The Broncos will kick off their 2026 regular season on Monday Night vs. their division rivals, the Kansas City Chiefs, in Arrowhead. This game will feature the return of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who is returning from a major knee injury last season, but he will be down his blindside protector. It was trending this way all week, but on Saturday, it was confirmed that starting left tackle Josh Simmons would be ruled out, and undrafted rookie Kahlil Benson will get the start at left tackle vs. the Denver
Broncos.
Benson is an undrafted free agent out of Indiana who has played primarily right tackle and some guard throughout his college career. His first snaps at left tackle came during the preseason with the Chiefs. So, the undrafted rookie will be making his NFL debut and his first career start at left tackle vs. the Broncos on Monday Night.
Obviously, the Broncos NEED to take advantage of this. I would expect the Chiefs to be very run-heavy with Mahomes coming back from injury, the addition of Kenneth Walker, and being down at left tackle vs. a strong pass rush. The Broncos defense needs to control the line of scrimmage, stop their run game, and force the Chiefs into some uncomfortable situations.
As we know, the Broncos will be down starting edge rusher Jonathon Cooper, who is currently on the exempt list. However, they still have All-Pro pass rusher Nik Bonitto and promising young players Jonah Elliss and Que Robinson, so they still have plenty of pass rush off the edge.
The Broncos have led the NFL in sacks in back-to-back seasons and look primed to do that again this season. If they want to achieve that goal and break the team sack record this season, they will need to have a big night on Monday Night. The Chiefs will run the ball and throw a lot of quick passes, but the Broncos’ pass rushers have an opportunity to pin their ears back; they need to take advantage of this weakness.
