the 3rd round of the draft and he has a good chance to earn a reserve role in year one. This is a deep and talented position group.

Grade: A-

Linebackers

The Broncos’ top-2 linebackers in terms of snaps played last season were Cody Barton (1,053 snaps) and Justin Strnad (676 snaps). Barton (66.1 PFF grade) left as a free agent, while Strnad (55.5 PFF grade) struggled last season, but the Broncos do get Alex Singleton back after a torn ACL cost him all but 190 snaps in three games last season and they added Dre Greenlaw in free agency on a 3-year, 31.5 million dollar deal. They figure to be the starters this season.

Both Singleton and Greenlaw are coming off injury plagued seasons though, as Greenlaw was also limited to 34 snaps by a torn achilles last season. Greenlaw has finished above 65 on PFF in four straight seasons, with two seasons over 80, but he’s also missed 33 games due to injury over that stretch. Still only in his age 28 season, he has a lot of potential if he’s healthy, but that’s not a guarantee. Singleton, meanwhile, doesn’t have the same injury history as Greenlaw, but he’s going into his age 32 season and doesn’t quite have the same upside as Greenlaw either, though he has finished above 60 on PFF with a maximum PFF grade of 79.1 in 2022. He could have another solid season as an every down player, but that’s not a guarantee.

Strnad remains as a reserve, but he’s never had any success. The 2020 5th round pick played just 5 snaps between 2022-2023, after struggling mightily with a 32.0 PFF grade across 314 snaps in the first action of his career in 2021, so last season was actually the best season of his career, even though he struggled. He could face competition for the top reserve role from Drew Sanders, who was a 3rd round pick in 2023, but has yet to live up to the billing, struggling across just 278 snaps in two seasons in the league. Sanders could still have some untapped upside, but that’s not a guarantee. The Broncos’ lack of depth at linebacker is a concern, given that the starters are coming off of lost seasons due to injury, but this group does have upside if the starters stay healthy and play at close to their best.

Grade: B

Secondary

The Broncos got great seasons from a pair of defensive backs, cornerback Pat Surtain and safety Brandon Jones, who finished with PFF grades of 85.6 and 86.7 respectively, while making 16 starts each. For Surtain, this performance was not surprising, as the 2021 9th overall pick also had a 86.8 PFF grade in 2022, though he has been a bit inconsistent, with PFF grades of 66.1 and 69.0 in 2021 and 2023 respectively. Despite that inconsistency, Surtain has as high of an upside as any cornerback in the league, still only going into his age 25 season.

For Jones, last season’s dominant performance came out of nowhere, as he had never played more than 644 snaps in a season prior to last season, with a career best PFF grade of 76.8 in 2023, across just 464 snaps, and three seasons below 70 out of four seasons in the league. Jones is still in his prime in his age 27 season, but there is a good chance last season proves to be a fluke. That being said, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he remained at least an above average starter, even if he’s not quite as good as he was last season.

The rest of this secondary was not nearly as good last season, as #2 and #3 cornerbacks Riley Moss and Ja’Quan McMillian finished with PFF grades of 61.2 and 59.9 respectively across snap counts of 836 and 870 respectively, while their other starting safety, PJ Locke, had a 57.5 PFF grade across 1,000 snaps. To improve the rest of this group, the Broncos signed safety Talanoa Hufanga to a 3-year, 39 million dollar deal and used their first round pick on cornerback Jahdae Barron. 

Hufanga will take over at safety next to Jones. The 2021 5th round pick had a 68.8 PFF grade across 1,029 snaps in 2022 and seemed to be on his way to an even better season in 2023, when he had a 70.5 PFF grade, but his season was cut short (577 snaps in 10 games) by a torn ACL and he was not the same upon his return in 2024, when he was limited to just 308 snaps in seven games and had just a 57.8 PFF grade. Now another year removed from the injury and still only going into his age 26 season, Hufanga has obvious bounce back potential if he’s healthy. It wouldn’t be hard for him to be a significant upgrade over Locke, who is now the primary reserve, a role he was much more comfortable in prior to last season, when he averaged just 137 snaps per season in his first five seasons in the league.

Barron, meanwhile, will compete for a starting job right away at cornerback and will likely beat out either Moss or McMillan. Moss was a 2023 3rd round pick, but he only played 25 nondescript snaps as a rookie before being underwhelming as a starter in 2024. He still could have untapped upside, going into his age 25 season and his third season in the league, but he shouldn’t be guaranteed a starting job. McMillan, meanwhile, went undrafted in 2022, played just 68 snaps as a rookie, and seemed to breakout with a 68.4 PFF grade across 669 snaps in 2023, before regressing in 2024. Barron will likely be an upgrade over whoever he replaces in the starting lineup. Surtain and Jones might not be quite as good as they were last season, but the additions of Hufanga and Barron should offset any regression from them.

Grade: A-

Kicker

Will Lutz ranked 8th among kickers with 7.51 points above average last season, but he’s been inconsistent in the past, including three straight seasons prior to last season when he finished below average, costing his teams 14.95 points across the three seasons. Lutz is now going into his age 31 season, which isn’t over the hill for a kicker, but he’s not guaranteed to be anywhere near as good in 2025 as he was in 2024, given his history of inconsistency.

Grade: B

Conclusion

The Broncos were not as good as their final record suggested last season, with a yards per play differential of +0.30 and a first down rate differential of +0.52%, and they were one of the healthiest teams in the league, with the 6th fewest adjusted games lost to injury in the league, which is not guaranteed to happen again. However, they got better as last season went on, as rookie quarterback Bo Nix developed, which could continue into this season, and they made a few significant additions this off-season like Evan Engram, Dee Greenlaw, and Talanoa Hufanga, without having any losses that were as significant. All in all, the Broncos at least have a good chance to make it back to the post-season, though I don’t think they are quite good enough to be true Super Bowl contenders.

Prediction: 9-8, 3rd in AFC West

Quarterbacks

The Broncos won the Super Bowl at the end of the 2015 season, but they haven’t made the playoffs since, the second longest streak of missing the post-season in the league. The quarterback position has been a big part of the problem. Peyton Manning retired after that Super Bowl victory and the Broncos subsequently started eleven different quarterbacks over the next six seasons, none of whom had any sustained success. Fed up with their quarterback carousel, the Broncos made a splash move during the 2022 off-season, acquiring veteran Super Bowl winning quarterback Russell Wilson from the Seahawks in a trade that cost the Broncos two first round picks, two second round picks, and a trio of players.

The Broncos felt Wilson was the missing piece on a Super Bowl contending team, but instead Wilson ended up regressing mightily, completing just 63.3% of his passes for an average of 7.09 YPA, 42 touchdowns, and 19 interceptions in 30 starts, while going just 11-19, with no playoff appearances. Making matters worse, the Broncos gave Wilson a new 5-year, 242.5 million dollar deal when they acquired him. This off-season, the Broncos moved on from Wilson, despite owing him 39 million guaranteed, most of which they will still have to pay him, even after Wilson signed with the Steelers. Releasing Wilson this off-season ensures the Broncos won’t have to pay him in 2025, when he would have been guaranteed 37 million had he stayed on the roster in 2024, but the Broncos are still paying a big salary in 2024 to a player who isn’t even on their roster.

Still having to pay Wilson’s salary, the Broncos lacked the financial flexibility to add another starting caliber quarterback this off-season and were basically forced to choose between using a high draft pick on a cost-controlled young quarterback or starting a backup caliber quarterback like Jarrett Stidham, Wilson’s backup in 2023, who has just a 78.3 QB rating on 197 pass attempts in five seasons in the league. The Broncos went with the former option, but the problem was five quarterbacks were drafted in the eleven picks before them in this year’s draft, forcing the Broncos to unsettle for Bo Nix, the 6th quarterback in this draft class. Nix was a productive college player, but doesn’t have elite physical traits and is already going into his age 24 season. Had there not been an early run on quarterbacks in this year’s draft, Nix could have easily been a second or third round pick.

