Broncos must beat the Chiefs

It’s Chiefs week for the Broncos and a game that qualifies as a “must win” for both teams.

The Broncos sit at 8-2, have won 7 straight games, lead the AFC West and are currently the number 2 seed in the AFC. A win over the Chiefs will silence any all doubters, extend their lead in the division over the Chiefs, and set them up for a long postseason run coming out of their BYE week.

However, a loss, while not the end of the world, will set the Broncos back to 8-3, only make the doubters louder, and keep the Chiefs AFC West hopes alive.

The Chiefs currently sit at 5-4 and if the playoffs started today, they would be out. A loss to the Broncos will set them back to .500 at 5-5 and likely end their hopes of winning the AFC West.

On top of all that, if the Broncos want to win the AFC West, they need to go through Mahomes and the Chiefs. Broncos star pass rusher Nik Bonitto echoed this on Monday when he told reporters that if they want to reach the goals that they want, they have to go through them to beat them.

“This division’s been run by the Chiefs for so many years now. If we’re going to want to be that team to win the division and reach the goals that we want, we’re going to have to go through them and beat them.”

If they want to do this, they’ll need Bo Nix and the rest of the offense to step up their game, commit less penalties, and have little to no miscues on special teams. You can survive these lapses against the Raiders, but Mahomes and the Chiefs will make you pay.

If they do all that, the Broncos will come away with a huge victory over the Chiefs. If not? The questions about this team will grow louder and they’ll keep the Chiefs AFC West and postseason hopes alive.

Best the Chiefs.