The Denver Broncos bring a three-game winning streak and a red-hot Bo Nix into a home date with the Kansas City Chiefs that the market says will come down to the final possession.
Game details
| When | Sunday, November 1, 2026 at 4:25 PM ET |
| Where | Empower Field at Mile High |
| TV | CBS |
| Line | Kansas City Chiefs -1.5 | O/U 40.5 (market view) |
| Kansas City Chiefs record | 5-1 |
| Denver Broncos record | 5-2 |
Overview
Denver sits at 5-2 and has won three straight, the latest a 30-16 road win over the Arizona Cardinals in Week 7. Before that it was a 17-14 squeaker over the Seattle Seahawks, a 23-17 win at the Los Angeles Chargers, a 14-24 loss at the San Francisco 49ers, and a 30-26 win over the Los Angeles Rams. Bo Nix has been the engine, throwing for 222 yards and a touchdown while adding a season-high 73 rushing yards and a rushing score in Week 7, a stat line that made him the fifth player ever with a 50-yard touchdown pass and a 50-yard touchdown run in the same game. He's thrown a touchdown pass in six of his seven starts this season.
Kansas City comes in at 5-1 but stumbled last week, falling 3-20 at Seattle to snap what had been a strong run. Before that loss the Chiefs won four straight: 22-6 over the Los Angeles Chargers, 30-27 at the Las Vegas Raiders, 24-10 at the Miami Dolphins, and 33-30 over the Indianapolis Colts. The two teams already met once this season, a Week 1 game Denver lost 10-31 on the road.
The market has Kansas City as a 1.5-point favorite with a total of 40.5, which tells you this one's expected to be tight. Denver's three-game streak and home success with Nix under center give the Broncos a real path, but Kansas City arrives with a defense that's allowed just 103 points on the season. The edge here is thin, and it likely comes down to whether Denver's offense can finish drives better than it did in that Week 1 meeting.
Key players
Bo Nix: coming off a 222-yard passing performance with a passing touchdown and a season-high 73 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown in Week 7, the quarterback carries a 14.0 projection and is 17-3 at home.
J.K. Dobbins: the running back is chasing his fourth straight game with a rushing touchdown and projects for 9.5 DraftKings points.
RJ Harvey: the running back is out with a knee injury after posting 54 receiving yards and his first receiving touchdown of the season in Week 7.
Jaylen Waddle: listed questionable with a chest injury, the wide receiver carries a modest 7.0 projection into Sunday.
Wil Lutz: the kicker projects for 7.4 points with calm conditions expected at Empower Field at Mile High.
Keys to the game
Denver has to slow down Kansas City running back Kenneth Walker, who leads the AFC with 701 rushing yards and is tied for first in the AFC with eight scrimmage touchdowns.
The Broncos' pass rush needs to get home on Patrick Mahomes, who has posted 225-plus passing yards in four of his last five games overall.
Bo Nix has to keep hurting defenses with his legs the way he did in Week 7, when his 73-yard rushing day paired with his arm to produce that rare 50-50 touchdown game.
Fantasy angles
Start Bo Nix. A 14.0 projection undersells a quarterback who just posted 222 passing yards, a rushing touchdown and a season-high 73 yards on the ground, and who has a touchdown pass in six of seven starts.
Start J.K. Dobbins. He's chasing his fourth straight game with a rushing score and projects for 9.5 points in a game expected to stay competitive.
Sit RJ Harvey. The knee injury has him out, no matter how good his Week 7 line of 54 receiving yards and a touchdown looked.
Sit Jaylen Waddle. The chest injury has him questionable and his 7.0 projection isn't worth the risk until he's fully cleared.
Lutz is a safe stream this week. With the total sitting at 40.5 and calm conditions at Mile High, the kicker's 7.4 projection is trustworthy.
Prediction
The market has this one going to Kansas City 21-20, and that number lines up with a game expected to be decided by a possession or less. Denver's three-game streak and Nix's dual-threat burst give the Broncos a puncher's chance, but the 1.5-point line suggests oddsmakers see this as close to a coin flip with Kansas City getting the slightest nod.
Injury report
| Player | Pos | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Garett Bolles | OT | Questionable |
| Jaylen Waddle | WR | Questionable |
| Talanoa Hufanga | S | Out |
| Zach Allen | DE | Questionable |
| Brandon Jones | S | Questionable |
| RJ Harvey | RB | Out |
Depth chart
Offense
| Pos | Denver Broncos |
|---|---|
| QB | Bo Nix |
| RB | J.K. Dobbins |
| FB | Adam Prentice |
| WR | Jaylen Waddle, Courtland Sutton, Troy Franklin |
| TE | Evan Engram |
| LT | Garett Bolles |
| LG | Ben Powers |
| C | Luke Wattenberg |
| RG | Quinn Meinerz |
| RT | Mike McGlinchey |
Defense
| Pos | Denver Broncos |
|---|---|
| LDE | Zach Allen |
| NT | D.J. Jones |
| RDE | Eyioma Uwazurike |
| WLB | Jonathon Cooper |
| LILB | Alex Singleton |
| RILB | Justin Strnad |
| SLB | Nik Bonitto |
| LCB | Pat Surtain II |
| RCB | Riley Moss |
| NB | Ja'Quan McMillian |
| SS | Talanoa Hufanga |
| FS | Brandon Jones |
Recent results
| Team | Last games |
|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | Wk7 W 30-16 vs Arizona Cardinals, Wk6 W 17-14 vs Seattle Seahawks, Wk5 W 23-17 vs Los Angeles Chargers |
More league notes: Week 8 NFL Preview & Capsules and What To Look For - Week 8, from the NFL.
Written by Rhett Zone, an AI analyst, from News Hub Fantasy data (schedule, scores, box scores, injuries and depth charts). A second AI checked every claim against that data before it was published. Read how we use AI in our editorial standards.