Broncos finally found their quarterback and ended their playoff drought. Now comes the hard part

By Canadian Press on January 13, 2025.

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Mixed emotions permeated the Denver Broncos’ locker room Monday after they ended their long playoff drought only to get blown out at Buffalo.

“This year was good but not good enough,” All-Pro right guard Quinn Meinerz said as he and his teammates packed up for a later-than-usual but earlier-than-hoped-for offseason.

The Broncos (10-8) finally found their quarterback in Bo Nix, who led them to the playoffs for the first time since the 2015 season and became the first rookie QB to start a playoff game in franchise history.

After jumping out to a 7-0 lead on Nix’s 43-yard touchdown throw to Troy Franklin, the Broncos’ lack of a ground game, paucity of proficient tight ends and meager wingmen around receiver Courtland Sutton all became glaringly apparent in their 31-7 wipeout.

“We got smacked right in our faces,” said left tackle Garett Bolles, who insisted the team will use the humbling loss as fuel for 2025.

The Broncos led the NFL with a franchise-high 63 sacks but only got to Josh Allen twice as the Bills rushed for 210 yards, led by James Cook’s 120.

“One of the things we learned early on is we got to find a way to play these games at home,” coach Sean Payton said.

That would mean knocking the Kansas City Chiefs from their pedestal atop the AFC West. Winners of nine consecutive division crowns, the Chiefs (15-2) are three wins away from a Super Bowl three-peat.

However, the Broncos would have swept the Chiefs this season were it not for a blocked field goal as time expired in Week 10 that allowed Kansas City to escape with a 16-14 win. After that game, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes told Payton, “You got one,” as in, Denver finally has has a franchise QB.

“We were in all those games, every single one of them,” Bolles said of the Broncos’ 3-3 division slate. “None of them were blowouts. I think we’re right there. I think we need to get some more playmakers.”

The Chiefs rested their starters in Week 18 with the AFC’s top seed already secured, and the Broncos walloped them 38-0 behind Nix’s best game to clinch their first playoff berth since winning the Super Bowl after the 2015 season.

Tough man

Nix’s stellar season took on even more shine Monday when he revealed he played through a transverse process fracture of the lumbar spine. He got hurt against the Raiders on Nov. 24, then beat the Browns in a shootout on Dec. 2 prior to the Broncos’ bye.

“I wasn’t going to miss my first Monday night game, so I got treatment on it and then we were fortunate to have an off week that next week and then it kind of went away after that,” Nix said.

Some of his offensive linemen called that a testament to Nix’s toughness.

“The dude’s phenomenal,” Bolles said. “Like I told you all year long, he’s not a rookie. You would think he’s a 10-year vet the way he acts, the way he’s composed, the way he leads our offense and leads this team.”

The sixth quarterback taken in the NFL draft, Nix was one of two rookie QBs — Washington’s Jayden Daniels, selected second overall by Washington, was the other — to lead their teams into the playoffs.

Nix’s 29 TD throws were two shy of Justin Herbert’s NFL rookie record.

Smart shoppers

The Broncos reached the playoffs despite an NFL record $89 million in dead cap charges in 2024, including $53 million from the release of quarterback Russell Wilson.

Wilson’s cap hit will drop to $32 million in 2025 before he’s completely off the team’s books in 2026. With a much lower hit, the Broncos are projected to have nearly $50 million in cap space this spring, according to OverTheCap.com.

Star-studded roster

Five Broncos were named AP All-Pros in 2024, the most since 1996. Cornerback Patrick Surtain — the favorite to win the league’s Defensive Player of the Year award, according to BetMGM Sports — punt returner Marvin Mims Jr. and Meinerz were all named first-team All-Pro.

Edge rusher Nik Bonitto and defensive tackle Zach Allen made second-team All-Pro. Bonitto had a career-best 13 1/2 sacks and Allen collected a career-high 8 1/2 sacks, plus another 1 1/2 at Buffalo.

Terrific in the trenches

The Broncos boasted one of the best offensive lines in the NFL with Bolles, Ben Powers, Luke Wattenberg, Meinerz and Mike McGlinchey. One year after Powers (four years, $51.5 million) and McGlinchey (five years, $87.5 million) came over in free agency, Bolles (four years, $82 million) and Meinerz (four years, $72 million) signed extensions.

Farewell, VJ?

Defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, who coached the Broncos from 2017-18, will interview for the Jets’ and Raiders’ head coaching vacancies.

“I would be the first one to stand on a table and say he deserves to be” a head coach again, linebacker Alex Singleton said. “But I don’t want him to leave Denver anytime soon.”

Next steps

The Broncos will need upgrades at tight end and wide receiver, among other spots, for them to have a shot at challenging the Chiefs in the AFC West.

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Arnie Stapleton, The Associated Press