The Denver Broncos, as we know, have what it takes to win it all in the 2026 NFL Season. On paper, there might only be one roster in the league more talented. Yes, the NFL season is long, but the Broncos have won 24 regular season games since the start of the 2024 season, so this team is for real, and the winning has been sustainable.
There are going to be some bumps and bruises along the way, and with the Broncos have a gauntlet across the first six games of the season, it's not a stretch to think that a slow start could be coming for this team.
But the Broncos have largely responded quite well to adversity in the Sean Payton era, so this team could simply roll through the season without much drama. Some recent 2026 NFL Season bold predictions are kind to the Broncos, but the predictions also prove that people just cannot make up their minds about this team.
Denver Broncos predicted to have the NFL sack leader, but...
Conor Orr, for Sports Illustrated, rolled out his 100 bold predictions for the 2025 season, and two of note stick out for the Broncos:
"63. The AFC West standings will finish in the following order and with the following records:
Chargers: 13–4
Broncos: 11–6
Chiefs: 11–6
Raiders: 7–10
79. Nik Bonnito will lead the NFL in sacks
The Broncos’ edge rusher will fend off the Texans’ Danielle Hunter in a sack-for-sack faceoff that comes down to the final week of the season. "
The first prediction from Orr here is that the Broncos are going to win 11 games and finish second in the AFC West. I don't believe it's wild to think that Denver could regress a bit in the win column, but I do not see the argument for the Chargers to win the division, and for the Chiefs to finish with the same record.
The Chiefs roster got worse this offseason - the secondary was torn apart in the offseason, and there are still major concerns at wide receiver and tight end. The defense lost a key player and high-end athlete in Leo Chenal, as well.
It's also important to remember that this front office has been in place for years now, so the roster mess they got themselves into was created by this front office that people seem to be hyping up this offseason.
As for the Chargers, outside of signing a good-not-great player along the offensive line in Tyler Biadasz, not much changed. If people are high on the Chargers hiring Mike McDaniel as the offense coordinator, that's fine, but would one coach alone, and a coordinator, at that, be responsible for three more wins?
The Broncos were and are still the best team in the AFC West and will again win the division. The other bold prediction of note here is Orr predicting that Nik Bonitto barely beats out Danielle Hunter for the NFL sack title. Bonitto and Hunter have done this over the last two seasons:
Bonitto:
27.5 sacks
30 tackles for loss
52 quarterback hits
Hunter:
27 sacks
32 tackles for loss
45 quarterback hits
Statistically speaking, despite Hunter being a much more physical player, Bonitto has been slightly more productive. Given that much of the Broncos defense has remained the same, there is reason to believe that Bonitto could have this type of season.
We've seen defensive end Zach Allen gradually play better throughout his NFL career, as he's spent his entire career with Vance Joseph. Bonitto is now entering year four with Joseph as his defensive coordinator, so it may only be a matter of time before he leads the league in sacks.
Overall, it really does feel like people have no idea where to put the Broncos for 2026. Some think a regression is coming based on how many one-score games the team won, but the team also didn't just stumble into 14 wins. Only time will tell.
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