The Broncos' Biggest Weakness for 2026–– And One Free Agent to Fix It

The Denver Broncos' roster heading into the 2026 season doesn't have many glaring holes to factor in whatsoever.

Thanks to an offseason where the primary goal was to retain their successful formula from this past season, paired with a splash addition in the wide receiver room in the form of Jaylen Waddle, pointing out big roster weaknesses that the Broncos are faced with for the year ahead is a tough task.

But the roster isn't exactly perfect. And with that in mind, ESPN had pointed out one minor hole this roster has heading into this season that could ultimately hold back this offense from reaching its absolute ceiling: tight end.

Is TE the Broncos' Biggest Roster Weakness?

ESPN's Mike Clay considered the Broncos' biggest weakness on what he deems a good roster on both sides of the ball to be at the tight end position: one that Denver attacked in the draft with a couple of day three picks, but might still have room for growth to get even better.

"The Broncos look good on both sides of the ball, so I'll be picky and go after a position group that didn't improve as much as expected last season despite the addition of Evan Engram," Clay wrote. "The veteran tight end played a career-low 42% of Denver's snaps and found the end zone once. The 32-year-old will compete with Adam Trautman, Nate Adkins, Lucas Krull and rookie Justin Joly for snaps."

While the Broncos did use up some of their assets in the draft to make this room a bit deeper and stuffed with a bit more potential than what was down the depth chart last season, it'd be tough to really consider this position group on Denver's roster a strength.

Jun 10, 2025; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos tight end Evan Engram (1) during minicamp at Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

And across every other spot on a well-rounded, playoff-ready roster, it might just be the one area with the lowest top-tier talent––which the Broncos could be able to stay afloat with regardless. They managed to do just that last season, and are hoping that can carry over into 2026 as well.

But let's say the Broncos wanted to make a small tweak to their current tight end core to make the room just a little bit more improved from last season, and how they're projecting to pan out in 2026. Who would make sense as a late free agent addition?

Who Could the Broncos Target to Fix Their TE Needs?

For it to make sense from the Broncos' perspective, you'd have to find a remaining veteran on the market who's dynamic enough to be a vertical threat in the passing game for Sean Payton's offense, but also offer enough upside as a blocker to balance out with Evan Engram, and be a feasible option in multiple tight end sets.

One name that's left over on the free agent market who's proven to be effective in both of those areas has been 30-year-old veteran Jonnu Smith, who spent last season on a lackluster Pittsburgh Steelers offense and in Arthur Smith's limited scheme, but could still have a couple of good seasons left in him to bring over to Denver.

Dec 28, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Jonnu Smith (81) warms up before the game against the Cleveland Browns at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Just two years ago with the Miami Dolphins in Mike McDaniel's offense, he made his way to a Pro Bowl selection with a career-high 88 receptions and 884 receiving yards, tying his career-high of eight touchdowns, and proving to be an impactful player in his position when in a favorable scheme to his skill set.

On a low-cost, short-term deal, Smith could enter into the Broncos' tight end depth chart as, at the very least, competition heading into camp, and try to find that same juice he had in 2024, this time in Payton's offense.

If the signing works out, he would slot right in between Engram and Adam Trautman on the depth chart as a reliable set of hands to lean on at the position, and offers another pass-catcher for Bo Nix to utilize––which is never a bad decision to add another weapon into your quarterback's arsenal.

Bottom Line

Depending on how aggressive the Broncos wanted to be in their roster construction leading into next season, Smith may or may not be the right guy for the front office to have on their radar.

Denver might be just fine relying on the room they have in place, and hoping that one of their new rookies in the building can bring an ample spark at tight end.

However, if they did tend to align with Clay on the feeling that this tight end room could use some work, then maybe Smith might just be worth a closer look as a late acquisition leading into training camp later this month.

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