Including the two first round picks they gave up for Wilson, the Broncos have now used their last three first round picks on quarterbacks, plus a pair of second round picks they gave up for Wilson. The Broncos were also missing their second round pick in this year’s draft from a trade for head coach Sean Payton, who disappointed in his first season in Denver. Wilson still getting paid most of his salary in 2024 also made it tough for the Broncos to build this team around the quarterback, after finishing just 24th in DVOA in 2023. The result is a roster that looks like one of the worst in the league. Unless Nix or Stidham can outperform expectations, the Broncos also have one of the worst quarterback situations in the league. The Broncos may be better set up for the future now as a result of ditching Wilson and drafting Nix, but, especially in the loaded AFC, the Broncos look like an extreme longshot to end their post-season drought in 2024.

Grade: C

Receiving Corps

With limited financial flexibility, the Broncos moved on from wide receiver Jerry Jeudy this off-season, trading him to the Browns for just a pair of late round picks to get out of the 12.987 million they would have owed him this season. Jeudy never lived up to being selected in the first round in 2019, but he’ll still be missed, as he was only slightly behind the team leader in terms of receiving yards and yards per route run at the wide receiver position, with a 54/758/2 slash line and a 1.65 yards per route run average.

Courtland Sutton was the team leader at the wide receiver position with a 1.66 yards per route run average and a 59/777/10 slash line. Sutton seemingly had a breakout season in his second season in the league in 2019 with a 72/1112/6 slash line and a 2.08 yards per route run average, but he missed almost all of 2020 with injury and hasn’t been the same in three seasons since, averaging 794 yards per season, while totaling a 1.54 yards per route run average. Now going into his age 29 season, Sutton is unlikely to bounce back to his 2019 form and is an underwhelming #1 wide receiver, but he’s still a solid wide receiver overall.

To replace Jerry Jeudy, the Broncos will give more playing time to 2023 2nd round pick Marvin Mims and they also signed veteran Josh Reynolds to a 2-year, 9 million dollar deal. Mims didn’t play much as a rookie (384 snaps), but he had a decent 1.54 yards per route run average and he has the upside to translate that to a larger role in his second season in the league in 2024, so he might not be much of a downgrade from Jeudy. Reynolds, meanwhile, is a mediocre veteran with an average of 1.31 yards per route run and 494 yards per season over the past three seasons, but he should be an upgrade over Brandon Johnson (343 snaps) and Lil’Jordan Humphrey (428 snaps), who combined to average just 1.02 yards per route run last season.

Both Johnson and Humphrey will be reserves at best this season, if they even make the roster. Undrafted free agents in 2019 and 2022 respectively, they have averaged just 0.94 and 1.01 yards per route run respectively in their careers. Most likely the Broncos’ top reserves will be 4th round rookie Troy Franklin and veteran Tim Patrick, who is coming off of two straight seasons missed due to separate injuries. Tim Patrick has a career 1.48 yards per route run average and had slash lines of 51/742/6 and 53/734/5 in his last two healthy seasons, but it’s unclear how effective he’ll be after two straight major injuries, especially since he’s going into his age 31 season now.

At tight end, Adam Trautman started for most of the season, but he struggled mightily as a receiver, with just a 22/204/3 slash line and a 0.59 yards per route run average. He’s been better than that in the past, but not much, with an average of 0.96 yards per route run and 82 catches in 60 games in four seasons in the league. Backup tight end Lucas Krull wasn’t much better, with an average of 0.73 yards per route run in the first significant action of the 2022 undrafted free agent’s career.

Fortunately, the Broncos are getting Greg Dulcich back from an injury plagued season and he’s a much better receiving option, as the 2022 3rd round pick had a 1.30 yards per route run average and a 33/411/2 slash line as a rookie, before being limited to 32 snaps last season. He should be the primary receiving tight end, with Trautman serving more as a blocker, an aspect of the game he’s much better in. This is still an underwhelming receiving corps though.

Grade: B-

Offensive Line

The Broncos were also unable to keep center Lloyd Cushenberry this off-season, watching him signing with the Titans on a 4-year, 50 million dollar deal after a 2023 season in which he made all 17 starts and finished with a 73.2 PFF grade. Not only is that a big loss, but the Broncos also didn’t really do anything to replace him. Instead, they will have a three way competition for the starting job between 2022 5th round pick Luke Wattenberg, who has played just 129 career snaps, 2023 7th round pick Alex Forsyth, who didn’t play a snap as a rookie, and veteran Sam Mustipher, their only off-season addition, who has mostly been underwhelming in 42 starts in five seasons in the league with the Bears and Ravens. 

