Broncos get third chance at ending long playoff drought as Kansas City plans to play bevy of backups

Updated Jan. 3, 2025 5:35 p.m. ET

Associated Press

Kansas City (15-1) at Denver (9-7)

Sunday, 4:25 p.m. EST, CBS

BetMGM NFL Odds: Broncos by 9 1/2.

Against the spread: Chiefs 7-8-1, Broncos 11-5.

Series record: Chiefs lead 73-56.

Last meeting: Chiefs beat the Broncos 16-14 on Nov. 10, 2024, at Arrowhead Stadium.

Last week: Chiefs beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 29-10 on Christmas Day; Broncos lost 30-24 in overtime at Cincinnati.

Chiefs offense: overall (13), rush (16), pass (10), scoring (11).

Chiefs defense: overall (4), rush (4), pass (14), scoring (2).

Broncos offense: overall (22), rush (17), pass (22), scoring (10).

Broncos defense: overall (15), rush (8), pass (25), scoring (5).

Chiefs player to watch

QB Carson Wentz gets the start for the Chiefs as Patrick Mahomes gets a rest with the No. 1 seed clinched and the game rendered meaningless to them. Wentz went to the Pro Bowl with Philadelphia and was one of the more productive quarterbacks in the NFL until injuries derailed his career. This is an opportunity to show off for a whole bunch of teams in desperate need of improved play at the game’s most important position heading into next season.

Broncos player to watch

CB Riley Moss was rusty in his return last week after missing a month with a sprained MCL. Moss was burned repeatedly by Joe Burrow and Tee Higgins, who hooked up for three touchdowns, including the clincher in overtime as the Bengals stayed alive in the playoff chase and denied the Broncos a playoff berth in Week 17. Moss is having a breakout season in his second year in the NFL, but he'll need to get back to his pre-injury self if the Broncos get into the playoffs and have to visit Buffalo.

Key matchup

Chiefs WR DeAndre Hopkins versus Broncos CB Patrick Surtain II. Hopkins figures to be one of a handful of front-line starters who play Sunday because he's approaching some bonuses. He's nine receptions shy of 65, which would trigger a $250,000 bonus. Another 140 yards receiving and he'll earn another $250,000. And if he has a TD catch, he'll earn $500,000 for having six this season. Surtain, the odds-on favorite to win the league's Defensive Player of the Year honor, has been shutting down teams' top options all season. Last week, he held Cincinnati superstar Ja'Marr Chase to three catches for 27 yards on six targets. Chase against everyone else had six catches for 75 yards.

Key injuries

Sitting out along with Mahomes for Kansas City are RB Isiah Pacheco (ribs), RT Jawaan Taylor (knee), CB Jaylen Watson (ankle) and WR Mecole Hardman (knee). DL Chris Jones (calf) was among nine players listed as doubtful on the Chiefs' final injury report Friday. Others listed as doubtful for Sunday although they're not hurt are: LB Nick Bolton, DE George Karlaftis, TE Travis Kelce, RB Kareem Hunt, S Justin Reid, LB Drue Tranquill and CB Trent McDuffie. Although the Chiefs have already said Mahomes won't play, he was officially listed as doubtful.

The Broncos are healthy for Week 18 with only backup T Frank Crum (illness) ruled out Friday.

Series notes

The Chiefs have dominated the series ever since Peyton Manning retired. They won 16 straight before a 24-9 loss at Denver last season. They were about to lose again in Week 10 at Arrowhead Stadium but they blocked a chip-shot field goal as time expired to preserve a 16-14 victory.

Stats and stuff

The Chiefs have already set a franchise record with their 15th regular-season win. They can match the single-season record set by New England in 2007, though that was during a 16-game regular season. ... Mahomes has thrown 245 TD passes, the most for a QB in his first eight years. He hardly played as a rookie and made it in 112 games, while Peyton Manning (244) needed 128 games to set the previous record. ... Kelce has 1,004 receptions, third most among TEs. He needed 175 games to surpass 1,000, or 28 games fewer than Jason Witten. ... Kelce has 77 TD receptions, breaking Tony Gonzalez’s Chiefs record of 76. Kelce also has 80 total TDs, three behind Priest Holmes’ franchise record. ... Hopkins has caught a pass in an NFL-leading 178 consecutive games. Kelce is next with 174. ... Chiefs WR Xavier Worthy needs one TD catch to match Rashee Rice’s franchise rookie record of seven set last season. ... The Broncos can clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2015 with a victory. Denver's playoff drought is the longest for a team that won the Super Bowl. ... A victory by the Broncos would give Denver a 6-2 home record, the franchise's best since the 2015 season when they also went 6-2 at home. ... Since Week 5, rookie Bo Nix has been one of the top five QBs in the league, completing 267 of 400 passes for 2,794 yards with 24 TDs and eight interceptions. ... Nix has multiple touchdown throws in all five starts against AFC West teams. ... Rookie RB Audric Estime had a season-best 53 yards rushing in the teams' first meeting in November. ... WR Marvin Mims Jr. is coming off a career-best game at Cincinnati, where he had eight catches for 103 yards and two touchdowns. ... DE Zach Allen had a career-high 3 1/2 sacks last week, most by a Broncos player since 2009. ... LB Nik Bonitto has sacks in six consecutive home games. ... LB Jonathon Cooper needs half a sack for his first career 10-sack season. ... Rookie LB Dondrea Tillman is going for his fourth consecutive game with a sack.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL