The Denver Broncos have Super Bowl aspirations for the 2026 season, but they know that getting to the AFC Championship Game this past season guarantees them absolutely nothing for the future.
The Broncos may be starting from scratch again this season, but they now know what it takes to compete with the best teams in the NFL in January. They got their feet wet in the 2024 season, they took a massive leap forward in 2025, and beating Buffalo has now proven to everyone on the team exactly what they are capable of.
Quarterback Bo Nix, back on the practice field for the first time since his injury at the end of that win against Buffalo, talked about exactly that at his press conference during mandatory minicamp. He said that the team's win against Buffalo has unlocked something major for the team in 2026, which is that they now know and believe:
They can do anything.
Bo Nix says the Denver Broncos can do anything after winning a playoff game last season
Here is what Nix said regarding the importance of that playoff win against the Bills in the Divisional Round last season:
“I think really and truly, once you do it once, you know you can do it every time. For me, it was playing in a playoff game last year, host a playoff game this year, win a playoff game this year. It sort of allows you to go into the next season…
Really the whole entire season led us up to this, but once you win a playoff game, you really feel like you can do anything, especially with the team that we have coming back. We feel very confident that we can start winning these playoff games and host for longer. So it builds your confidence in a way that you can’t get anywhere else."
- Bo Nix (via Broncos PR)
Nix loves the pressure moments. He said as much in the same press conference, noting that he really enjoys having the ball at the end of the game.
Sean Payton says all the time that Confidence is born out of demonstrated ability, and that's exactly what Bo Nix is talking about here. The Broncos have demonstrated their ability to win in the playoffs. They've demonstrated their ability to win the AFC West. They've demonstrated the ability to earn the #1 seed in the AFC and host the AFC Championship.
And that has clearly built some confidence.
Not to mention, the other part of Nix's quote which talks about this team's true superpower: Continuity.
Every great sports dynasty has some form of enviable continuity, whether you're talking about the Chicago Bulls in the 90s, the Patriots in the 2000s, or even the Chiefs in more recent years. Having continuity in professional sports is rare, but when teams find it, they can sustain success.
The Broncos aren't just confident in the work they did last season; they are confident in each other for the long haul. Returning 94 percent of the snaps on an NFL team is one of the most ridiculous stats you'll ever hear. Turnover and change are norms, not continuity.
Now, the Broncos have combined winning in the playoffs with unrivaled continuity. Bo Nix is right to believe that the win against Buffalo has truly unlocked something big for this team going forward.
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