By virtue of being the only one with experience, Mustipher is probably the favorite for the job, but it’s very possible that multiple of these players end up making starts as the Broncos try to find an answer at the position, an answer that probably isn’t on this roster. The rest of this offensive line stays the same from a year ago, but they’re unlikely to have the same health as they did a year ago, when those four combined to miss just one game, and they really lack depth behind them, which could easily get exposed this season when injuries strike. Also of concern is the fact that their tackles are both on the wrong side of 30, with left tackle Garett Bolles going into his age 32 season and right tackle Mike McGlinchey going into his age 30 season. 

Neither tackle has shown signs of decline yet, but both could start declining in 2024. Bolles has finished with a PFF grade above 70 in all seven seasons in the league (99 starts), while McGlinchey has finished above 60 in all six seasons in the league, including three seasons over 70, so both are starting from a pretty high base point, but it would still noticeably hurt this offensive line if one or both wasn’t as good as a year ago. If either of them miss time in 2024, they would likely be replaced by either Quinn Bailey, a 2019 undrafted free agent who has played just 279 mediocre snaps in his career, or Matt Peart, a 2020 3rd round pick who has been middling at best in 7 career starts.

At guard, the Broncos have Ben Powers and Quinn Meinerz on the left and right side respectively. Powers is only a marginal starter, making 53 starts in the past four seasons with PFF grades of 59.4, 66.3, 62.9, and 61.5, but Meinerz is one of the best guards in the league and arguably the Broncos’ best player overall. A 3rd round pick in 2021, Meinerz has gotten better in every season in the league, going from a 67.4 PFF grade as a rookie to a 77.7 PFF grade in his second season to a 83.7 PFF grade last season. 

Still only in his age 26 season, I would expect Meinerz to continue playing at a high level in 2024, even if he might not quite match last season’s dominant performance. If either Powers or Meinerz misses time, the Broncos would probably turn to Calvin Throckmorton, a 2020 undrafted free agent who has made 27 starts over the past three seasons, but who has posted PFF grades of 42.4, 38.4, and 47.9 over those three seasons. The Broncos had an above average offensive line a year ago, but they lost center Lloyd Cushenberry, they probably won’t have the same health as they had a year ago, their tackles are on the wrong side of 30, and their depth is a big problem, so I would expect this offensive line to be significantly worse than it was a year ago, when they ranked 5th on PFF in pass block grade and 4th in run block grade.

Grade: B

Running Backs

Javonte Williams was the Broncos lead back last season and struggled mightily, with an average of 3.57 YPC on 217 carries. He was in his first year back from a torn ACL and the 2021 2nd round pick had averaged 4.43 YPC on 250 carries in the year and a half before his injury, so he has some bounce back potential in 2024, another year removed from that ACL tear. Williams also was useful as a receiver last season, with a 47/228/2 slash line and a 1.34 yards per route run average, in line with his career average of 1.24. However, there is still going to be an open competition for roles in this backfield, so it wouldn’t surprise me if Williams saw a smaller role in 2024.

Williams had a passing down role last season, but Samaje Perine was the primary passing down back and was more effective. Perine only had 53 carries, taking advantage of defenses expecting the pass to average 4.49 YPC on those carries, but he added a 50/455/0 slash line and averaged 2.09 yards per route run as a receiver. He only has a career 1.35 yards per route run average, so he probably won’t be as effective in that aspect again in 2024, but there’s a good chance he continues being the primary passing down back. He only has 454 carries in seven seasons in the league though (64.9 carries per season) and probably isn’t a realistic option for a bigger role as a runner.

