The Denver Broncos should be paying attention to what their AFC West rivals do this offseason. Let's hope they each make a major mistake. No team is perfect, and as we saw in Super Bowl LIX, even the two-time defending Super Bowl champions can lose in big fashion.
If the team wants to make some progress in the division in 2025, they may have to hope that their three AFC West rivals misstep along the way. There could be a ton of chances for the teams to do that, too.
But despite all of that, Broncos have to take care of business themselves and can't just hope that their rivals mess up. Let's look at three mistakes the rest of the AFC West could make in the 2025 offseason.
3 mistakes the Broncos' AFC West rivals could make in the 2025 offseason
Raiders signing Sam Darnold
The Las Vegas Raiders have a ton of money to spend and could be huge players for Sam Darnold if they think he can be as good as he was in 2024 with the Minnesota Vikings, but what the Vikings had in 2024 was one of the best and most complete situations for any QB in the NFL.
They had the best WR duo in the NFL with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. They also had a top-7 tight end in TJ Hockenson and a very strong offensive line with a 1,100-yard rusher in the backfield. Kevin O'Connell is also one of the best offensive minds in the NFL.
The Raiders simply do not have the infrastructure in place to allow Sam Darnold to play all that well. If Vegas were to make this move, it would quickly blow up in their faces.
Chiefs letting Nick Bolton or Trey Smith leave in free agency
The Kansas City Chiefs do have a huge offseason ahead. They'll have to get creative with some contracts to free up cap space. Their two biggest and best free agents are Trey Smith and Nick Bolton, the stud guard and stud inside linebacker. Frankly, both players are anchors where they play, and even if the Chiefs let one of them leave in free agency, it would be a huge mistake but a great thing for the Denver Broncos.
If one does end up leaving, it's probably Trey Smith. Smith is going to sign a deal around $20 million per year most likely. If you're a Broncos fan, you have to be hoping that both are somehow not in Chiefs' uniforms in 2025. It would be the best-case scenario for Denver and for the rest of the division.
Smith and Bolton might both be top-5 players at their positions in the NFL. It would be a huge blow to KC if they were not there anymore.
Chargers keeping JK Dobbins around as the RB1
With how deep the 2025 NFL Draft class is at RB, it might not be likely that the Los Angeles Chargers go forward with JK Dobbins as their RB1, but you just never know. Dobbins has been plagued by injuries his entire career, but he did manage to rush for 905 yards in 13 games.
But it was yet another season where he did not play a full campaign. LA might elect to bring him back in 2025, and if they do, they are also probably smart enough to add another running back in the 2025 NFL Draft, but you just never know.
The Denver Broncos also have a huge need at the RB position, so the Broncos remaking their RB room does make it that much less likely that the Chargers are able to do the same thing. If the Broncos and Chargers have their eyes on the same RB in the 2025 NFL Draft, the hope is that Denver can come out with them.
Los Angeles keeping JK Dobbins as their primary back in 2025 would be a mistake, but it would be good news for the Denver Broncos.