Denver Broncos: Five possible scenarios for the end of the 2018 season

Scenario 3: Dreaded 8-8

Let’s say the Broncos come out and win their next two games against the Bengals and 49ers, taking a 7-6 record into a Saturday night matchup against the Cleveland Browns.

It would seem like an 8-8 record would be a difficult achievement, even with three games yet to play, and that 9-7 would be a much more realistic basement expectation.

The Browns, however, are pretty darn good this year and they have been making a little playoff noise themselves. Their defense looks stout, Baker Mayfield is playing well, and Nick Chubb looks like one of the best rookies in the entire league.

The fact that that game is in Denver is huge for the Broncos, but if the Broncos somehow find their way to an 8-8 record, it’s hard to imagine they will make the playoffs and that would certainly put Vance Joseph’s future with the team in question.

It would represent a major improvement over the 2017 season, but can the Broncos overlook warts in an 8-8 season to stick with their current coaching group? At that point, you would have to look into the details.

Even though it would represent an improvement, finishing 8-8 would be tough to swallow and would cause everyone to look back on what could have been with the team’s near-win over the Chiefs in week four and near-win against the Texans later on.