Denver Broncos Team Preview: Ultimate Madden NFL 27 Guide

Team Intro

It’s Kobra here, and this Denver Broncos Team Preview starts with a number that should stop you cold. Patrick Surtain II sits at 97 overall. There is no corner in Madden NFL 27 rated higher, and everything Denver does on defense gets built on top of that one fact. Pair him with a pass rush ranked second in the league and you have a team that can take away half the field before the snap.

The offense is the other story. A 14-3 record hides a passing attack ranked 19th and a run game ranked 18th, which is why this Denver Broncos Team Preview spends real time on the line rather than the skill spots. Garett Bolles and Quinn Meinerz are two of the five best offensive linemen in the game. Bo Nix at 81 is not carrying anybody. Denver wins by keeping games low and letting the front seven decide them, and that shapes every playcall you make.

Broncos Team Info in Madden NFL 27

2025 Record

2026 NFL Ranking

Franchise Info

Look at the split in those rankings. Pass Rush 2nd and Coverage 4th against Passing 19th and Rushing 18th tells you the whole team identity in six rows. Blocking at 7th is the one offensive category that jumps, and it comes almost entirely from two linemen. You can compare these against the rest of the league in our team ratings hub.

Coaching Staff

Denver’s actual head coach is Sean Payton. EA licenses coach names and likenesses through the NFL Coaches Association, and any coach who is not licensed gets replaced by a stand-in — which is why your copy of the game shows P. Gaffney on the sideline and on the playbook select screen.

Denver Broncos Coaching DNA in Madden NFL 27

Now here is what caught my attention about this playbook. Payton’s West Coast Power Run pairs short, timing-based throws with pulling linemen, and Denver has the exact personnel that combination asks for.

Scheme

• ►Offense — West Coast Power Run
• ►Defense — Base 3-4

Formations

• ►Singleback — Bunch TE, Bunch X Nasty, Deuce Close, Doubles Y Off, U Off Trio, Wing Close, Wing Flex Close, Wing Pair, Wing Tight Nasty
• ►I Form — Close, Slot
• ►Strong — Close Flex, Jumbo, Y Off Close
• ►Weak — Close Flex
• ►Full House — Tight
• ►Pistol — Doubles Y Off, Y Off Trips
• ►Gun — Box, Bunch Spread, Bunch Str Nasty, Bunch Wide Nasty, Doubles Flex Y Off Close, Doubles Hip, Empty Base Flex, Empty Chips Quads, Flex Y Off Wk, Split Flanker Close, Spread Dbl Flex, Spread Y-Slot, Tight, Tight Y Off Wk, Tight Slots, Trey Open Offset, Trey Open Str, Trey Y-Flex, Trio HB Wk, Wing Flex Offset, Y Off Trio Close, Y Off Trips Nasty
• ►Goal Line — Normal
• ►Hail Mary — Hail Mary
• ►Defense 3-4 — Cub, Grizzly, Over, Over Solid, Under, Under 4 Tech
• ►Defense 4-3 — Under
• ►Defense 4-4 — Split
• ►Nickel — 2-4, 2-4 Dbl Mug, 2-4 Load Dbl Mug, 2-4 Odd Dbl Mug, 2-4 Swap Dbl Mug, 2-4 Wide, 3-3 Cub, Load, Triple
• ►Dime — 1-4 Dbl Mug, 2-3, 2-3 Single Mug
• ►Prevent — 3 Deep
• ►Defensive Goal Line — 5-3, 6-2, Pinch

Packages

• ►Offense — Heavy tight end and wing sets, with Empty Chips Quads and Empty Base Flex as the two spread-out looks
• ►Defense — Six 3-4 fronts and nine Nickel looks, five of them carrying a Dbl Mug tag

Roles

• ►Offense — The line sets the tempo, the tight end works the seam, and the back has to hit the pulling guard’s hip
• ►Defense — Two edge rushers win one on one while Surtain erases a receiver without help

Tendencies

• ►Offense — Short throws to set up the run, then power concepts once the box lightens
• ►Defense — Rush four, drop seven, and make the offense complete five throws in a row

Key Changes

• ►Status — Championship Contender
• ►Ability Tiers — Hidden: 3, Xfactor: 1, Superstar: 6, Star: 13, Normal: 51

Coaching Summary

One X-Factor and six Superstars on a Championship Contender roster is a narrow distribution, and it points at a specific way to play. Three of those Superstar abilities are Quick Jump on defenders, which rewards you for timing the snap on the edge rather than dialing up exotic blitzes. Two more sit on the offensive line. The talent is concentrated in the trenches on both sides, so the plays that pay off are the ones that let those matchups decide the down. More playbook breakdowns follow the same approach.

