Denver Broncos Betting Preview 2020

Denver Broncos 2020 Team Analysis and Schedule

There’s a sense of optimism in Mile High City as the Denver Broncos enter year two under head coach Vic Fangio. A quarterback change, along with new weapons from the draft, trades, and free agency, has helped  GM John Elway fix the squad on the fly. Elway took over as GM in 2011 and is looking to add another championship to his resume. Take a look at their Super Bowl odds to make a futures wager if you think he can do it.

For the Broncos to have a shot at an AFC West title, they need the quarterback and head coach carousel to stop. Denver has employed three head coaches in the last four seasons and seven different quarterbacks have made at least one start. Our preseason NFL division winner odds have the Broncos pegged at +900, a hefty payback for any wager.  

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Denver Broncos  2020 Schedule

The Broncos face five playoff teams from 2019, including  Kansas City, New England and New Orleans all of whom won their respective division. With the rotating divisional schedule, they also face Tom Brady and Tampa Bay in the first month, plus what should be a Steelers team rejuvenated with the return of Ben Roethlisberger. According to projected regular season win totals the Broncos have the 12th toughest schedule of the 2020 season.    

The good news is that it is tough to play in Denver and the Broncos host their toughest opponents with games against Tennessee, Tampa Bay, New Orleans and Buffalo. Outside of the trip to New England, the other non-division road games are very winnable for the Broncos and could be the difference for them making a playoff berth.

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Last Year’s History

The 2019 season for the Broncos was a tale of two halves. First-year coach Vic Fangio saw his team struggle to a 0-4 start before gaining back-to-back wins. They lost two more games on both sides of the bye to sit at 3-8. They finished strong and built momentum for 2020 after handing the ball to rookie QB Drew Lock for the final five games, posting a 4-1 record through that span to finish 7-9 overall. Had Denver enjoyed better success during the middle of the season, they could have very well vied for a Wild Card berth.

Denver Broncos  Key Players

Drew Lock

Flacco and Allen started for an injured Lock who missed most of the season after injuring his thumb in the preseason. Notwithstanding the setback, Lock came back and managed to throw more touchdowns than either of the two. Additionally, he tied a franchise record for most wins by a rookie (4). The man who set the record was none other than Elway himself – albeit, Elway needed 10-games to achieve the mark while Lock only needed five. This alone is enough to get Broncos fans excited about the upcoming sportsbook action

Philip Lindsay

Lindsay finished the season with 1,011 rushing yards, seven touchdowns, and zero fumbles. That’s quite impressive considering he only had 224 carries on the year. The Broncos have found success with Lindsay in the passing game as well. The 2018 Pro Bowler raked in 196 receiving yards last season on 35 receptions

Justin Simmons

Simmons was the only Bronco to receive All-Pro honors last season. Simmons finished the season with four interceptions and 93 tackles to earn second-team All-Pro. Simmons was drafted by the Broncos and has established himself as a staple of this secondary.

Von Miller

Von Miller was one of two (WR Courtland Sutton was the other) Broncos to make the Pro Bowl last season. Miller has spent his career in Denver since being drafted second overall in 2011. Miller is the leader of this defense and a terrific one at that. Last season he delivered eight sacks, 46 tackles, two pass deflections, and 20 quarterback hits for Denver.

Arizona Cardinals New Additions

The biggest splash made through free agency was signing Melvin Gordon from the Chargers to a two-year, $16 million contract. However, the best addition might be OG Graham Glasgow from the Lions. They also added quarterback Jeff Driskel, also from Detroit, to compete for the backup spot behind Lock.    

Elway was busy making trades that involved draft picks going out and talented players coming back. First, he sent a fourth-rounder to Jacksonville for Pro Bowl CB A.J. Bouye, and then he sent a seventh-rounder to Tennessee for five-time Pro Bowl defensive linemen Jurrell Casey.      

In the draft, the Broncos concentrated on getting weapons for Lock. In the first round they took WR Jerry Jeudy from Alabama and one round later they took WR K.J. Hamler from Penn State before also taking C Lloyd Cushenberry from LSU and TE Albert Okwuegbunam out of Missouri. They did take a couple of defensive players in the third round with CB Michael Ojemudia from Iowa and DT McTelvin Agim from Arkansas.

Arizona Cardinals Key Subtractions

Quarterbacks Joe Flacco and Brandon Allen were allowed to walk, while long-time CB Chris Harris Jr. went to the division rival Chargers. Wolfe also left as the DE joined the Ravens and safety Will Parks signed with the Eagles.

Divisional Outlook

The AFC West is wide open in 2020…for second place. That’s what happens when the defending Super Bowl champions are in your division and keep adding more weapons.  Kansas City is the clear favorite to win a fifth-straight AFC West title.

The Raiders are on the move to Las Vegas and, while they finished 7-9 last year, it was the opposite of the Broncos 7-9 as Jon Gruden’s squad lost five of their last six. The Raiders added three wins to their season record from Gruden’s first year to his second but still ranked just 24th in the league in scoring and also 24th in the league in scoring defense.  

The LA Chargers appear to be in complete rebuilding mode after watching franchise QB Phillip Rivers leave for the Colts while Gordon joined Denver. Anthony Lynn may have a similar decision as Fangio did last year: when to give the ball to a rookie quarterback in Justin Herbert over veteran Tyrod Taylor.

Denver Broncos Offense 

The Broncos put up some pretty shoddy numbers last season on offense. They were 28th in scoring, 28th in passing and 20th in rushing on the year. However, it is more beneficial and fruitful to focus on the last five games of the 2019 regular season.

During that span, Denver posted an eye-raising 4-1 record. The games were relatively close as they outscored their opponents 107-99. This suggests that Drew Lock is capable of leading his game to victory in tight matches. And since Denver’s defense consistently shows up, we can fully expect Lock to lead this team to a winning record in 2020. 

Ultimately we have five games worth of tape on Lock. That’s enough for NFL betting fans to see what he can do. However, it’s not enough for defenses to adequately prepare for the second-year player.

Denver Broncos Defense

Numbers-wise, the Broncos did give up yardage but were pretty efficient at keeping their opponent out of the end zone. In the end, Denver ranked 10th against the pass, 16th against the run but 8th overall in points allowed. With the aforementioned defensive players Elway brought in, this defense should be even better this upcoming season. 

Elway’s philosophy has always been to put together a stellar defense and a competent offense. So far this has resulted in five straight playoff appearances, two Super Bowl berths, and one Vince Lombardi trophy. Despite not making the playoffs in four years, it looks like Elway finally has the right pieces to put together another deep run.  Nevertheless, the NFL odds are giving both Denver and the Raiders the worst odds in the division.

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