6 Broncos Who Will Make or Break the 2026 Season

The Denver Broncos were not quiet about their Super Bowl aspirations before the 2025 season, and many laughed at them. After making it to the AFC championship game, those aspirations still exist and rightfully so.

The Broncos were one game and a Bo Nix injury away from making it to the Super Bowl.

Fast forward to the offseason, and the Broncos brought back all but five of their own free agents. The Broncos believe that their roster, with a few additions, could get them to where they want to be.

There's nothing wrong with that, especially after what Denver achieved a year ago, but these six players, three on offense and three on defense, will be the keys to a successful 2026 season.

Bo Nix | QB

Every team has a lot riding on what they get out of the quarterback position. It's the most vital position in any sport for a reason.

Nix's importance to the Broncos' outlook was illustrated in how quickly those Super Bowl aspirations came crashing down around Sean Payton's ears after his quarterback broke his ankle in the divisional round of the playoffs. Nix's injury is now expected to keep him off the field until training camp.

The 2025 season started rough for Nix, but he came into his own in Week 10 and ended the season playing good football. The Broncos will need Nix to play at that level from the start of the season, and he will need to take another step forward, especially with Davis Webb taking over as the play-caller.

J.K. Dobbins | RB

When Dobbins went down in Week 10, the Broncos' run game became inconsistent at best. There were multiple games where they had almost no run game, and only a couple of games where it was a positive impact for the offense.

The Broncos decided to re-sign Dobbins to a sizeable deal because they believe he can stay healthy and have a major positive impact on the team.

Dobbins was so vital to the run game and offensive success last year that, even with Jonah Coleman drafted and RJ Harvey hopefully taking that next step, Dobbins is still Denver's guy. The Broncos have protected themselves against another Dobbins injury, but they need him to stay healthy and make a consistent impact, especially if/when they get back to the playoffs.

Jaylen Waddle | WR

Waddle was the only big veteran addition the Broncos made. But he'll be a difference-maker in their passing game, which was badley needed.

Even though the Broncos got a lot out of their receivers a year ago, they needed more big-play potential and more reliability and consistency, which Waddle brings.

How quickly can Nix and Waddle get their chemistry down with Nix sidelined with an ankle injury until training camp? That will be a question to watch, but Waddle did well with quarterback changes in Miami, so there is plenty of reason for optimism.

Nik Bonitto | OLB

Bonitto had a great start to the season, but his production dipped as time marched on, though the impact remained. Denver needs him to take another step, not only to match his previous impact, but also to keep production up as the season goes on and into the playoffs.

One area where Bonitto can take another step is strip-sacks. Not only do the Broncos need consistent pressure and the ability to generate sacks, but they also need more chances to force takeaways, which can help the defense take another step in how good they are.

Patrick Surtain II | CB

Surtain is a lockdown corner, and the Broncos need him to be one. He is the straw that stirs the drink on defense, so he is a vital piece to the Broncos' success.

There have been times Surtain has been caught, and there were a few early last season, but he closed the campaign at a level similar to his Defensive Player of the Year performance.

Similar to Bonitto, Denver could use more interceptions from Surtain when he gets targeted. Of course, it's hard to get interceptions when you aren’t targeted that much, but he was targeted 67 times, allowing 37 of them to be caught, with only one interception in 2025.

There's room for a couple more interceptions.

Talanoa Hufanga | S

Hufanga proved to be one of the Broncos' best free-agent signings a year ago and made a difference by giving them another straw that can stir the drink. His versatility was huge for the Broncos' defensive success last year, though it wasn’t without some issues.

Hufanga's tackling was hit-or-miss, as he had the third-highest missed-tackle rate among the Broncos' defensive backs, behind Surtain and Jahdae Barron, and he had a lot of would-be interceptions bounce off his hands.

If Hufanga caught even half of the passes that hit his hands, the Broncos would have added four or five interceptions to their total. They're going to need those this year.

Sign up for our free Denver Broncos On SI newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

Add us as a preferred source on Google