The Denver Broncos are back at 1-1 for the second straight year, a step up from the 0-2 starts they posted in 2023 and 2024. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the road ahead gets rough fast, with four playoff teams from a year ago still waiting over the next month before things ease up.
So even after an exciting Week 2 win, the next three games look like a true test. Denver gets one of them at home, then heads into a California swing that could tell us plenty about where this team stands.
Week 3 brings the toughest assignment of the stretch: the Los Angeles Rams. The Rams are described here as a juggernaut, and possibly the best team Denver has faced in the Sean Payton era.
That said, Mile High has been a real weapon for the Broncos. Since the start of the 2024 season, Denver owns a 15-3 home record in 18 games there, and that kind of edge matters.
If the Broncos can get heat on Matthew Stafford, who is not a mobile quarterback, they can make this interesting. But the prediction here leans the other way, with Los Angeles’ talent and Stafford’s form proving to be enough.
The pick: Rams 24, Broncos 20, dropping Denver to 1-2.
Week 4 shifts to San Francisco, where the Broncos face a 49ers team that has opened 2-0 and gotten strong play from Brock Purdy. The Niners are also dealing with a long injury list, and the source makes the case that Denver actually has the more talented roster.
That sets up a game that should go back and forth, with San Francisco’s home field balancing out Denver’s edge in personnel. One notable wrinkle: Purdy has actually been more efficient away from home than in San Francisco.
In the Purdy era, the 49ers are 17-10 at home and 18-6 away, while Purdy has a 100.4 passer rating at home with 42 touchdown passes and 27 interceptions, compared with a 110.2 rating away from home with 47 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions. Even with that, the prediction is a Broncos win.
Then comes Week 5 at the Los Angeles Chargers, and this one feels like a chance for Denver to take advantage of a team that has been a mess through two weeks. The Chargers have already lost to the Arizona Cardinals and Las Vegas Raiders, and the source doesn’t mince words: they’re banged up, poorly coached, and lacking the personnel to cover up those coaching problems.
There’s also the idea that some of this could be regression, which only adds to the sense that the Broncos should be in position to capitalize on October 11th. Even with Denver’s struggles against LA in the Payton era, this looks like a spot where the Broncos can benefit from the Chargers’ current issues.
In Other News...
Broncos First-Round Pick Is Already Raising An Uncomfortable Question
Jahdae Barron was supposed to be one of the Broncos future answers in the secondary, but two games into his second season, the former first-round pick still looks more like a piece in waiting than a player on the rise. He has logged only six defensive snaps so far in 2026, and with Patrick Surtain II, Riley Moss and Ja'Quan McMillian already holding down the cornerback room, there has been little room for Barron to force his way into a clear starting job.
For Denver, that creates an uncomfortable but fair question about how the draft board was handled in the first place. Barrons talent was never really the issue, but the Broncos may have used premium capital on a position where their depth was already established, and it could be a while before the payoff is obvious. If he does not become a starter until his third NFL season, the discussion around that pick will only get louder. [Read more 🡒]
Sean Payton Knows The Broncos Have A Problem Even After Winning
The Broncos left Jacksonville with a 20-13 win and a little more confidence after erasing a second-half deficit, but Sean Payton is hardly pretending everything is settled. The victory fit a pattern Denver has already started to lean on this season, with the coach pointing to the value of winning close games while also making clear the team cannot keep inviting pressure by putting itself in early holes.
At 1-1, Denver has enough reason to feel good about its resilience and enough evidence to know the margin for error is thin. Paytons bigger concern is the same one that tends to haunt teams in September and beyond: the Broncos have shown they can survive tight finishes, but they still need cleaner starts before the schedule tightens again with the Los Angeles Rams next. [Read more 🡒]
Broncos Face A Tougher Test Than Fans Expected Next Week
The Rams looked awfully complete in their win over the Giants, with Matthew Stafford throwing four touchdown passes and Aaron Donald back in the middle of the defense. For the Broncos, that raises the level of difficulty for a matchup that already had some edge to it. Denver now gets Los Angeles next, and the spotlight will be on whether the Broncos can get enough pressure on Stafford to keep the Rams from settling in the way they did Sunday.
For Denver, the concern goes beyond slowing down Stafford. Bo Nix is dealing with an ankle issue, so the Broncos also have to make sure their own quarterback is protected if they want any chance of keeping pace. With the Rams coming off a convincing performance and their front looking stronger with Donald available again, this feels like the kind of test that can expose a few things about where Denver really stands. [Read more 🡒]