Denver Broncos trying to avoid repeating last year's 1-5 nightmare start

ENGLEWOOD • September is here, and the Broncos don’t want it to go like last September.

The 2023 season began with the Broncos losing close games at home against Las Vegas and Washington. They were then clobbered 70-20 at Miami en route to going 0-3 in September and they eventually started 1-5.

“I think every team in general, you see the guys that make the playoffs start fast and the guys that don’t, don’t,’’ said linebacker Alex Singleton. “We had a chance last year. If we would have got that Raiders game and the Washington game, I think we do make the playoffs.”

The Broncos did make a run at the playoffs, winning five straight after the 1-5 start to get to 6-5. But they faltered down the stretch and finished 8-9.

Now, entering Sunday’s regular-season opener at Seattle, head coach Sean Payton has put a premium on starting fast. It was one of the first things he talked about when training camp got underway in late July.

“At the start of camp, I just gave them a five-week report card,’’ Payton, entering his second season, said after Friday’s practice at Broncos Park. “And I started with the postseason on down and where the playoff teams were after five weeks (in 2023). … When you start off, for instance, 0-4, you’re burning a lot of energy just to get back (in the playoff race). So your margin for error changes, and the same thing happened a year ago with us.”

It might not be easy for the Broncos to get off to a fast start this season. They have a rookie quarterback in Bo Nix and three of their first four games are on the road. After going to Seattle and being a six-point underdog, they are at home against Pittsburgh and then play at Tampa Bay and New York Jets.

Nevertheless, the Broncos are determined to get off to a fast start.

“Super-important,’’ said outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper. “That’s how you win. That’s how you get to make the playoffs, is starting off early. … We definitely can’t have a start like last year, and I don’t see that happening.”

Cooper said it should help that Broncos have a returning head coach for the first time since 2021. They also have all three of their coordinators back for a second season.

“Of course, having the same coaching staff that comes back for another year, that always helps,’’ Cooper said. “That’s the first time we’ve had that in a while.”

There are cases, of course, of teams overcoming crummy starts to make the playoffs. Last year, Green Bay made it after being 2-5, Houston after a 2-3 start and the Los Angeles Rams after being 2-3 and 3-6.

Still, the Broncos don’t want to have to go through what they did last season.

“We put ourselves in a hole super-early, and it was tough for us to get out of it,’’ said safety P.J. Locke. “We started to climb out of it but it was just really tough when you start out 1-5.”

For that reason, there is plenty of emphasis being put on the Broncos getting out of the gate quickly.

“That’s something that’s the goal,’’ said tackle Mike McGlinchey. “But it’s more of an emphasis about execution. I think that’s how you get off to starting fast. You don’t just start fast by saying you want to start fast.”

Payton has talked plenty about getting off to a fast start. But the Broncos also have been working on execution since training camp got underway in an attempt to make it happen.