2022 Denver Broncos Odds, Schedule, & Fantasy Football Team Preview
Welcome Grinders to the team preview of one of the more highly anticipated squads to watch in the upcoming NFL 2022 season. Denver acquiring Russell Wilson was arguably the biggest offseason acquisition in all the NFL. This is exciting stuff as Russ has been freed from Pete Carroll and the Broncos will happily give Mr. Unlimited a Chef’s hat and let him cook. A Walmart heir may have bought the Broncos in the offseason but Wilson’s new ingredients are of far better quality than Sam’s Choice. Let’s dig into Denver Broncos odds, schedule, and fantasy outlook for the 2022 NFL season. Also make sure to check out all of our Colorado sportsbook promotions before the season kicks off!
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2022 Denver Broncos Schedule, Lines, and Best Bets
Projected Odds, derived & modified from data originally published by Sean Koerner here.
Win Total and Total Games Favored:
10 (-110) / 10 Games Favored ( 3 Big Favorites / 0 Big Dogs)
The Broncos are coming off a mediocre 7-10 season, but are expected to flip that with a 10-win projection. They have a middle-of-the-road strength of schedule as while there are no expected pushovers in the division, they get to pick on 4 of the projected worst teams in the league (HOU, NJY, JAX, and SEA). Russ gets a First Blood REVENGE GAME vs the Seahawks Week 1 on MNF. I for one can’t wait for Seattle to open the game with a 19-play, 79-yard, 14:37 drive that ends with a 19 yd FG attempt. Somewhere Pete Carroll is salivating at this thought.
Best Bet: Russell Wilson 16-1 to win MVP Caesars Sportsbook
I like the Broncos to go OVER 9.5 WINS (FD -135) but I don’t love laying that much juice. If you want the “safe” bet go this route. That said if you’re feeling frisky consider the most ambitious of outcomes. Wilson is coming off an injury-riddled season in a system stuck in the 1960s. On Denver, Russell is expected to be fully unleashed with competent weapons in a division that should produce a pile of shootouts. This is basically a “best” QB award as Adrian Peterson is the only non QB to win the MVP since 2007. Aaron Rodgers has voter fatigue and lost Davante Adams. Patrick Mahomes is without Tyreek Hill. Tom Brady is 137 years old. Yes, Josh Allen and Justin Herbert still exist, but there is absolutely a chance Wilson has a bounce-back career year in him and finally earns some MVP votes.
Denver Broncos Prop Bets
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Favorite Prop: Courtland Sutton OVER 900.5 yards
I generally hesitate to bet season-long OVERS as football is a violent game and you’re always one hit away from landing on the IL. That said, I think it is hard to overemphasize the leap in QB talent Sutton will benefit from. Sutton actually had an 1100+ yard season in 2019 with the inept combination of Joe Flacco, Drew Lock, and Brandon Allen throwing him footballs so you know he is highly skilled. Wilson has the ability to lift and feed multiple receivers and Sutton’s big aDOT suggests he’ll have multiple splash games. Barring injuries, I feel good about Sutton hitting the OVER.
Denver Broncos Fantasy Football Projections
Team Rankings and Ratings
Offense Ranks:Rank 9/ Strong Rush / Strong Pass/ Rank 7 Points For)
Defense Ranks:Rank 16/ Average Rush / Average pass / Rank 16 Points Allowed)
Opponent Strength – Rushing:4 difficult vs. rush. 6 soft vs. rush.
Opponent Strength – Passing:4 difficult vs. pass. 7 soft vs. pass.
Last season under Vic Fangio (and mediocre QB play) the Broncos ran the league’s fewest plays per game (56.1) and threw just 56.71% (23rd most) of the time. You’d have to expect Denver will play faster and be more efficient with Wilson at the helm. After the opening of training camp new Head Coach Nathanial Hackett said, “as fast as he (Wilson) wants to go, I want to go” making it clear they didn’t trade for Russell for him to be a quarterback manager.
Denver Broncos Top Fantasy Plays & Picks
Noteworthy Depth Chart
QB: Russell Wilson – Underdog Rank: 83 (ADP 76 / -8.43% ADP Gap)
RB: Javonte Williams – Underdog Rank: 31 (ADP 24 / -22.58% ADP Gap)
RB: Melvin Gordon – Underdog Rank: 103 (ADP 108 / 4.85% ADP Gap)
WR: Courtland Sutton – Underdog Rank: 36 (ADP 37 / 2.78% ADP Gap)
WR: Jerry Jeudy – Underdog Rank: 39 (ADP 47 / 20.51% ADP Gap)
WR: Tim Patrick – Underdog Rank: 139 (ADP 116 – -16.55% ADP Gap)
TE: Albert Okwuegbunam – Underdog Rank: 143 (ADP 147 / 2.8% ADP Gap)
*Note: Premium Subscribers can find updated rankings for Underdog Fantasy in the content schedule here.
New Additions of Note: Russell Wilson QB
Departures of Note: Noah Fant TE
I wouldn’t go so far as to call him fetch, but DFS players really wanted to make Javonte Williams happen last season. And he did when given a chance to, but the tricky part was that Melvin Gordon (Regina George) wasn’t quite ready to get hit by a bus. They essentially split snaps last season 50/50 (both had exactly 203 carries) but it’s reasonable to expect the 2nd yr Williams to grab a somewhat bigger piece of the pie this year. How much bigger is yet to seen under the new coaching regime but I’m bullish on Williams who had promising advanced stats in his rookie season.
I should at least acknowledge the existence of both Albert Okwuegbunam who is a legit specimen and should jump to TE1 with the departure of Noah Fant, and Tim Patrick who the Broncos trust enough to pay handsomely for a WR3, and I like them just fine, but the Broncos will go as far Russell Wilson will take them.
Personally, I am cautiously optimistic, but I concede the range of options are…wait for it….unlimited.
Image Credit: Imagn