Jaleel McLaughin flashed potential as a change of pace option last season, despite being an undrafted rookie, averaging 5.39 YPC on 76 carries, while adding a 31/160/2 slash line and 1.63 yards per route run as a receiver. He’s undersized (5-7 187) and unproven and probably not a real candidate for a big workload, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he saw more work as a runner and a pass catcher in year two. The Broncos also used a 5th round pick on Audric Estime and he could earn a role in this backfield even as a rookie. Most likely, Williams will remain the lead back, Perine the passing down back, McLaughlin the change of pace back, and Estime will be a deep reserve, but playing time is up for grabs in an unsettled position group, after averaging 4.01 YPC as a team last season (21st in the NFL), despite an offensive line was one of the best in the league in run blocking

Grade: B

Interior Defenders

With limited financial flexibility, their first round pick being spent on a quarterback, and no second round pick after the Sean Payton trade last off-season, the Broncos had very limited avenues to improve their defense this off-season, a big problem considering the Broncos finished last season 30th in defensive DVOA. In fact, in terms of snaps played, the Broncos brought back 8 of their top-12 on defense from a year ago and most of the players they didn’t retain were solid players who either weren’t adequately replaced or who were at least not upgraded on.

The exception is at the interior defender position, where the Broncos let go of Jonathan Harris, who had a 52.0 PFF grade on 529 snaps in 2023, and upgraded on him by acquiring veteran John Franklin-Myers from the Jets in a trade for a late round pick. Franklin-Myers was then given a restructured 2-year, 15 million dollar deal after being acquired. Franklin-Myers has lined up on the edge and on the interior throughout his career and has consistently gotten pressure regardless of where he’s lined up, totaling 17.5 sacks, 43 hits, and a 13.5% pressure rate over the past four seasons, while posting PFF grades of 71.5, 80.3, 82.6, and 70.4 on snap counts of 500, 717, 643, and 626 respectively. He’s not as good against the run and he probably won’t be as efficient of a pass rusher with the Broncos since he’ll be lining up primarily on the interior, where it’s tougher to get consistent pressure, but he should still be a very useful interior pass rusher and a big upgrade over Jonathan Harris.

Along with Franklin-Myers, Zach Allen and DJ Jones will also play significant roles at the interior defender spot. Allen and Jones were added as free agents in the 2023 off-season and 2022 off-season respectively on contracts worth 45.75 million over 3 years and 30 million over 3 years respectively. Allen lived up to his contract in his first season in Denver last season, with a 71.9 PFF grade on 913 snaps, his second straight above average season (72.7 grade on 660 snaps in 2022), after the 2019 3rd round pick struggled in his first three seasons in the league, finishing below 60 on PFF in all three seasons. Only in his age 27 season, Allen seems to have permanently turned a corner as a player and should remain an above average every down player. He’s at his best as a pass rusher, with 10.5 sacks, 32 hits, and a 9.6% pressure rate in 30 games over the past two seasons, but he’s also a capable run defender.

Jones, on the other hand, has been a bit of a disappointment in two years in Denver, with a 63.6 PFF grade on 558 snaps in 2022 and a 56.2 PFF grade on 568 snaps in 2023. He had a 73.7 PFF grade on 654 snaps in his final season in San Francisco in 2021, which is why he got that big contract from the Broncos, but he looks like a one-year wonder in terms of playing at that level, finishing below 70 on PFF in his other six seasons in the league and below 60 in three of those six seasons. He’s been a decent pass rusher in two seasons in Denver, with 4 sacks, 3 hits, and a 7.1% pressure rate in 31 games, but he’s consistently struggled against the run. I would expect more of the same from him in 2024.

Franklin-Myers, Allen, and Jones figure to play the vast majority of the snaps at the interior defender position for the Broncos in 2024, but if any of them get hurt, the Broncos would be in trouble because their depth is very suspect behind their top-3. Matt Henningsen is a 2022 6th round pick who has played 456 mediocre snaps in two seasons in the league. Malcolm Roach is a 2020 undrafted free agent who has played just 258 snaps per season in four seasons in the league and has mostly struggled, finishing below 50 on PFF in three of those four seasons. Angelo Blackson is going into his 10th season in the league, but has only once finished above 60 on PFF, way back in 2017, while averaging 374 snaps per season, and now he heads into his age 32 season and is unlikely to improve. Adding John Franklin-Myers improves this group and he and Zach Allen should be a solid duo together inside, but there are still concerns with this group overall.

