Broncos receive zero awards in early survey of GMs and execs

The Denver Broncos have plenty of candidates to bring home awards for their efforts this season.

Unfortunately, an early survey of GMs and executives from around the NFL has them winning exactly zero.

NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero polled “high-ranking executives from 27 NFL teams, including 17 general managers,” in his annual look at who could take home some hardware. The good news is the Broncos were close in a couple of key categories, but didn’t emerge on top.

Let’s start with Defensive Player of the Year, where both Pat Surtain II and Nik Bonitto have strong cases for winning the award. It appears like T.J. Watt from the Pittsburgh Steelers could be running away with it. In the survey, Watt received 13.5 first-place votes. Surtain got 3.5 votes and Bonitto received none.

When it comes to Offensive Rookie of the Year, Broncos QB Bo Nix was third with three votes. Washington Commanders QB Jayden Daniels earned 13 votes while Raiders tight end Brock Bowers garnered nine votes. Nix’s three interceptions against the Colts last Sunday likely didn’t do him any favors, but he also threw three touchdowns.

And perhaps the most surprising is when it comes to Coach of the Year. Broncos head coach Sean Payton, who’s taken the “worst roster in football” and produced a 9-5 record thus far, received zero votes. Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell ran away with the category, getting 13.5 votes.

No other NFL head coach received more than three votes. Ironically, Mike Tomlin came in second, after his work with Steelers QB Russell Wilson this season. Payton and Wilson might not have gotten along, but Payton having a rookie QB in Nix on the verge of the playoffs is arguably even more impressive.

This isn’t a great sign for the Broncos when it comes to awards at the end of the season, but it’s also just a survey of where things currently stand.

To see the full results, click here.

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