LAS VEGAS — The Broncos just keep on winning.
The latest: A 24-17 win that may look close on paper but really was Denver’s most comfortable in weeks.
Sean Payton’s team has won 10 straight and moved to 11-2 overall on the night in which Kansas City’s nine-year run atop the AFC West officially ended in Houston.
However, the Broncos’ stretch run is by no means easy. Denver plays 9-3-1 Green Bay and 9-4 Jacksonville at home, the 6-7 Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on Christmas night and then the 9-4 Los Angeles Chargers to close the regular season.
Buckle up. December and January are going to be a wild ride.
Before all that, here are 7 thoughts from Denver polishing off a second straight season sweep of the Raiders at Allegiant Stadium.
1. The Broncos can go far with Bo Nix, Game Manager. He thinks so, too.
Bo Nix is heating up at just the right time for the Broncos.
He perhaps hasn’t put together any single game that’s provided the “wow” factor like a couple of outings — Atlanta and Carolina in particular — during his rookie season.
There was a four-touchdown shredding of Dallas in Week 8, though the Cowboys’ defense at the time ranked among the NFL’s very worst and played like it. There was the frantic, prolific fourth quarter against the New York Giants, but it came after 45 minutes of dormancy.
Nix has only topped a 100 quarterback rating in games twice so far this season after hitting that mark four times in Denver’s first 11 games last year and seven times overall.
Make no mistake, though, the Broncos are getting better play from their second-year signal-caller in recent weeks.
The baseline: Nix is back to completing passes at a high clip.
Through Denver’s first 10 games, Nix completed 60.9% of his passes overall. The past three weeks, that number’s jumped to 70%. That’s powered by a 31-of-38 outing against the Raiders here on Sunday, but it’s nonetheless a rhythm he feels himself getting into.
“I feel great,” Nix said Sunday. “I feel like — you mentioned the last three games and I feel like I’ve seen the field very well the past three games. Just understood where outlets are, understood where the ball needs to go. You can always say you missed this one or missed that one, but if you’re moving forward and finding completions … that’s what we’ve been willing to do the past several weeks.”
The Broncos have not made many big plays throwing the ball deep down the field in recent weeks. Nix averaged a season-low 4.7 air yards per attempt last week against Washington and Sunday against the Raiders he directed 27 of his 38 passes to targets at 10 yards down the field or shallower, according to Next Gen Stats. He completed 26 of them.
Nix was perfect on 17 attempts targeting players lined up in the backfield or the slot and pushed just three passes — all incompletions — 20 yards down the field or more.
“The explosives will come,” Nix said Sunday. “And we’ve got to find ways to push the ball down the field, but defenses keep you from trying to do that, too.
“So it’s a happy balance.”
Nix is playing with that same kind of balance in recent weeks. Certainly there are decisions he’d like back. An interception thrown right at Commanders’ linebacker Bobby Wagner’s chest in Washington or a scramble early on Sunday against the Raiders in which he could have waltzed into the end zone on his own. Instead he held the ball, faded to the sideline and threw the ball away. The the Broncos took a delay of game penalty immediately after.
A touchdown turned into third-and-goal at the 8.
Nix, naturally, made up for it on a designed quarterback draw – a message, perhaps, from head coach Sean Payton. Nix scampered up the middle behind blocks by center Luke Wattenberg and left guard Alex Palczewski — to pay dirt.
Nix’s numbers the past three weeks aren’t spectacular by any stretch. But as he finds more and more rhythm playing without injured running back J.K. Dobbins and Denver continues to find ways to win the game, there becomes less and less to nit pick.
You might call Nix a game manager, and he’d be just fine with that.
“It’s become a negative thing,” Nix said of the moniker. “I don’t know why because the best quarterbacks of all time manage the game at a high level. The biggest difference is when the time comes down to it, they find ways to make either an explosive or make another play. All the good ones, all the great ones that win, they manage the game at a high level. Some are just more flashy and they don’t have that tag, but it really doesn’t matter because our job as a quarterback is execute the play that’s called, get your team in the end zone and at the end of the day have more points than the other team and find a way to win.
