The Denver Broncos are kind of a mess right now, so it's clear that they'll need to make some monumental changes at some point. They can definitely figure it out. This team started 1-5 last year and finished the season 7-4 with a bottom-10 QB in Russell Wilson.
The Broncos will be fine, but it may again be a slow start for the team. Even if Denver gets their season turned around, and even if rookie QB Bo Nix plays well, the Broncos are still going to have to make some tough decisions. Some of these decisions may blow it up their face, but they also may benefit them for the long-term.
Let's dive into three huge changes the Broncos must eventually make.
3 monumental changes the Denver Broncos must eventually make
Bring in multiple big-time names at wide receiver
The Denver Broncos will again have to make some major changes at wide receiver, as none of them can consistently separate at the moment. They must bring in two big-time names at least, and perhaps one of them could be in free agency. Cincinnati Bengals WR Tee Higgins is set to hit the open market in 2025, so he could be a target.
The Broncos could then double-dip at WR in the 2025 NFL Draft with a top prospect like Luther Burden, Tetairoa McMillian, Emeka Egbuka, or Tez Johnson, who is very close to Bo Nix. Denver can't just hope that this unit figures it out.
And they may also have to say goodbye to one or more players in this unit like they did this past offseason when they traded Jerry Jeudy and cut Tim Patrick. Courtland Sutton is probably not going to be with the team in 2025 if you asked me right now. And I would not be surprised if one of Devaughn Vele or Josh Reynolds is not here in 2025 as well.
The Broncos must get some play-makers at this position. Having a game-changer at WR is increasingly becoming more important. I trust that the Broncos will get this unit improved in 2025.
Say goodbye to a long-time fixture on offense
The Denver Broncos could have a major change along their offensive line starting in the 2025 NFL Season. The team drafted Garett Bolles back in the 2017 NFL Draft, and he's actually the last time the team has taken a tackle in the NFL Draft.
Bolles has been the team's full-time starter since 2017 but has missed some time here and there with a few injuries. He really came along near the end of the 2019 NFL Season and began to put it together. In 2020, he erupted and earned a four-year contract extension. That extension expires at the end of the season.
The left tackle is now in his age-32 season in the NFL, so if the Broncos were to bring him back, he'd be a 33-year-old left tackle who would surely be in the last year or two of his tenure with the team. The Broncos may just let Bolles hit free agency and sign with another team. This would then perhaps force Denver to bring in a low-cost left tackle solution and pair him with someone in the 2025 NFL Draft.
This would continue the youth movement and also give the Broncos a legitimate long-term solution at the position. As of now, all of Bolles, Ben Powers, Quinn Meinerz, and Mike McGlinchey are all on big-time deals. The Broncos may have to shed at least one of those this offseason, and since Bolles' contract is up, Denver will probably go cheaper at that position.
Garett Bolles is still a solid tackle but definitely will have his moments from time to time where it looks like he has no idea what he is doing out there. Frankly, the left side of the Broncos offensive line is the shakier side. Left guard Ben Powers is not great and was pretty average in 2023.
The Broncos invested big-time money into their offensive line last offseason in signing Powers and McGlinchey, and also extended Quinn Meinerz this past offseason. More change is on the horizon for this unit.
One way or another, make a decision on QB Bo Nix
The Denver Broncos are two games into the Bo Nix experience, and thus far, it's been up and down, but mostly down. There was some clear improvement from Week 1 into Week 2 for Nix, but he did still throw a pretty bad interception. Overall, the issues on offense are not Nix's fault. The run game is just nonexistent, as Nix is the leading rusher through two games.
The wide receivers also cannot consistently separate, which is not Bo Nix's fault. The Broncos are kind of dealing with the fallout from the failed Russell Wilson trade. They had to part with multiple high draft picks and are now absorbing a dead cap hit over $50 million this year. They just did not have the resources to bring in high-end play-makers.
Next offseason, things should get a little bit easier, as they'll have a load of cap space and their first and second-round picks. At some point perhaps within the next 16 months, the Denver Broncos are going to have to make a huge decision on Bo Nix. The quarterback is going to prove himself one way or another.
He'll either put it together by year two at the latest or just not have it it him to play QB at the NFL level. Whatever ends up happening with Bo Nix is going to have a huge impact on this franchise one way or another. If Nix ends up being legit, the Broncos are set for the next decade. But if he's not the guy, you may see some major changes to the franchise, which could include the team moving on from Sean Payton.
Denver did the right thing in taking a chance on a first-round rookie quarterback, so the Broncos are going to have to endure that or enjoy it at some point.