Fans Hope for Another Winning Season
Trevor Phipps
Although the Denver Broncos ended the preseason with a winning record, some fans were concerned about their performance in certain games.
In the end, the Broncos’ preseason was literally filled with ups and downs.
During their first preseason match against the Atlanta Falcons, the team looked absolutely stellar. Even though most of their starters didn’t play, the Broncos exhibited an amazing offense. The Broncos’ defense also put a serious hamper on the Falcons’ playmaking ability.
But then there was the Packers game… After wowing fans in the first preseason duel, the Broncos seemed to fall apart in their home opener against the Green Bay Packers, despite an impressive start by Bo Nix. In fact, the team looked horrible no matter who was playing. They incurred a loss of 33-13. Ouch!
The team’s head coach, Sean Payton, had some choice words about how his team performed after the game. “Obviously that wasn’t good enough,” Payton told reporters at a press conference. “I said this after the game—just pick a topic. Pick penalties, we lose there, kickoff, kickoff return, we lose that battle; rushing numbers, we lose that.”
But then Payton must have lectured the team over the next week pretty hard. Yes, you could definitely see a change in attitude when they played their final preseason match against the Minnesota Vikings. The Broncos performed much better on both sides of the ball and proved once again that they can be dominant on the gridiron.
But as they always say, preseason doesn’t mean anything, nor is it a good measurement of how a team will fare in the regular season. Besides, the Broncos went undefeated during the 2024 and 2025 pre-seasons.
And this preliminary start didn’t seem to give them much super champ ammunition, as they haven’t made it to the Super Bowl since the 2015 season.
Fans just hope the team can learn from its mistakes, because they don’t have any time early in the season for errors. The Broncos have six hard games to kick off the season, and their fans hope they can grab some wins early on to gain momentum. Otherwise, the Broncs’ chances of duplicating last year’s successful win mark during the regular season are doubtful.
To start the season, the Broncos get thrown into the middle of the fire with a road game against the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2026 Monday Night Football debut
Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs: Monday, September 14 at 6:15 p.m.
Most fans weren’t happy with the league when they learned they would be playing their rival team, the KC Chiefs, for game one. The Broncos always seem to struggle during evening games. Plus, playing at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City is always difficult.
However, after their lackluster 2025 season, I don’t think the Chiefs will be a tough force to reckon with like they were for years, prior to last year’s disastrous run. The team does have a healthy quarterback now and they did pick up running back Kenneth Walker III.
But I still believe that the Chiefs’ reign could have already come to an end. Besides, the team didn’t show me anything during the pre-season to convince me that they are significantly better this year.
The Broncos, on the other hand, did impress me overall during the pre-season. The team showed good depth and even their second and third string players proved that the team could play hard
From what I have heard during practices, Bo Nix is healthy and he has been proving it. In fact, his coaches and sports commentators have said that he looks much better than he ever has. Some coaches have pointed out that he has made definite improvements in his long passing game.
Overall, I really do think that the Broncos are going to come out swinging this year. And I believe a big win against the Chiefs in their season opener will give them the confidence to win moving forward.
TMJ Trevor’s Prediction: Denver Broncos 35, Kansas 31
Vegas Line: Chiefs by 3.
TMJ Trevor’s Broncos’ 2026 Season Prediction
Many fans are already hyping the Broncos up and predicting a Super Bowl appearance. Besides, many NFL “experts” have said that the Broncos would have gone to the Super Bowl and possibly won it. Only if QB Bo Nix would have stayed healthy and finished the postseason.
With that reasoning, the Broncos should be a Super Bowl-worthy team this year if the injury Gods stay on their side. However, I think some fans and commentators are being a little overly optimistic.
Last year, the Broncos were actually a little overrated. They had a super easy schedule, yet they barely snuck past many teams they should have easily beaten
This year will be different. The Broncos got greeted by the NFL with one of the toughest schedules in the league. And as the defending AFC West Division Champs for the first time in a decade, many teams will be seeking revenge or be extra motivated when squaring off against the Broncs. Success in the NFL puts you on the target list.
I do think the Broncos did give themselves a better advantage with their offseason roster changes. And I believe the team will look much better without Sean Payton calling all of the plays. Coach Sean has turned those duties over to Offensive Coordinator Davis Webb.
However, I just don’t see the Broncos making to the Big Game this year. I do think they will make the playoffs, but I expect the AFC, as a whole, to be much more competitive compared to 2025.
Trevor’s 2026 Season Prediction: 12-5 record. And please don’t hurt me, or worse fate of all, force me to personally attend 10 consecutive Woodland Park City Council meetings; but the Broncos will lose the AFC Championship title game once again.
