The NFL’s flagship site projected the Denver Broncos to win six games in September.
They have five wins entering Week 9 with a chance to match that projection with a win over the Baltimore Ravens. They are 5-1 in their last six games, and former NFL head coach Bill Belichick believes they have made tremendous strides.
He even made what Denver Broncos on SI’s Keith Cummings called “bold” and eyebrow-raising comments about their pursuit of the Kansas City Chiefs.
“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. They have a good front, good rushers. They’re good at linebacker, and they have some good players in the secondary now that [Pat] Surtain’s back. And they’re doing a good job on offense of just playing good, smart football. Not turning the ball over,” Belichick said on the “Football Forecast” podcast on November 1.
“We’ll see how they do against Lamar [Jackson]. Because they can hang in there on a running game with guys like [Zach] Allen, and they got some guys up front that are 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. And … they’re tracking well.”
The Broncos had lost 16 straight meetings with the Chiefs from the second matchup of the 2015 season before notching a 24-9 victory in their final meeting in 2023.
Bill Belichick’s Comments Bulletin Board Material Ahead of Broncos’ Week 10 Matchup Versus Chiefs
The Broncos are one of the league’s hottest teams. It was notably Bo Nix and the Broncos’ defense that led to their modest projection.
“Rookie Bo Nix won the Broncos’ QB competition in camp and projects to throw for at least 3,015 yards — just over 177 yards per game — in 59 percent of my season simulations,” NFL.com’s Cynthia Frelund wrote in September. “The Denver defense ranked 30th against the run last year, but the unit forecasts to rebound to around average (16th) in this area in 2024.”
The Broncos boast the NFL’s No. 4-ranked passing defense in terms of yards. Their matchup against the Chiefs in Week 10 also sets up well for Nix and the passing attack. The Chiefs’ offense ranks ninth in points.
But the Chiefs have won thanks in no small part to their defense.
The unit ranks fifth in scoring on the season and is second against the run. However, their 17th-ranked passing defense could present opportunities for Nix and the Broncos’ offense.
What the Broncos do not need is for Belichick’s comments to become bulletin board material for the Chiefs, who are outspoken about their triumphs and desire to make history as the first team to win three Super Bowls. A division rivalry has enough energy.
With last year’s loss and Belichick’s sentiments, the Chiefs may be more fired up than usual.
Sean Payton Has His QB After Missing Out on Patrick Mahomes
The outlook for this game is notable, in many ways, because of his counterpart, three-time Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes was, at one time, the apple of Broncos head coach Sean Payton’s eye.
“Oftentimes you hear this, ‘Well if they don’t get one here, they can go back and get this one,’” Payton told reporters in April, explaining selecting Nix No. 12 overall. “I heard those same comments when the Chiefs selected Patrick. And you go back and tune in to everything that was said, ‘Well, they could have got him later.’ And no, they couldn’t have.”
Payton went so far as to inform his Pro Bowl-caliber QB at the time, Drew Brees, that the New Orleans Saints would select Mahomes if he remained on the board in 2017.
Brees said the only thing that stopped it from happening was the Chiefs.
“Look, I know that Sean Payton wanted to draft Patrick Mahomes back in 2017,” Brees said, per Fox Sports’ Scott Thompson on May 17. “Had Mahomes been there at pick No. 11, we probably would’ve taken him.”
The Chiefs traded two first-round picks and a third-rounder to the Buffalo Bills to acquire the No. 10 pick and take Mahomes.
