I don’t think Sean Payton can keep the secret of what this team is any longer.
Yes, the Chiefs look like a pale specter of themselves this season (thank the football gods).
Yes, the Broncos offense has looked every part as young as it is many times in many games throughout the season.
But this Denver Broncos team is packed full of winners. This is Denver Broncos football being played at its finest.
Beating the Chiefs is no easy thing. I may despise their fanbase and their players’ smarmy faces, but I respect
the hell out of Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes. They are individually arguably the best at what they do in the NFL. That’s a #1 coach and a #1 quarterback. For the Broncos to outplay them as a team is not only sweet, it is significant.
This 2025 Denver Broncos team is a threat. This team can play with anyone in the league. This team will take on any scenario and fight until the last second on the clock ticks off, clawing, scratching, and biting for victory.
Get fired up, Broncos Country. Your Denver Broncos are 9 – 2 atop the AFC West and give zero shits about missing their best player in Pat Surtain, II, or their best running back in J.K. Dobbins.
Offense
Let’s get some negatives out of the way. I am in disbelief that we are 11 games into the 3rd season of the Sean Payton regime, and getting a play call in on time is still problematic. I know Payton is one of the great minds in the NFL (and should be up for coach of the year this season for what he’s done with this team). That being said, this offense plays so much better when they are able to get to the line with 10 seconds left and take their time to go through presnap reads, audibles, and a proper snap process. It was evident in the 2nd half, and it is a detail that they should really dial in on during this bye week as an offensive staff.
The biggest example of this was the lack of decisiveness on 4th and 2, which cost us as the team had no time to get set and ready, which led to a false start. We were forced to punt because of it (though to be fair, I thought punting on our 40 was the smart call there, given how good our defense is).
The run game worked well enough, but neither Harvey nor McLaughlin showed the ability to run inside and get decent chunks of yardage with any consistency. This is going to be a problem more as the season wears on, but I think Payton showed he can still make it work with both of these guys. The unfortunate thing is that both players tend to go down on first contact. Our line is one of the best in the NFL, but most runs are going to get contact in the first couple of yards.
Quarterbacks
At the end of the day, Bo Nix is a friggin winner. I don’t care that he didn’t throw a touchdown. It doesn’t matter that he took a couple of sacks (a rare sight to see…credit to the Chiefs’ pass rushers). Bo Nix got it done. He did what was needed to get the win.
That last throw to Franklin was a stone-cold killer of a throw. That’s the kind of throw you see a Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, or Payton Manning (in their respective primes) throw.
The biggest thing I noticed in this game was Nix setting his feet at the highest level I’ve seen from him all season. That’s not to say he suddenly turned into Kurt Warner or Drew Brees with his level of consistent footwork. He made a solid step in the right direction in his preparation for this game. His footwork is always going to be tricky, given the type of player he is. His ability to make plays with his feet and scramble out of trouble to avoid sacks will always result in some off-platform throws. But those were at a minimum in this game, and it was apparent in the accuracy department.
Line
Our offensive line was getting pushed back early and often, especially on run plays. I thought they lost the battle more than they won it up front, though it seemed to me that changed toward the end of the game (altitude kills, am I right?). This was a game much like the Eagles game, where they were facing one of the more talented fronts in the NFL. It was a war and wasn’t always pretty. They did enough, though, and outside of a couple of penalties, there’s not a ton to complain about per usual with this talented line.
The line honestly deserves half credit for the touchdown run. They did a superb job of rallying to the runner and getting a good shove to help push that ball into the end zone. I absolutely love seeing our team working together at such an elite level.
Running Backs
Jaleel McLaughlin didn’t get the touches, but definitely had the production edge in the running back room. I honestly think with more touches, he’s the kind of player that will find a groove and get more production. He averaged 3.2 yards per carry (not good) and got the only touchdown of the game for the good guys.
R.J. Harvey had a pretty rough go of it overall. The Chiefs were keyed in on stopping the run with crowded boxes much of the time. He was held to an average of 2.9 yards per carry, which is plainly poor. It is worth noting that if you thought he looked better in the 2nd half, he was by a little bit. His runs in that half averaged 3.5, which is much closer to being average in my books.
Receivers
I need to see more Pat Bryant, plain and simple. The rookie was in my book, hands down our best receiver on the day, catching 5 of 6 targets for 82 yards. His catch in the first drive was a thing of beauty. He ran such a smooth route and made Nix’s job easy, getting a first down on 3rd and 7. He also had some really nice production on 1st downs, including a huge pass play for 48 yards. Bryant is clearly gaining Nix’s trust with his consistent route running and reliable hands.
Cortland Sutton’s big 20-yard catch on 3rd and 15 to keep the game-winning drive alive was another play that was gorgeous to see. Cortland was well covered on his initial route, but he cut back between defenders, and Nix was able to zip the pass low and away for him to move the chains.
