The Denver Broncos struggled in all phases today on the road against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Wild Card Playoffs. Denver lost 31-7 and was pushed around the field during the second half. Denver scored first on a 43-yard touchdown pass from rookie Quarterback Bo Nix to rookie Wide Receiver Troy Franklin. The Buffalo Bills would then rattle off 31 unanswered points to move into the AFC Divisional Round.
Denver’s defense, the strength of their team this season, had no answer today against Quarterback Josh Allen and Buffalo’s high-flying offense. Allen finished 20-of-26 with 272 passing yards and 2 passing touchdowns. The Denver Broncos, the best run defense during the regular season, surrendered 210 yards on the ground. Their previous high was 149 to the Indianapolis Colts in December. Even though the Denver Broncos struggled against Buffalo, the 2024-2025 season was a success. Where will the Broncos go from here?
Denver Broncos Defied Expectations This Season
This season was not expected to lead to a playoff berth for the Denver Broncos. With a rookie quarterback taking over and a league-leading $89 million in dead cap on their payroll, this was supposed to be a rebuilding year. Denver took an NFL record $53 million dead cap charge to move on from Russell Wilson during the offseason.
Head Coach Sean Payton believed the team would be better with a new quarterback at the helm and made history by parting ways with Wilson. Payton was ultimately proven correct. The Denver Broncos drafted Nix No. 12 overall out of Oregon, and he played great this year.
If it were not for Washington Commanders Quarterback Jayden Daniels, Nix may be the favorite to be named Rookie of the Year. Nix was 12th during the regular season in passing yards and 6th in touchdown passes. Nix was 13-of-22 against the Buffalo Bills with 144 passing yards and a passing touchdown. He was nowhere near the main reason the Denver Broncos were dominated this afternoon.
Payton also made a gutsy move by retaining Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph this offseason following a miserable 2023 season. Many Broncos fans wanted Joseph fired after surrendering a whopping 70 pints to the Miami Dolphins in Week 3 of the 2023 season. Joseph turned one of the worst units in 2023 into one of the best this season. Payton deserves credit for not overreacting and giving his coaches time to improve.
Final Thoughts
Denver has much to be proud of following a great 2024-2025 season. Even though today’s game did not go as planned, the team is ahead of schedule. With $33 million in dead cap next season, Denver will have more flexibility to build their roster the way Payton and the front office envision. Nix will also have a complete offseason to build on a great rookie season in the hopes of coming back stronger next season.
Once the dust settles on a disappointing end to the season, all involved with the Denver Broncos will realize this season went as well as it could have. They made the NFL Playoffs for the first time since the 2015 season and were bested by a Buffalo Bills team with Super Bowl aspirations.