Broncos Ratings in Madden NFL 27

Defense sits at 88 with offense at 85, and that three-point gap is the whole plan. You are not built to trade scores with Kansas City twice a year. You are built to hold a lead, which means the fourth quarter game plan is short throws and clock, not shots down the field. The online rating of 87 lands above the base overall, so competitive lobbies rate this roster higher than the offline number suggests.

Position Grade Report Card

These are EA’s own in-game position grades, pulled straight off the Adjust Lineup screens, and they appear nowhere else on the web.

Offense

• LT — grade A+
• LG — grade C+
• C — grade B-
• RG — grade A+
• RT — grade B
• TE — grade B-
• WR1 — grade A-
• HB — grade B
• QB — grade B
• FB — grade D
• WR2 — grade B+

Defense

• FS — grade B
• REDG — grade A
• MIKE — grade B+
• WILL — grade C+
• LEDG — grade B+
• SS — grade A-
• CB1 — grade A-
• DT1 — grade B
• CB2 — grade B-

The two A+ grades at left and right guard are the strongest marks on the roster, and they are next to each other in the run game. The weakest is fullback at a D, which matters more than it looks in a power run scheme that wants a lead blocker on counters and iso concepts. Run your power plays behind Bolles and Meinerz rather than through the fullback, and use the wing and tight end sets from the formation list to get an extra body at the point of attack.

Team Schedule

Denver opens on the road at Kansas City on a Monday night and closes with a Christmas Day home game against Buffalo. Two divisional games against the Raiders inside five weeks in the back half give you a swing point in the standings.

• AWAY — Week 1 (Mon, Sep 14) — Kansas City Chiefs — 8:15 PM ET
• HOME — Week 2 (Sun, Sep 20) — Jacksonville Jaguars — 4:05 PM ET
• HOME — Week 3 (Sun, Sep 27) — Los Angeles Rams — 8:20 PM ET
• AWAY — Week 4 (Sun, Oct 4) — San Francisco 49ers — 4:25 PM ET
• AWAY — Week 5 (Sun, Oct 11) — Los Angeles Chargers — 4:05 PM ET
• HOME — Week 6 (Thu, Oct 15) — Seattle Seahawks — 8:15 PM ET
• AWAY — Week 7 (Sun, Oct 25) — Arizona Cardinals — 4:05 PM ET
• HOME — Week 8 (Sun, Nov 1) — Kansas City Chiefs — 4:25 PM ET
• AWAY — Week 9 (Sun, Nov 8) — Carolina Panthers — 1:00 PM ET
• Week 10 — BYE WEEK
• HOME — Week 11 (Sun, Nov 22) — Las Vegas Raiders — 4:25 PM ET
• AWAY — Week 12 (Fri, Nov 27) — Pittsburgh Steelers — 3:00 PM ET
• HOME — Week 13 (Sun, Dec 6) — Miami Dolphins — 4:05 PM ET
• AWAY — Week 14 (Sun, Dec 13) — New York Jets — 1:00 PM ET
• AWAY — Week 15 (Sun, Dec 20) — Las Vegas Raiders — 4:25 PM ET
• HOME — Week 16 (Fri, Dec 25) — Buffalo Bills — 4:30 PM ET
• AWAY — Week 17 (TBD) — New England Patriots — TBD
• HOME — Week 18 (TBD) — Los Angeles Chargers — TBD

Denver Broncos Team Preview Roster Breakdown

Here is the full roster sorted by overall. Note how the top of the list is stacked with linemen and defenders before you reach a single skill player.

