The Denver Broncos are in the midst of the franchise’s second-longest playoff drought in their 65-year history, a sad fact at Colorado sportsbooks.
Last year’s 5-12-1 one-and-done showing under former head coach Nathaniel Hackett was the cherry on top of the mediocrity sundae that the franchise has been stuck with since winning the Super Bowl in 2015, with six straight losing seasons along the Front Range.
One major reason why the Broncos have fallen on hard times of late is the lack of productivity along the trenches, with Denver’s offensive line ranking among the NFL’s most overvalued units in 2022-23.
To get a sense of where the Broncos’ line ranks versus their NFL peers, BetColorado.com utilized ProFootballReference.com to gather the total amount of sacks allowed by team. The team with the least sacks allowed were awarded 32 points, down to 1 point for team with most sacks allowed. We then gathered the approximate value of each offensive line unit (only 10 offensive line members with most games played) via ProFootballReference.com. Once again, we awarded 32 points for the team with most approximate value to 1 point for least approximate value.
Once getting a total points for each team, we divided the Spotrac.com’s cap hit from 2022-23 season for the total 10 offensive line members over the total points for the two above categories. We were then given the amount of salary paid per points given to arrive at our NFL offensive line units ranked 1st to 32nd based on value.
Stick with BetColorado for more analysis like this as you weigh the Broncos playoff chances under new coach Sean Payton this season.
NFL’s Most Overvalued Offensive Lines
Broncos’ Line Among NFL’s Most Overvalued Last Season
The Broncos’ rough sledding of late on the field can be largely attributed to the lack of production by the team’s line, which produced a point total of eight, despite earning a collective salary cap figure of $40,388,867 for the year.
That eight-point output ranked in a tie with the Indianapolis Colts for the second-lowest total in the league, ahead of the L.A. Rams’ six points.
The Broncos’ $40 million-plus offensive line cap hit was the fourth highest among the bottom 10 teams in O-line productivity, behind only the New York Jets ($41,702,565), Arizona Cardinals ($41,627,217) and Colts ($40,736,011).
Denver’s $ per point total figure of $5,048,608 was the second highest in the league (behind the Colts’ $5,092,001 figure), ahead of the Rams ($2,709,172), Titans ($2,559,275) and Jets ($2,316,809).
Unsurprisingly, Denver’s trench warfare specialists ranked 21st in Pro Football Focus’ final offensive line unit rankings for 2022-23, showing how far they’ve fallen since the glory days of the early 2010’s.
While they may be a longshot this year, stick with BetColorado for updated Broncos Super Bowl Odds all season.
