Broncos have one of their worst NFL records broken much sooner than expected

The Denver Broncos have some bad history that fans would love to see broken. 

The team owns the biggest margin of defeat (45 points) in Super Bowl history. Just a few years ago, they had the Miami Dolphins dump 70 points on them, the most in an NFL game since 1950. The team also held the record for the biggest dead money hit on a contract in NFL history after releasing Russell Wilson ahead of the 2024 season. 

That number was an incredible $85 million. It seemed it would take the Broncos a decade to dig out of that hole and it looked like a number that would stand much longer than that. Ironically, the team that piled on those 70 points will be the one to take the Broncos off the top spot in the record books by releasing the quarterback that started for them in that game. 

The Dolphins chose to release Tua Tagovailoa ahead of the start of the new league year, triggering a staggering $99.2 million hit in dead money. That will allow the Atlanta Falcons to do what the Pittsburgh Steelers did in 2024, which was to sign Wilson to a league-minimum deal and let the Broncos pay the rest of his salary. The Falcons and Tagovailoa agreed to terms on a new deal on Monday, one that will be official with the start of the new league year on Monday. 

Broncos no longer own biggest dead money hit in NFL history

The Wilson contract will always be one of the most negative memories in Broncos history. However, the team has quickly put it behind them, reaching the AFC Championship Game this past season and now, there is no more money being allocated to Wilson. 

It certainly seems as though the Dolphins will have to much more difficult time getting back to relevance. 

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For a Broncos team that has yet to do much of anything in free agency aside from re-signing some players from last season, this is one of the biggest positives the fanbase can take since the legal tampering window opened on Monday. 

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