In the 30 days leading up to the start of Denver Broncos Training Camp 2016, we’re examining 30 big questions for the season. We’ll make a case for each answer; you’ll vote and tell Broncos Country what’s going to happen this year.
The Denver Broncos will enter the 2016 season with one thing on their mind – repeating as Super Bowl champions for the second time in the history of the franchise.
If winning a Super Bowl was hard, repeating as world champions is going to be that much harder for the Broncos when they take the field in just over a month and begin the long journey through the regular season.
The Broncos will face many opponents that have the capability to derail their season and ruin their chances at repeating as Super Bowl champions, let along getting there. The AFC will be as competitive as its ever been, and many analysts consider the AFC West the toughest division in football. Any number of teams could claim the Lamar Hunt Trophy this year. Here’s four who have a good shot to unseat the reigning AFC champs.
Houston Texans
After a rough couple of seasons, the Houston Texans are now one of the more dangerous teams in the AFC. In 2015, the Texans finished the season with a 9-7 record, good enough to win the AFC South. Despite getting blown out by the Chiefs in the wild card round of the playoffs, the Texans had a successful season without having a consistent starter at quarterback, something they addressed in free agency this offseason. The Texans will now be led by former Broncos quarterback Brock Osweiler, who’s 2015 quarterback rating was better than anyone Houston trotted onto the field in 2015. The Texans also boast arguably the best defensive player in the National Football League in defensive end J.J. Watt, who in 2015 won his third Defensive Player of the Year award joining Lawrence Taylor as the only player to win the award three times. News broke last week that Watt had back surgery and will begin the season on the physically unable to perform list, but Watt anticipates being back in time for Week 1. If Osweiler can provide a steady offense to go along with Houston’s dominant defense, the Texans could stun the Broncos with a loss and gives them a leg up in the race for the AFC.
Kansas City Chiefs
A loss to any divisional opponent has the potential to put a kink in a team’s season; two losses to the same team can pretty much ruin a season. Unfortunately for the Broncos, the Kansas City Chiefs have shown that they have the potential to complete the season sweep, winning in Denver last year and narrowly falling at home. If they manage to sweep in 2016, the Broncos’ dreams of repeating may very well be over. The Broncos barely escaped the jaws of defeat during the two teams first matchup in Week 2 last year, when Bradley Roby scooped up a Jamaal Charles fumble and returned it for a touchdown to give the Broncos the lead with just under 30 seconds. The Chiefs took advantage of an injured Peyton Manning in their next meeting, beating the Broncos easily by a score of 29-13. If the Broncos had dropped both of their games against the Chiefs in 2015, playoff seeding would have looked a lot different and the Broncos might not have won the Super Bowl, something that could happen very easily in 2016 if the Chiefs come back even stronger than they have in the last few seasons.
New England Patriots
The Broncos have played the New England Patriots at least once per season every year dating back to 2011. The seemingly annual matchup is something each team now looks forward to when the schedule is released. While the Patriots may have the rest of the NFL in a stranglehold, they can’t seem to corral the Broncos. The Broncos hold a 30-21 overall record over the Patriots, including a 4-1 playoff record. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has a winning record against every team in the NFL besides the Broncos, falling to 5-7 against Denver following the beating he took in the 2015 AFC Championship Game. A Patriots-Broncos matchup winds up being a good game more often than not, and while the Patriots have more than enough talent to hand the Broncos a loss and damage their chances at a repeat, the Patriots may enter that game fighting for the playoffs themselves following Tom Brady’s four-game suspension to start the season. A matchup between the two teams late in the season usually carries massive playoff implications, but this year’s meeting may have entirely new implications depending on how the season plays out.
Oakland Raiders
Much like the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oakland Raiders are a divisional opponent that has the ability to sweep the season series against the Broncos and drastically change the course of the entire AFC playoff picture. Like the Broncos’ meetings with the Kansas City Chiefs, they split the season series against the Raiders with each team winning on the road. The Broncos squeaked out a 16-10 win over the Raiders in Oakland in Week 5, but Oakland returned the favor in Week 13 when they beat the Broncos 15-12 behind Khalil Mack’s five-sack second half performance. Like the Chiefs, the Broncos were close to losing both of their games against the Raiders, who are looking better and better with Derek Carr at quarterback and a defense that improves each year. A loss to the Raiders could easily put a halt to the Broncos’ dream of back-to-back Super Bowls.
What does Broncos Country think? Which team poses the biggest threat to a return visit to the Super Bowl?
30 QUESTIONS: Which team poses the biggest threat to a repeat trip to the Super Bowl?
— Mile High Sports (@MileHighSports) July 26, 2016
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