The Broncos, at long last, will hit the field next week for their first full-team practices of the offseason. Two weeks of OTAs will be followed by a three-day minicamp in the middle of June. Sean Payton’s team is the league’s last to begin on-field workouts, the veteran coach having pushed back the start of those practices following Denver’s playoff run into late January.
There will be plenty to dissect once the Broncos get on the field, from Bo Nix’s participation and new offensive play caller Davis Webb’s command of the offense to Jaylen Waddle’s impact as its new speedy target. Before it all begins, though, let’s answer a batch of your questions in our offseason mailbag.
Is Bo Nix healthy and ready to go for training camp? — Maggie N.
Yes. Payton left no doubt about Nix’s availability for training camp as the third-year quarterback completes rehab from two offseason ankle procedures.
“He’ll be full speed throwing everything in July before we even get back here (for training camp),” Payton said earlier this month. “He’s doing good.”
The question is whether — or how much — Nix will participate in June’s offseason program. Payton said during Denver’s rookie minicamp that there is a “good chance” Nix will be on the field in some form before the Broncos leave for their summer break. That could mean Nix will get at least some reps with the offense during the team’s minicamp that begins June 16, but the Broncos have made nothing official beyond stating, unequivocally, that the team’s starting quarterback will be fully ready for training camp.
From what you’ve heard, what’s the biggest philosophical difference between how Sean Payton called and structured the offense versus how Davis Webb is expected to coordinate it — especially in terms of tempo, quarterback autonomy and pass/run splits? — Troy G.
I think it’s important to first state that the offense as a whole won’t be markedly different with Webb calling plays. Webb has been in Denver since Payton arrived in 2023 and the offense the two have helped build around Nix the past two seasons isn’t going to fundamentally change as the quarterback hits Year 3.
“It’s still going to be our offense,” Payton said after announcing Webb as the new play caller during the combine. “There are certainly things that we want to be better at. It’s also being quicker. It’s only if there’s someone you feel is good enough to do that.”
When dissecting Payton’s own words on the topic, hearing current and former players discuss Webb in offseason interviews and speaking with people around the team, it’s clear there’s a belief that Webb’s pace as a play caller is something that will be different. Payton, for more than two decades, has masterfully blended an ability to sequence plays and keep the game’s big picture in mind, but the coach himself has said there are times when his dissemination of the play calls has slowed.
He expects Webb will have “a gift” for calling plays that includes being able to move the Broncos to the line more quickly and efficiently, which will, in turn, give Nix more of the autonomy mentioned above to make checks at the line of scrimmage — an area of real growth for him last season.
Will the Broncos fully embrace more tempo with Webb as a play caller? I still think Payton will have a pretty sizable say over whether the Broncos move in that direction. Nix was often at his best last season when the Broncos were in hurry-up mode, whether during end-of-half situations or when they went to tempo as a change-of-pace method during games. But Payton resisted the idea that injecting more tempo situations was a cure-all for the offense.
“I may not want tempo,” he said midway through last season. “My defense might be tired. If I’m going tempo, I want to be able to control that.”
Payton will still have the final say on the offense’s overall identity, but I do think Webb’s presence as a play caller will have the natural effect of hastening Denver’s offensive pace in spots. The bottom line, though, is we just won’t know how different things will look with Webb until he’s the one layering in the play calls come Denver’s season opener in September.
Are there any position battles to keep an eye on this offseason? — Roger P.
I was reminded, while taking a close look at the roster to compile a way-too-early projection of the 53-man roster last week, that there are actually a handful of intriguing position battles ahead, both for roster spots and stacking order on the depth chart. Let’s start at inside linebacker. Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad are the well-known veterans who should begin the season as starters, but the position appears wide open behind them. Jonah Elliss is going to be on this roster, obviously, but will he be a full-time inside linebacker by September? Who else, among a group of young players that includes Levelle Bailey, Karene Reid, Jordan Turner and rookies Red Murdock and Taurean York, will work their way onto the roster and into the rotation?
I’m interested to see what happens at tight end. Evan Engram and Adam Trautman figure to be key parts of the equation once again, but can a newcomer among the trio of rookies Justin Joly and Dallen Bentley and second-year player Caleb Lohner make an impact? Then there is defensive end, where Sai’vion Jones and rookie third-round pick Tyler Onyedim could be battling to replace John Franklin-Myers in the starting lineup. The safety room will feature a tightly contested battle for depth spots behind Talanoa Hufanga and Brandon Jones. We could even have a battle for the backup quarterback job between Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger.
