ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- The NFL has released its 2019 regular-season schedule. Here's a look at what's in store for the Denver Broncos. Game-by-game prediction Broncos reporter Jeff Legwold is predicting an 8-8 finish: Sept. 9: at Oakland, loss Sept. 15: vs. Chicago, win Sept. 22: at Green Bay, loss Sept. 29: vs. Jacksonville, win Oct. 6: at Los Angeles Chargers, loss Oct. 13: vs. Tennessee, win Oct. 17: vs. Kansas City, loss Oct. 27: at Indianapolis, loss Nov. 3: vs. Cleveland, win Nov. 17: at Minnesota, win Nov. 24: at Buffalo, win Dec. 1: vs. Los Angeles Chargers, loss Dec. 8: at Houston, loss Dec. 15: at Kansas City, loss Dec. 21 or 22: vs. Detroit, win Dec. 29: vs. Oakland, win Strength of schedule: 2, .537 opponent win percentage Breakdown 2019 regular-season NFL schedule Are you ready for Packers at Bears to kick off the NFL season? View the complete week-by-week schedule here. • Record predictions for all 32 teams » • Picking best matchups, biggest winners » • What the schedule means for fantasy » • Chalk: Full list of Week 1 NFL lines » • More NFL coverage » | NFL draft news » The Broncos will open on the road for the first time since 2010, Josh McDaniels' second season as the team's coach. The Broncos' opener will be the late Monday Night Football game on the opening weekend and the last game of Week 1. Overall, the Broncos are going to have to do some heavy lifting in coach Vic Fangio's first season. They have seven games against 2018 playoff teams to go with games against the revamped Browns and Raiders. Toss in a traditionally difficult trip to Lambeau Field in Week 3 to face the Packers and a December trip to Arrowhead, and the Broncos will have a tough time getting and keeping their balance if they don't exit training camp with their house in order. They do get a 50-50 sort of schedule with a Week 10 bye week to go with four road games before the bye and four after the bye. Weather report After Wednesday's minicamp practice, Broncos linebacker Von Miller wanted to know only one thing about the Broncos' schedule: "I'm wondering when we play in Green Bay," Miller said. "... Hopefully it's not late December or something like that." Told the Broncos will play at Lambeau in Week 3 (Sept. 22), Miller said: "That's good. That's the only thing I was worried about. We're going to be in Green Bay at the beginning of the year, I'm cool with that." Secondary is a primary concern With cornerback Chris Harris Jr.'s decision to not attend the team's voluntary workouts in the offseason program in hopes that he receives a contract extension, it's a good time to point out that the Broncos will face plenty in the upper tier of the quarterback rankings. They'll get league MVP Patrick Mahomes and Philip Rivers twice in their division, plus Aaron Rodgers (Week 3), Andrew Luck (Week 8), Baker Mayfield (Week 9), Kirk Cousins (Week 11), Deshaun Watson (Week 14) and Matthew Stafford (Week 16). Oh, and wide receiver Antonio Brown now resides in the division with the Raiders -- Week 1 and Week 17 -- and the Broncos will face Odell Beckham Jr. when he and Mayfield come to Denver on Nov. 3.<doc-sep>Louis Riddick predicts that the Patriots will have a 12-4 record, losing to the Dolphins, Jets, Chiefs and Ravens. (1:50) The 2019 NFL schedule is out, so you can finally plan your fall accordingly. The regular season kicks off with the Chicago Bears hosting the NFC North rival Green Bay Packers on Thursday, Sept. 5 (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC). The opening doubleheader for Monday Night Football will feature the Houston Texans at the New Orleans Saints (7:10 p.m. ET, ESPN) and the Denver Broncos at Oakland Raiders (10:20 p.m. ET) on Monday, Sept. 9. Check out the full week-by-week schedule here. NFL Nation reporters break down the 2019 regular-season schedules for all 32 teams, with predicted records from each of our reporters. Each record prediction was made independent of the predictions of their colleagues. Let's start in the NFC East: Jump directly to a team: NFC EAST Full schedule | Predicted record: 10-6 The Cowboys face a daunting schedule, playing six games against playoff teams from last season, including the reigning Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, NFC champ Los Angeles Rams and NFC runner-up New Orleans Saints. Read the analysis from Todd Archer. Full schedule | Predicted record: 6-10 The low expectations for this season also limited the Giants to three prime-time matchups -- two Monday nights and a Thursday nighter against the New England Patriots. Read the analysis from Jordan Raanan. Full schedule | Predicted record: 11-5 The Eagles play five games against teams that made the playoffs in 2018 (Seahawks, Patriots, Bears and Cowboys twice), with four of those matchups coming at home. Read the analysis from Tim McManus. Full schedule | Predicted record: 7-9 The Redskins play three division games in the first four weeks, which will provide a great clue for how their season will play out. They also close with three consecutive division games. Read the analysis from John Keim. NFC NORTH Full schedule | Predicted record: 10-6 Following a surprise playoff berth (12-4) last season, the Bears face a much tougher schedule in head coach Matt Nagy's second season. Read the analysis from Jeff Dickerson. Full schedule | Predicted record: 8-8 It's going to be another tough start for the Lions, with two of the league's most explosive 2018 offenses coming to Ford Field in the first month of the season, bracketing a game at Philadelphia. Read the analysis from Michael Rothstein. Full schedule | Predicted record: 9-7 Despite two consecutive non-playoff seasons, the league still considers the Packers a draw, with five prime-time games, including two Thursday night games (at Bears, vs. Eagles), two MNF appearances (vs. Lions, at Vikings) and a Sunday night game (at Chiefs). Read the analysis from Rob Demovsky. Full schedule | Predicted record: 10-6 The Vikings play three NFC North games on the road in the first seven weeks. Then things get really difficult. A handful of stretches could decide the season for Minnesota, including back-to-back road games at Kansas City and Dallas in Weeks 9 and 10. Read the analysis from Courtney Cronin. NFC SOUTH Full schedule | Predicted record: 10-6 The Falcons don't exactly have it easy to start, with six of the first nine games against 2018 playoff teams and four of the first six games on the road, starting with a season-opening trip to Minnesota to face the Vikings. Read the analysis from Vaughn McClure. Full schedule | Predicted record: 9-7 The schedule-makers liked the drama of Carolina facing New Orleans twice in the final three weeks last season so much that they almost pulled a repeat. The NFC South rivals play each other twice in the final six weeks, including the finale in Charlotte, North Carolina. Read the analysis from David Newton. Full schedule | Predicted record: 11-5 The Saints don't have to wait long for the most grueling part of their schedule. After kicking off at home on a Monday night against the Texans, they'll have to travel across the country for their much-anticipated rematch against the Rams. Read the analysis from Mike Triplett. Full schedule | Predicted record: 8-8 The Bucs' most challenging stretch includes three consecutive road games, with trips to Los Angeles and London, and facing the top two teams in the NFC in 2018 in back-to-back weeks. During that three-week span, the Bucs will travel 28,144 miles. Read the analysis from Jenna Laine. NFC WEST Full schedule | Predicted record: 5-11 Five of the Cardinals' six division games come in the final nine weeks -- with the last two coming on the road, at Seattle on Dec. 22 and at the Rams on Dec. 29. Read the analysis from Josh Weinfuss. Full schedule | Predicted record: 12-4 The Rams start with a tough five-game stretch that includes opening on the East Coast for the first time since 2012 as they take on the Panthers. Read the analysis from Lindsey Thiry. Full schedule | Predicted record: 8-8 If the Niners manage to survive the road-heavy first part of the season, they will find themselves in what looks like a much more manageable stretch in the middle, with three consecutive home games against the Seahawks, Cardinals and Packers. Read the analysis from Nick Wagoner. Full schedule | Predicted record: 11-5 The Seahawks, who have five prime-time games, are a whopping 26-5-1 in prime time under coach Pete Carroll. Read the analysis from Brady Henderson. AFC EAST Full schedule | Predicted record: 7-9 Weeks 3-9 could be the key to the Bills' playoff hopes. They will travel only once in that stretch, making a trip to Tennessee in Week 5. Read the analysis from Mike Rodak. Full schedule | Predicted