The Denver Broncos are going to go crazy in the 2026 offseason, and in a good way. With Russell Wilson's contract totally off the books and the potential of having multiple extra draft picks, the Broncos are set to be hyper-aggressive.
The team could also look to create even more cap space with restructures and extensions, as there is no better time to go all-in than now, as the Broncos are the best team in the NFL and have a stud quarterback on a rookie deal.
Let's dive into three positions the Denver Broncos will put a massive emphasis on in 2026.
Three positions the Broncos are going go heavily emphasize in 2026
WR/RB/TE
I am kind of cheating here, but the Denver Broncos are going to surely look at all three playmaker positions on the offensive side of the ball and could pursue multiple major upgrades at these positions. For example, I could see a scenario where Denver signs Breece Hall in free agency and then trades their first-round pick in 2026 for Jaylen Waddle.
Denver might prefer to sniff around for a major tight end trade, though. I do believe that Denver is going to bring in at least one major player at two of the three positions above, and it simply might come down to who is available and the price of certain players.
Expect Denver to search for a major upgrade on offense.
Inside Linebacker
The Broncos signed Dre Greenlaw in free agency in 2025, and his regular season will come to an end after just eight games. Denver did save themselves a bit here, as the contract is for three years but is able to be ripped up after one season. The Broncos clearly wanted to have an easy 'out' in the deal in the case that Greenlaw wasn't able to stay on the field.
Denver could cut Greenlaw and kind of start fresh at the position - Justin Strnad is someone who should get an extension, and I could see Denver signing Kaden Elliss, a free agent in 2026. Elliss is the brother of Jonah Elliss and was a draft pick by Sean Payton and the Saints in 2019. Denver simply cannot go into the 2026 season with the current ILB group. It'll see a noticeable change (again).
Defensive Line
The Denver Broncos have done a great job at building up this defensive line via free agency and in the NFL Draft. I would expect Denver to keep the foot on the gas in this regard, as keeping this unit among the best in the NFL does not get easier. John Franklin-Myers appears to be the odd-man out along the DL, and that could open up a major hole at the position.
Enyi Uwazurike and Sai'vion Jones might get first cracks at competing for that job, but what if Denver targets a top DL prospect in the 2026 NFL Draft? This team hasn't used a high draft pick along the DL in a while, so it might be time for them to change that.
What is neat is that in today's NFL, teams can go out and 'buy' a defense, but it's also still very important to have a strong draft-and-develop pipeline at the important positions as well.