The Broncos are heading into the 2026 season with a passing game that looks nothing like the one this franchise has rolled out in recent years, and the reason is sitting right at the top of the depth chart.
Denver opens Monday night at Arrowhead against the Chiefs, and the mix of weapons around Bo Nix gives Davis Webb a lot more to work with than any coordinator in Denver has had in years. Jaylen Waddle brings the speed.
Courtland Sutton brings the reliability. Pat Bryant is on the rise.
Troy Franklin is still developing. It’s a room that can stress a defense in a bunch of different ways.
On a recent edition of “Dover and Cecil” on 104.3 The Fan, Cecil Lammey put his finger on the benchmark that would turn this offense from intriguing into truly dangerous: two 1,000-yard receivers.
“There’s two near thousand-yard receivers on this team. And if Bo Nix throws for 4,000 plus, give 2,000 yards to two guys. Courtland Sutton gets like 900 to 1,100, and Jaylen Waddle gets 900 to 1,100,” Lammey said.
That idea makes sense because of how the pieces fit together. Sutton has long been Denver’s most dependable target, producing at a high level while drawing the top attention from opposing defenses.
Waddle changes that equation. His speed forces help over the top, and that can open things up for Sutton in a way he hasn’t always had before.
Each receiver should make the other harder to handle.
Lammey also explained why the two players can reach the same neighborhood in totally different ways.
“Honestly, both those guys have about the same range, they’re just gonna look differently. Because with Waddle it could be three for 120 and two touchdowns. And for Court it’s like seven for 70 and a touchdown,” Lammey said.
That’s the heart of it. Waddle can hurt you in a flash, with big plays that barely take a handful of catches.
Sutton can keep the offense moving with steady volume and chain-moving production. One stretches the field.
The other works the middle and underneath. Defenses trying to account for both at once are going to have problems.
The Broncos haven’t had two 1,000-yard receivers since Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders did it in 2016. Now they have a chance to do it again, with Nix in position to spread the ball around and a supporting cast that includes Bryant and Franklin behind the top two.
If that balance holds and Nix can push the ball where it needs to go, the numbers around this offense could get loud fast. Two 1,000-yard receivers would say plenty on its own.
It would tell the league Denver’s passing game has arrived. Monday night is the first chance to prove it.
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