Examining AFC Playoff Teams: Which is Denver Broncos Toughest Opponent?

The Denver Broncos took care of business and beat the beleaguered Chargers 19-3 on Sunday, but it was nothing special.

Meanwhile, many Super Bowl contenders across the AFC dominated their opponents and put an exclamation point on the regular season.

The Patriots, Jaguars, and Bills each blew out their opposition, while the Texans and Steelers won close to cement their playoff seeding.

Should the Denver Broncos be worried as their offense sleepwalks into the postseason?

Let's take a quick trip around the AFC and check in on how the Broncos potential playoff opponents faired in Week 18.

Broncos beat Chargers backups, while AFC contenders showed dominance

Denver enjoyed a solid win against a Chargers team that was mostly backups; the Broncos earned the No. 1 seed.

Following the Chiefs win on Christmas, Broncos head coach Sean Payton said, "Here's the thing. It doesn't have to be aesthetically pleasing to be effective. I've said that before. That's all that's important."

It's true.

A grind-it-out win is a win. You are what your record says, as Payton's mentor Bill Parcels coined back in the day.

And the Denver Broncos are 14-3.

The only downside to the win was that two phases played well for Denver—defense and special teams—while the offense was awful.

Denver totaled a mere 240 yards on offense, their second-lowest mark of the year. They went 5-15 (33.3%) on 3rd downs and 0-3 in the red zone. Bo Nix threw for 141 yards, a season-low, and was sacked 4 times, a season-high.

Yes, Payton called a conservative game on purpose and it worked. But Denver is stumbling into the postseason offensively, while three other teams are hitting their stride.

New England Patriots 38 - Miami Dolphins 10

The Patriots are the No. 2 seed and seemingly are clicking on all cylinders in opposition to how the Broncos are playing at the moment.

Drake Maye could win MVP and is enjoying elite quarterback play for the Pats. He led the league in passer rating (113.5), QBR and completion percentage (72.0%) while throwing for 31 touchdowns and 8 interceptions.

But in Week 18, Maye didn't even have to assert himself. His two stud running backs went off. Rhamondre Stevenson had 131 yards and 2 TD, TreVeyon Henderson rushed for 53 yards and 2 TDs of his own.

Plus, the defense held the Dolphins to only 180 yards and 1-3 in the red zone.

Besides the fact that they have little playoff experience, the Patriots may be the most well-rounded team in the AFC. If Denver has to play them, it'll be a tough fight, and I'd be really interested to see it play out.

Buffalo Bills 35 - NY Jets 8

The Bills played so well, even while resting Josh Allen, that they threatened to shut out the Jets. New York did score late, but it was still a real drubbing.

Mitch Trubisky (!) threw for 259 yards and 4 touchdowns, while backup running back Ray Davis rushed for 151 yards, and Ty Johnson scored both on the ground and through the air.

Yes, the Jets are a joke, but the Bills also limited them to a mere 122 yards and less than 22 minutes in time of possession.

his may be Allen's worst Bills team, but he's still arguably the best quarterback in the league and can put games on his shoulders in the fourth quarter. Their league-leading rushing attack makes their offense dynamic, and playing Buffalo could mean a shootout. Which doesn't fit Denver's strengths.

Jacksonville Jaguars 41 - Tennessee Titans 7

Finally, the Jaguars are the hottest team in football right now and completely crushed the Titans. Trevor Lawrence enjoyed another fantastic performance with 255 passing yards and 3 touchdowns, and Parker Washington continues to be a breakout star this year. He led the team with 5 receptions for 87 yards and a score.

The Titans only had 194 total yards and backup quarterback Brandon Allen threw a pick, too.

Jacksonville kicked Denver's ass three weeks ago, on both sides of the ball. And while I thought the Broncos would relish another shot at them, the Jaguars are hotter than a Florida summer day right now. They may even cut down the Bills this weekend. This is a team the Broncos would like to avoid, probably, but a rematch would be awesome. I don't see Denver's defense missing a ton of tackles again.

Houston Texans 38 - Indianapolis Colts 30

While those three teams blew out their opponents, these last two—Houston and Pittsburgh—were in tough, divisional games but found ways to win.