Grade: B

Edge Defenders

Not much changes at the edge defender position, which is not a bad thing because their top-3 of Jonathon Cooper (836 snaps), Nik Bonitto (524 snaps), and Baron Browning (445 snaps) was pretty solid a year ago. The Broncos also add third round rookie Jonah Elliss to the mix. He might not play a big role as a rookie, but it wouldn’t be hard for him to be an upgrade over Ronnie Perkins, who had a 38.9 PFF grade in the first 149 snaps of his 3-year career in 2023.

Baron Browning played the fewest snaps of the Broncos top-3 in 2023, but he was the best of the bunch with a 74.5 PFF grade and only played so few snaps because he missed seven games. His absence was noticeable, as the Broncos were noticeably better on defense when he was on the field. He was at his best against the run, but also was a very effective pass rusher, with 4.5 sacks, 5 hits, and a 14.2% pressure rate. A 3rd round pick in 2021, Browning wasn’t as good in his first two seasons in the league, with PFF grades of 54.9 and 55.3 on snap counts of 528 and 569 respectively, so he could regress in 2024, but he’s also only in his age 25 season, so he might have permanently turned a corner as a player and it’s possible he could be even better in his 4th season in the league in 2024.

Cooper and Bonitto were not as good against the run as Browning, but both were effective pass rushers, with Cooper totaling 8.5 sacks, 6 hits, and a 13.1% pressure rate and Bonitto totaling 8 sacks, 13 hits, and a 17.0% pressure rate. A 7th round pick in 2021, Cooper was not as good in his first two seasons in the league, with a combined 9.1% pressure rate, so it’s possible he regresses, but he’s also still relatively young in his age 26 season, so it’s possible he’s permanently turned a corner. 

Bonitto, meanwhile, was a 2nd round pick in 2022 and struggled with a 52.4 PFF grade on 357 snaps as a rookie, but he too is young in his age 25 season and could have permanently turned a corner. Browning, Cooper, Bonitto are all one-year wonders in terms of playing at the level they played at least season, but they’re also all pretty young and could continue playing at a similar level to a year ago and the Broncos added extra young depth with third round rookie Jonah Elliss. This is a solid position group overall.

Grade: B+

Linebackers

In the linebacking corps, the big change is the Broncos lost Josey Jewell, who signed with the Panthers on a 3-year, 18.75 million, and replaced him with Cody Barton on a 1-year, 2.5 million dollar deal, which should be a noticeable downgrade. While Jewell had a solid 67.2 PFF grade on 796 snaps last season, Barton had a 53.9 PFF grade on 844 snaps and has finished below 60 on PFF in four of five seasons in the league. Even in his best season in 2022, when he had a 63.7 PFF grade on 894 snaps, he still would have been a downgrade from how Jewell performed a year ago.

Barton will start next to Alex Singleton, who will remain in an every down role after playing 1,089 snaps in 2023. Singleton is a good run defender, finishing above 60 on PFF in run defense grade in four straight seasons and above 70 on PFF in run defense grade in three straight seasons, but he struggles in pass coverage, finishing below 60 on PFF in coverage grade in three of the past four seasons, including 2023, when he had a 78.2 run defense grade, but a 42.9 pass defense grade, leading to an overall 61.2 grade. Now going into his age 31 season, Singleton could start to decline even as a run defender and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he finished the season as a below average overall every down linebacker.

For depth behind their two every down linebackers, the Broncos have Jonas Griffith and Drew Sanders. Griffith, a 2020 undrafted free agent, flashed potential with a 69.1 PFF grade on 255 snaps in his second season in the league in 2021, but he fell to 52.9 on 336 snaps in 2022 and then missed all of 2023 with injury, so he’s a pretty underwhelming reserve option. Sanders, meanwhile, was a 3rd round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, but struggled mightily with a 37.2 PFF grade on 260 snaps as a rookie and is questionable for the start of the season after an off-season injury. Overall, this is a pretty underwhelming linebacking corps.