“That’s what we’re finding ways to do.”
2. Good on Sean Payton for not allowing an opening TD drive from the Raiders shake what he knew about the matchup with his defense
Geno Smith and the Raiders came out firing. They answered Denver’s 14-play touchdown drive to open the game with a 7-play, 70-yard march of their own. Smith completed all six of his passes for 53 yards, including a 15-yard strike to a wide open Brock Bowers for a touchdown.
Ashton Jeanty ran four times for 17 yards and saw more daylight than he’s been used to in a rugged rookie season in which he’s typically had to create almost any forward progress beyond the line of scrimmage through some form of contact.
Still, Payton early in the second quarter showed what he thought of Las Vegas’ offense against his defense.
The Broncos moved across midfield on their second drive but stalled out at the Raiders’ 40-yard line. Payton first put Wil Lutz and the field goal unit on the field, but never had any intention of actually attempting a 58-yard field goal. Instead, he let the play clock run down and took a delay of game.
Las Vegas coach Pete Carroll declined the penalty but Payton trotted out rookie punter Jeremy Crawshaw anyway.
What happened next changed the complexion of the game.
The Broncos overcame a pass interference penalty on Pat Surtain II by sacking Smith twice and forcing a punt from deep in Raiders territory.
All-Pro return man Marvin Mims Jr. fielded that punt and raced 48 yards to a touchdown and a 14-7 Broncos lead.
MARVIN MIMS JR. TO THE HOUSE!
DENvsLV on CBS/Paramount+ pic.twitter.com/0ZpcnhsSQQ
— NFL (@NFL) December 7, 2025
In today’s NFL, some coaches would have let an accomplished kicker like Lutz try the long field goal. Others most certainly would have gone for it on fourth-and-6 from the plus-40.
Why did Payton opt to punt?
“That’s just looking at where the ball’s at,” Payton said, “and tell me who the offense is. You understand? That’s not an analytics thing. That’s paying attention to who you’re playing.”
Translation: Payton figured the only way the Raiders were finding the end zone again is if Denver set them up with a short field.
The opening touchdown drive didn’t change Payton’s view on what kind of game was set to unfold. He didn’t switch into shootout or points-at-all-costs mode.
Instead, he pinned the Raiders deep and got better results than even he probably thought because of it.
Denver’s defense, meanwhile, gave up just 8 yards and two first downs on the Raiders’ four drives following the opening touchdown. They didn’t score again until 2:17 remained in regulation and they trailed by three scores.
“It was really good,” said outside linebacker Nik Bonitto, whose two sacks moved him to 12.5 on the season. “Obviously it wasn’t the start we wanted but we didn’t let it affect us too much. I will say I do think we could have finished a little better today. I don’t think we were executing as well as we normally do and that kind of cost us some points at the end.
“For the majority of the game, it was really good right up until the end.”
3. Kansas City’s nine-year run atop the AFC West is officially over after a Sunday that featured major implications for the conference playoff picture.
Quick, name the teams in the AFC that at this point can realistically threaten Denver or New England for the No. 2 seed.
Buffalo and the Los Angeles Chargers are pretty easy.
The other? Improbably, the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Quarterback Trevor Lawrence and rookie head coach Liam Coen have reeled off four straight wins — including a 36-19 thumping of Indianapolis on Sunday — and are now 9-4.
And what’s more, the Jags come to Denver on Dec. 21.
If Jacksonville beats the wallowing Jets next weekend and the Broncos lose to 9-3-1 Green Bay, that game would be massive for seeding purposes. Even if both win next weekend, the Jags will feel like they can chase down the Broncos by winning in Denver and then turning their attention to Indy and Tennessee to close the year while Denver deals with Kansas City and the Los Angeles Chargers.
Almost as pertinent as Jacksonville winning Sunday against the Colts is what appears to be a major Achilles injury for Indy quarterback Daniel Jones. Indy was at one point 7-1. Now they’re 8-5, playing Riley Leonard at quarterback and may not be favored again this season against a brutal stretch run: at Seattle, vs. San Francisco, vs. Jacksonville and at Houston.