• ►Patrick Surtain II — CB, 97 (X-Factor)
• ►Garett Bolles — LT, 96
• ►Quinn Meinerz — RG, 95
• ►Nik Bonitto — REDG, 91
• ►Talanoa Hufanga — SS, 88
• ►Courtland Sutton — WR, 87
• ►Zach Allen — DT, 87
• ►Jaylen Waddle — WR, 86
• ►Alex Singleton — MIKE, 85
• ►Jonathon Cooper — LEDG, 84
• ►Brandon Jones — FS, 83
• ►J.K. Dobbins — HB, 82
• ►Mike McGlinchey — RT, 82
• ►Bo Nix — QB, 81
• ►RJ Harvey — HB, 80
• ►Ja’Quan McMillian — CB, 79
• ►Jeremy Crawshaw — P, 79
• ►Troy Franklin — WR, 79
• ►Evan Engram — TE, 78
• ►Luke Wattenberg — C, 78
• ►Marvin Mims Jr — WR, 78
• ►Wil Lutz — K, 78
• ►D.J. Jones — DT, 77
• ►Riley Moss — CB, 77
• ►Ben Powers — LG, 75
• ►Jahdae Barron — CB, 75
• ►Justin Strnad — WILL, 74
• ►Jonah Elliss — LEDG, 73
• ►Jonah Coleman — HB, 73
• ►Kris Abrams-Draine — CB, 73
• ►Tyler Onyedim — DT, 73
• ►Drew Sanders — REDG, 72
• ►Malcolm Roach — DT, 72
• ►Pat Bryant II — WR, 72
• ►Adam Trautman — TE, 71
• ►Jaleel McLaughlin — HB, 71
• ►Kage Casey — LG, 71
• ►Alex Palczewski — RG, 70
• ►Dondrea Tillman — REDG, 70
• ►Sai’vion Jones — DT, 70
• ►Eyioma Uwazurike — DT, 69
• ►Lil’Jordan Humphrey — WR, 69
• ►Que Robinson — LEDG, 69
• ►Tyler Badie — HB, 69
• ►Adam Prentice — FB, 68
• ►Justin Joly — TE, 68
• ►Matt Henningsen — DT, 68
• ►Mitchell Fraboni — LS, 68
• ►Alex Forsyth — C, 67
• ►Calvin Throckmorton — RG, 67
• ►Cody Schrader — HB, 67
• ►Matt Peart — LT, 67
• ►Hakeem Butler — WR, 66
• ►JL Skinner — SS, 66
• ►Michael Deiter — C, 66
• ►Nick Gargiulo — LG, 66
• ►Reese Taylor — CB, 66
• ►Devon Key — FS, 65
• ►Jordan Jackson — DT, 65
• ►Red Murdock — MIKE, 65
• ►Tycen Anderson — SS, 65
• ►Frank Crum — LT, 64
• ►Jarrett Stidham — QB, 64
• ►Jordan Turner — WILL, 64
• ►Miles Scott — FS, 64
• ►Dallen Bentley — TE, 63
• ►Levelle Bailey — WILL, 63
• ►Lucas Krull — TE, 63
• ►Karene Reid — MIKE, 62
• ►Michael Bandy — WR, 62
• ►Nate Adkins — TE, 62
• ►Caleb Lohner — TE, 60
• ►Johnny Walker Jr — WILL, 60
• ►Sam Ehlinger — QB, 57

Projected Starting Lineups

Offense (Base)

• ►QB — B.Nix, 81
• ►HB — J.Dobbins, 82
• ►FB — A.Prentice, 68
• ►WR1 — C.Sutton, 87
• ►WR2 — J.Waddle, 86
• ►TE — E.Engram, 78
• ►LT — G.Bolles, 96
• ►LG — B.Powers, 75
• ►C — L.Wattenberg, 78
• ►RG — Q.Meinerz, 95
• ►RT — M.McGlinchey, 82

Defense (Base)

• ►LEDG — J.Cooper, 84
• ►REDG — N.Bonitto, 91
• ►DT1 — Z.Allen, 87
• ►DT2 — D.Jones, 77
• ►DT3 — M.Roach, 72
• ►MIKE — A.Singleton, 85
• ►WILL — J.Strnad, 74
• ►CB1 — P.Surtain II, 97
• ►CB2 — J.McMillian, 79
• ►FS — B.Jones, 83
• ►SS — T.Hufanga, 88

Roster Snapshot

Offensive Impact Players

Two of the top three offensive players are guards and tackles, which almost never happens. Garett Bolles at 96 and Quinn Meinerz at 95 give you a left edge and an interior anchor that hold up without a chip or a back staying in. Courtland Sutton at 87 handles the outside comeback and back shoulder work, Jaylen Waddle at 86 is the one player who threatens a defense vertically, and J.K. Dobbins at 82 has the vision to make zone reads pay. Build your protections around the fact that Bolles rarely needs help.

Defensive Impact Players

Patrick Surtain II at 97 is the highest rated player on either side of the ball and the reason you can leave one receiver in single coverage all game. Nik Bonitto at 91 wins off the right edge, Zach Allen at 87 collapses the pocket from the interior, and Jonathon Cooper at 84 gives you a second rusher who does not need a stunt to get home. Talanoa Hufanga at 88 is the piece that lets you rotate coverages, since he plays the run downhill and still carries a seam.

X-Factors and Superstars

One X-Factor and six Superstars, weighted heavily toward the front and the line. Here is what each ability actually does.

