State of the Franchise: Broncos Edition

Welcome back to State of the Franchise (a series inspired by NFL.com). In today’s analysis we will take an in-depth look at the Denver Broncos.

Here is some key information about the Broncos’ offseason moves so you can have them for reference as you read.

NFL Draft Picks:

Round 3: Pick 67 & 68 overall

Round 4: Pick 108

Round 5: Pick 139

Round 6: Pick 195

Key Additions:

OT Mike McGlinchey: 5 year, $87.5M deal

DL Zach Allen: 3 year, $45.75M deal

LB Alex Singleton: Re-signed on a 3 year, $18M deal

OG Ben Powers: 4 year, $52M deal

Key Departures:

DL Dre'Mont Jones:

- Signed with the Seattle Seahawks: 3 years, $51.5M deal

Analysis:

To put it plainly - this really feels like a make or break year for the Broncos. It is an understatement to say that last year was a disaster for Broncos country. Expectations were set for nothing short of a deep playoff run or possibly a Super Bowl appearance - which would’ve been their first since their 2016 win against the Cam Newton led Carolina Panthers. Long story short, absolutely everything that could’ve gone wrong, went wrong. The season started off on the wrong foot with the Seahawks getting revenge on their ex-QB in a 17-16 Hawks win sending the Broncos to 0-1. From there, questions started to arise about the legitimacy of the team and quite frankly, the Broncos did nothing to silence their critics. Their terrible season eventually ended in the firing of first year head coach Nathaniel Hackett.

Enough about the past, let's focus on the present. The Broncos paid a ton to hire well respected head coach Sean Payton. In addition, they went absolutely ballistic in free agency and focused heavily on their offensive line - the lowest of lows in the 2022 season. I quite like the offseason the Broncos had and it really came down to how they addressed the main reason they lost so badly in 2022: their offense. The Broncos offense in 2022 was horrendous. As I like to do, let's again put some numbers to this to show you just how bad it was. In 2022 the Broncos averaged 16.9 points per game. But hey, numbers don’t really mean anything so lets contextualize it and compare it to the performance of other teams. The Broncos 16.9 points per game was 32nd in the league. I’ll say it again if you didn’t understand: the Broncos scored the least points per game in the entire NFL. Yes, that means that they were worse than teams such as the Texans and Colts. So, the plan going into the offseason isn’t all that difficult: fix the offense.

To me it really starts with the offensive line and it's not hard to see why: Russell Wilson was the most sacked QB in 2022. The addition of stud offensive linemen Mike McGlinchey & Ben Powers fortified a weak offensive line and should give Wilson plenty of time to target his elite WR core. Besides bad coaching, the offensive line was really the only weak point on the Broncos offense, so addressing it is a huge victory. On the defensive side of the ball, the loss of Dre'mont Jones will hurt, however, I do like the signing of Zach Allen as a potential Bradley Chubb replacement. The Broncos defense was elite in 2022 and keeping a majority of it intact will be beneficial. To me, there’s only one concern: is Russell Wilson the guy? It may sound stupid, but it is a legitimate question. What if Wilson isn’t able to change systems again? This is the scary part since cutting Wilson or trading him could have serious ramifications against the Broncos cap situation in years to come. Additionally, finding your next signal caller is NEVER a guarantee. From what it looks like, the goal of the Broncos organization this free agency was to solidify the protection around Wilson in order to figure out whether he is the guy moving forward. Only time will tell.

To conclude, I want to touch base upon the Broncos’ draft picks. Without significant draft capital, the draft won’t play as big of a role in improving the roster. However, I think the most important thing for the Broncos is to GET YOUNGER. The Broncos spent big on free agents and that’s ok, but if I’ve learnt one thing throughout studying the NFL, it’s that building through the draft is almost a more sustainable way of achieving sustained success. Take the Rams for example - they had a couple of good seasons (including a Super Bowl win), however due to expensive contracts and aging players, they are now in the midst of a rebuild. To finish it’s important to note that I do believe the Broncos had a productive offseason and took significant strides to better their roster. However, it is important to prepare for the future as developing draft picks will ensure that they are able to have sustained success even when they lose key players in free agency.

One last thing before we go:

Broncos Country, Let's Ride

Thanks for reading and feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.