Wil Lutz lined up for a 35-yard field goal to beat the Chiefs on Sunday and couldn’t help but flash back to last year at Kansas City, when his kick was blocked as time expired.
“I was kind of like, shoot, here we are,” said Lutz, who nailed the game-winner this time, his fifth field goal of the day, lifting the Denver Broncos past the Chiefs 22–19 for their eighth straight victory. “I've been waiting for a game like that.”
Broncos coach Sean Payton said last November’s 16–14 heartbreaker at Arrowhead Stadium galvanized the team, which went 5–2 afterward to reach the playoffs. Lutz agreed:
“If you look back at the last year-and-a-half since that game, this team has come together and found ways to win close games.”
The Broncos (9–2) all but buried the Chiefs (5–5) in the AFC West, which Kansas City has won every year since 2016. Chiefs coach Andy Reid fell to 27–5 following a bye week, including playoffs, and his time with Philadelphia.
“We’ve just got a resilient team that believes we’re going to win, and at the end of the game when it’s close, that belief goes a long way,” QB Bo Nix said after Denver improved to 7–2 in one-score games this season.
Nix set up the game-winning kick with a 32-yard strike to Troy Franklin that moved Denver to the Kansas City 15 with under a minute remaining.
Patrick Mahomes gave Kansas City its only lead on a 21-yard touchdown pass to Travis Kelce — the veteran tight end’s 84th career TD, surpassing the previous Chiefs record-holder Priest Holmes. That put the Chiefs up 19–16, but Harrison Butker’s extra point was blocked by Frank Crum.
The Broncos tied it at 19–19 on Lutz’s 54-yard field goal with 4:10 remaining. Denver’s defense forced Kansas City to go three-and-out after Ja’Quan McMillian sacked Mahomes on third-and-10 from the Chiefs' 36. That was McMillian’s second sack; he also had six tackles, including two for loss, two quarterback hits, a pass breakup, and an interception.
“Game ball,” Payton said.
The Broncos chewed up the final 2:59 with a 58-yard drive in 10 plays. They won their 11th straight game at Empower Field, where they haven’t lost since October 2024, and beat Kansas City at home for the third consecutive time.
Kelce’s TD followed a 46-yard pass-interference penalty on Denver cornerback Riley Moss on an underthrown pass from Mahomes to Hollywood Brown. Moss said afterward he plans to wear boxing gloves at practice to break the habit of grabbing defenders on deep throws.
Denver’s eight-game winning streak is its longest since 2012, when Peyton Manning led the team to 11 consecutive victories. The Chiefs’ nine-year reign atop the AFC West is now in jeopardy.
Jaleel McLaughlin, filling in for injured starter J.K. Dobbins, who underwent season-ending foot surgery last week, powered in a 4-yard touchdown in the third quarter to break a 6–6 tie.
Kansas City seized momentum briefly when Mahomes found Tyquan Thornton for a 61-yard gain to the Denver 11, setting up Kareem Hunt’s 2-yard run to tie it at 13. That was KC’s first touchdown at Empower Field in 11 quarters.
A year after going 12–0 in one-score games, including the playoffs, the Chiefs are 0–5 in such situations this season.
“It sucks,” Mahomes said. “Don’t get me wrong, you’ve got to feel that, but you’ve got to use that energy for the next week, the rest of the season. All you can focus on is the next game.”
The Chiefs have won the division every year since 2016, but now face an uphill battle just to make the playoffs. The Los Angeles Chargers fell two games behind Denver, which hasn’t won the division since 2015, after a 35–6 loss at Jacksonville on Sunday.
“I just think about us,” Broncos edge rusher Jonathon Cooper said. “We’re 9–2 going into the bye, get a chance to rest, get some people back, get some health, and keep this momentum going into the playoffs.”
Chiefs: LG Kingsley Suamataia sustained a concussion.
Broncos: Rookie WR Pat Bryant was evaluated for a concussion after a 48-yard catch in the third quarter but returned. Denver was also without CB Pat Surtain II (pectoral), ILB Alex Singleton (testicular cancer), and Dobbins (left foot).