Among the other major AFC happenings on Sunday: Kansas City’s nine-year run atop the West division officially came to an end. The Chiefs lost at Houston and dropped to 6-7, meaning they cannot finish ahead of Denver. It’s hard to fully count Patrick Mahomes and company out of the playoffs entirely, but a fourth loss in their past five games dimmed their chances considerably.
Houston, though, is a major threat. In fact, there are few more impressive markers on Denver’s sparkling resume at this point than their 18-15 win at the Texans to begin November.
Elsewhere, Pittsburgh moved into sole possession of first place in the AFC North with a win over Baltimore and Buffalo got to 9-4 by the skin of its teeth against Joe Burrow and company.
The picture at present in the AFC, with the Chargers still to play Monday night against Philadelphia:
1. Denver (11-2)
2. New England (11-2)
3. Jacksonville (9-4)
4. Pittsburgh (7-6)
5. Buffalo (9-4)
6. L.A. Chargers (8-4)
7. Houston (8-5)
8. Indianapolis (8-5)
Baltimore, Kansas City and Miami are all 6-7 and run 9-11 at the moment.
4. What on Earth were the Raiders doing in the final seconds Sunday?
If there’s a lesson from the gambling capital of our fair planet Sunday, it’s this: Never bet.
The Raiders, an easy, breezy walk from the Las Vegas Strip, pulled a hilarious backdoor cover at the end of their loss to the Broncos.
The Broncos entered play favored by 7.5. The over/under mark: 40.5.
The Broncos and the under looked to be in good shape with 4:05 left in regulation with Denver leading 24-7. Then the Raiders mounted a touchdown drive and eventually stopped the Broncos on downs with 58 seconds remaining.
Las Vegas started down the field again, trailing by two scores. With 5 seconds left — clearly not enough time to try an onside kick — Carroll sent his field goal unit out. If there were a minute left, sure, you take the points because you know you need two scores, so end the possession as quickly as possible and try the onside.
This wasn’t that. This was just a field goal try to end regulation with no impact whatsoever on the Raiders’ chances to win the game.
Daniel Carlson buried it.
Las Vegas covered 7.5 and the over hit at 41 points total: 24-17.
The massive contingent of Broncos fans booed loudly at the field goal attempt. Some probably just thought it was silly. Plenty of others, most likely, left the stadium with a win but also feeling lighter in the wallet.
5. A brief note on Garett Bolles, who is playing some of the best football of his career
Garett Bolles had a good week. The Broncos left tackle was named the team’s Walter Payton Man of the Year winner for the second time in three seasons due to his extensive and dedicated work in the community.
He got beat cleanly once Sunday against Las Vegas but didn’t give up a sack, carrying on a streak as the only qualified tackle in the NFL who hasn’t surrendered one so far this season. Plus his team won for the 10th straight time.
After the game he posted on social media simply, “11-2” with an emoji for a blown mind.
At the risk of putting too much stock in a very early, fairly silly metric, a follow-up to all that.
The NFL put out its initial top 10 vote-getters for the Pro Bowl last week in early fan voting and Bolles was not listed among the tackles. He’s 33 and he’s not usually mentioned among the game’s elite blind-side protectors, but this year — and, really, last year, too — he’s playing like one of them.
Payton said Friday he thinks the 2017 first-round draft pick is playing some of the best ball of his career and added that he makes developing a pass-protection plan easier each week.
“We don’t ever take Garett for (granted), but a lot of times he’s not getting help,” Payton said Friday. “He’s so athletic. He’s playing well.”
The veteran hasn’t made a Pro Bowl in any of his first eight professional seasons. He was a second-team Associated Press All-Pro once, in 2020.
Good teams typically get rewarded on those fronts more frequently and Bolles hasn’t played on many of those until these past two seasons, but regardless, he’s putting himself in position where he deserves the recognition.
