Broncos' October gauntlet could wreck their AFC West hopes

The 2025 NFL schedule is filled full of exciting matchups. One team that is placed in a good amount of those are the Denver Broncos. After a turnaround under Sean Payton last season, the Broncos are receiving a great deal of national hype entering this upcoming season.

Quarterback Bo Nix finished strong last year. As he enters his second career season, can Denver fend off new tricks that teams may throw his way? This will be fascinating to monitor during the Broncos' schedule. One particular stretch looks more enticing than any other for Denver.

How the Broncos handle their run around October could determine if they live up to this new, perceived hype. If they cannot get into the second half of the schedule on solid ground, their hopes of climbing up the AFC West ranks will be snuffed out.

The Broncos are receiving a lot of hype entering 2025, but they will have one interesting stretch to navigate in the first half of their schedule.

From Week 4 to Week 9, the Denver Broncos face a stretch that is not the toughest in the league, on paper. Though the Broncos will have to face both the league's best and a few teams in transition looking to find their way. That can be a dangerous balance for a team that is also looking to live up to its own heightened expectations.

During that six-week span, Denver hosts the Cincinnati Bengals and then travels to Philadelphia to take on the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles. After that back-to-back test, the Broncos will play an international game in London against the New York Jets. People may laugh at this being described as a possible hiccup for Denver. However, international games are seemingly never simple.

The Broncos will not get a bye week after the London trip. Instead, they get the New York Giants, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Houston Texans in three straight games after the Jets. The Giants are playing as a desperate squad in 2025. As for the two teams from Texas, they each have offenses that can outpace the physicality that the Broncos bring. If Denver goes above .500 in this stretch, then they will earn deserved respect.

If the Broncos fare well in this six-week run surrounding October, they could be sitting in a solid spot within the AFC West. But if it goes haywire, Denver will need to hope for positive results on the bookends of these six games.

For instance, before the Bengals meeting, the Broncos will travel to Los Angeles to face the Chargers. And after going to Houston to face the Texans, Denver will then have two huge AFC West division games on tap. They host the Las Vegas Raiders after the Texans game. And that comes on a Thursday night during a short week, nonetheless. The Kansas City Chiefs will come to town after that, leading the Broncos into a bye week.

Can Denver enter the bye week feeling like they have some momentum? Either way, the division games are going to be another hurdle after that tricky run of six games.

Those six games around October could truly test the youth of some Broncos being counted on heavily. Names like Nix and others who will be in their second or third seasons will likely see new challenges they did not see last year.

How will defenses adjust to attack Nix? Can Denver's young skill players continue to find their footing against veteran defenders? That is especially intriguing when considering they will face defenses like Philadelphia, Dallas, and Houston. Plus, can Coach Payton elevate or push his team further?

How the Broncos perform in those six games will determine just how tough the run will be after the bye week. Post-bye games include divisional showdowns, as well as other teams expected to be in the playoff race. Washington, Green Bay, and even Jacksonville could all be fighting for the playoffs just as hard as Denver is hoping to be at that point in the season.