The Denver Broncos came into their Week 16 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars with a chance to cement themselves as the top team in the AFC and have more than just a clear path to the number one seed.
But the Jaguars came to play, and with the Broncos' defense and offense struggling, it was a huge win for the Jaguars.
After the game, Jaguars head coach Liam Coen spoke with reporters and clapped back at the Broncos and Sean Payton over a comment he made this week. The Jaguars clearly weren't fans of his "small market" comment, clapping back at Payton after their big win.
Jaguars HC claps back at Sean Payton after big win over Broncos
"A small market team like us can come into Mile High and get it done," Coen said postgame.
"A small market team like us can come into Mile High and get it done."#JAXvsDEN pic.twitter.com/2V2i8UiKrO
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) December 22, 2025
This comment is in reference to a quote from Payton leading up to this matchup, where Payton said, "It's a small market, but you can see a real good team."
While Payton was praising the Jaguars for being a "real good team," his inclusion of Jacksonville being a smaller market caught the attention of the Jaguars.
To say that this quote from Payton is what caused the Jaguars to play harder against the Broncos would be an overstatement, but it's hard to say it didn't play a factor.
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Teams will find any way to make it seem like the other team is disrespecting them to get an advantage, and Payton's comments clearly made an impact on the Jaguars.
Denver lost to the Jaguars 34-20, dropping to 12-3, and now at risk of losing the number one seed and a potential first-round bye. The Jaguars and New England Patriots are hot on their tails.
The Broncos can easily bounce back after this tough loss, as they now get to face the injury-riddled Kansas City Chiefs, who are down to their third-string quarterback.
Patrick Mahomes and Gardner Minshew both tore their ACL's in back-to-back weeks, so Chris Oladokun will start in their place. The Broncos should enter a Week 18 matchup at 13-3, with a chance to secure the number one seed and the AFC West crown.
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