Everyone who watched the Buffalo Bills and Denver Broncos face each other in the playoffs last season saw what happened that resulted in Denver getting a miraculous win in overtime. There were plenty of miscalled (and not called) penalties, and a controversial interception call bounced in the right direction for the Broncos to eliminate the Bills. That loss ended up being Sean McDermott’s final game in Buffalo.
Now, both teams will see each other again on Christmas Day in Denver. Two coaches, Pete Carmichael Jr. and Jim Leonhard, both left Denver to join Buffalo’s coaching staff under Joe Brady. Both teams also made upgrades at the wide receiver position. Long story short, fans could be in for another thriller in late December.
We were able to speak with Sayre Bedinger, who serves as the Site Expert for Predominantly Orange here at FanSided, and Bedinger was able to provide some great details about the Broncos’ offseason that Bills fans should want to know about.
1.) How are fans feeling about the Broncos losing both Pete Carmichael Jr. and Jim Leonhard to the Bills' coaching staff for 2026?
"The loss of Pete Carmichael isn't something Broncos Country has talked much about this offseason. Although he's one of Sean Payton's more trusted assistants through the years, the big storyline was keeping Davis Webb this offseason, and the Broncos did that. Carmichael is a veteran voice, but the team probably won't miss his presence as much as he can benefit a young head coach like Joe Brady. "
"Losing Jim Leonhard stings a bit. There was some thought for a while that he could be the heir apparent to Vance Joseph as Denver's defensive coordinator, but nobody has hired Vance. Leonhard knows what he's doing and is really sharp when it comes to player development. He even helped the Broncos in the pre-draft evaluation process on wide receiver Pat Bryant."
2.) Obviously, the acquisition of Jaylen Waddle is a massive move for the Broncos. However, what is an extremely underrated move that Denver made this offseason and why?
"The most underrated move the Broncos made during the 2026 offseason has to be keeping linebacker Justin Strnad and planning to start him within their defense. Strnad has started 16 games over the past two seasons, playing in almost all of them, but he hasn't been a full-time starter going into training camp ever as an NFL player. He is the team's best all-around linebacker and after being drafted in 2000, he's finally getting his shot to do it on a full-time basis. He's never even played 60 percent of the defensive snaps."
3.) With Davis Webb taking over as the OC for the Broncos, do you believe that the offense will look different than it has in recent memory?
"I'm expecting the offense to look substantially different, if only from an operation standpoint. Having Webb in charge of the offense should mean quicker calls into the QB, more pace, seamless personnel changes, and hopefully more balance. Webb saw what didn't work over the past few years for Denver's offense, and now has a chance to change that. I expect him to really emphasize the players' skill sets as opposed to trying to make the offense the priority."
4.) Who on the Broncos is being severely overlooked that Bills fans should be worried about and why?
"The running back position, in general, is seemingly being overlooked. JK Dobbins has a lengthy injury history, so nobody is expecting him to do it again, but he ewas a top-5 back in almost every metric when he went down with injury last season. RJ Harvey had 12 total touchdowns as a rookie and is expected to grow in his role this coming season as well. The Broncos drafted Jonah Coleman in the 4th round, and he was #1 in the class in a lot of important metrics like yards after contact per rushing attempt, yards after the catch, and he was near the top of the class with his pass protection skills."
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