The core of this team is well-established, but there is no shortage of battles on the margins that will make this offseason an interesting one in Denver.
If you could have one past Bronco in his prime play for this year’s team, who would it be and why? — Sean H.
This is a fun one — with no shortage of options. It’s hard not to jump to the quarterback position when John Elway and Peyton Manning, two of the best to play the position in the NFL, have suited up for the franchise. It would not be a knock on Nix to replace him with No. 7 or No. 18. However, since I get to control this scenario, I want to leave Nix in place and give him his chance to become the third different quarterback in Broncos history to lead the team to a Super Bowl win.
And I’ll give him Terrell Davis.
A tight end like Shannon Sharpe or an explosive receiver like the late Demaryius Thomas would be great targets for Nix. Prime Von Miller is one of the best pass rushers ever. What about pairing Champ Bailey with Pat Surtain II to make it almost impossible for opponents to throw the ball? You really can’t go wrong with any of those options. But I’m just too intrigued by what Nix could be with a relentless running game not to select Davis, the Hall of Fame back who averaged an absurd 1,765 yards and 16 touchdowns during his three-season prime from 1996 to 1998. The one-cut excellence from prime TD would open up a wealth of backside opportunities for Nix to get on the edge and create havoc with play-action schemes.
In your opinion, will any current player on the roster be traded before the season starts? If yes, who? — Michael L.
If you had to predict Marvin Mims or Troy Franklin getting traded, who would you say it is and what’s their market value? — Paul L.
The Broncos have made two trades prior to Week 1 in the three years since Payton became the team’s head coach. In 2023, Denver traded tight end Albert Okwuegbunam to the Eagles for a late-round pick swap. The Broncos last August traded wide receiver Devaughn Vele to the Saints for a fourth-round pick in last month’s NFL Draft (the selection turned into running back Jonah Coleman) and a seventh-round pick in 2027.
The Broncos once again have an apparent glut at wide receiver following the acquisition of Jaylen Waddle. The former Dolphins standout joins a lineup at the position that also features Courtland Sutton, Pat Bryant, Franklin and Mims as locks to make the roster as it is currently constructed. The Broncos also re-signed veteran Lil’Jordan Humphrey to a one-year deal this offseason and have a big class of undrafted rookies they’ll evaluate this offseason.
Here’s the thing, though: The Broncos want to be deeper at the spot than they were last season, when late-season injuries at wide receiver stalled the offense late in the year. In the playoff victory against the Buffalo Bills, Bryant and Franklin played only 16 combined snaps before exiting due to injuries. Humphrey (second-quarter touchdown) and Mims (eight catches on eight targets for 93 yards and a touchdown) came up big in relief, which is why it’s difficult to picture Denver making a move that would have them less prepared for that same scenario. If choosing between Franklin and Mims, I’d say the latter would be more likely to be dealt since he’s entering the final year of his contract, but trading Mims simply doesn’t make this team better as it aims for a Super Bowl this year.
If the team is to make a trade, I think it’s more likely to mirror the 2023 deal that sent away Okwuegbunam, a player they were likely to cut anyway, as opposed to a Vele-like swap that brings back a Day 2 draft pick.
Could Jonah Coleman be the most well-rounded RB on the roster? — Anonymous U.
There is a lot to like about the potential of the fourth-round pick out of the University of Washington. He’s a sturdy, physical presence in the backfield who has more experience as a pass protector than most players at this position entering the league. He is a finisher near the goal line who rushed for 25 touchdowns the past two seasons alone. He had his best season as a receiver in 2025, catching 31 passes for 354 yards and two touchdowns.
The most well-rounded back on Denver’s roster, though, is J.K. Dobbins. The veteran gave the Broncos the big-play explosiveness in the running game they had been missing while also being the same reliable, every-down back who has averaged 5 yards per carry since entering the league in 2020.
Injuries have been a major part of Dobbins’ story, of course. He missed Denver’s final nine games last season, including the playoffs, because of a foot injury. He hasn’t played more than 13 games in a season since his rookie year. But Dobbins, when healthy, is one of the league’s top backs from a production standpoint — and he’s healthy as the Broncos enter their offseason work.
The Broncos gave Dobbins $8 million in guarantees on the two-year deal the veteran signed in March because they believe he can stay that way this season. Coleman, though, represents a much better backup plan for Denver in the event Dobbins can’t get to the finish line than the team had last season.
