Broncos better be careful or Buffs will become biggest show in town

For the first time ever, the Denver Broncos might have company in the form of the CU Buffs.

After witnessing the stunning upset of TCU on Saturday, Colorado officially has Coach Prime fever.

He did what he promised he’d do. Deion Sanders came in and in one offseason turned the entire program around.

Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter are both electric. And Prime is already talking about how each guy could be in the running for the Heisman Trophy this season.

Who knows exactly how many games Colorado will ultimately win, but as long as those two are on the field, they have a shot. You better believe anyone in this state that cares even a shred about football will be watching CU and Nebraska from Folsom Field on Saturday morning.

And the same can be said on Sunday for the Broncos and Raiders. Even the most casual fan will tune in to see Sean Payton’s debut and this new leaner and meaner Russell Wilson we’ve heard so much about.

Those are both givens, as the football fever will be through the roof this coming weekend, and almost everyone will watch both games.

But boy, the Broncos better be careful. If they’re bad again, people might just jump ship to caring about the Buffs the most. CU is fun and exciting to watch. The Broncos have been bad and boring for years and years.

Suddenly, they have a little competition. Just take a look at ticket prices this weekend. The cheapest one for CU / Nebraska on one site is going for $390. You can get into Empower Field at Mile High for $127.

We always like to say this is a Broncos town and it always will be. Yes, it is a Broncos town, but take a look around. Times are changing.

The Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in 2022 and could very well do it again this year, as they return their outstanding core of Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Mikko Rantanen.

The Nuggets just captured their first NBA title and all five starters will be back, led by the best player on the planet in Nikola Jokic and guys like Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon.

And while the Avs and Nuggets might not have the power to top the Broncos, the Buffs could. If the argument is football is king (which it is) and hockey and basketball can’t keep up, then so be it.

But last time I checked, there’s a football team in town that just burst onto the scene and is leading the conversation on every national sports network day and night.

The Broncos can’t afford to go 7-10 (or something in that neighborhood) this year. Folks are running out a patience for a team that hasn’t played a postseason game since Peyton Manning was still the QB.

It might not be fair to Payton, but that’s what he signed up for. He has to win and he has to win right away. Heck, that’s what Coach Prime said he’d do and he and the Buffs already delivered.

For the first time ever, the Broncos are catchable in terms of being the biggest story in this town. We’ve been spoiled with championships lately, and if CU starts pursuing one, look out.

It’s a fun time to be a Colorado sports fan. But it hasn’t been a fun time to a Broncos fan. That needs to change in a hurry, or the loyalty of some might switch to a new top dog.

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