Chiefs vs. Broncos, Week 6 preview

Short week for the Chiefs, who return to Arrowhead for Thursday Night Football.

The Kansas City Chiefs (4-1) are in for a potentially rainy night against the Denver Broncos (1-4) on Thursday Night Football.

Kansas City returns to Arrowhead on a short week after beating the Minnesota Vikings on the road. The Chiefs have won four straight games. Denver, meanwhile, has only one win so far this season, with one embarrassing loss 70-20 loss under its belt.

Key game details

Location: GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo.
Date: Thursday, Oct. 12
Time: 7:15 p.m. CT
Network/streaming: Prime Video, KSHB 41 (local)
Radio: 106.5 The Wolf, Chiefs mobile app
Broadcasters: Al Michaels, Kirk Herbstreit
Referee: Shawn Hochuli
Betting line: Chiefs -10.5
Weather: Approx. 76°, cloudy, 22-24 mph winds, chance of rain 68%

Injury reports from Tuesday

Chiefs

Limited participants: LB Nick Bolton (ankle), DE George Karlaftis (hamstring), TE Travis Kelce (ankle)

Full participants: DE Mike Danna (rib), DT Matt Dickerson (knee), CB Trent McDuffie (quad), CB L'Jarius Sneed (knee), WR Kadarius Toney (toe), LB Drue Tranquill (knee)

Game designations: Will release Wednesday afternoon

Bolton continues to be limited, so it seems likely he’ll miss another game. The big question is whether Kelce will play after rolling his ankle last week against the Vikings. Kelce came back into that game later on, which is an encouraging sign for his status on Thursday.

Broncos

Did not practice: LB Frank Clark (illness), DT D.J. Jones (knee)

Limited participants: OLB Baron Browning (knee), C Lloyd Cushenberry III (quad), TE Greg Dulcich (hamstring), DT Mike Purcell (ribs), S Justin Simmons (hip), LB Justin Strnad (back)

Full participants: RB Javonte Williams (quad)

Game designations: Will release Wednesday afternoon

The Broncos could be missing Clark and Jones for this game, which would be a tough blow for their front seven depth.

Key players and matchups to watch in Week 6

Chiefs’ running game

The Chiefs seem to want to run the ball more lately. Running back Isiah Pacheco earned 16 carries last week, and the week before he earned 20 carries in what was a career-best performance for him. The offense simply works better when the Chiefs are running the ball well, so it’ll be interesting to see if coach Andy Reid continues to lean on Pacheco to keep the offense rolling.

TE Noah Gray

If Kelce ends up sitting for any period of time, Gray will be in for more snaps than usual. Gray, the backup tight end, has already made his presence felt this season with 10 catches for 133 yards. He’s on pace to easily beat his career highs of 28 catches for 299 yards. Not that Gray is Kelce — obviously, nobody is — but he has shown to be a reliable target for quarterback Patrick Mahomes when a play needs to be made.

WR Justyn Ross

Ross could also see more time as a big target who can eat up yards in the middle of the field. Ross had two catches for 28 yards on four targets in Week 5, his first time catching a pass since Week 1. As he learns the playbook and builds more chemistry with Mahomes, I think we’re bound to see more of Ross as the season unfolds. One of these weeks, he may even break out with a big game.

Chiefs’ secondary

Justin Jefferson is one of the best receivers in the league, if not the best, and yet the Chiefs’ secondary only allowed the Vikings pass catcher to earn three receptions for 28 yards last week. Jefferson did leave the game with an injury, but he hadn’t done much up to that point. That’s a great sign for this squad as the Chiefs continue to lean on the defense to play at a high level while the offense settles into the right groove.

Top stats to know

15.

The Chiefs currently own a 15-game winning streak against Denver. The last time the Broncos beat Kansas City was eight years ago in September 2015. This time next year, we could be talking about the Chiefs possibly making it a decade with all wins over the Broncos.

187.6

We talked earlier about how the Chiefs could continue to run the ball more. Well, this would be a great week to do so, as the Broncos have allowed 187.6 rushing yards per game. That’s the most in the NFL by a wide margin — the next team has allowed 154 yards per game.

Chiefs-Broncos matchup history

The Chiefs hold a 71-55 record over Denver dating back to 1960. This is one of the longest running rivalries in the NFL and the two teams were neck and neck up until 2015 when Kansas City began its 15-game winning streak.

The last time the Chiefs and Broncos played…

The Chiefs defeated the Broncos 27-24 on Jan. 1, 2023. Denver kept things close for most of the game, but RB Jerick McKinnon’s two receiving touchdowns helped put K.C. over the top.

The best Chiefs-Broncos game ever was…

Well… That’s a tough one. These two storied franchises have had so many battles, and so many streaks, over the years. The Chiefs started out with an eight-game winning streak (six of those wins as the Dallas Texans), then had an 11-game winning streak in the late 1960s. Denver had an eight-game winning streak in the ‘70s, and then a seven-game winning streak in the early 2010s before the Chiefs took command with their current streak.

Instead of attempting to find the best ever among 126 games, I’ll offer up one of my favorites: The Chiefs beat the Broncos 19-10 on Thanksgiving in 2006. It was a close and often frustrating game as the Chiefs couldn’t stop Broncos QB Jake Plummer’s bootleg to save their life, but Denver had no answer for RB Larry Johnson’s 157 yards and one touchdown on the ground.

Chiefs-Broncos prediction, picks

It’s a divisional game on a short week. If you asked me before the season, I would have said this game could be a potential loss for the Chiefs given the circumstances. Now? I don’t think the Chiefs can lose to a team that just allowed 70 points a few weeks ago.

Will the Chiefs beat the Broncos?

Hopefully, yes. Mahomes should have a good day, and I expect Pacheco and Jerick McKinnon to eat given the Broncos’ terrible run defense. There’s potential for the Broncos’ offense to keep things close — after all, it did so twice last season. But Broncos coach Sean Payton doesn’t seem to have a firm grasp on his team or quarterback.

Will the Chiefs cover the spread?

It’s a large one, but I expect the Chiefs to cover. Just keep in mind that the Chiefs failed to cover against Denver twice last season despite being 8.5- and 13.5-point favorites.

Wes’ pick: Chiefs 34, Broncos 20