Broncos name six captains for 2023 season, with small surprises

Sean Payton took to the podium on Wednesday and shared with Broncos Country who would be leading their beloved Denver Broncos in 2023.

Payton didn’t shock the world with any of the team’s picks for captains, but there were a few surprises. The biggest thing to note is that stud cornerback Pat Surtain II is not listed among the captains. Is he too young? Are there too many defensive backs already in leadership roles? It’s unknown—but both starting safeties made the cut.

Here’s who the captains are of the 2023 Broncos

Kareem Jackson
Justin Simmons
Courtland Sutton
Russell Wilson
Mike McGlinchey
Riley Dixon

Our 2023 Captains, as voted on by the team. 👏 pic.twitter.com/gcsyCHx4lg

— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) September 6, 2023

There’s also a shake-up in special teams captain with kicker Brandon McManus off the team. Punter Riley Dixon was an easy pick for the role given new kicker Wil Lutz was traded to Denver following preseason’s end.

Meanwhile, Russell Wilson obviously leads Denver’s offense with sixth-year wide receiver Courtland Sutton set to be in a leadership role out wide. Inside it’s newcomer Mike McGlinchey, who signed a huge deal to join Denver this offseason, that will lead the Broncos offensive line.

Wilson, Sutton and Simmons were captains during the 2022 season.

“We won’t have the rookies vote; we have the veterans (vote,)” Payton said last week about the captains process. “The players will vote on offense, defense, and special teams, and we’ll kind of go from there. Typically, each week, we might have a guest captain, number six, that moves around.”

For now it looks like the Broncos have six, though with injuries in football, it’s likely the team will utilize a guest captain at some point in 2023.

The season kicks off on Sunday with a matchup against the rival Raiders in Denver; the Broncos are looking to break a six-game losing streak to their longtime AFC West foes.

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