The Broncos enter NFL Week 18 with the No. 1 seed in the AFC within their grasp.
With a win over the Justin Herbert-less Chargers on Sunday, Denver will secure the AFC’s top spot and a bye for the wild-card round. Tie or lose and they could fall as low as the No. 3 seed.
Will run game undermine Broncos without J.K. Dobbins?
Here’s a look at how various national experts rated the Broncos in their power rankings entering Week 18:
The Athletic (No. 5) | Last week: No. 7
"In his 18th season, Sean Payton is ahead of schedule in Denver. He’s gone from eight wins to 10 to 13 and potentially the No. 1 seed in the AFC in Year 3. On Christmas night, he beat Andy Reid for the third time in a row and the fourth time in the last five games. Payton is now 13th all time in regular-season coaching wins, and next year he will become one of 18 men to coach 300 or more games in the NFL," Josh Kendall and Chad Graff write. See the full rankings.
Bleacher Report (No. 3) | Last week: No. 4
"Inconsistent offense has been an issue all season, and it made for a surprisingly close Week 17 game against a Chiefs team with nothing to play for. And while Denver's defense has looked championship-caliber at times, it has surrendered 26 or more points three times since its Week 12 bye.
"The record and the results say that the Broncos are good enough to make a run to this year's Super Bowl. Few are likely to be surprised, though, if they bow out in their first playoff game," Kris Knox writes. See the full rankings.
CBS Sports (No. 4) | Last week: No. 6
"They won another close game at Kansas City, and if they beat the Chargers this week, they are the top seed in the AFC. Winning close games makes you battle-tested, but does it show faults, too?" Pete Prisco writes. See the full rankings.
ESPN (No. 3) | Last week: No. 3
"Logic and the swirl of numbers through the years always seem to show that close, one-score win ability is not a sustainable thing each season. But these Broncos don't care much about all that -- as linebacker Alex Singleton said, 'At this point, let's just play all one-score games.' The 2025 Broncos, with a title-worthy defense, are 11-2 in one-score games including 3-2 in those decided on the final play (four on field goals and one when linebacker Nik Bonitto swatted away a 2-point conversion attempt in an overtime win in Week 13). That mojo isn't likely to carry over to next season, but the Broncos certainly believe it could last into January and, they hope, February," Jeff Legwold writes. See the full rankings.
NFL.com (No. 4) | Last week: No. 4
"How much do the loss to the Jaguars and the close win over a stripped-down Chiefs team change our perspective on the Broncos' playoff potential? They're in great shape for the AFC's No. 1 seed, and yet, there's lingering doubt about just how dangerous they are. If Denver can run the ball and control the clock like it did in Kansas City, things should be OK. The defense can clean up most missed opportunities, but it's also a unit that has been stretched to the limit by some quality offenses this season. This will be a pretty telling January for Bo Nix as to where he is in his readiness to handle bigger challenges, but it can't all be on him playing hero ball. The second-year pro could use more help from the rest of the offense doing the little things better," Eric Edholm writes. See the full rankings.
The Ringer (No. 7) | Last week: No. 8
"Denver tends to downshift against inferior opponents, and that’s what we saw against Kansas City on Christmas night. The dink-and-dunk approach we saw from Denver recently against the Chiefs and Raiders won’t work in a playoff environment — but we’ve seen just enough offensive juice from Bo Nix and Co. in games against the Jaguars and Packers that Denver deserves some cautious optimism.
"The Broncos have the roster talent and quality coaching to make a Super Bowl run, but I don’t think the pathway to Santa Clara is nearly as clear as it seemed a month ago," Diante Lee writes. See the full rankings.
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"Why aren't they No. 1 … even though they might wind up there in the overall AFC standings? The defense is as scary as any in the league. And while the Broncos consistently play to the level of their competition, that's not necessarily a bad thing when you enter the postseason. But second-year QB Bo Nix remains something of a wild card, and his pattern of salvaging wins in the fourth quarter could be tough to maintain against top-level competition," Nate Davis writes. See the full rankings.
Yahoo! Sports (No. 2) | Last week: No. 3
"It’s hard to keep the Broncos at No. 3 after the past two weeks. They lost decisively to the Jaguars in Week 16 and barely won as a big favorite over an injured Chiefs team on Christmas. But the body of work is good. If they beat a Chargers team that is resting Justin Herbert in Week 18, they’ll be 14-3 and the No. 1 seed in the AFC. They’re not unbeatable, but nobody in the AFC or behind them in these rankings is this season. It’s still a very good and often disrespected Super Bowl contender," Frank Schwab writes. See the full rankings.
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