Every year in the NFL, there are teams who get slept on in the offseason. Last year, remember how everyone thought the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were going to be the worst team in the league with Baker Mayfield at the helm? The Houston Texans were routinely projected to be one of the worst teams in the league before they surprised everyone and won the AFC South.
The moral of the story is — not every team that’s expected to be bad is going to be bad. There are a lot of teams getting slept on by the masses ahead of the 2024 NFL season for whatever reason, and it’s time to put them on the radar.
After going 8-9 last year, the Denver Broncos took on another offseason of massive change. The team changed its uniforms, so the Broncos are literally going to look a lot different this season, but they also made another major change at QB, releasing veteran Russell Wilson. The release of Wilson was necessary even though the Broncos are on the hook for $85 million in dead cap over the next two years.
It’s now going to likely be 1st-round pick Bo Nix at the helm for Sean Payton, the first time Payton has ever used a 1st-round pick on the QB position. The Broncos got better almost everywhere else on this roster with the exception of the safety position where All-Pro Justin Simmons is being replaced by committee. But for a team that won eight games last year, it’s somewhat shocking to see such drastic projections of the Broncos’ demise. There are some people who think five wins for this team is a generous projection.
The Broncos beat teams like the Chiefs, Packers, Bills, and Browns last year. They were tough for a good chunk of the season and one game out of 1st place in the AFC West into December. There’s no way they’re going to be as bad as people are thinking.
Source link: NFL Power Rankings: 5 most slept-on teams for the 2024 NFL season