The Broncos schedule just got tougher with two huge NFL trades

The NFL had two blockbuster trades on Monday — and both of them made the schedule tougher for the 2026 Denver Broncos.

Star pass-rusher Myles Garrett is on the move from the Cleveland Browns to the Los Angeles Rams. The Broncos will host the Rams at Empower Field at Mile High in Week 3. That contest is on Sunday Night Football, so a star-studded matchup just added even more juice.

And if that wasn’t enough, the Philadelphia Eagles finally unloaded supremely talented wide receiver A.J. Brown to the New England Patriots. The Broncos will head to Foxborough for a Week 17 showdown with the Patriots in which seeding in the AFC could be on the line.

Both teams parted with premium first-round picks (and more) to land Garrett and Brown, but there’s no question that L.A. and New England are better now than they were Monday morning. Jared Verse left the Rams for Cleveland, a very good player, but Garrett is a future Hall of Famer.

The Broncos went 14-3 a season ago but face a much tougher schedule this year. The first six games are a gauntlet with the Chiefs, Jaguars, Rams, 49ers Chargers and Seahawks all on the slate.

And then the last three are brutal as Denver closes against the Bills, Patriots and Chargers.

In a perfect world, Sean Payton, Bo Nix and company can get out of the gate with a 3-3 start or better. The addition of Garrett in L.A. makes it that much more challenging — Broncos tackles Garett Bolles and Mike McGlinchey will have their hands full.

Coming off a year in which he was an MVP candidate, New England QB Drake Maye now has a new No. 1 wide receiver in Brown. Denver cornerback Pat Surtain II is the best in the game, so look for him to battle Brown all day long on the road.

Expectations are high in 2026 and we knew Denver’s schedule was difficult. It got even a little harder on a wild day around the NFL.

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