The Denver Broncos are coming off a strange week in which they didn’t have a quarterback, but things could be much better for them this week, though they will have to deal with the defending Super Bowl champions again. Will the Broncos shock the Kansas City Chiefs? Or will the Chiefs double down on their mastery of Denver this season? Check out our preview of this game below.
It didn’t matter to the Chiefs who Denver used at the quarterback spot the last time these two teams shared the football field. The Chiefs defeated Denver on the road back in Week 7 to the tune of a 43-17 score. All three Chiefs teams scored in that game, as Daniel Sorensen scored a pick-six, while Byron Pringle took one to the house on a 102-yard kick return touchdown. The Chiefs rattled Drew Lock in that game, intercepting him twice and taking him to the ground three times. Denver’s offense can be contained by the Chiefs, who are sixth in the NFL with 21.6 points allowed per game and seventh with 1.5 takeaways per game. That doesn’t sound good for Denver, which has a huge problem in ball security. The Broncos are averaging 2.4 giveaways per contest – the most in the league.
The Chiefs, who are coming off a 27-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the road, are 6-4 against the spread in their last 10 road games.
Did you notice that we barely spoke about the Chiefs’ offense in the first meeting with the Broncos this season? It’s because we reserved it for this section. Mahomes wasn’t able to coast against the Broncos’ defense then. He passed for just 200 yards (15/23) and a touchdown but was sacked three times for a loss of 25 yards. The Broncos have one of the most effective pass rushes in the league. They are sixth in the NFL with a 7.62 defensive sack percentage and tied for fifth with 31 defensive sacks. As for their quarterback situation, the Broncos are likely to have a better option under center than a practice squad wide receiver, with Drew Lock, Blake Bortles, and Brett Rypien all testing negative for COVID-19 recently.
The Broncos, who lost to the New Orleans Saints in Week 12, 31-3, are 6-4 against the spread in their last 10 home games.
