The plug has been pulled after two seasons of the Russell Wilson experience in Denver. Sean Payton was unable to fix the former Super Bowl champion and the team limped to an 8-9 record last season after finishing last in the NFL in scoring the year prior.
Denver made waves this offseason selecting Bo Nix with the 12th overall pick in the draft. They officially named the rookie the starting quarterback this week. The five-year college standout will be looked at as a beacon of hope by the franchise. This is especially the case considering the $85 million cap hit looming over the Broncos for the next two years.
The Broncos enter this season dead last in odds to win it all at +30000 on DraftKings Sportsbook. They are tied for the worst odds to win the AFC at +12000 and are +600 to make the playoffs outright. Denver’s season-long win total sits at 5.5 games with the over favored by -130 odds.
Below are some Broncos futures bets I like headed into the year.
Bo Nix Over 3,100.5 Passing Yards (-110)
The biggest focus of this Broncos season will be the development of Box Nix. The 2023 Pac-12 Player of the Year had a mixed bag of results during his time in college. Nix struggled during his three years as a starter at Auburn, throwing 39 touchdowns and 16 interceptions overall.
He then showcased the level of talent he was advertised to be in his final two years at Oregon. In 2022, Nix threw for 3,593 passing yards, 29 touchdowns, and just seven interceptions. He then took another step forward last year by producing 4,508 yards through the air, 45 touchdowns, and just three interceptions. After not eclipsing a 61% completion percentage at Auburn, Nix tallied 71.9% and 77.4% in the last two years.
While it may not click from day one for Nix, the Broncos are going to give him every opportunity to play through the growing pains. Assuming he plays all 17 games, Nix would just have to throw for an average of 183 yards per game. While the NFL level of defense will surely be an adjustment, he was able to clear this number in just 13 and 14 games in the past two years.
There will be ups and downs throughout his rookie season, but expect Bo Nix to be able to comfortably clear 3,100.5 yards passing. Last year there were 19 different quarterbacks in the NFL to clear this number with Russell Wilson falling just short, at 3,070.
Expect the Broncos to let Nix loose and for him to ultimately produce above this number.
Cortland Sutton Over 800.5 Receiving Yards (+105)
If Nix is to have any success through the air, it will take someone stepping in as the primary receiver. Look no further than Cortland Sutton as the under-the-radar number one this Broncos team needs.
Sutton has battled with uneven quarterback play throughout his six-year tenure in Denver. Even still, he has tallied at least 700 yards receiving every year excluding 2020 when he played just one game due to a torn ACL. Even with the poor production from Russell Wilson last year, Sutton set a career-high with a 65.6% catch rate.
The Broncos also showed their faith in the SMU product by giving him a restricted contract this summer. They also moved on from Jerry Jeudy. This offseason, they shipped off the former 15th overall pick for just 5th and 6th round draft picks this offseason.
There will be ups and downs in Sutton’s production along with Nix. But he has proven capable of eclipsing 1000 yards receiving already in his career and had 829 receiving yards in 2022.
Expect Sutton to get back to looking like a legitimate offensive weapon and be relied on heavily by his rookie quarterback. Feel confident in him exceeding the 800.5 receiving yard mark and have the Nix/Sutton duo marked as a sneaky storyline to keep an eye on this season.
Place your bets at DraftKings Sportsbook or by downloading the DraftKings Sportsbook app.
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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
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