The Broncos’ full 2024 schedule was released Wednesday. The Post’s sports staff took the occasion to forecast how Sean Payton’s second season in Denver will play out.
Parker Gabriel, Broncos reporter
Record: 6-11
Is it super early for this exercise? Of course it is. Will that stop us? Not today. Not now that we know what Denver’s schedule looks like. Nobody would enjoy a 6-11 season. But if you get some promising play out of rookie quarterback Bo Nix and burn off $53 million of Russell Wilson’s dead money along the way, it won’t be for nothing. One word of advice, though: Make sure that Week 2 game against Wilson and Pittsburgh at Empower Field is among the six rather than the 11.
Ryan McFadden, Broncos reporter
Record: 7-10
There’s not a lot of high expectations for Denver at the moment. And that two-week stretch against Baltimore and Kansas City will be brutal. The best thing the Broncos could hope for in 2024 is that Nix shows signs that he can be a franchise quarterback, wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr. becomes a reliable threat and outside linebacker Nik Bonitto makes a leap in Year 3.
Troy Renck, sports columnist
Record: 6-11
The Broncos are in transition, a fact painfully obvious when looking for victories on the schedule. A 1-4 start is possible, but Bo Nix will gain traction, winning five of his final 12 games. A 6-11 record will sting — wins vs the Steelers, Jets and Saints would provide soothing balm for the pain — but if Nix looks like the answer at quarterback the season will be a success.
Sean Keeler, columnist
Record: 7-10
Who are we kidding? It’s all about Week 2, about paying Russell Wilson back for the hunk of flesh he’s chomped out of the 2024 salary cap. The difficulty level cranks up after Halloween, but Weeks 1-8 offer the chance to get a little autumn wind at your young signal-callers’ backs. Sean Payton’s never lost more than nine games in a season. Over the last two years, the six teams that gave rookie QBs the most snaps averaged 9.2 losses. This fall’s a success not so much if you actually beat Mahomes and Herbert, but if you finally find one of your own.
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