Broncos Post Super Bowl Outlook

 The Super Bowl is over and the 2025 has officially ended. The offseason will begin in a few weeks with the Scouting Combine, Free Agency in March, and then the NFL Draft in April. The 2025 Broncos will go down as one of the best seasons I have witnessed in my lifetime. Outside of the three Super Bowl winning seasons, this year is up there with 2012 and 2013 Peyton Manning seasons, the 2005 team with Champ Bailey and Jake Plummer, the 1991 season with John Elway's Drive Part 2, and of course the 86, 87, and 89 seasons. To watch Denver go 14-3, win the AFC West, get the #1 seed in the AFC, win their first playoff game in 10 years, and advance to another AFC Championship Game was special. The Broncos won so many close and exciting games this season that it really was a fun season from start to finish. This offseason I will spend a lot of time re-watching some of those games and highlights from this year-especially the epic Divisional Round Playoff win over Buffalo. I'll have that game for the rest of my life. It will also be tough to realize just how close Denver was to winning a Super Bowl this year. The biggest "What If" in Broncos history will be about Bo Nix and injuring his ankle at the end of the Bills and missing the AFC Championship. As for next year, there is plenty to talk about before we get to that point in September. It will be hard for the Broncos to win 14 games again next year. That is the nature of the NFL. The AFC is loaded with talented QBs and teams, and everyone goes back to the starting line again and Denver has to start all over again in 2026. I'll leave with this thought: Every year on the day of the Super Bowl, I think how close Denver is from being in the Super Bowl. Last year, I thought they were as close as they were in a long time, but that was coming off a 10-7 season and Wild Card blowout loss. This year, they are even closer. They are REALLY CLOSE. So, that is a good feeling as we head into the offseason. They can be right there next year, and as long as Sean Payton and Bo Nix are in Denver, they we have as good as a chance as anyone. 

Super Bowl LX Recap

 The Seattle Seahawks won Super Bowl LX over the New England Patriots 29-13 to win their second Lombardi Trophy. There was not a lot of hype going into the Super Bowl, and the game was one of the most boring I have witnessed in my lifetime. Here are my thoughts on the game...

1) The Seahawks defense dominated the Patriots offense. Drake Maye was awful and this was the fourth straight game in the playoffs that he played poorly. Seattle was just too much for New England.

2) The game was bad. There's nothing else to say. There was no drama, no big moment, and nothing to draw you in. Seattle had a 9-0 lead at halftime and a 12-0 lead going into the 4th quarter. I never felt like the Seahawks were in danger of losing the game. After Seattle scored a TD to make it 19-0 early the 4th quarter, you knew the game was over. Wire to wire it was just a bad game. You could maybe point to the moment when Seattle was up 19-7, and New England got the ball back and had a first down at their own 43, but Drake Maye threw a pick and that effectively ended it. Overall, it was one of the worst Super Bowls in this recent era. 

3) If this was a regular season Thursday night, Monday night, or Sunday night game, I would have turned the tv off and went to bed early.

4) Give the Seahawks credit. They rebuilt their team after trading Russell Wilson to the Broncos in 2022. They made the right choice by moving on from Pete Carroll and hiring Mike McDonald in 2024. They also made the right choice by moving on from Geno Smith and signing Sam Darnold. They built an elite defense and rode that to a Super Bowl title.

5) Sam Darnold didn't play great in the game, but he didn't turn the ball over and was fine. That was all Seattle needed. It is a pretty cool story seeing Darnold win the Super Bowl as the Seahawks QB.

6) I was not really into the Super Bowl because of how the Broncos season ended in the AFC Championship Game. I will say this: If we won the AFC Championship over NE with Jarret Stidham, the Seahawks would have killed the Broncos and Stidham in the Super Bowl. It would not have been close. But, and the big "What If" of all time in Denver will be if Bo Nix doesn't get hurt at the end of the Divisional Playoff win over the Bills. If he doesn't get hurt, then the Broncos beat the Pats in the AFC Championship. There is no doubt in my mind about that one. Also, I think the Broncos have a really good chance at beating the Seahawks in the Super Bowl, and I think Nix would have found a way-like he did all season long-to make plays to win a close game late against the Seahawks.

7) The Rams are the other team that has to be upset watching this Super Bowl. They almost beat Seattle in the NFC Championship Game and had them beat in Seattle in December in that pivotal Thursday night game. After blowing that lead and losing a close game to Seattle in December, Seattle got the inside track on homefield advantage and the 1 seed. If the Rams win that game, them the Rams are the 1 seed and not the Seahawks. Regardless, the Rams gave Seattle a tough game in the NFC Championship and it is clear that the Rams would have beaten the Pats and won the Super Bowl. 

Super LX Preview and Pick

 Super Bowl LX features the Seattle Seahawks going up against the New England Patriots. I'm not that enthusiastic about the game since the Broncos were eliminated in the AFC Championship Game to the Pats a few weeks ago. Plus, this might be one of the most least appealing Super Bowl matchups we have seen in a long time. There are really not a lot of storylines to get into with this game. Here is what I came up with.....

Super Bowl LX Storylines:

I) Sam Darnold: The Seahawks quarterback is looking to cap a remarkable story. From #3 overall pick with the Jets in the 2018 draft to bouncing around from NY to Carolina to San Francisco and Minnesota to now on the verge of winning a Super Bowl with the Seahawks. It would be an amazing for Darnold and it would be a storybook conclusion to a crazy journey for him. 

II) The Patriots are Back: Just seven years after their last Super Bowl appearance, the Patriots are back in the Super Bowl-this time without Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. Two years ago, the Pats went 4-13 and fired Belichick. Last year, they went 4-13 under first year head coach Jerod Mayo, and fired him after that season. They hired Mike Vrabel, and second year QB Drake Maye had a MVP type season in a year they went 14-3. They are back in the Super Bowl for the 12th time in team history and are trying to win a 7th Lombardi Trophy. Everyone thought it would be a long time for the Pats to be back to the Super Bowl after Brady and Belichick left, but here they are. 

III) Super Bowl XLIX Rematch: This is a rematch of the classic Super Bowl in which New England beat Seattle 28-24 on the famous Malcolm Butler interception at the goal line with time running out. The Seahawks haven't been back to the Super Bowl since, and now they get a chance at redemption on the Patriots franchise. 

That's it. There are the main storylines for the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl LX

Seattle Seahawks vs New England Patriots

Last Week's Playoff Record: 0-2

Overall Playoff Record: 3-9

A Case for the Seahawks: They are the better team overall. They have a really solid defense. They are well-coached and have been battle tested by going through a tough road in the NFC West. The Sam Darnold story seems like a movie plot, and they are due for revenge from the loss to the Pats in Super Bowl XLIX.

A Case for the Patriots: They are really well-coached too. You could see the Patriots defense getting after Sam Darnold and causing mistakes and turnovers. You can see the Pats offense doing just enough to get by on that Seattle defense. Although Drake Maye hasn't played well in the playoffs, he still had a MVP year, and maybe this is the beginning of his run as an elite player and caps off this season with a Super Bowl win.  

Prediction: New England (+4.5) over Seattle: The Patriots pull off a big upset in the Super Bowl as they defeat Seattle and win their record 7th Lombardi Trophy.

Final Score: Patriots-20 Seahawks-17