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Broncos Fans Predict Playoffs Glory After Team Crushes Chiefs Backups

Bo Nix's stats were eye-popping, but Denver faces a much bigger challenge next week.
January 6, 2025
Image: Denver Broncos fans holds Travis Kelce Sucks t shirt
Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes and other Chiefs starters didn't suit up against the Broncos on Sunday, January 5, but that didn't stop the fans from talking smack. Evan Semón
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No, Taylor Swift wasn't on hand to witness the Denver Broncos' 38-0 dismantling of the Kansas City Chiefs on January 5 — and her absence made perfect sense.

Swift's paramour, Travis Kelce, understood well ahead of kickoff that he wouldn't be playing, since the Chiefs had already earned a first-round playoffs bye and knew that risking injury to a key player in a meaningless game would be as pointless as their offensive output on Sunday. And he wasn't alone: Superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes was also sidelined, as were defensive stalwart Chris Jones, running back Isiah Pacheco and pretty much anyone else on the KC roster the average fan might recognize.

The absence of Kansas City's most talented roster members wasn't the only obstacle the Chiefs had to overcome. The outfit's plane was stranded for an extended stretch due to an ice storm prior to its arrival in Colorado. And there was an arguably bigger reason for a lack of motivation, too: The Cincinnati Bengals had won their game on Saturday night and would be rewarded with a post-season berth if both Miami and Denver lost the next afternoon — and, to put it simply, head coach Andy Reid and the rest of his crew would much rather have the Broncos prolong their 2024-2025 campaign than potentially face Cincy QB and Mahomes arch-nemesis Joe Burrow down the line.

None of these matters harshed the buzz of the beatdown for many Broncos fans, though. The most-faithful Denver devotees on social media gloried over the way rookie hurler Bo Nix chopped up the Chiefs without regard to the fact that many of them were second-stringers — and plenty predicted that the franchise's first return to the NFL's pre-Super Bowl tournament since Peyton Manning was under center wouldn't be a one-and-done affair.

Nix's stats during the contest were undeniably astonishing. He completed his first eighteen passes and ultimately chucked only three incompletions out of 29 attempts — one fewer than his number of touchdown passes. Big Bo notched TDs on Denver's first three possessions, spreading his largesse to Marvin Mims, Courtland Sutton and Devaughn Vele, whose snag over the top of two Chiefs was a laugh-out-loud thrill. Moreover, the Broncos would have had a chance for a fourth trip to the end zone before halftime had Nix simply spiked the ball to stop the clock rather than running a time-wasting play that essentially forced a field goal.

Not that this minor misstep mattered in the slightest. With Mahomes modeling an overstuffed parka near the Kansas City bench, Reid turned to journeyman Carson Wentz, whose incompetence was truly awesome to behold. The only time the Chiefs had a legitimate opportunity to score came in the second quarter, when kicker Harrison Butker booted a 51-yard field goal attempt wide left. Meanwhile, the Broncos added two more touchdowns after intermission, giving head coach Sean Payton the excuse to rest Nix for much of the fourth quarter. Wentz would up sitting, as well: Chris Oladokun was tasked with playing out the string.

In the end, Nix threw for 321 yards and ran for 47 more — by far his best performance as a pro. Suddenly, the anger of Broncos Country citizens at the squad's failure to clinch a playoffs invitation in the two previous games (most of the blame for losses to the Chargers and Burrow's Bengals had been heaped on Payton) was forgotten in favor of enthusiasm for a faceoff against Denver's next opponent, the Buffalo Bills.

At first blush, such excitement seems absurd. After all, the Bills sport a 13-4 record, are led by MVP frontrunner Josh Allen, and will be playing at home, where they seldom lose. Then again, the Broncos were able to best the Bills there last season — and even if they don't manage to repeat this feat, they've done so much better than expected at the season's outset that a little delusion is more than justified.

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Image: Michael Roberts
Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.
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