At 10-2, the Broncos currently sit atop the AFC West and enter Week 14 as the conference’s No. 2 seed.
That’s generally unfamiliar territory for Denver, as until last year, the club hadn’t made the postseason since winning Super Bowl 50 to cap the 2015 season. No team but Kansas City has won the AFC West since 2016 — a streak that is poised to end this year.
As the Broncos get ready to face the division-rival Raiders on Sunday, quarterback Bo Nix was asked if he can appreciate the opportunity that’s in front of the team, particularly after the franchise had several lean years before his arrival in 2024.
“Absolutely,” Nix said, via transcript from the team, though he had much more on the subject. “The worst thing you can do is let other people tear down a 10-2 record, whether it’s saying, ‘You don’t play anybody,’ or, ‘You’re just relying on defense.’ Whatever negative somebody’s going to put on a positive, it’s always going to happen. We don’t really worry about it. We’re just excited. We know we’ve come a long way. This franchise and organization has had some great years, and then went into a little lull there for a minute, but it just takes a couple guys who get it back on track. Then all of a sudden, we’re 10-2 and right where we want to be in every aspect of our season.
“Everybody can talk about a 10-2 record and make excuses of why we have it, but you still have to win games. You’re still playing NFL teams who play their players just as much as we’re paid. I think it’s important to not lose track of that. It’s a good perspective to have that no matter what’s going on, you’ve worked hard and you’ve gotten yourself to a 10-2 record. We believe we could’ve been even better. It’s all about moving forward. It’s the next mentality, next game.”
Nix noted the Broncos are focused on defeating the Raiders on Sunday, but there’s reason to keep some perspective.
“I think at the end of the day, you just have to keep moving on, but at the same time don’t forget how far you’ve come and where you are as a team,” Nix said. “It does make coming to work a little bit more exciting. It does make finishing out this season, it gives you something to look forward to and play for. There’s a lot of good that comes from looking forward to something and playing for something.
“I don’t know why that is, but there’s just something about the locker room that makes it exciting and the guys who want to do it for other people. That’s the important thing, and we’re in a great spot. 10-2 is hard to do. Like I said the other day, we won 10 games last year at the end, and we’re not at the end yet, and we’ve already won 10. So that’s an improvement, but we didn’t work this hard just to win 10.”