The Denver Broncos are heading into a huge Week 11 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. At 8-2, sitting atop the AFC West, a win over the Chiefs heading into the bye week could set Denver up for a top playoff spot this season.
But it's not just a huge game for the Broncos. If the Chiefs lose, they will be on the outside looking in for the playoffs. While they still have a decent chance to get in as a Wild Card team, the division race would be all but over.
This isn't just a big game on paper, according to ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter, Broncos officials view this Week 11 game as the biggest game the Broncos have hosted since the 2016 AFC Championship game against the New England Patriots.
Broncos officials view Week 11 vs. Chiefs as a postseason game
"Broncos officials consider Sunday's game vs. The Chiefs the biggest NFL game in Denver in almost a decade," Schefter reports, since the 2016 AFC Championship game in which Peyton Manning and Tom Brady squared off against each other for the final time in their NFL careers. On that day, Denver beat New England 20-18 to advance to Super Bowl 50."
This is a bold comparison for the Broncos to make, but it's not far from the truth. The Broncos haven't been great since that 2015 Super Bowl season, and this is the first year since then that the team is in such a great spot this late in the year.
Bo Nix and Patrick Mahomes are no Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, but it's still a great matchup. And while the stakes aren't nearly as high, the winner will have a huge advantage going forward.
A Broncos win would have Denver at 9-2 heading into their Week 12 bye, with a high chance to secure the AFC West in the final weeks of the season.
More: AFC West standings: What Broncos, Chargers wins mean for Chiefs in division race after Week 10
The Chiefs would be 5-5 with a loss, and not only be well behind the Broncos for the AFC West, but also on the outside looking in for a Wild Card spot.
A Denver loss wouldn't be disastrous for the Broncos, but it would open the door for either the Chiefs or the Los Angeles Chargers to stage a comeback in the West.
It's one of the biggest games the Broncos have hosted in recent NFL history, and Denver officials are comparing its importance to the 2016 AFC Championship game.
While a win won't send Denver to the Super Bowl like it did in 2016, it will set the franchise up for an AFC West title and keep pace with the New England Patriots for the top seed in the AFC.
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