Madden 22: Our 2021 NFL season sim results in some wild predictions

Denver Broncos

7-10, 3nd in the AFC West

Ah, the Denver Broncos. Since the retirement of Peyton Manning, John Elway just hasn’t been able to work his magic. He’s taken shots, but they just haven’t worked out.

The Broncos’ biggest issue is simply finding a competent quarterback, which is probably why any decent veteran is always linked to this team. If Aaron Rodgers or Deshaun Watson (assuming he’s cleared of allegations and can play) had come to the Broncos this offseason, I’m sure this Madden simulation would have gone much differently.

Alas, we enter the season with Teddy Bridgewater as the starter and Drew Lock as the backup. To be fair, I do like Bridgewater, but Madden predicts a lackluster season with just 26 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. That’s not going to get the job done when going up against Patrick Mahomes and company.

The Broncos have tremendous talent at receiver and tight end, but they need a quarterback to get them the ball. As a result, their stats are a bit disappointing in the sim:

• Courtland Sutton: 80 receptions, 1,131 yards, 6 TDs
• Tim Patrick: 57 receptions, 758 yards, 6 TDs
• Noah Fant: 63 receptions, 668 yards, 5 TDs
• Jerry Jeudy: 59 receptions, 546 yards, 4 TDs

Sutton’s projected stat line is actually pretty good, but the rest leaves a lot to be desired.

Now it should be noted that the Broncos’ strong suit is their defense and to their credit, they only allowed 398 total points on the simulated season. Overall that’s not bad, but they need an offense that averages more than just 20.1 points per game.