The Brisbane Broncos should come into the 2026 NRL season as one of the most settled squads, having taken out the premiership last season.
But ‘should' is the operative word in this instance.
With youngsters banging the door down, a key injury, and veterans heading towards the end of their careers with fitness questions lingering, there are still plenty of big issues for Michael Maguire as he looks to create his own dynasty at Red Hill.
Here are the big selection questions which will shape the pre-season at the Broncos.
» Broncos current Best 17, 2026 squad
How do the Broncos handle Billy Walters' ACL injury?
Billy Walters, who did a fantastic job at dummy half for most of 2025, and then finished the year at five-eighth as an injury crisis struck the Broncos, will miss at least the first half of the year after injuring his ACL in the qualifying final win over the Canberra Raiders.
Walters being out for the first half of the year comes with the Broncos also refusing to retain Tyson Smoothy, with the hooker moving to the English Super League.
It means that both Ben Hunt and Blake Mozer will almost certainly start the season for the Broncos.
Mozer, one of the most talented young dummy halves in the competition, spent 2025 either in reserve grade or injured, but will be looking to quickly find his best, while the Broncos will be sweating on Hunt staying fit given what is now, for the first half of the year at least, an alarming lack of depth.
The Broncos do also have development player Cameron Bukowski on the books, and he may well be needed to debut at some point in 2025, particularly if Hunt or Walters need to shuffle into the halves at any stage.
Not being a Queenslander, I’ve never taken any real interest in the Bronco’s squad.
It’s an eye-opener to see the problems facing Madge.