A year ago, the Denver Broncos seemed lost after cutting bait with Russell Wilson. Yet, making the decision to draft Bo Nix with the 12th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft has drastically brightened the Broncos’ future.
Now, according to Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon, Nix, Patrick Surtain II, and 2025 first-round pick Jahdae Barron compose the NFL’s “most exciting young core” of talent. Gagnon also added receiver Marvin Mims Jr, and running back RJ Harvey to that list, but it’s Nix and Surtain that carry the Broncos to the top.
“If your ‘young core’ includes the Defensive Player of the Year, it’s gonna be hard to top. So yeah, Surtain pulls a lot of weight on his own. Now he’s joined by the first-round rookie Barron, which is just ridiculous.
Bleacher Report on Broncos having NFL’s most exciting young core
And then offensively you have Nix coming off an extremely promising rookie campaign in which he posted a 126.0 passer rating in his last three regular-season games, as well as the intriguing-yet-still-unproven Mims (who at least scored six times as a sophomore in ‘24), a rookie second-rounder in Harvey and another young wild card in rookie third-rounder Pat Bryant.
It’s a damn exciting time to be a Broncos fan.”
The Broncos are poised to have arguably the NFL’s best defense, and Surtain as the reigning DPOY is a big reason why. Yet, they’ve only further added to an existing strength by acquiring Talanoa Hufanga, Dre Greenlaw, and Barron too. Add it all up, and the Broncos’ defense looks elite.
Can the offense continue its growth too? With Sean Payton calling the shots, refining Nix’s skillset, the Broncos’ arrow is pointed straight up after surprisingly reaching the Wild Card in their QB’s rookie season.
The question now is, are the Broncos ready to take the next step from one-and-done in the playoffs to a true Super Bowl contender? If so, they’ll need their young core of talent to come through.
Related: Are the Denver Broncos predicted to make the playoffs?
