Entering Week 18, the AFC playoff picture was nearly set in stone. Six of the seven spots had been accounted for, with only the No. 7 seed and final Wild Card slot still up in the air.
The Denver Broncos have been in the driver’s seat for a playoff spot for weeks now but still hadn’t finished the job. In Week 18, with a showdown against the Kansas City Chiefs on the docket, Bo Nix and Co. finally put the final nail in the coffin.
What Are the AFC Wild Card Playoff Standings
The AFC Wild Card standings after Week 18 are:
5) Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)
6) Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
7) Denver Broncos (10-7)
The Baltimore Ravens clinched the AFC North on Saturday, and then the Steelers lost to the Bengals to fall to the No. 6 seed. With the Chargers getting the win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, they locked up the fifth seed. The Chargers will face off against the Houston Texans while the Steelers seed will draw the red-hot Ravens in an AFC North showdown.
How the Broncos Clinched a Playoff Spot
Denver’s scenario was extremely simple: beat the Kansas City Chiefs without many of their star players and the Broncos make the playoffs for the first time since the 2015 season.
The Broncos had only beaten the Chiefs once in their previous 18 meetings. But, this wasn’t the same Kansas City Chiefs team. Notable Chiefs labeled out or doubtful for Sunday’s game include Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Chris Jones, Trent McDuffie, Jawaan Taylor, Isiah Pacheco, George Karlaftis, Justin Reid, and Nick Bolton.
The Broncos couldn’t rise higher than the No. 7 seed. Denver lost to Pittsburgh back in Week 2 and went 0-2 against the Chargers as well, so both those teams own the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Regardless, they now head into the playoffs with rookie QB Bo Nix playing some very good football. Nix has 10 games with at least two touchdown passes this season and joined Justin Herbert (2020 with the Los Angeles Chargers) as the only rookies with 10 such games all-time.
The Broncos QB had his second game this season with 300 pass yards and four pass TD (also did this in Week 11 vs. the Falcons). He’s the second rookie with multiple games of this kind in NFL history, along with 2019 Daniel Jones.
To simulate the postseason, head over to PFN’s free NFL Playoff Predictor to see how each team can continue onto their path to the Super Bowl.