With the 2026 NFL Schedule set to come out soon, the Denver Broncos will soon know when they play their opponents for the coming season. Given how the 2025 season ended, this team might be more motivated than ever to get a 'redo' of last year's playoffs.
The Broncos were set to host the New England Patriots after the insanely dramatic Divisional Round finish, but when news broke that Bo Nix broke his ankle, that AFC title game felt rather meaningless. Fortunately, the team will have a manageable schedule this coming season - the myth that schedules automatically get hard after a prolific season isn't always true.
But in this Broncos schedule prediction, the team would endure a rather brutal three-game stretch that could truly make a deep playoff run next to impossible.
Denver Broncos schedule prediction would give team a terribly tough stretch to end the regular season
For the Broncos website, lead writer Aric DiLalla's schedule prediction would feature a trio of impossibly tough games to end the regular season, and perhaps force the team to limp into the playoffs:
Week 16: Broncos vs. Seahawks - Thursday Night Football
Week 17: Broncos @ Chargers
Week 18: Broncos vs. Chiefs
Sure, the Kansas City Chiefs were a team that Denver swept last year, but given how good this team has been for years now, it's realistic to think that Kansas City figures things out and gets back on the winning side of things.
The Broncos are slated to host the Seattle Seahawks in 2026, and DiLalla is predicting that game to come on Thursday Night Football in Week 16. To finish out his prediction, the Broncos would travel to Los Angeles and finish at home against the Chiefs.
Denver was the first team to clinch a spot in the AFC playoffs last year, and were also able to wrap up the division while sitting on the couch in Week 17. The Broncos final three games in the 2025 season were Jacksonville at home, the Patrick Mahomes-less Chiefs in Kansas City, and the Justin Herbert-less Chargers at home.
Those final three games weren't bad, but if the team ends up with DiLalla's prediction coming true, Denver would be in a situation where limping into the playoffs is on the table. Now, yes, you might be saying to yourself, "The Broncos did win 14 games and were among the best in the NFL last year!"
And that is 100 percent true, but good teams are still good teams. The Broncos weren't really in the business of blowing teams out in 2025, and the team was in a ton of close games, even against teams that should have been taken care of.
The truth is this - the NFL is highly competitive and filled with parity. Yes, the Broncos won 14 games last year, but one bounce here or there could have had this team with just 11 wins, for example. Fortunately, the Broncos do have better roster talent than most teams, so it won't be hard to find advantages over the team's 2026 opponents.
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