The Denver Broncos have a star-studded roster, and it got better this offseason. The acquistion of Waddle should hopefully thrust this team into a new dimension on offense, and many of the same pieces on defense did return.
Many would consider it a massive disappointment if the Broncos failed to win the Super Bowl this year, and it's sometimes surreal to think that this is where the franchise is at right now - Super Bowl or bust.
That did have us thinking about the players who stick out as being the most important on the team ahead of the 2026 NFL Season.
Ranking the most important Denver Broncos players for the 2026 NFL Season
5. Patrick Surtain II
Patrick Surtain II is the best defensive back in football and continues to blanket one half of the field. He's maintained this high level of play for years and is the main reason why the Broncos defense has finished 3rd in scoring in each of the last two seasons. On the flip side of this, though, you could argue that Riley Moss' job is almost equally as important, as Surtain is simply so strong in coverage that teams are often targeting Moss.
If Surtain and Moss are both doing their thing, the Broncos will continue to sport one of the best units in the league.
4. Nik Bonitto
Nik Bonitto has 27.5 sacks over the past two seasons and has emerged as the best pass-rusher on the Broncos. While Zach Allen has 87 quarterback hits over the past two seasons, which is significantly more than Bonitto's 52, Bonitto is still 'the man' up front for the Broncos.
His get-off and ability to consistently get into the backfield is something that every team needs in a stud pass-rusher. In today's NFL, it's incredibly important that teams are able to get to the quarterback. Fortunately, Bonitto has done that quite a bit.
We've also seen pass-rushers dominate the defensive side of things, almost morphing into how people talk about quarterbacks today.
3. J.K. Dobbins
The Broncos had a special thing going when J.K. Dobbins was healthy and in the lineup for the Broncos. He averaged 5.0 yards per carry and was a top-5 player at the position in those first 10 weeks of the 2025 season.
With Waddle likely invigorating the passing offense, all that may be left here is Dobbins staying on the field for a full season. If he's able to do this, and even if it's, let's say, 15 games, the Broncos are almost guaranteed to have a top offense.
Dobbins has averaged 5.2 yards per carry across his entire career. The efficiency is always there when he's on the field, as he's actually still managed to average nearly 1,100 rushing yards over a 17-game season. His presence in the backfield for the Broncos in 2026 could make or break the offense in many ways.
2. Jaylen Waddle
The Broncos traded more than a first-round pick to land Waddle, and the idea here is that Waddle comes in as the de-facto WR1 and is able to fill in what the team has been missing at the position - consistent separation and route-running. Waddle possesses both.
He's also accumulated three 1,000-yard seasons across his first five years in the NFL. In an ideal world, Waddle is able to reach 1,000 yards in 2026, which would allow other players like Courtland Sutton and Troy Franklin to take advantage of matchups they otherwise would not have seen without Waddle in the mix.
Denver put many of their chips in the middle of the table with the Waddle acquisition, so it's really up to him to prove that it was the right move.
1. Bo Nix
Bo Nix's performance will, one way or another, dictate just how good the Broncos will be this year. If he can elevate his game a bit, Denver wins the Super Bowl. If not, the Broncos may again fall short. To be fair, though, the second-year Nix seemed to be plenty good enough for this team to win it all, but the heartbreaking broken ankle ended the year.
In today's NFL, how good (or bad) a quarterback is ends up having the biggest team impact of any position. This isn't news to most, so the ball is in Nix's court in this regard. It's really that simple.
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