The Denver Broncos are focusing on moving forward after a difficult end to their season, following a narrow three-point loss in the AFC Championship Game against the New England Patriots. The defeat ended a season in which the Broncos secured their first division title in ten years, matched a franchise record for regular-season wins, and claimed the top seed in the AFC.
General Manager George Paton addressed the media on Tuesday, reflecting on the team’s progress and challenges. “Obviously, it’s been a tough couple days, [a] tough end to the season,” Paton said. “It’s never easy, but this is extra tough because we got so close.”
Despite the disappointment, Head Coach Sean Payton emphasized resilience and learning from setbacks. “We’re in this industry, [and] you’re going to get punched and have some tough losses,” Payton said Tuesday. “It happened in Kansas City … and we responded. … That can’t discourage you from coming back, or you’re never going to taste [success].”
Payton noted that entering each new season requires starting from scratch rather than simply building on past achievements. “I will not use that [phrase] ‘Take the next step,'” he said. “You go back to the start of the race. [All] 32 teams have to go back and meet their parents, eat their oranges and get ready to start again. That’s really important.”
Looking ahead to 2026, both Payton and Paton highlighted improvements in resources available for team development. Payton pointed out an increase in salary-cap space as a key advantage: “Now, we do that with more resources,” he said about entering the offseason. “We do that without [a significant] dead cap [hit]. We do that with a foundation in place. We do that with optimism and confidence from the journey we’ve been on. I think that’s important.” He compared having more cap space to an increased home-decorating budget but stressed continued financial prudence.
“It’s still important that we evaluate wisely, we draft wisely, we make these decisions regarding free agency with well thought-out plans, and we go from there,” Payton added.
Paton agreed on maintaining a careful approach while also pushing for improvement: “We’re always going to push it, and we’re going to push it this year,” he said. “All these other teams are pushing it. … So, we have to be on our game, we have to make really good decisions. We’re going to be aggressive.”
The Broncos plan extensive evaluations of their roster ahead of free agency and the NFL Draft as they prepare for another run at success next season.
“You learn, [and] you have to move forward,” Paton concluded. “You look at the things that we did — all the positive things that we did — and you build on that.”