{"id":811915,"date":"2026-03-14T13:14:37","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T13:14:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/811915\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T13:14:37","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T13:14:37","slug":"no-bull-thoughts-on-underwhelming-denver-broncos-free-agency-period","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/811915\/","title":{"rendered":"No Bull thoughts on underwhelming Denver Broncos free agency period"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the week has progressed, Broncos Country has seen its team play one song and one song only: \u201cRun it back\u201d. Looking at most fan engagement out in the wild, the most common thing I\u2019ve seen is wailing, gnashing of teeth, and rending of clothes in dark places.<\/p>\n

At some level, I\u2019m with you all. I honestly expected some upgrades in free agency. I like to look at what the team does and try to make sense of it at some level, so let\u2019s dig in:<\/p>\n

The Broncos are embracing culture<\/p>\n

\"DENVER,<\/a><\/p>\n

DENVER, CO – JANUARY 17: Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton looks on before the AFC Divisional Round game against the Buffalo Bills at Empower Field at Mile High on January 17, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford\/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) Icon Sportswire via Getty Images<\/p>\n

One of my favorite things about what Sean Payton has done with this team since taking over is that he\u2019s been building the culture back up. Being a Bronco can and should mean something. Teams that feel an actual sense of brotherhood tend to be the teams that are perennial playoff contenders.<\/p>\n

Regardless of what you might say about the roster\u2019s talent level, I am a big believer that all the guys in that locker room are buying into the Broncos\u2019 culture.<\/p>\n

There is a value in keeping the team\u2019s culture intact that is immeasurable. Bringing back together a team that showed their ability to go all the way, winning close game after close game through sheer will to make plays for each other, is a viable option.<\/p>\n

\"DENVER,<\/a><\/p>\n

DENVER, COLORADO – JANUARY 25: Mack Hollins #13 of the New England Patriots makes a catch against Dre Greenlaw #57 of the Denver Broncos during the third quarter in the AFC Championship Playoff game at Empower Field At Mile High on January 25, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds\/Getty Images) Getty Images<\/p>\n

While George Paton has mostly signed back the team we saw in 2025, it is worth noting that some guys are gone. John Franklin-Myers is now a Titan. P.J. Locke is now a Cowboy. Dre Greenlaw will be a 49er this season. While Greenlaw didn\u2019t seem to be a great fit, Locke and Franklin-Myers will be missed.<\/p>\n

Going back to my free agency review<\/a>, I put our ILB position now at a 3, with no changes to defensive linemen (4.5) and safety (3).<\/p>\n

The biggest talent issue we have on the roster is easily Alex Singleton. I saw him chirping about wanting to go over the All-22 with fans, and I\u2019m not sure that\u2019s a wise move. He\u2019s one of the poorest pass coverage linebackers I\u2019ve seen who\u2019s considered a starter. The stats show that, the eyetest shows that, and quarterbacks love to throw on him. He does know this defense well. That\u2019s the big thing he brings to the table, which keeps Vance Joseph from needing to find a new guy that can handle that aspect of the game.<\/p>\n

The Broncos also know they need to upgrade the running back room. Plans for both Breece Hall and Travis Etienne Jr. fell through. This left them with their B-plan, which is banking on JK Dobbins staying healthy and drafting a fresh set of legs. Of all the \u201cmore of the same\u201d moves the team made, this is one I\u2019m pretty fond of. If Dobbins finds a way to stay healthy through the whole season, I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if he led the NFL in rushing. He\u2019s that good.<\/p>\n

The Broncos are in a championship window<\/p>\n

\"DENVER,<\/a><\/p>\n

DENVER, COLORADO – JANUARY 17: Bo Nix #10 of the Denver Broncos celebrates after defeating the Buffalo Bills with a score of 30 to 33 in overtime of the AFC Divisional Playoff game at Empower Field At Mile High on January 17, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds\/Getty Images) Getty Images<\/p>\n

It is worth noting that this team was one ankle injury away from being in the Super Bowl. The roster, as it stands, can compete with any team in the NFL. Every year, Bo Nix is getting better (which should scare our opponents, honestly). This young roster is going to keep improving as well.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had tons to say about the drops of many of our wide receivers, the lack of play-making from our running backs, and some bad angles being taken by young players on our defense. Every year, they get to work on their craft. The guys who keep putting in the time will reap the rewards by eliminating mistakes in the future. Sean Payton is an excellent coach who employs excellent coaches who look to upgrade the players that play for them each and every offseason.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t for a second think that the Broncos are done. I think what we\u2019re seeing is that the team is interested in building a winning culture. While they had some excess cap space this year, they chose to reward the players who have been putting in the time with this young team instead of throwing it to guys who have been playing elsewhere.<\/p>\n

I do think they will bring in some fresh players, but it will continue to be more of the reasonably priced free agents instead of the premier guys who sign in the first week of free agency.<\/p>\n

As always, Payton is going to focus on bringing in smart players who can handle the systems they run. He\u2019s also not going to bring in negative influences to the locker room.<\/p>\n

As fans, we don\u2019t always see eye-to-eye with what the team is doing. That is to be expected. That\u2019s half the fun of being a fan. We get to say, \u201cI told you so,\u201d when moves don\u2019t work out. We also get to say, \u201cI guess they know more than we do,\u201d when they do.<\/p>\n

Hopefully, this year will see more of the latter. Hit me up in the comments and let me know what you think about our offseason so far.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the week has progressed, Broncos Country has seen its team play one song and one song only:…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":811916,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2062],"tags":[232,231,258,41075,2426,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-811915","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-denver-broncos","8":"tag-broncos","9":"tag-denver","10":"tag-denver-broncos","11":"tag-denver-broncos-free-agency","12":"tag-denverbroncos","13":"tag-football","14":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116227715032653030","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/811915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=811915"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/811915\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/811916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=811915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=811915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=811915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}