The Texans found themselves in a back-and-forth battle with the Colts, a thrilling game that saw nine lead changes before Houston came out on top.

C.J. Stroud was just pedestrian, with 169 passing yards and a touchdown, but the defense forced two fumbles and lineman Tommy Togiai returned one for a touchdown.

In many ways, the Texans are a clone of the Denver Broncos, and they're a playoff team that Denver matches up well against. If Jacksonville, New England, and Houston win, the Broncos would host the Texans. They're a more favorable matchup than the previously mentioned three teams.

Pittsburgh Steelers 26 - Baltimore Ravens 24

Speaking of back and forth games, the Steelers - Ravens game was a stinker that got great late.

Aaron Rodgers and Lamar Jackson went punch-for-punch until both kickers missed kicks. First, Chris Boswell missed an extra point to open the door for Baltimore. The Ravens drove into field goal range for the win, and rookie kicker Tyler Loop missed it wide right. Serves Baltimore right; their former kicker Justin Tucker was a bad dude off the field. And the Ravens knew it for many years, allowing him to make kicks for them.

Now, Baltimore is at home or in Cancun, while Rodgers and the Steelers will be one-and-done vs. the Texans.

Re-ranking potential Denver Broncos playoff opponents

Last week, I previewed Week 18 and ranked the potential Denver Broncos playoff opponents. Now, let's re-rank them as the Wild Card Round is about to kick off.

1. (+3) Jacksonville Jaguars: Trevor Lawrence and Co. are HOT right now. I'm not sure anyone wants to play them, even the Bills. Speaking of the Bills, they've lost 8 straight road playoff games, so maybe they'll be eliminated this week.

2. New England Patriots: Maye is probably going to win MVP and they showed last week how the running game can control a contest to win with ease. With the No. 2 offense and No. 4 defense; that's a tough, scary team. Broncos-Pats AFC Championship Game loading?
3. (-2) Buffalo Bills: They may be questionable on defense, but the Bills ran all over the Broncos last year in the playoffs. Denver's small defensive front doesn't match up well with the Bills, the No. 1 rushing team in the NFL. And then Allen can pull magic out of his hat; like when he was dead to rights on 4th down and still threw a touchdown last year.
4. Houston Texans: Denver beat Houston in Texas earlier this year. The only thing is, they knocked C.J. Stroud out of the game. If the Texans have Stroud for the whole game, it'll likely be close, but I like Denver's chances of beating them. Two great defenses means a likely low-scoring, defensive battle, which plays into the Broncos hands. And Stroud is turnover prone.
5. LA Chargers: I know the Chargers were 3-0 under Jim Harbaugh against Sean Payton's Broncos until last week. But I'm not scared of this team right now. Their offensive line is in shambles. And the Texans made them look foolish in Week 17 before Justin Herbert turned the ball over on top of it. If they somehow beat the Patriots, they'll be coming back to Denver. The Broncos will win that matchup, even if it's close.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers: The Steelers are the worst team in the playoffs on the AFC side, and would be the worst overall if Carolina didn't back their way in on the NFC side. 15th in offense and 17th on defense; the Texans should take care of them with ease. Denver would too, if they were to face the Broncos (NE + JAX wins, plus PIT win, Denver would face the Steelers.)

Luckily, the Broncos get to sit at home and watch the games, just like the rest of us! Think they eat nachos and drink beers and holler at the TV, too? They must.

As Sean Payton explained, the advantage of the No. 1 seed isn't a week of rest, it's that your team doesn't have to play a game.

“When people ask, ‘What’s the benefit of the 1 seed?’ Many will say it’s the rest. I personally think it’s the elimination of a game that you don’t have to play," Payton explained.

Not only would that game be a lot of wear and tear on the players' bodies, but Denver doesn't have to worry about losing in that game. They get a free pass onto the Divisional Round.

It's massive.

Meanwhile, as the players enjoy the games, Payton needs to be working on his offensive play calling leading up to this definitive Divisional Round game.

Is Payton still an offensive genius and able to outsmart other coaches like he has all year, or will playoff opponents sniff out his tendencies?

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