With a 7-0 regular season record and eight straight division titles under their belts, the Kansas City Chiefs have cemented themselves as the dominant force in the AFC West. But former NFL head coach Bill Belichick warns that the Denver Broncos are gaining ground on the two-time defending Super Bowl champions.
Speaking with former NFL defensive coordinator Matt Patricia and former NFL executive Michael Lombardi on the “Football Forecast” podcast, Belichick gave his evaluation of the Broncos and why they are closing the gap in the AFC West.
“Denver does a real good job defensively. They have good players. They game plan well, and they’re pretty solid all the way across the board,” Belichick said on the October 31 episode. “They have a good front, good rushers. They’re good at linebacker. They have some good players in the secondary, now that [Patrick] Surtain‘s back, and they’re doing a good job on offense of just playing good, smart football, not turning the ball over.
“We’ll see how they do against Lamar [Jackson] because they can hang in there in the running game with guys like [Zach] Allen and, you know, got some guys upfront that are pretty, pretty formidable. So. Denver looks like they’re starting to — I don’t say they’ve caught Kansas City — but I think they’re gaining on Kansas City a little bit. They’re tracking well.”
Broncos Second in AFC West Heading Into Week 9
After starting the season with back-to-back losses, the Broncos have won five of their last six games. They have a 5-3 record heading into Week 9, which puts them in second place in the AFC West in front of the Los Angeles Chargers (4-3) and Las Vegas Raiders (2-6).
Part of the success for Denver during that timeframe is thanks to rookie quarterback Bo Nix, who has limited his turnovers as of late. During the first two weeks of the regular season, Nix committed four turnovers (four interceptions). In Weeks 3-8, he committed just one turnover and scored 12 total touchdowns (eight passing, four rushing).
On the flip side, the Broncos’ defense is giving up just 15.0 points per game, which is third-best in the NFL. So, elite play on the defensive side of the ball paired with mistake-free football on offense has led to success over the last six weeks for a young and budding Denver team.
The most recent matchup between the Chiefs and Broncos was on October 29, 2023, and the result was a 24-9 win for the Broncos. That was the first win Denver had over Kansas City since September 2015.
This season, the Chiefs play the Broncos in Week 10 and Week 18.
Chiefs Friday Practice Report
In Week 9, the Chiefs face off against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football.
Friday’s injury report for Kansas City showed that wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster missed the first two practices of the week due to his hamstring injury. That puts him on track to miss his second-straight game.
Defensive end Mike Danna, who missed Weeks 6 and 7 due to a pectoral injury, was a limited participant during practice on Thursday and Friday.
Tight end Jared Wiley popped up on the injury report on Friday due to a knee injury. His participation in practice will be worth monitoring on Saturday, as that is the last day the team will practice ahead of their Monday night showdown against the Buccaneers.
