Stick here for live updates and analysis as Denver takes on the Chiefs at Empower Field at Mile High.
Live updates
Pre-game updates
Warm weather (11:16 a.m.): We get a lot of nice days here in our fair city, but not many better than this. It’s pushing 70 degrees, there’s not a cloud in the sky. Empower Field is fitted with fresh turf. Oh, and it’s the 8-2 Broncos against the 5-4 Chiefs. — Gabriel
Scouting report (10:38 a.m.): Check out how the Broncos match up with the Chiefs in Luca Evans’ scouting report.
Game predictions
Parker Gabriel, Broncos reporter: Kansas City 23, Denver 21
The Broncos are 6-2 in one-score games. The Chiefs are 0-4. And yet K.C. is a 4-point road favorite against the team with the NFL’s longest home winning streak. Sean Payton will readily remind anyone listening that you are what your record says you are, but your record does not necessarily forecast what you’re expected to be going forward. The West tightens by one turn.
Luca Evans, Broncos reporter: Kansas City 24, Denver 20
This is not the week to be missing J.K. Dobbins, Pat Surtain II and Alex Singleton, who are among the 10 most important players on this Broncos roster. Kansas City is vulnerable. So is Denver, suddenly, with a rash of injuries and absences. Let’s circle back to this matchup in Week 17 on Christmas.
Troy Renck, columnist: Broncos 19, Chiefs 17
Everything screams loss for the Broncos with their injuries and the Chiefs’ urgency. But the reality is the Broncos have a path to victory. Every big game Patrick Mahomes has lost over the last few years involves a defensive line capable of making him miserable. The Broncos will get to Mahomes, and the upset hinges on creating turnovers and a short field for Bo Nix. The template is the Texans game.
Sean Keeler, columnist: Broncos 23, Chiefs 22
If Andy Reid’s 22-4 career record after a bye doesn’t scare you, this number might: The Chiefs are 14-1 in division road tilts since 2016 from Nov. 1 to the end of the regular season. That one loss? The “KC JV Game” here in Week 18 of last year. When they try, they fly. But once you get that 2015 vibe, it’s hard to let that go. With Empower rocking and the defense rolling, Mile High Magic somehow finds a way.
Broncos-Chiefs NFL Week 11: Must-reads
Renck: Underdog? Injuries? Counted out? This is when Broncos’ Sean Payton is at his best
Sean Payton wears Jordans, Lululemon sweats, and cashes $15 million checks. But here is a little secret: He is at his best when he gets no respect. When everyone thinks he has no chance.
Such is the case Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs. This is the biggest game in Denver since the 2015 season. What was supposed to serve as a platform to provide a definitive answer about the AFC West instead has raised an uncomfortable question.
How on earth are the Broncos going to beat them? Read Troy Renck’s column.
After weeks of inactivity, Broncos RB Jaleel McLaughlin ‘ready’ for opportunity in J.K. Dobbins’ absence
With workhorse running back J.K. Dobbins officially ruled out with a foot injury, McLaughlin is primed for a toss in the fire against the Chiefs. He has received just one carry in 2025, stashed as inactive for nine of 10 games after finishing second on the Broncos in touches in 2024. Dobbins’ absence leaves at least 15 carries a game available to the rest of Denver’s backfield.
Rookie second-rounder RJ Harvey will likely pick up much of the slack. But McLaughlin is “ready,” head coach Sean Payton said Friday. Read Luca Evans’ story.
Broncos analysis: To unleash Bo Nix and unlock offense, Sean Payton must start at the beginning
For Denver to have a realistic chance of mounting a deep playoff run or pushing toward a Super Bowl appearance, however, several offensive issues have to get ironed out.
The starting point, naturally, is the beginning. Read Parker Gabriel’s story.
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