Biggest Broncos Takeaway From Super Bowl 60

Super Bowl 60 exposed one clear takeaway about the Denver Broncos.

Dec 14, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) throws downfield during the second quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Empower Field at Mile High. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Super Bowl 60 is officially in the books. The Seattle Seahawks defeated the New England Patriots 29-13 in one of the least-anticipated and most boring Super Bowls of the modern era.

The offseason now begins for the Denver Broncos. We've already gotten a head start on previewing the 2026 offseason, considering that Denver was bounced from the playoffs two weeks ago.

Before we continue with our offseason focus, including free agency and the NFL draft, allow me to share with you my one big takeaway from Super Bowl 60.

Broncos Were One Injury Away From Being World Champs

I know. Woulda, shoulda, coulda.

There's no putting the toothpaste back in the tube. But anyone who watched that Super Bowl who didn't originate from the greater Boston or Seattle area had to be saying to themselves: the Broncos would have given the Seahawks a much greater run for their money.

If Bo Nix hadn't suffered that freak fractured ankle on the third-to-last play of the Broncos' 33-30 overtime win over the Buffalo Bills, the Patriots would not have advanced to the Super Bowl. It would have been the Broncos, whose quarterback was much more of a gamer with one of the strongest clutch genes in the NFL.

Watching both Sam Darnold and Drake Maye play relatively mundane football for the better part of four quarters, there's no doubt in my mind that Denver's defense would have kept this thing close for Nix. You wouldn't have seen Nix turn the ball over and get sacked at anywhere close to the rate that Maye did in the AFC title game and Super Bowl.

The Broncos' defense would have made life much more difficult on Darnold, though that's not to take anything away from New England's unit. The Broncos also would have done a better job of limiting Kenneth Walker III. The Patriots' defense wasn't the problem in that game, though.

At the very least, Denver's defense wouldn't have done any worse than New England's, and the big difference would have been Nix. Nix would have put a few more points on the board than Maye did, even if he was just trading field goals with Darnold.

The Broncos' defense would have kept it close, giving Nix the opportunity to turn it on and go win it at the bottom of the fourth quarter.

Perhaps in some alternate football universe, this is exactly how it shook out in Super Bowl 60. A Broncos team with a healthy Nix vanquishes the Patriots at home and goes on to turn in a very competitive game vs. the Seahawks, winning it in the closing seconds.

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What it Tells Us

Nov 16, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) prepares to pass in the fourth quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs at Empower Field at Mile High. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Honestly, the Broncos are a bona fide Super Bowl contender. That's how this team should be viewed. It took one of the most shocking, freak playoff injuries in modern NFL history to knock the Broncos off their Super Bowl path.

The good news? Nix will be back in a few more weeks, and the Broncos will begin the process of reclimbing the AFC mountain.

It won't be easy to win the AFC West again in 2026. Patrick Mahomes will be back at some point, and the Kansas City Chiefs will be gunning hard for a redemptive rebound. But there's no way to know for sure how Mahomes will recover from his knee injury.

The Los Angeles Chargers will be out to prove that Jim Harbaugh's influence can eventually nullify the 'Chargers gonna Charger' thing in the playoffs. And we'll see how quickly the Las Vegas Raiders can reboot with Klint Kubiak as head coach and Fernando Mendoza (in all likelihood) at quarterback.

Still, since Sean Payton arrived in Denver, the Broncos have matched up extremely well with the Chiefs. When Nix was added to the mix, the pendulum swung even further in Denver's favor. Were it not for another freak incident, Nix would be undefeated vs. Mahomes as a pro, but I digress.

The Broncos can take care of business again in the AFC West, though it won't be easy. All of the core roster pieces are returning in 2026. However, the Broncos have to get better as a rushing offense.

What will be perhaps much harder to lock down is the No. 1 AFC seed in the playoffs, which comes with the first-round bye and home-field advantage. The No. 1 seed is much more difficult to control because the variables are four-fold, but there's been a lot of coaching turnover in the AFC.

Meanwhile, the Broncos have been the epitome of stable under Payton.

The Takeaway

It was a disappointing setback losing Nix right before the AFC title game. But Super Bowl 60 should give Broncos Country a true shot of encouragement and confidence about just how close this team actually is.

The Broncos will be gunning for the big stage in 2026, and it won't be easy to stop them.