The Denver Broncos defense is set.
Through six games this season, they’re living up to the hype, perhaps the best unit in the NFL.
The offense, on the other hand, has plenty of work to do.
Broncos Country got up early on Sunday morning to watch a miserable performance against the New York Jets. Head coach Sean Payton, QB Bo Nix and the rest of the group led Denver to just 13 points against the lone winless team in the league.
Luckily, the defense played out of its minds.
Between the nine sacks and holding the Jets under 100 total yards, there’s no doubt which side of the football won that game.
Nik Bonitto might take home Defensive Player of the Year. Jonathon Cooper was wreaking havoc. Pat Surtain II shut down Garrett Wilson. And Talanoa Hufanga looks like a great free-agent addition.
However, with the trade deadline looming on Nov. 4, Payton and GM George Paton should start working the phones.
The Broncos have a Super Bowl caliber defense, but an offense that will send them home in early January.
Specifically, they need to look for another explosive wide receiver.
The running back room is solid with J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey. Tight end Evan Engram is showing signs of life, and Nate Adkins, Adam Trautman and Lucas Krull are serviceable behind him. Nix is clearly the future at QB and Payton would quit before making a change there.
That leaves the wideouts — which still feel underwhelming.
Courtland Sutton has had some really nice moments, but is a fringe No. 1 in the NFL. Troy Franklin is dropping the football again and had a fumble early versus the Jets. Marvin Mims Jr. hasn’t taken the next step to be an every-down player.
After that, Broncos rookie Pat Bryant doesn’t look like he’ll contribute much in 2025 and Trent Sherfield Sr. is a special teams player at this point in his career.
Sure, the Devaughn Vele trade was a head-scratcher at the time and remains that way, but Payton and Paton need to be thinking about a bigger splash.
Call the Jets about Wilson, doing business with their new GM Darren Mougey who worked in Denver for quite some time. Wilson is nearly top-10 in the NFL with 395 receiving yards and four touchdowns through six games. And that was before PS2 put the clamps on him.
Wilson can’t be happy playing for a team that’s only going to win a handful of games (at best) and is probably ready to get out of New York. He’ll miss a couple of weeks after hyperextending his knee, but should be fine down the stretch.
If it costs a premium draft pick, so be it. Payton thinks the Broncos can win the Super Bowl this year. Push the chips all-in and make a run at it with an elite defense.
Wilson isn’t the only option. How about Jaylen Waddle in Miami? The Dolphins are going nowhere fast and Waddle can still play at a high level. He has 29 catches for 390 yards and three touchdowns thus far.
Tre Tucker from the Raiders and Wan’Dale Robinson of the Giants are intriguing targets as well. There’s plenty of bad squads out there. And the GMs know their seasons are cooked. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported over the weekend there is likely to be a flurry of action between now and the deadline.
It would be a disservice to Vance Joseph’s defense if the Broncos weren’t involved. Nix needs another weapon in the passing game, and Payton needs another toy to use.
The good news is Denver is tied atop the AFC West with a 4-2 record. Heck, you can make a strong case they should be 6-0.
But after what we witnessed against the Jets, that feels a bit like smoke and mirrors.
If Payton and Paton are serious about getting this team over the top and having a parade in February, they need to pull the trigger on a big deal or two.
Wide receiver should be the priority, and if it gets done, a deep playoff run could follow.