Colin Cowherd says Broncos crushed offseason, are Super Bowl favorites

While 2022 draft grades for the Broncos have varied, one national media member is all-in on Denver after GM George Paton’s eventful and productive offseason.

On his radio show on Monday morning, Colin Cowherd heaped praise on the Broncos and what they’ve accomplished the last 2.5 months.

“I thought one team from the day the Super Bowl was over, until this morning, the Denver Broncos crushed it. Forget the fact that they went from Drew Lock to Russell Wilson at quarterback. How about the fact that they added Randy Gregory and D.J. Jones on the defensive line? They have totally rebuilt their defensive line to put pressure on quarterbacks,” Cowherd said.

Of course, part of that defensive line rebuild was adding Oklahoma edge rusher Nik Bonitto with the No. 64 overall pick in the draft. Cowherd praised that selection as well as Paton adding UCLA TE Greg Dulcich as a replacement for Noah Fant.

Cowherd then went on to discuss the five things the best teams in the NFL have, and says the Broncos possess them all. That criteria is a young offensive head coach, a star quarterback, an intense pass rush, offensive weapons and one top cornerback. With the hiring of Nathaniel Hackett, trade for Russell Wilson and offseason additions of Gregory, Jones and Bonitto, the Broncos now check all those boxes. The weapons are, of course, Javonte Williams, Courtland Sutton, Tim Patrick, Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler and the top cornerback is Pat Surtain II.

The Chiefs, Bills and 49ers are all flawed contenders according to Cowherd, as they don’t meet the criteria for all five categories like the Buccaneers, Rams and Broncos. He also says the AFC West is good, but Denver will be even better prepared for a deep playoff run.

“People will say ‘Denver, oh boy, their division!’ Stop. There’s a reason the SEC champ usually wins the national championship and they have the hardest schedule. It hardens you,” Cowherd said.

Cowherd then dove into why Hackett is a big upgrade over Vic Fangio, before reaching his conclusion. And that conclusion should make Broncos fans smile.

“Denver should be a Super Bowl favorite, or a near-favorite, for the next several years. That is how you build a franchise in one year. That’s why the NFL is so popular, you can literally rebuild your franchise in a year. So good for them,” Cowherd said.

Will the Broncos live up to hype like this? That remains to be seen, but at least Denver is clearly relevant on the NFL landscape for really the first time since Peyton Manning retired after Super Bowl 50.

You can watch Cowherd’s full comments below…

The Denver Broncos have won the NFL offseason:

"They should be a Super Bowl favorite for the next several years." — @ColinCowherd pic.twitter.com/a5xKMcPMny

— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) May 2, 2022

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