Okay, yes it’s ridiculous to already be looking ahead to the next year/season for the newly minted AFC West Champion Denver Broncos. Still so much to focus on – including a huge season finale with the Los Angeles Chargers – and the upcoming AFC playoffs, where they’re going in as one of the favorites, and will get at least one game in the Mile High City.
Still, this is the time of year to gaze into that slightly cracked crystal ball and dream about what could lie ahead in 2026 for Sean Payton and company.
For starters, the Broncos remain on solid ground with their ownership, admin and coaching personnel. No reason to expect any major changes there, unless defensive coordinator Vance Joseph gets a head coaching gig. That’s very possible and well earned. Same goes for QB coach Davis Webb. He could end up somebody’s offensive coordinator/play-caller and that team would be the better for it.
If Joseph departs, no time should be wasted in promoting their current assistant head coach and defensive pass game coordinator Jim Leonhard to the role of DC. The former Wisconsin Badger star will be in that role for someone very soon, and just like Webb, that team will be pleased with the acquisition. Certainly, the Broncos’ brain trust already has potential replacements lined up.
Payton will get votes for Coach of the Year, and the Denver front office may get recognized too, if for no other reason than the way they’ve dealt with the Russell Wilson contract and salary cap mess. It’s been kind of remarkable.
So let’s start there, regardless of where or when this season ends. When they start the new league year in early March, the Broncos will have money to spend on free agents and will have a full allotment of draft picks.
Denver is a year too late to try to snag the likes of Tee Higgins from Cincinnati. But they should – and will – still be looking for immediate upgrades to the pass-receiving corps. The pickings are slimmer this off season, with 33-year-old Mike Evans the only marquee name on the list, and at a cost of more than $20 mil a year. Denver is already paying Courtland Sutton that same kind of money, and they don’t need another Sutton. They need a game-breaker. Dallas standout/diva George Pickens is expected to command more than $30 mil a year, but he’s not Payton’s kind of guy.
Given his penchant for former employees of the New Orleans Saints, expect the Broncos to give former Saint/Seattle Seahawk Rashid Shaheed a multi-year deal worth around $15 mil per year. A better deep threat than Marvin Mims, he has some of the same kick-returning skills as well. He’d fit in very nicely in predominantly orange.
Expect Denver to look for better pass-coverage linebackers in free agency as well. Depending on how this season ends, they might let Alex Singleton walk. Given their ups and downs in special teams, perhaps Denver goes after someone like San Francisco Pro Bowler special teamer/linebacker Luke Gifford.
When the draft rolls around, I expect the Broncos to spend their first-round draft pick on Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq, and they will be very glad they did. A gifted, physical pass-catcher, he fits the mold of someone the Broncos haven’t had in years. Expect Denver to also look for offensive line depth in the draft, and perhaps a new backup quarterback. It might be time to let Jarrett Stidham find a place where he can actually get on the field.
When next season rolls around, the Broncos will be playing a first-place schedule, which at the moment looks daunting. Ten games against 2025 playoff teams… and that doesn’t include Kansas City, a team out for revenge. Still, this Broncos franchise is on the upswing, so expect another run at the AFC West title and the Super Bowl in 2026…maybe they’ll even be going for a repeat.
