The Denver Broncos‘ schedule is out, and the first six games are brutal.
The Broncos will play the Kansas City Chiefs on the road, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Los Angeles Rams at home, the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Chargers on the road, and the Seattle Seahawks at home to open their 2026 campaign. Of those teams, only the Chiefs did not make the playoffs in 2025, and it would be surprising if KC doesn’t bounce back as a contender in 2026.
Later in the season, Denver will face the Carolina Panthers, Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots on the road, and host the Buffalo Bills at Empower Field at Mile High. That’s nine total teams that made the playoffs last year on the Broncos’ 2026 slate (and they’ll play the Chargers twice).
Broncos opponents who made playoffs
- Jaguars (beat Denver in 2025)
- Rams (Super Bowl favorites)
- 49ers (12-5 last season)
- Chargers (beat Denver in 2025)
- Seahawks (defending Super Bowl title)
- Panthers (won NFC South in 2025)
- Steelers (won AFC North in 2025)
- Bills (12-5 last season)
- Patriots (beat Denver in AFC title game)
That would be a tough test of games for any team in the NFL. If the Broncos are going to repeat last season’s success and contend for a Super Bowl in 2026, they will have to get past some of the league’s best this fall.
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: Denver Broncos: 10 games on 2026 schedule feature playoff teams