Grade: C+

Secondary

The Broncos lost a couple starters in the secondary, releasing safety Justin Simmons ahead of a 14.5 million dollar salary in 2024 and not re-signing cornerback Fabian Moreau as a free agent. To replace them, the Broncos signed safety Brandon Jones to a 3-year, 20 million dollar deal and cornerback Levi Wallace to a 1-year, 1.3 million dollar deal. Simmons had a 67.9 PFF grade in 15 starts last season, but he was heading into his age 31 season, so it’s understandable the Broncos moved on and signed a cheaper, younger replacement. 

Jones has only started 30 of the 54 games he’s played in four seasons in the league and he was mediocre in his first three seasons in the league, with PFF grades of 60.8, 53.4, and 61.1, before having a mini breakout year with a 76.8 PFF grade on 464 snaps in 2023 (6 starts in 16 games). It’s unclear if he can translate that to a starting role in 2024 and I would expect him to at least regress somewhat in a bigger role, but he’s only in his age 26 season and is a former 3rd round pick, so he at least has upside.

Moreau, meanwhile, started the final 11 games of last season and had a decent 62.4 PFF grade. Wallace isn’t a downgrade from him, but he isn’t really an upgrade either. Wallace has started 63 of 76 games played over the past five seasons with mostly middling results, finishing with PFF grades of 68.6, 60.1, 66.5, 62.8, and 57.8 respectively. He’s still only in his age 29 season, so he could continue having similar results in 2024. 

Wallace will start outside opposite #1 cornerback Pat Surtain, with Ja’Quan McMillan on the slot in sub packages. Surtain, a first round pick in 2021, looked like one of the best cornerbacks in the league in 2022, finishing with a 86.8 PFF grade, but he fell to a 69.0 grade in 2023, in line with his 66.1 grade as a rookie in 2021. Still only in his age 24 season, Surtain has a huge upside long-term and could easily bounce back and be one of the best cornerbacks in the league in 2024 and beyond, but that’s not a guarantee. 

McMillan, meanwhile, went undrafted in 2023, but had a 68.4 PFF grade as a rookie on 669 snaps. It’s only been a year since he went completely undrafted, so it’s possible he could regress in 2024, but there’s also a good chance he remains a solid slot cornerback. Behind their top-3 cornerbacks, the Broncos have Riley Moss, a 2023 3rd round pick who played 25 snaps as a rookie, and Damari Mathis, a 2022 4th round pick who had a decent rookie year with a 65.6 PFF grade on 794 snaps, before regressing mightily to a 35.2 PFF grade on 440 snaps in 2023. Both Moss and Mathis have decent upside and should provide solid depth.

At safety, Jones will start opposite PJ Locke, who took over as the starter mid-season when Kareem Jackson was suspended, benched, and released. Locke had a solid 64.0 PFF grade 538 snaps last season, but the 2019 undrafted free agent is still very inexperienced, having played just 145 defensive snaps in his career prior to last season. It’s possible he could continue being a decent starter over the course of a full season, but it also wouldn’t surprise me if he struggled with his expanded, season-long role.

The Broncos don’t have a choice but to start Locke because their other options are poor. Caden Sterns, a 2021 5th round pick, has played just 587 snaps in three seasons in the league, with just 2 snaps last season, while Delarrin Turner-Yell, a 2022 5th round pick, struggled mightily with a 40.9 PFF grade on 212 snaps in the first real defensive action of his career in 2023, after playing just one snap as a rookie. Both have theoretical upside, but both would almost definitely struggle if forced into a starting role by injuries ahead of them on the depth chart. This secondary has one top end talent in Patrick Surtain, but the rest of the group is pretty questionable.

Grade: B

Conclusion

The Broncos spent their 2022 and 2023 first and second round picks on a quarterback who is no longer on the roster, but will still collect about 38 million from the Broncos in 2024. They also gave up a first round pick (originally acquired when they traded away Bradley Chubb) and a second round pick for head coach Sean Payton, who has yet to move the needle as a head coach. The Broncos then spent their first round pick in this year’s draft on a quarterback in Bo Nix who could have gone in the second round. The result is a roster that looks like one of the worst in the league and a quarterback who is highly unlikely to be able to overcome the limitations of the rest of this roster, especially in the loaded AFC.

Prediction: 3-14, 4th in AFC West