Just a 12 days ago the Kansas City Chiefs were 5-0 and the Denver Broncos were 3-2. One team went on a bye, while the other stacked back-to-back wins. With the Chiefs getting absolutely dismantled on Sunday Night Football by the Seattle Seahawks — a team Denver beat during that win streak — they have left the door wide open for these comeback Broncos.
The Las Vegas Raiders are fading and the Los Angeles Chargers are done, so the AFC West is officially just a two-horse race. With a win, the Broncos would move to 6-2 and the Chiefs would fall to 5-2 to give Denver a half game lead in the division.
Let's take a look at the remaining schedule for both teams after Week 8:
| WK |
DENVER BRONCOS (5-2) |
KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (5-1) |
|---|---|---|
| 8 |
vs. Kansas City Chiefs |
at Denver Broncos |
| 9 |
at Carolina Panthers |
vs. New York Jets |
| 10 |
BYE |
at Atlanta Falcons |
| 11 |
vs. Las Vegas Raiders |
vs. Arizona Cardinals |
| 12 |
at Pittsburgh Steelers |
at Buffalo Bills |
| 13 |
vs. Miami Dolphins |
at Los Angeles Rams |
| 14 |
at New York Jets |
at Cincinnati Bengals |
| 15 |
at Las Vegas Raiders |
vs. New England Patriots |
| 16 |
vs. Buffalo Bills |
vs. San Francisco 49ers |
| 17 |
at New England Patriots |
at Los Angeles Chargers |
| 18 |
vs. Los Angeles Chargers |
vs. Las Vegas Raiders |
If Denver can take this win, they have a chance to keep ahead or tied with Kansas City until Week 12 when the Chiefs enter the most brutal part of their regular season schedule. A five-game stretch beginning with three-straight road games. All five games are against legitimate playoff contenders.
The Broncos would need to pull away just a bit during that stretch and put up a big enough cushion to take the division crown for the second straight year. A lot can happen by Week 18, so this is just me looking at things on paper, but I do like where Denver is positioned here. They just need to come out with a win on Sunday and avoid the tiebreaker disadvantage.
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