The artist Jay Electronica raps “they said it was ‘gone never happen but I survived neverland like the Jacksons.”
It’s the reality the Denver Broncos are living in after acquiring Russell Wilson. A reality that has NFL.com contributing columnist Adam Schein giving the Broncos the third-likeliest odds to end their playoff drought next season.
After Peyton Manning retired following his Super Bowl-winning 2015 season, the Broncos drafted Paxton Lynch to succeed him, and it soon looked like the team was never going to get back to its winning ways.
Lynch totaled just four NFL starts and is being outplayed by another former Broncos QB you’ve never heard of in the USFL. Then, after the unexpected retirement of coach Gary Kubiak, then-GM John Elway picked Vance Joseph to succeed the former. Shortly thereafter, a Super Bowl-ready roster was torn down, a la Josh McDaniels circa 2009.
Dubbed the Sean McVay of defense, Vic Fangio had no success succeeding Joseph. The fatal flaw Fangio had was offense, choosing to not grow with then-first-year OC Rich Scangarello. Instead, he hired Pat Shurmur to run the offense in his final two seasons as HC. Although Scangarello got the most out of Lock.
Now, with coach Nathaniel Hackett and Wilson in town, Schein believes the Broncos are the third-likeliest tea, to end their six-season playoff drought.
“Denver’s a proud franchise, and this six-year drought is the Broncos’ longest playoff-free stretch since the 1970s. But Russell Wilson changes everything,” Schein wrote on the league’s official website. “The nine-time Pro Bowler gives this team credence, juice, hope and a totally new culture. Quarterback play in Denver has been flat-out inept since Peyton Manning retired. That’s a long time ago. But it’s a new day in the Mile High City — and not just at the game’s most important position.”
Strengthening Schein’s argument is the fact the Broncos have the seventh-best Super Bowl odds. Although the team hasn’t made the playoffs since ’15. Check out the rest of what Schein has to say about the Broncos as we await training camp.
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