The Denver Broncos find themselves in fairly unfriendly territory in week one. Opening the season in Seattle is a tough enough draw, let alone starting a rookie quarterback for his first career start. While the Broncos are finding themselves with a better season outlook than some had initially thought, they could fairly easily start their season 0-1 if things do not go right this week in Seattle.
Let's look at three ways the Broncos season could start sideways
1) Defense shows finish to 2023 might have been a fluke
The Broncos finished the 2023 season with the hottest defense in football. The secondary ended as one of football's better units, but they figure to have three new starters this year, including both safeties. While Riley Moss impressed in the pre-season and in camp, he still remains untested at the pro-level.
As for the front seven, the Broncos added some key pieces in John Franklin-Myers and Cody Barton, but the unit overall does not have much experience together and is banking on more key seasons from the outside linebacking group of Jonathan Cooper, Nik Bonitto, and Baron Browning. If the Broncos can't find production from that group and the secondary struggles to gell, it could be a long opening week.
2) Bo Nix struggles
Bo Nix looked great in camp and in the pre-season. Camp and pre-season are not a week one game on the road in Seattle. Nix will need to remain focused, drown out the crowd noise, and try to build on what he did this summer. Nix seems to have built a solid connection with Courtland Sutton, and his relationship with Troy Franklin from their days at Oregon seems to only be growing.
However, the Broncos' offensive line has a new starter under center, and a first-time center-quarterback duo, let alone where both are making their first professional starts at their position, is always a concerning proposition. If Nix struggles with Luke Wattenberg under center, his entire day could start snowballing downhill. Seattle is a tough place for any quarterback to play, but a first-start rookie with an inexperienced center might be a serious struggle.
3) Too many running backs, not enough yards
The Broncos running back group could go any direction this year. Seriously, I could be convinced that any of the four on the roster are RB1 by week 14. However, there is never enough time in camp for these things to be truly settled. Thinking back to last year, not many figured that Jaleel McLoughlin would be one of Denver's premier playmakers by season's end, let alone heading into 2024. This week could become messy for the Broncos if their running backs struggle in unison, and no one steps up as the leading back this week.
Javonte Williams is coming off as mediocre of a season as he could have had, McLoughlin is more of a dual-threat back than a true bell-cow, Audric Estimé is making his first career appearance, and Blake Watson figures to be fairly far off from getting a chance at legitimate and meaningful carries. A nightmare scenario for Sean Payton might unfold in Seattle if the Broncos can't effectively run the ball, despite having what many believe to be a deep running back room.