'We've got to turn ourselves into winners': The Broncos are out of playoff-race wiggle room

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Through each bobble and stumble this season, the Denver Broncos often leaned on the calendar for support.

Cornerback Pat Surtain II said last month that there was "plenty of ball left," and wide receiver Courtland Sutton added that "we have time." But no more.

Week 18 has arrived for the Broncos, who face a simple proposition. Win or tie Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs at Empower Field at Mile High (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS), and Denver would earn the AFC's final playoff spot as the No. 7 seed, ending an eight-year playoff drought.

But lose, and the Broncos will have squandered a third straight win-and-in game to make the playoffs. They would be 9-8, needing losses by the Dolphins and Bengals to make the postseason field. Denver would lose tiebreakers to Miami (based on AFC record) and Cincinnati (based on this past Saturday's loss) if one of those teams won in Week 18 to also finish 9-8. But the Broncos feel like they'll be able to finish the job.

"100 percent," defensive end Zach Allen said when asked about his confidence level of the Broncos getting into the playoffs. "We know who we are. It's just the NFL. You play good teams every week. We've proven this year that we'll bounce back."

The Broncos will face a slightly altered version of the Chiefs (15-1), who have already clinched the AFC's top seed, getting a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the AFC playoffs. Chiefs coach Andy Reid announced Wednesday that the Chiefs would be sitting star quarterback Patrick Mahomes, among other starters, with backup Carson Wentz getting the call on Sunday.

"We have to win the game, [I] don't care about none of that other stuff," Sutton said. "Whoever is in shoulder pads, whoever is in red, white and yellow, we have to beat them boys. We don't care who shows up and plays, who sits, who doesn't sit. ... The Broncos have to show up Sunday and win the game."

The Broncos didn't look like they would need to win the upcoming game after Week 15. They had beaten the Indianapolis Colts 31-13 to move to 9-5, building a three-game cushion with three games to play. Since then, the Broncos lost 34-27 to the Chargers in Week 16 and 30-24 in overtime to the Bengals in Week 17. When coupled with consecutive wins by the Dolphins and Bengals, the defeats have left Denver with one last chance to avoid another late-season fade. Last season, the Broncos lost four of their last six games after a five-game win streak put them back in the playoff mix.

This time around, Broncos coach Sean Payton has said the Broncos should embrace the pressure of such a meaningful game on the final week of the regular season. His players agree.

"There's no pressure, we should go about this like we've got nothing to lose, play free like we were doing when we went on our little win streak," Broncos cornerback Riley Moss said. "I think we've got a great group of guys that can handle adversity ... to look glass half-full, we have a whole other opportunity."

Payton has consistently preached for the Broncos to aim high over the past two seasons, that he wanted their aspirations to always be framed in the work it takes to get into the postseason. But given that the Broncos haven't played in a playoff game since winning Super Bowl 50 to close out the 2015 season, many of his players are attempting to break new ground.

None of the Broncos' homegrown players have played in the playoffs, including left tackle Garett Bolles, the team's first-round pick in 2017 and its longest-tenured player. The Broncos have 11 players on the current roster who have played in at least one playoff game with three -- fullback Michael Burton, tackle Mike McGlinchey and defensive end John Franklin-Myers -- having played in a Super Bowl. Burton is the only Broncos player with a Super Bowl ring, which he earned with the Chiefs following the 2022 season.