The Denver Broncos are the No. 2 seed in the AFC playoff picture after Week 8, climbing from fifth to second with a dramatic 28-24 comeback win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, November 1, at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver.
Denver (6-2) now sits behind only the Buffalo Bills (6-1) in the conference, while the Chiefs (5-2) dropped to fifth. The standings are a snapshot of how the season would look if it ended today — not a clinched playoff berth — with nine weeks of the regular season still to play.
How Denver turned the game around
The Broncos trailed 24-13 in the second half before rallying for 15 unanswered points. Quarterback Bo Nix threw a two-yard touchdown pass to tight end Nate Adkins and found Jaylen Waddle for the two-point conversion to cut the deficit to 24-21.
Rookie running back Jonah Coleman then broke free for a 51-yard gain and scored from five yards out on the next play, putting Denver ahead 28-24 with 1 minute 56 seconds remaining. The defence finished the job when Malcolm Roach sacked Patrick Mahomes on fourth-and-goal on the final play, preserving the win at the goal line.
Nix finished 20 of 32 for 222 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Mahomes threw for 321 yards and three touchdowns, but Kansas City lost its second straight game. The win was head coach Sean Payton’s 200th career victory and Denver’s fourth in a row.
The full AFC top seven after Week 8
1. Buffalo Bills: 6-1
2. Denver Broncos: 6-2
3. Pittsburgh Steelers: 6-2
4. Jacksonville Jaguars: 5-2
5. Kansas City Chiefs: 5-2
6. Cincinnati Bengals: 5-2
7. New England Patriots: 5-3
Denver holds the tiebreaker over Pittsburgh thanks to a better conference record (3-1 against 3-2). Buffalo, the only AFC team with one loss, would hold the first-round bye if the season ended today, while Denver would host New England in the wild-card round and Kansas City would travel to Jacksonville.
Why the swing matters
The result flipped the AFC West race. Before Sunday, Kansas City led the division; Denver now leads it by half a game, and the Chiefs would have to play on the road throughout the playoffs if the current standings held. They will not — the picture will change repeatedly over the second half of the season — but the Broncos have turned a home win over the division’s benchmark team into a genuine cushion.
Denver’s remaining schedule still has teeth: a road game at the Carolina Panthers in Week 9, a bye week, then the Las Vegas Raiders, a Black Friday trip to Pittsburgh, a Christmas Day meeting with Buffalo, and a road game at New England. The Chiefs, by contrast, host the New York Jets next Sunday in what shapes as a get-right game.
What comes next
For Denver, the task is turning a mid-season seeding into something lasting: winning the games it should win, starting in Carolina, and holding serve at home against Buffalo on Christmas Day. For Kansas City, the task is simpler and more urgent — stop a two-game slide before a wild-card road trip becomes the default rather than the exception.
Neither team’s fate is decided in Week 8. But for one Sunday in Denver, the balance of the AFC tilted, and it tilted on a goal-line stand.
More Week 8 coverage
Read also: Harrison Butker’s Latest Miss Puts Chiefs Kicking Job in Doubt as Justin Tucker Waits and Commanders Score 27 Unanswered Points to Beat Eagles 27-10 on Sunday Night Football.
Frequently asked questions
Are the Broncos in the playoffs now?
No. The No. 2 seed is where Denver would sit if the season ended today. Playoff places are decided after Week 18.
Why are the Broncos ahead of the Steelers at 6-2?
Denver has the better conference record (3-1, compared with Pittsburgh’s 3-2), which is the tiebreaker used here.
Who would the Broncos play if the playoffs started today?
Denver would host the seventh-seeded New England Patriots in the wild-card round, while Buffalo would receive the first-round bye.
Sources
Broncos Wire (USA Today), “NFL playoff picture: Broncos move into 2nd place in AFC”; Athlon Sports, “NFL Playoff Picture: The Field for NFL Playoffs After Week 8”; Sports Illustrated, “2026 NFL Playoff Picture, Week 8”; Reuters, “Late stand lifts Broncos past Chiefs, into AFC West lead”; Associated Press via theScore, “On fourth-and-goal, Roach drops Mahomes and flips the AFC”.