Troy Franklin is such a streaky wide receiver, and the #1 problem is that he has trouble making catches. This year, he has cleaned up his route running, which is just plain phenomenal. He’s been blessed with speed and quickness that is killer in the NFL. If he can get to be more consistent at actually catching the ball, he’s going to put up disgusting stats. He had multiple passes that hit him inside his catch radius (chest or hands without an extreme reach) that he dropped.
I will point out that it was good to see Franklin finally lay out for a deep pass. He missed it, but that’s the effort we need to see on offense more often if they are going to get more consistent and successful with those deep targets.
Defense
If you’ve been reading me all season, you know I’m running out of platitudes to give Vance Joseph. He’s the friggin man, plain and simple. I’m going to go ahead and say it: this is the best defensive coordinator in the NFL right now.
He’s short all-pro, 2024 defensive player of the year Patrick Surtain, II. He’s got a corner who gives up pass interference penalties for 40+ yards like cheapskates give out lollipops on Halloween.
No Matter.
The vaunted Kansas City Chiefs, with legendary Patrick Mahomes, were held to 19 points.
On the last two drives of the game, the Chiefs went 3 and out twice with a grand total of -3 yards gained.
VJ has this defense absolutely dialed in. This defense is special and has the opportunity this year to really do great things down the stretch. I believe the Broncos have the ability to win out this year because this defense is that special. They will keep the team in every game and create absolute havoc for opposing offenses just like they have all season long.
Front 7
D.J. Jones is one of our key rotational guys on the line, bringing a wrinkle to this defense each week. He was only in on 26 snaps this week and ended the game with a sack, tackle for loss, and a quarterback hit with 3 tackles made.
The Chiefs’ line was surprisingly effective against the Broncos’ front throughout the game.The game plan for them had Mahommes getting the ball out as fast as possible to avoid pressure. While you can say it was effective at keeping the defensive stats down, I’d also say that it led to a lot of missed plays on rushed, inaccurate throws.
That’s not to say the front didn’t play well. They did. They were hitting Mahomes as much as possible and keeping him under duress as well as a defense can in 2.3 seconds (or however fast he was getting the ball out…it was 2.3 around the end of the half).
The front, in general, had trouble stopping the run. I’m just thankful that Reid didn’t lean into that more, as it could have made a big difference in the outcome of this game.
Secondary
The MVP of the game was unquestionably Ja’Quan McMillian. He wowed us with two perfectly timed corner blitzes for sacks. He made a game-changing interception in the red zone when the Chiefs were driving. He did get burned deep on 3rd and 7, though, to be fair, the receiver pushed him away right before the ball got there, which went unflagged. The guy was in on the run game with 2 tackles for loss as well.
Riley Moss is a hot topic for the Broncos in the pass interference department. He was 100% at fault on his first two. On his first, he was in perfect defensive position. He just has to not grab. That’s always a penalty. You can put your hands on the receiver, but you can not in any way grab and pull. He was with contact on his 2nd penalty. His 3rd PI call was nonsense, though. That was both players falling down, with Moss doing nothing wrong. The most irritating play was when he cancelled a pick-6 by riding a guy 10 yards downfield and giving the Chiefs an automatic first down. This is also a basic rule…you can be physical in the first 5 yards. After that, you have to let the receiver run his route. Even with such a poor game, I love this guy. One thing that doesn’t get enough talk is how consistently he is with his guy. He’s got such a great coverage technique, knowing the right leverage and depth to stay on top of whatever route is being run on him. He’s as fast as hell and able to stay on his receiver’s hip.
Special Teams
Let’s give some big-time Broncos Country love to Frank Crum for that blocked extra point. Our 6’7″ tackle out of Wyoming timed his rush perfectly and extended to get the block. It was momentum, and at the time was a really significant deal to keep the team within 3 points instead of being down by 4.
Marvin Mims was an absolute weapon in this game on special teams. He had a huge return to the 12-yard line to set up the offense for success. He had another big 24-yard return in the 4th quarter.
Jeremy Crawshaw got back online this week as he boomed a punt in the 2nd quarter inside the 10 for 58 yards. 3 of his 4 punts were downed inside the 20. Field position is a big deal in the NFL, and Crawshaw made sure that the Chiefs lost that battle, too.
Final Thoughts
That was a complete team win, top to bottom. The long weekend helped the Broncos get prepared for the national spotlight, and they delivered. That they did so against such a whiny quarterback made the victory all the sweeter.
This season is far from over, but the Broncos are ready for it. They are getting a much-deserved and much-needed bye week this week. That is going to hopefully help their roster get healthier and reloaded for the final 6-game stretch.
Enjoy the next two weeks sitting at 9-2 atop the AFC West, Broncos Country!