6. Speaking of potential Pro Bowlers, Sunday was kind of an odd outing for Denver safety Devon Key.
That’s because Key didn’t log a tackle on special teams. Those outings have been few and far between for Denver’s best player in the kicking game.
His performance — Key leads the NFL in special teams tackles — prompted teammates recently to start up a social media push to try to get him to the Pro Bowl.
Yooo #BroncosCountry Devon Key is leading the NFL in Special Teams tackles! It’s Mandatory we get him to the Pro Bowl! 🙏#ProBowlVote DEVON KEY
— James “PJ” Locke III (@PjLocke4) November 28, 2025
“(Shoot), he’s got 20 tackles,” fellow core special teamer JL Skinner told The Post recently. “That’s all that needs to be said about that one. He’s probably leading the league by, like, five. Twenty tackles, bro, hard to get on special teams.”
ESPN analyst and former NFL defensive back Matt Bowen put out a list of the NFL’s best players at 109 different skills recently and had Key listed as the league’s best in coverage units.
“First thing is production,” Bowen told The Post. “Special teams is a production-based business. And special teams is kind of back thanks to the new kickoff rule. But it’s different.”
Bowen said when he played, covering kicks was all about “top-end speed and straight violence.”
“There were four-man wedges back then, it was the Wild West, there were no rules,” Bowen said. “You had to be fast and you had to be violent. Kickoff coverage now is more about block evasion and short-area speed because it’s like a run play. He has short area speed. He can dip and rip through blockers. He can set up blockers and close on the football in a hurry. That helps him on kickoff coverage.
“Then you go to punt where he usually plays on the wing. That’s the ability to contain the ball on the outside and play at top seed and tackle in space at top speed. Those are all very specific skill you need today in special teams. I watch a lot of special teams and I think he’s the best coverage guy in the league.”
Key said his teammates are now asking him what he’s got in store each week, though he insists most of the credit goes to the group as a whole rather than him.
The Broncos overall have smoothed out their coverage issues from earlier in the season and have put forth now several straight weeks of quality work in that department.
“Just buying into the process,” Key said. “I know it’s deeper into the season but that’s when we want to hit our stride is deeper into the season as we make that push for the playoffs. It’s all coming along and I think we’ll be fine.”
Skinner says it starts with Key.
“He be seeing stuff before everybody else and he just knows where to go,” Skinner said.
7a. There’s spreading the ball around to different receivers and then there’s Bo Nix’s outing Sunday afternoon in Las Vegas.
The Broncos second-year quarterback by the early third quarter had completed passes to 11 different players — receivers Courtland Sutton, Marvin Mims Jr, Troy Franklin, Pat Bryant and Lil’Jordan Humphrey, tight end Adam Trautman and Evan Engram, running backs Jaleel McLaughlin, Tyler Badie and RJ Harvey and fullback Adam Prentice. In fact, the only skill player dressed for the game that didn’t catch a pass was tight end Marcedes Lewis.
Nix dinked and dunked and dunked and dinked, compiling just 165 passing yards through three quarters on 31 drop backs. The Broncos didn’t have a completion longer than 15 yards or an offensive play longer than 18 yards, but they dominated the game start to finish.
7b. Denver’s defense entered Sunday riding an early game hot streak. Vance Joseph’s group hadn’t allowed an opening-drive touchdown all year.
So, naturally, Las Vegas quarterback Geno Smith and company went right down the field, 70 yards in seven plays, and punched in a touchdown to star tight end Brock Bowers.
From there, though, the Broncos’ defense kicked into high gear. In fact, the Raiders didn’t manage 70 more yards until the 3:21 mark of the fourth quarter. By that time, the game was out of reach. The Raiders mustered five first downs and faced just one third-down on their opening march, then collected only five more first downs until the final four minutes of the game. They will not be happy about the touchdown drive that back-up Kenny Pickett mounted down the stretch of the fourth quarter — it finished with a touchdown pass to practice squad receiver Shedrick Jackson — but the bottom line is they bottled up Las Vegas for the majority of the afternoon
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