3 under-the-radar Broncos players who will set the world on fire in 2026

The Denver Broncos have Super Bowl aspirations in the 2026 season after a disappointing and crushing end to the 2025 season. If they're going to win a championship, they're going to need a number of players who are currently flying under the radar to set the NFL world on fire this coming season.

In today's NFL, it's really difficult for players to fly under the radar. Especially now, every team gets intense individual coverage, and every part of the 90-player roster is gone over with a fine-tooth comb. There's almost no such thing as anonymity anymore, whether you're a star player or undrafted player trying to make it onto a practice squad.

But even with that in mind, there are some Broncos players who have started flying under the radar a bit this offseason, for one reason or another. Maybe there is a new addition to a certain position group that has caused some shine for a player to wear off. Maybe this year is just the perfect opportunity for some players to really be the best version of themselves.

We're going to take a look at three Broncos players set to take the NFL world by storm in 2026, even if they're largely being slept on up to this point.

Denver Broncos running back RJ Harvey leads under-the-radar players set for explosive 2026 season

1. RJ Harvey, running back

To say RJ Harvey's rookie season in 2025 was a mixed bag would be an understatement. Harvey's efficiency on a per-carry basis was not overly exciting, but the best of what we saw from him gives hope that he can play an Alvin Kamara-like role in Sean Payton's offense.

Harvey had 896 yards from scrimmage and a whopping 12 total touchdowns last season. But more than just getting fed when the Broncos got into the red zone, Harvey proved last season that he could make something out of nothing. There are a handful of examples of that, but the one that stands out the most came in the playoffs against the Buffalo Bills:

Harvey's ability to create yards after contact was inconsistent last season. As a true running back, Harvey averaged just 3.7 yards per carry last season and was tied for 30th in the NFL in yards after contact per attempt (1.8).

One of the biggest factors of the Broncos adding a player like Jaylen Waddle is the improvement he can help make in the running game. The threat of Waddle being on the field won't allow for teams to stack and load the box as often as they did against the Broncos last season.

Harvey has to improve in his all-around game, but the positives from last season are impossible to ignore. When Harvey was able to create explosive plays, it was a sight to behold. And it wasn't like he never had success against stacked boxes, either:

It feels like the return of JK Dobbins and the drafting of Jonah Coleman have cast a bit of doubt over Harvey's role and future with the team, but he still has a chance to rack up over 1,000 yards from scrimmage at a much better efficiency rate than we saw this past season.

2. Justin Strnad, linebacker

One of the players slated to become a full-time starter for the first time in his NFL career is one of the longest-tenured players on the entire roster.

Justin Strnad has been around since 2020, but has never started more than eight games in a season at this point. The Broncos gave him a 3-year deal this offseason, and Strnad had been pretty open about the fact that he wanted to sign somewhere this offseason where he would be a full-time starter going forward.

Considering he's already 29 years old, that seems pretty reasonable.

Strnad has never even played 60 percent of the defensive snaps for the Broncos in an individual season up to this point. It's kind of funny to think about, because he's been around for so long, but it's possible that we could see an absolutely monstrous year from Strnad in 2026 as he gets an opportunity to start for the first time in his pro career.

Even playing limited snaps, Strnad has racked up 7.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss over the past two seasons. He's the best blitzing off-ball linebacker on the team at this point and could absolutely explode in the 2026 season with a full workload.

3. Sai'vion Jones, defensive line

The Broncos lost John Franklin-Myers in 2026 NFL free agency, so someone is going to have to step up on the defensive line with his production gone.

Eyioma Uwazurike could be a factor, and the Broncos used their top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft on Texas A&M defensive tackle Tyler Onyedim. It's not that he's been forgotten about, but the one player who is really flying under the radar in that group right now is 2025 3rd-round pick Sai'vion Jones.

Jones was inactive most of his rookie season with the Broncos, but the team traded up to get him in last year's draft. They spent the year developing him, and it almost felt immediately after he was drafted that the plan would be to eventually replace Franklin-Myers in the lineup.

It's time to dust off the scouting reports on Jones from last year, which all talk about Jones's explosiveness, quickness off the snap, and relentless motor. Because we didn't see him play much last season, it's easy to lose a little bit of excitement. But as a prospect, Jones has everything the Broncos need to replace the production left behind by JFM, especially in tandem with the other players to split snaps with.

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