There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the Denver Broncos in 2024. Let's cover the three biggest reasons why. If you are not optimistic about the Broncos for 2024, I don't blame you. There has been a lot of change, and some people are just firmly out on Bo Nix being a franchise quarterback.
The Broncos seem to think he can be, and that's really all that matters. In 2023, Denver managed to win eight games and was deep in the Wild Card chase until the last few weeks, The Broncos weren't exactly far away from the postseason last year, as crazy as that sounds.
So, let's look at three reasons why you should be optimistic heading into the 2024 season.
3 reasons to be optimistic about the Denver Broncos in the 2024 NFL Season
A clear plan has been put in place
Right? The team tried to make it work with Russell Wilson in 2023, and it didn't, so they were right to cut ties and to start fresh. The great thing here is that they did not start fresh with another veteran re-tread, but instead are trying to build a team the right way, as they took a first-round QB and have some nice pieces around him. Let's not pretend the offense is not talented. The returning OL is likely going to be a top-12 unit at least.
The WR room is filled with adequate talent, but I will concede that a true WR1 is not present. The backfield feels quite deep with the current personnel, but the huge sore spot is the tight end group. Nonetheless, this is a solid situation for a rookie QB to walk into, and don't look now, but the Broncos could find themselves with upwards of $50 million in cap space next offseason.
Their modest spending this offseason is going to afford them some future cap flexibility, which they can use to their advantage if rookie QB Bo Nix ends up showing promise in year one.
The Broncos have a strong coaching staff
Isn't this obvious? The Denver Broncos were an amazingly disciplined and well-coached football team in 2023, especially compared to what they had in 2022 when the clown show was in town. Sure, Denver might not have the best coach at any position or otherwise in the NFL, but it's not hard to see the coaching job that was done in 2023.Denver Broncos
This team started 1-5 thanks to a historically bad defense, and this below-average roster was dragged to the finish line at a 7-4 pace, somehow winning eight games. Sean Payton absolutely knows what he's doing, and it's clear that he's got a great staff as well.
There might not be a clear coaching weakness at this point, and I have not even mentioned how efficient the special teams unit was, which is largely thanks to Mike Westhoff and Ben Kotwica, two phenomenal coaches who worked miracles for the ST unit in 2023.
Denver addressed their weak spots this offseason (DL, Secondary)
The Broncos two biggest weaknesses were arguably along the defensive line and in the secondary, and Denver did invest significant time into each unit this offseason. Along the DL, they traded for John Franklin-Myers, formerly of the New York Jets. They also signed an elite run stuffer in Malcolm Roach, and also signed a high-end rotational player in Angelo Blackson.
In the 2024 NFL Draft, they added an EDGE rusher in Jonah Elliss, who has excellent pure pass-rush ability. Overall, the unit is significantly better on paper now than it was at any point during the 2023 NFL Season. This is going to be a huge boost for the defense, who constantly lost the battle at the line of scrimmage.
The secondary has seen new faces like Levi Wallace, Kris Abrams-Draine, and Brandon Jones enter the picture. The team stabilized their slot CB spot with Ja'Quan McMillian, re-signed PJ Locke III, who is an excellent fit for Vance Joseph's defense, will hopefully see Caden Sterns return, and still have the best CB in the NFL in Patrick Surtain II.
The secondary feels deeper if nothing else, so the added depth should help his unit out a ton as well.
Overall, the 2024 Denver Broncos feel like they're going to be a much better team than they were in 2023.