Week 18 of the NFL regular season is here, and it all comes down to Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs, which will determine whether or not the Denver Broncos make it to the post-season with Bo Nix as a rookie quarterback. Broncos Country sent in their mailbag questions.

Denver Broncos Week 18 Mailbag

If you want to have your mailbag questions sent in, stay tuned on social media @CodyRoarkNFL on Twitter, Bluesky, and Threads to have yours featured. Or you can always email them to cody@milehighsports.com.

“There’s talk of being embarrassed of getting a playoff berth beating a KC team with backups. To me it doesn’t matter how you get in. Should it matter?” – DMarq on Twitter.

It doesn’t matter one bit how they get in, and it shouldn’t. There are always going to be folks who want to move the goalposts about who Denver has played, but the reality is simple — you play the schedule you’re given, and you play who the opposing team puts out onto the field. If the Broncos win on Sunday and make the postseason by beating the Chief’s backups, so be it. Not every key starter for the Chiefs will play, but a handful of starters will have to play because of roster sizes.

Kansas City is still a good team and they have a good scheme and system in place. It won’t be easy for Denver.

“Can and will the Broncos put aside their pride and kick the snot out of Kansas City and probably their backup players to make the playoffs?” – Ed Helinski on Twitter.

Knowing this roster and having gotten to know a lot of players in the locker room, this Broncos team has a good mentality about them. The last two weeks have been disappointing, and nobody would tell you that more than the players themselves. With their backs against the wall this week, I expect them to respond in a big way regardless of who plays for the Chiefs on Sunday.

“If we draft a top running back prospect in the ’25 draft, what are the odds he will become an every downback considering Payton’s penchant for running back by committee approach the past two seasons? Does he change that philosophy for a true #1, or is that pick all4not?” – Scott on Twitter.

Great question here, Scott. I do think the Broncos take a long and hard look at the running back position, whether that’s in the draft or NFL Free Agency. The Broncos had a strong interest in Josh Jacobs this offseason, but he signed to Green Bay.

Audric Estime has every opportunity to become an every-down back, but I do think there will still be another back that will be utilized. The issue for Denver this year is that they have three running backs they have to figure out how to manufacture touches for. I don’t think Denver will bring Javonte Williams back next season, which would then signal to me that they’d likely use a two-back approach next season.

I think they’ll prioritize a legitimate weapon at WR over a running back as their top priority, however.

“Saturday night was far from the first time that Sean Payton’s questionable playcalling has been highlighted… Is there any universe where he or perhaps ownership/Paton might forcibly ask him to hire an OC?” – LoveYourGoalie on Twitter.

Fair question, here. The duality of being a play-caller is trying to find the balance between being aggressive and conservative. Payton is an ultra-aggressive play-caller who, I feel like, at times this year, has been aggressive at the wrong times and conservative at times during the wrong times. This is the toughest part about being a coach because everything is based on the feel for the game, the game plan going into a matchup, and understanding your personnel’s strengths and weaknesses. It’s fair to say Payton’s playcalling this year has been questionable at times, but he’s got a lot of runway with Ownership, and they believe in his vision and what Payton’s been able to do with the NFL’s third-youngest roster, who still has so much more room to improve.

If Payton were to ever step away from calling plays, he’d likely hand those responsibilities off to Pete Carmichael, but I don’t think Payton will ever consider not calling plays. He’s not wired that way, and ownership isn’t going to force him to be that way either.

“Are the Broncos just a few players away in the rebuild?” – Greg Hunt on Twitter.

I think this is a fair question and observation. The Broncos answered their biggest question of 2024 this season and that was whether or not Bo Nix is a franchise quarterback. He is. Now, this offseason will be about surrounding him with the best pieces possible to help him thrive, especially while he’s on a rookie deal.

I think on offense, the Denver Broncos offense is in need of a legit playmaking wide receiver. Tee Higgins should be somebody the Broncos pursue heavily to pair next to Courtland Sutton. That type of move would open up the offense and give guys like Marvin Mims, Troy Franklin, and Devaughn Vele more opportunities as well. They also need a playmaking tight end, but that might be the hardest position to address in free agency. Running back is another priority, but in my opinion, it’s the third priority on offense.

Defensively, it’s fair to say the Broncos have to look at upgrading the ILB position and adding more depth in the secondary. In my opinion, their front seven and outside linebackers are in a great spot.

“What can the Denver Broncos do to get the offense going more consistently? Better run game and the deep balls are great and exciting, but I’d love to see Payton dial up some more short/mid-level/deep routes to give Nix options.” – Michael Prior on Twitter.

Fantastic point, Michael. I’d love to see more slants and clearouts offensively. A lot of the route concepts this season have seemed a bit longer developing, where timing becomes the most crucial aspect of a play. Timing can be thrown off if protection has a lapse anywhere, and we’ve seen teams tend to blitz more on second and third down against them later in the season. We haven’t seen a lot of simple concepts like slants, but we have seen plenty of concepts to the flats or out routes. Quick hitches and slants might be able to get things going earlier.

Also, if the Broncos committed to the run game more often early on, the play-action looks might open up more often. I think the key to the evolution of the passing offense is that the run game becomes a priority.

“How sad will we be if we don’t make the playoffs? The season has been better than anything I can remember recently, but being so close and not making it would feel pretty bad. God bless Bo Nix.” – Kelly on Twitter.

That is completely understandable, Kelly. For the Broncos to be in the position they were in, with a chance to clinch a playoff spot in the last three weeks, it would be very disappointing if they missed out. With that said, this season is still a success in my eyes, considering that most outlets and national pundits had them at five wins or less. They’re definitely ahead in their rebuild, and they’ve missed out on a few chances to already be locked into a playoff spot, but they’re trending upwards.

If the Denver Broncos miss the playoffs this year, they absolutely have to make the postseason next year. That has to be the expectation and priority and regardless of how the season ends, whether that be with a playoff appearance or them missing the playoffs, they’ll be very aggressive this offseason on loading up.