Madden Gameplay & Franchise Outlook

Offensive Scheme

Payton’s West Coast Power Run wants the ball out fast and the run game to punish whatever the defense gives up for it. Live in the Singleback wing sets and the Gun Y Off looks, because both put a tight end next to a tackle and give you a run and a play action off the identical alignment. Sutton’s Short Out Elite and Mid Out Elite make the outside breaking routes your highest percentage throws, so build drives on those and let Waddle run the occasional post behind them. Our Madden tips and guides library covers the timing on those concepts in detail.

Defensive Scheme

Base 3-4 with a pass rush ranked 2nd means you never have to send five. Put Bonitto on the offense’s weaker tackle, drop into Cover 3 or a match concept, and let the four rushers do the work while seven defenders take away throwing lanes. Surtain’s Shutdown plus Outside Shade lets you leave him alone on the boundary and shade the safety help toward Waddle’s side of the field. The Nickel 2-4 Dbl Mug looks are your disguise package rather than a true blitz, since showing pressure and bailing forces the checkdown you want.

Franchise Mode Strategy

You have $29.6M in cap space and a Championship Contender status, so this is a win now roster with one obvious hole. Fullback grades out at a D and the WILL spot sits at C+, and both are cheap fixes in free agency compared to what a quarterback upgrade would cost. Bo Nix at 81 is fine inside this system. Spend the money on the second linebacker and let the defense carry you, which is the same franchise strategy that works for any team whose defensive rating leads its offensive one. You can read more Madden strategies on roster building.

Playing Online

An online rating of 87 puts Denver above its 86 base overall, which reflects how well Surtain and the pass rush translate against human opponents. Online players throw more than the CPU does, and a 97 corner who can travel with the top receiver is worth more in that environment than an extra two points of team speed. The weakness shows up when you fall behind, because a 19th ranked passing attack with an 81 quarterback does not come back from two scores. Keep it close and the roster does the rest. Official details on the game are at EA’s Madden NFL 27 page.

Denver Broncos Strengths and Weaknesses

Team Strengths

Pass Rush at 2nd and Coverage at 4th are the two rankings that decide games, and Denver owns both. Blocking at 7th is the third, and it comes from Bolles and Meinerz grading A+ at their spots. That combination gives you the rarest thing in Madden NFL 27, which is a team that can win without needing its quarterback to make a difficult throw. Team Speed at 8th also means you are not getting run past on the perimeter when you play zone.

Team Weaknesses

Passing 19th and Rushing 18th are middle of the pack, and the roster explains why. Bo Nix at 81 and a backfield group grading C+ cap what the offense can do against a defense that plays two high safeties. The fullback grade of D hurts the power concepts the scheme is named after. Track the real team’s season at ESPN or NFL.com and you will see the same pattern show up in the box scores.

Denver Broncos FAQ

Who is the best player on the Broncos in Madden NFL 27?

Patrick Surtain II at 97 overall, and he is the only X-Factor on the roster. His Shutdown ability tightens coverage and adds interceptions on contested catches, which lets you leave him on an island and commit help elsewhere.

What offensive scheme do the Broncos run?

West Coast Power Run. It pairs short timing throws with pulling linemen in the run game, so the playbook leans on Singleback wing sets and Gun Y Off formations that disguise run and pass from the same alignment.

Why is P. Gaffney listed as the Broncos head coach?

EA licenses coach names through the NFL Coaches Association, and coaches who are not licensed are replaced by a stand-in. Denver’s actual head coach is Sean Payton, and the game uses the generated name on both the sideline and the playbook select screen.

Are the Broncos good for online play?

Their online rating of 87 sits above the 86 base overall. A 97 corner and a second ranked pass rush translate well against human opponents who throw more than the CPU, though the offense struggles to come from behind.

What should I upgrade first in franchise mode?

Fullback grades at D and WILL linebacker at C+, and both are inexpensive fixes with $29.6M in cap space. Those two spots limit the power run game and the second level of the defense more than the quarterback position does.

Final Thoughts

I have been breaking down Madden rosters at MaddenGuides.com since 2001, and I wrote the official EA Sports strategy guides for Madden NFL 09 and 10, so I have seen plenty of teams built like this one. Denver is a defense you can win with immediately and an offense you have to be patient with. The 14-3 record was not an accident, but it came from holding teams down rather than outscoring them, and playing this roster any other way is how people lose with it.

Grab Surtain, lock the boundary, rush four, and make somebody beat you with their third read. That is the whole plan, and it works from Week 1 at Kansas City all the way through December.

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