Best Bet- Broncos Under 7 Wins (-125)
Worst Bet- Broncos To Win Super Bowl (+6000)
It was another declining season for the Denver Broncos last year as they once again failed to make the playoffs. The streak is now at three straight seasons without a playoff birth. The quarterback position has been plug one guy in after another ever since their Super Bowl 50 victory in Peyton Manning’s final season back in 2015.
Now the Broncos have a choice to make at QB this coming season as the Case Keenum experiment lasted all of one year. Will it be former Super Bowl MVP and new addition Joe Flacco or will it be the rookie Drew Lock? Like the major change at QB, there is also a new head man in Denver as Vance Joseph got bounced after two seasons. Vic Fangio got the gig and he will look to bring with him his recent success as the Chicago Bears’ defensive coordinator to the Broncos’ once outstanding defense. Can the Broncos’ D return to that elite level? Fangio might be able to get it there.
Flacco and/or Lock will have useful weapons around including a two-headed backfield tandem with second-year backs Phillip Lindsay, who was an undrafted free agent that went on to be the second best back from the 2018 draft class, and Royce Freeman. Emmanuel Sanders returns to lead the receiving corp that also features promising second-year player Courtland Sutton. Add in a big-time draft choice in rookie tight end Noah Fant, and the Broncos have plenty of weapons for either Flacco or Lock.
With the Broncos at three-straight failed seasons, the hope is Fangio can right the ship and get Denver back into contention in the AFC West. Joseph wasn’t able to win more than six games in his two seasons in Denver. Gary Kubiak was able to go 9-7 in 2016, but since then Denver has steadily declined.
Last season’s 6-10 record definitely gives them some kind of hope for the future. A couple of victories over playoff teams didn’t hurt last season including a win over Seattle in Week 1. Denver started last season 2-0, but quickly collapsed after that.
A new coach and system along with young talent have provided plenty of hope for the Denver faithful, but only time will tell if they can break through and jump at the least the Los Angeles Chargers for second in the division.
Broncos Win Total: O/U 7 Wins
The win total is set at an even seven for the Broncos by the oddsmakers, and that might be right around what this team could ultimately be capable of. It’s still to soon to tell, but Denver went 6-10 a season ago and will have to fight hard to not be in the same situation this season. Both units for the Broncos struggled last season, as offensively they finished 19th in the league in yards, while their defense struggled to 22nd in the league.
Denver will need to get everything they can out of Flacco if he is the QB they go with. Before there is an argument over how many games this team can win, they will have to decide which quarterback gets the keys. Flacco has been plagued by injuries ever since his Super Bowl victory with the Ravens back in 2013 and hasn’t reached the same level of success since. Flacco hasn’t been able to throw deep in recent years, and I don’t see him suddenly getting that much better just because of the change in scenery.
Drafting Fant adds a very reliable pass catcher at the tight end position that Denver has been searching for in the last four drafts, as Jake Butt continues to battle injuries and Jeff Heuerman is useful, but not as big of a red zone threat as Fant can be. Sutton and Sanders are a strong one/two at receiver, but DaeSean Hamilton and the rest of the receivers are still unproven and have plenty of room to grow. Oddsmakers have the Broncos at seven wins, and with an unproven group that is respectable. However the division is tough, and I don’t see the Broncos getting to .500 in 2019. I’m playing the under.
Odds To Make The Playoffs: Yes +300, No -400
Denver hasn’t made the playoffs since the 2015 season when they went on to win Super Bowl 50. The Broncos went to the playoffs for five straight seasons from 2011-2015, but have struggled to get over the hump since, their closest being in 2016 when they went 9-7 and missed out on the playoffs by a game.
If the Chargers take a step back, then perhaps the Broncos will be able to get closer to making the playoffs, but it doesn’t seem very likely at this point, as the Chargers return a strong team on both sides of the ball. Both teams that made the playoffs from the AFC West had very strong records at 12-4 each, which makes it hard for a team in that division to sneak into the playoffs with a 9-7 record.
Going 9-7 used to be the way to go if you wanted to sneak in especially in the AFC, but the worst record last season in the AFC that made the playoffs was 10-6. There’s a real strong possibility this team won’t come close to making the playoffs, so even though their odds aren’t terrible, it is still something to avoid. It could be close for Denver, but I still don’t see them sneaking in, not in this division.
Odds To Win The AFC West: +1200
They’re a real longshot to somehow bring home the division crown this season. Three seasons ago when the Broncos were coming off their Super Bowl 50 victory it wouldn’t have been questionable to think that the Broncos could take the division crown, but ever since that win, Denver has completely turned upside down.
This division could either be competitive or one-sided. In most cases, the team that wins this division has gone 12-4, except the 2017 Chiefs who limped to a 10-6 record and took home the crown in a highly competitive division race that resulted in the Chargers going 9-7 and failing to make the playoffs, which was the first time in three seasons that two teams from the AFC West didn’t make the playoffs.
Could this season give us the same result? It doesn’t look like it at this point, as Oakland and the Denver Broncos are still far off from what the Chiefs and Chargers showed they were capable of last season. The Broncos have the worst odds in this division for a reason, and that is why you should avoid them.
Odds To Win AFC Championship: +3000
Denver has a lot of work to do to even make the playoffs this season, let alone have a chance at reaching the divisional round. So if you think they have a shot at making it to the Super Bowl, you might be crazy. Some teams have come from the bottom and risen to the top very fast, like the Rams, but it just doesn’t seem very possible for Denver at this point. Unless Flacco has a resurgent season and Fangio turns the defense into an elite level unit overnight, this shouldn’t even be in consideration. Denver hasn’t proven that it is even a playoff contender to this point, so stay away from this one.
Odds To Win Super Bowl: +6000
Like I said above with the AFC Championship, winning the Super Bowl is an even harder task. Especially when you have two really strong teams in your division. They have the Chargers and Chiefs blocking their way in the division, not to mention Tom Brady and the Patriots.
To make it anywhere in the AFC you have to beat New England and no one has proven that it is time for the Patriots dynasty to end, so until someone can dethrone the kings of the AFC, then there isn’t even a chance for the Broncos to even reach this game. Like the AFC Championship, the Broncos have a big mountain to climb, not this season, but down the line maybe, just maybe.
