WEEK 1

AT SEATTLE

2:05 p.m. Sept. 8, KCNC-4

Lumen Field is not an easy place to win. Certainly not for a team with the kind of question marks the Broncos have entering their second year under Sean Payton. If the defensive front gets off to a roaring start, there’s a chance. But betting on a road win in the PNW out of the gate is a tough sell.

Prediction: Seahawks 20, Broncos 17

WEEK 2

PITTSBURGH

2:25 p.m. Sept. 15, KCNC-4

There’s no way around this fact: Pittsburgh is paying Russell Wilson $1.21 million this year and Denver is paying him $39 million. Imagine: Wilson gets the ball with 1:45 left, trailing by six with 60 yards to go to win the game. The tension would be incredible. Instead, a tough Steelers defense and just enough offense do the work early.

Prediction: Steelers 17, Broncos 13

WEEK 3

AT TAMPA BAY

11 a.m. Sept. 22, KDVR-31

Back around the Super Bowl, Sean Payton said he was looking for the next Baker Mayfield. Mayfield himself parlayed a cheap 2023 prove-it contract into a huge deal for himself. Good for him. Tampa should contend again. Picking Denver in Florida in late September seems like a fool’s errand. But what the heck.

Prediction: Broncos 24, Buccaneers 21

WEEK 4

AT N.Y. JETS

11 a.m. Sept. 29, KCNC-4

The Jets seem primed to either finally break through or crash and burn in spectacular fashion. They’ve got the roster for the former and the organizational dysfunction to bet on the latter. Each of the past two seasons, a bad rendition of the Jets has beaten the Broncos on the strength of a long Breece Hall touchdown run. Same story in 2024.

Prediction: Jets 20, Broncos 18

WEEK 5

LAS VEGAS

2:05 p.m. Oct. 6, KDVR-31

The Chiefs streak is over. The Raiders streak, however, is alive and well. How is it possible that Denver has not beaten this franchise since it moved to the desert? TE Brock Bowers, taken one pick after Bo Nix in the first round in April, catches a pair of touchdowns — the start of a long run of torturing the Broncos — but the home team gets it done anyway.

Prediction: Broncos 27, Raiders 24

WEEK 6

L.A. CHARGERS

2:05 p.m. Oct. 13, KCNC-4

The Broncos managed to sweep this team a year ago. That’s going to be a much tougher chore now that Jim Harbaugh is back in the NFL. Watching Harbs and Payton go at it twice a year for however long both are in the AFC West is going to be delightful. Round 1 to the Michigan Man.

Prediction: Chargers 17, Broncos 13

WEEK 7

AT NEW ORLEANS

6:15 p.m. Oct. 17, Prime

When the “Former Saints Go Marching In.” Heart of hearts, which game does Payton want more? Week 2 against Russ or Week 7 on Drew Brees night in New Orleans? Probably this one. It’s going to be an electric night in the Bayou. Like Dan Campbell last year, Dennis Allen gets his former boss at home.

Prediction: Saints 28, Broncos 17

WEEK 8

CAROLINA

2:25 p.m. Oct. 27, KCNC-4

Will Bo Nix work out in Denver? Only time will tell. But man, imagine being Carolina and passing on C.J. Stroud for Bryce Young in the spring of 2023. Josey Jewell gets a nice ovation before kickoff, and it’s all Alex Singleton and company from there.

Prediction: Broncos 28, Panthers 13

WEEK 9

AT BALTIMORE

11 a.m. Nov. 3, KCNC-4

Try to imagine a tougher back-to-back than the Ravens and Chiefs. The Broncos lost in Baltimore in 2022, even though Lamar Jackson got hurt early in the game. Feels like a turning point in the season. If Payton’s team is surprisingly good, this is the big challenge. If it’s going bad, this is the stretch where an early knockout has to be guarded against.

Prediction: Ravens 30, Broncos 17

WEEK 10

AT KANSAS CITY

11 a.m. Nov. 10, KCNC-4

At least Denver didn’t do what Las Vegas did and taunt Patrick Mahomes with a Kermit doll during training camp. How could you possibly think that’s a good idea? This is well-known but stunning all the same: Mahomes is 28, has three Super Bowl titles and could conceivably play 12-15 more years if he wants to.

Prediction: Chiefs 28, Broncos 20

WEEK 11

ATLANTA

2:05 p.m. Nov. 17, KDVR-31

It would be cool if this game featured Nix vs. No. 8 overall pick Michael Penix Jr., but that would likely only happen if Kirk Cousins is bad or hurt. Instead, the Falcons bring an interesting, should-be-explosive offense to town. Could it be a shootout on the Front Range? Sign us up.

Prediction: Broncos 31, Falcons 28

WEEK 12

AT LAS VEGAS

2:05 p.m. Nov. 24, KCNC-4

Last year Denver secured the No. 12 pick — and maybe took the need to trade up for a quarterback off the board — by losing to the Raiders on the road in Week 17. Not quite the same story here, but it’s tough to see either of these teams being bona fide contenders this fall.

Prediction: Raiders 26, Broncos 22

WEEK 13

CLEVELAND

6:15 p.m. Dec. 2, ESPN

Denver’s most impressive win of 2023? A stomping of a good Browns team at Empower Field just before Joe Flacco took over and launched Cleveland on a strong finishing kick. Is Deshaun Watson back? Believe it when you see it. Jerry Jeudy’s line in this game: three catches for 46 yards and two squabbles with Broncos DBs.

Prediction: Broncos 21, Browns 20

WEEK 14

BYE

WEEK 15

INDIANAPOLIS

2:25 p.m. Dec. 15, KCNC-4

A snowstorm — Didn’t know you’d get a weather forecast, too, huh? — means pounding the rock. Jonathan Taylor and Audric Estime. Outside in December. Let’s do it.

Prediction: Broncos 17, Colts 16

WEEK 16

AT L.A. CHARGERS

2:05 p.m. Dec. 22, KDVR-31

At least Denver’s not playing Christmas Day on a Wednesday. Harbaugh has a reputation for getting teams turned around quickly and it will be a genuine surprise if they don’t look like a different outfit right off the bat. They might even run the ball.

Prediction: Chargers 24, Broncos 23

WEEK 17

AT CINCINNATI

TBD, Dec. 28/29

For the good of the game, let’s get Joe Burrow through a healthy season. The guy was approaching true sorcerer levels by the end of 2022 and then had his 2023 cut short by injury. Oh, and once the season ends and the big chunk of Russell Wilson’s dead money is off the books, perhaps Denver should make a run at Tee Higgins in free agency.

Prediction: Bengals 35, Broncos 17

WEEK 18

KANSAS CITY

TBD, Jan. 4/5

Will the Chiefs be playing for anything at this point? Will the Broncos? You know Denver will want to try to get a win against the division power for a second straight season. That’s obviously more likely if it’s Carson Wentz starting rather than Mahomes. But it’s not an easy task regardless.

Prediction: Chiefs 23, Broncos 20

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Originally Published: September 2, 2024 at 5:45 a.m.