Broncos' 2024 Regular-Season Schedule: 3 Key Takeaways
The Denver Broncos unveiled their full 2024 regular-season schedule on Wednesday evening. We've known for a few months which opponents the Broncos would face — beyond their three AFC West rivals — but we didn't know the order.
With the exact schedule known, what should Broncos Country take away from this coming season's slate of games? Here are three key takeaways.
A Deceiving Strength of Schedule
For a few years in a row, the Broncos' wherewithal as a team was not commensurate with how the NFL was scheduling them. Amid one sub-.500 finish after another, the Broncos found themselves in the top-5-hardest when it came to strength-of-schedule, including the second-toughest in 2020.
Things started to balance out in 2021 and last year, Denver faced the 12th-toughest schedule in the NFL. The average winning percentage of Denver's 2024 opponents — based on last year — is .495, which ranks as the 20th-toughest schedule this year.
Don't let that fool you, though. Not only do the Broncos have to face off with the World Champion Kansas City Chiefs twice as a matter of course, but also the Las Vegas Raiders, who currently have an eight-game winning streak over Denver.
Jim Harbaugh is expected to elevate the Los Angeles Chargers' prospects, which could make the AFC West one of the toughest divisions in the NFL, if the Broncos also begin to rise with a new quarterback in tow. Beyond the Chiefs, Bo Nix and the Broncos will face four additional opponents who made the playoffs last year: the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Baltimore Ravens, and Cleveland Browns.
It could be rough, but remember, the Broncos defeated the Browns last year. And Denver snapped its ignominious losing streak to Kansas City with a resounding victory in 2023.
Throw in a few fringe opponents who could challenge for the playoffs this coming season, like the New York Jets (because Aaron Rodgers returns), Seattle Seahawks, Cincinnati Bengals, and maybe even the Atlanta Falcons (Kirk Cousins), and the Broncos' strength of schedule could be a bit deceiving at first glance.
Trio of Revenge Tilts
The Broncos face the Steelers in Week 2. All the drama and juju of the public Sean Payton/Russell Wilson divorce will come to bear. That is, so long as Wilson beats out Justin Fields for Pittsburgh's starting job.
We could bill it as Payton vs. Wilson. But the more appropriate billing is Nix vs. Wilson.
Throw in Payton's return to the Bayou to face the New Orleans Saints in Week 7, as well as Week 4's road tilt at Nathaniel Hackett and the Jets, and the Broncos have three revenge games on this year's schedule. Let's hope Payton has his team better prepared to exact revenge this time around because he still has egg on his face after talking so much smack about Hackett — only to see the Jets curb-stomp the Broncos at home in Week 5.
Woefully Late Bye
The Broncos don't get their bye until Week 14. You might wonder what the utility of having a bye week that late in the season might be, and you're not alone.
But it could be a blessing in disguise for Denver if Payton and Nix have this team relevant in December. If the Broncos are hovering around .500 entering Week 14, getting two weeks between games to rest and recuperate could end up giving the team a modest competitive advantage down the stretch.
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