As the NFL offseason gets underway, the Denver Broncos are underdogs in the AFC West and for Super Bowl LXI.
That, despite winning the AFC West in 2025 and being a Bo Nix broken ankle away from making the Super Bowl against the Seattle Seahawks.
Even though we’re entering the fourth year of the Sean Payton Era in Denver, the national analysts are still sleeping on the Broncos.
Denver Broncos are underdogs in AFC West, for Super Bowl LXI
For nearly a decade, Denver was a joke. But that all changed when Payton took the reins in 2023, and in only his third year, the Broncos won the division.
The AFC West isn’t just some simple division to win, either. It’s home of the Kansas City Chiefs, who won the West every year since the Broncos won Super Bowl 50.
Now, not only are the Broncos competitive, but the LA Chargers are in the mix now, too.
But even with the Broncos going 14-3 last season, and winning the West as well as the No. 1 seed, not only is Denver not the favorite to win the division, they aren’t even second.
2026 NFC West odds from @betmgm:Rams +155Seahawks +155#49ers +260Cardinals +50002026 AFC West odds from BetMGM:Chargers +175Chiefs +175Broncos +210#Raiders +3000(Cardinals and Raiders have worst odds to win division)
— Josh Dubow (@joshdubowap.bsky.social) 2026-02-13T19:14:39.143Z
BetMGM has them as +210 to win the AFC West, third behind both the Chiefs and Chargers. Warren Sharp has the same odds coming from DraftKings.
Broncos Country knows how the national media and even the sportsbooks promote and boost the Chiefs. Last year, when the Broncos were at home, at 8-2 and the Chiefs were visiting at 4-5, the books still favored Kansas City. I don’t have the numbers, but I’m pretty sure Kansas City was still favored to win the division at that point, too. Which is wild.
Considering all of that, it’s not that surprising the Chiefs are favored in the West. However, having the Chargers tied with them is a bit of a surprise. LA has been to the playoffs three straight years and still hasn’t won a game there. They need a lot of help in roster building this offseason, while the Broncos are a mere few pieces away from a possible Super Bowl run.
Broncos are a longshot to win Super Bowl LXI
With Denver being third in AFC West odds, it follows that they’d also be longshots to win Super Bowl LXI.
Obviously, winning the division is a first step in making it farther in the playoffs. As Sean Payton said last year, the first goal is to win the division. Then, to earn the highest seed, and finally, to win a world championship.
It’s definitely harder to win a Super Bowl without winning you division, but it’s possible.
Either way, the Broncos aren’t even in the top-10 for Super Bowl odds in multiple books.
At BetMGM, Denver’s at +2000, the 12th-best odds to win it all next season.
Super Bowl 61 odds from @betmgm:Seahawks +800Rams +900Ravens +1200Bills +1200Packers +1400Eagles +1400Lions +1500Chiefs +1500Chargers +1500Patriots +1500#49ers +1700Broncos +2000Texans +2000Jaguars +2000(#Raiders are at +15000)
— Josh Dubow (@joshdubowap.bsky.social) 2026-02-09T16:57:04.444Z
At FanDuel, it’s the same: +2000, 12th-best odds.
The Denver Broncos made it to the AFC Championship Game. Some think they would’ve made the Super Bowl if Bo Nix was healthy. And yet, they’re 12th-best odds to win Super Bowl LXI, at +2000. Seahawks are favorites at +750.
— Rich Kurtzman 🏈 (@sportsballitics.bsky.social) 2026-02-09T16:25:52.035Z
Keep in mind the Broncos need to make some splash signings. If they do, these odds will likely decrease.
A $10 bet on the Broncos to win Super Bowl LXI right now would return $200.
As always, bet at your own risk.