record: 4-12 October looks like a potential get-right month, as Miami faces no 2018 playoff teams, but both the Bills and Steelers will be coming off of bye weeks before playing the Dolphins. Read the analysis from Cameron Wolfe. Full schedule | Predicted record: 11-5 This marks the fourth consecutive season in which the bye week is in a great spot for the Patriots. Getting a break after the ninth game almost splits the season into two even halves, which gives players and coaches a nice midseason break. Read the analysis from Mike Reiss. Full schedule | Predicted record: 8-8 After signing marquee names such as running back Le'Veon Bell in free agency, the Jets once again have mass appeal. They have three prime-time games, two more than last season. Read the analysis from Rich Cimini. AFC NORTH Full schedule | Predicted record: 9-7 The Ravens become the fourth team since the NFL switched to a 16-game schedule in 1978 to receive a perfectly balanced schedule, according to ESPN Stats & Information research. Read the analysis from Jamison Hensley. Full schedule | Predicted record: 8-8 There's no doubt this is a tough schedule. The Bengals have to play the two Super Bowl teams -- the Patriots and Rams -- in addition to a 49ers team with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and an improved Browns team. Read the analysis from Katherine Terrell. Full schedule | Predicted record: 11-5 The NFL gave the Browns a December made for a playoff run. They close versus Cincinnati, at Arizona, versus Baltimore and at Cincinnati. Read the analysis from Pat McManamon. Full schedule | Predicted record: 9-7 The NFL gave the Steelers quite the midseason break with a Week 7 bye, followed by three consecutive home games, against the Dolphins, Colts and Rams. The Steelers will go 32 days between road games with that setup. Read the analysis from Jeremy Fowler. AFC SOUTH Full schedule | Predicted record: 9-7 Starting in Week 6, the Texans will play four of five games -- including a trip to London -- on the road. That stretch will include trips to Kansas City, Indianapolis, London and Baltimore and one home game (Week 8) against the Raiders. Read the analysis from Sarah Barshop. Full schedule | Predicted record: 11-5 The Colts play only five games against 2018 playoff teams and two of those games are against Houston, a team the Colts beat in the wild-card round last season. Read the analysis from Mike Wells. Full schedule | Predicted record: 8-8<doc-sep>OAKLAND, CA - DECEMBER 24: Phillip Lindsay #30 of the Denver Broncos rushes with the ball against the Oakland Raiders during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 24, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images) The 2019 schedule has been revealed for all 32 teams and the Denver Broncos are early underdogs at Oakland vs the Raiders. Week One of the 2019 NFL season is a long ways away, but with the schedule coming out on Wednesday evening, it allows odds makers to provide odds for the first game of the year. The Denver Broncos are underdogs again. According to OddsShark’s books, the Broncos start the season at Oakland and are 3-point underdogs against one of their division opponents. In OddsShark’s “Edge Finder” feature, the Broncos are favored in the following categories: Total Score: 20.56-18.12 Rushing Yards: 119.19-101.75 Number of Plays: 63.44-62.19 Yards Per Play: 5.52-5.41 The Raiders are favored in passing yards (234.44-230.94) and Time on Field (30:59-28:57). Last season in two games vs the Raiders, then-quarterback Case Keenum threw for a combined 424 yards, and the Broncos as a team ran for 268 yards. With a new coaching staff, as well as a new starting quarterback, it will be interesting to see what the Broncos’ pass-run ratio will be like. I could see them being better at using the run to set up the pass now that they have a better quarterback than last season. Joe Flacco missed a lot of time last year and was benched for Lamar Jackson, but he says that he is healthy now. Hopefully he stays healthy throughout the entire season. That sort of thing is tricky as a 30+ year old athlete. I love the additions the Broncos have made so far this offseason and I feel like they are going to outmatch Oakland, especially Denver’s offense vs Oakland’s defense. Oakland recorded just thirteen sacks in 2018. The Broncos addition of Ja’Wuan James at right tackle should help keep the Raiders from getting to Flacco a bunch. Oakland gave up 36 touchdowns through the air in 2018. Hopefully the Broncos offense can dial up great plays through the air and expose Oakland. The Broncos are often considered the underdogs. That is the way they like it, however. We will see what the odds say later down the road when the season inches closer, but right now, Denver is projected to start the season with a loss.<doc-sep>
