The Denver Broncos have been one of the worst offenses in the NFL for years.

In fact, going back to 2016, the orange and blue couldn’t find the red zone enough, ranking: 22nd, 27th, 24th, 28th, 28th and 23rd in scoring, respectively. Broncos Country knows that pain all too well, as the offense has been downright awful while Denver’s defense has been in the top-10 three of those six seasons.

With even a competent quarterback, and offense, the Broncos almost surely would have made the postseason at least once over the last six seasons.

Luckily, George Paton has taken over the reins of the Broncos.

Paton has quickly come in and shaped this team into a true contender. His first-ever draft was dynamite, considered the best in the NFL in 2021. And last offseason, Paton made some solid signings like Teddy Bridgewater, Ronald Darby and Kyle Fuller.

Of course, his short tenure as GM has already been defined by the blockbuster trade for Russell Wilson. And that trade is expected to elevate Denver’s offense.

Anyone could guess, with a superstar quarterback, the Broncos offense will improve in passing the football. That’s true, and there’s evidence to support Wilson wanted to leave Seattle because the Seahawks passed the ball too infrequently.

In light of the trade, some interesting numbers have come to light in regards to both early down passing as well as overall passing.

In Seattle, the Seahawks were 27th in early-down passing with Wilson as the quarterback. In other words, they ran the ball on first and second downs more often than they allowed one of the best quarterbacks in the game to throw the pigskin.

And how about early-down passing by year? The Seahawks were 23rd or worse — 32nd in 2018 — in early-down passing three of the last four years.

The Broncos were even worse the last three years straight. Part of that can be blamed on the team’s last two offensive coordinators and their conservative play-calling. And part of that can be blamed on Denver’s quarterback play, which was been bad-to-terrible for years.

Well, this season, things are bound to change in the Mile High City.

Not only do they have one of the most efficient and electrifying passers in the NFL in Russell Wilson, but the Broncos also have young, innovative play-caller Nathaniel Hackett as their head coach and play-caller now.

For years, Broncos fans have been upset with the lack of creativity and explosiveness from the offense. It was as though coaches hoped the defense would keep Denver in the game — which it did often — and then allowed the offense to do just enough to try and win. But only if those low-risk plays paid off and at the right time.

This must be an exciting prospect for Wilson. He’ll be able to throw the ball more, and, he’ll have arguably the best receiving corps he’s ever had. Similarly, Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, Tim Patrick and KJ Hamler must be drooling over the thought of an elite passer dropping the ball in over the top of defenders and into them.

Depending on what happens in free agency, the Broncos may or may not be as dynamic on defense as they have been.

But one thing’s for sure, the Broncos will be electric in the passing game, and that’s evidenced in the early-down passing the Packers enjoyed in 2021. Last year, they were 10th in early down passing, 8th in passing yards and 4th in passing TDs.

And, again, the Broncos likely have a better receiving corps all-around than the Packers did in 2021. Yes, Davante Adams is possibly the best wideout in the NFL, but their other receivers weren’t as talented as Patrick and Jeudy.

Look for the Broncos to pursue a tight end in free agency when it kicks off this Wednesday, and there are a ton of options out there, too. Including Robert Tonyan, who excelled with Hackett in Green Bay.

And look towards the fall when the Broncos will be exciting on offense again, finally.