The Denver Broncos are set to face the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night in a game that could be crucial for their postseason ambitions. With a 12-3 record, Denver is pursuing an AFC West title and the top seed in the conference. A win against the Chiefs, who have lost key players including quarterback Patrick Mahomes, would move the Broncos closer to these goals and mark their first 13-win regular season since 2013.
Head Coach Sean Payton addressed the team’s focus ahead of the matchup. “We don’t really pay attention to that,” Payton said Tuesday. “We try to stay in touch with the game. … Every one of these players understands the significance of where we’re at with two games left in the season.”
A victory would also end Denver’s winless streak in Kansas City dating back to 2015 and secure their best road record since that year.
Quarterback Bo Nix has shown improvement recently, recording consecutive games with over 300 passing yards for the first time in his career. Since Week 12, his completion rate on downfield throws has increased by 15 percent, with four touchdowns and just one interception during that span. Nix commented on his development: “I’m seeing the game drastically different than what I did even last year, beginning of last year, throughout the year,” he said Tuesday. “I was learning a lot and, even though football is football, there are different tendencies, there are different things in the league you just never see and you never get. I feel like I’m seeing the field really well right now, meshing it with our game plan and getting to what we need to get to and making sure the plays are run efficiently.”
Nix is close to setting records for quarterbacks within their first two NFL seasons and could benefit from support from rookie running back RJ Harvey and strong defensive play.
The Broncos will face Chris Oladokun at quarterback for Kansas City after injuries sidelined both of the Chiefs’ top quarterbacks. Oladokun completed 11-of-16 passes for 111 yards while being sacked four times last week against Tennessee. Denver’s defense leads the league in sacks and aims to pressure Oladokun while improving its performance on third downs and red zone defense following last week’s loss to Jacksonville.
Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph emphasized correcting mistakes: “All we do each week is, win or lose, we go back and correct and move on,” Joseph said. “So, last week was our first loss in a very long time. We didn’t play great in the red zone. That was the biggest issue we had — [and] tackling. So, we’ll fix that and move on. That’s what we do. If it’s a win or it’s a loss, we correct, and that’s the first loss in a long time. So, we have to correct.”
Denver also seeks more takeaways after ranking near the bottom of the league with only 12 this season. Payton addressed this area: “It’s not just luck,” Payton said. “It’s a byproduct of [the] pass rush. It’s a byproduct of punch-outs. I would say it’s anything but [luck]. … Sometimes you recover your own fumble, and maybe that. That’s something that we’re working on.”
Six Broncos were named initial-ballot Pro Bowlers this season—the most since 2014—and their contributions may be critical against Kansas City as Denver tries to secure control over its playoff fate.
“We control our own destiny,” Payton noted as Denver prepares for another important December contest.