We finally have the Denver Broncos 2019 regular season schedule and can begin tallying up the wins and losses. The schedule itself has some tough stretches, but overall it looks fairly manageable. It helps that the winnable games are mostly at home this year as opposed to those winnable games being mostly on the road in 2018. Here is how I got the Denver Broncos to a 10-win season in 2019. That should be enough to get them into the playoff mix in most years. Week 1: Broncos @ Raiders (MNF) WIN. 1-0. Starting off strong is the key for the Broncos this year. The Raiders made a lot of moves to get better, but so did Denver. They need to go into Oakland and make a statement right out of the gates. Week 2: Bears @ Broncos WIN. 2-0. Vic Fangio isn’t going to lose to his old team. That just isn’t going to happen. Plus, I feel like the Bears are likely to regress a bit from their outstanding 2018 season. Week 3: Broncos @ Packers LOSS. 2-1. It’s September in Green Bay, which means Aaron Rodgers is still likely 100% healthy and as deadly as ever as a quarterback. This early setback is minor and the team can quickly move beyond it. Week 4: Jaguars @ Broncos WIN. 3-1. Nick Foles is September Nick Foles. The Broncos defense makes him wish he was wherever Blake Bortles is now residing. Denver gets their winning ways back on track. Week 5: Broncos @ Chargers LOSS. 3-2. Despite an home team presence in whatever rec center the Chargers are playing in this year, the Broncos come up short against a tough AFC West opponents. Week 6: Titans @ Broncos WIN. 4-2. Staying above .500 is vital in the AFC, so a win over the Titans would go a long way to help keep the Broncos ship steadily marching towards playoff contention. It helps that the Titans suck. Week 7: Chiefs @ Broncos (TNF) WIN. 5-2. In the most important game of the year, the Broncos prevail. Instead of a Case Keenum whiffing to a wide open Demaryius Thomas for the win, Joe Flacco drops it into the bucket for Emmanuel Sanders to right the wrong that happened the year prior. This is a statement win. If the Broncos don’t win this game, I’m not sure they’ll have the team confidence to fight through to the end. It could be the difference between 10-6/11-5 and 7-9/8-8. Go get that monkey off your back! Week 8: Broncos @ Colts LOSS. 5-3. After a hugely emotional win (or loss for that matter), the Broncos head into Indianapolis for a classic let down game. It’s okay, though, as they are in good position at 5-3. Week 9: Browns @ Broncos WIN. 6-3. Don’t buy the hype. The Browns are much improved, but the predictions of Super Bowl glory are a bit ridiculous. Baker Mayfield is in his sophomore season and will likely have his ups and downs as a young quarterback in the NFL. Week 9 will be one of the down weeks. Week 10: BYE I think I like a Week 10 bye week. It’s a pretty good spot for some rest. Week 11: Broncos @ Vikings LOSS. 6-4. Coming out of the bye, the Broncos will have their toughest stretch all season long. Four of their next five games are on the road, with all starting at 11:00 AM MT. That doesn’t bode well for the Broncos, but if they can win two of these games they will be in position to make something happen. Week 12: Broncos @ Bills WIN. 7-4. Josh Allen does Josh Allen things through the air and is bottled up on the ground. Road wins are never easy, especially this late in the season. Week 13: Chargers @ Broncos WIN. 8-4. Revenge on Philip Rivers and the Chargers. The win helps the Broncos get some breathing room with four games to go. Two of those games are against strong AFC contenders on the road. Beating the Chargers at home is absolutely vital. Week 14: Broncos @ Texans LOSS. 8-5. No revenge for last season here. The Texans have talent all over the field and should be in playoff form this late in the season. If they are, then they should be able to handle the upstart Broncos. Week 15: Broncos @ Chiefs LOSS. 8-6. It’s Arrowhead Stadium in December.