Broncos earn top seed in AFC in Bo Nix's second season, finishing with 14-3 record

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The Denver Broncos have had quite the turnaround.

After winning Super Bowl 50 with Peyton Manning, the Broncos did not make the playoffs for eight straight years — a rookie named Bo Nix ended that streak last year.

In Year Two of the Nix and Sean Payton era, the AFC playoff picture runs through Mile High.

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Bo Nix of the Denver Broncos warms up before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Empower Field At Mile High on Jan. 4, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (C. Morgan Engel/Getty Images)

The Broncos earned the top seed in the AFC on Sunday with a 19-3 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, finishing the regular season with a 14-3 record.

The Broncos were surely helped by the fact that Trey Lance got the Week 18 start, as the Chargers could only have been the No. 6 or 7 seed. So they opted to rest Justin Herbert and give the rock to Lance, the third pick of the 2021 NFL Draft who has never found his footing.

Denver Broncos cornerback Pat Surtain II reacts to his tackle during the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at Empower Field at Mile High. (Ron Chenoy/Imagn Images)

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The Broncos kicked a field goal on their first drive and immediately followed it up with a pick-six to go up 10-0 early, and they never looked back. Both teams had trouble moving the football, as there were 13 total punts. But the Broncos’ stout defense did exactly what it has done all season long: stop everything in its path.

The New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars also entered the