It wasn’t great, but Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos are still in full control of the AFC.
Nix and the Broncos mounted a late touchdown drive on Thursday night to grab a 20-13 win over the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, wrapping up a three-game Christmas Day slate for the NFL. That win pushed them to 13-3 on the season, and now has them poised to win the AFC West for the first time since 2015 — which was the last season that they won the Super Bowl. It also kept their advantage over the New England Patriots in the race for the top seed in the AFC alive.
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The Broncos had to get past Chris Oladokun, who was making his first career start in the NFL after both Patrick Mahomes and Gardner Minshew both went down with season-ending knee injuries earlier this week. The Chiefs had nothing to play for, either, as they’ve already been eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since 2014.
Though he only completed five passes for 27 yards in the first half, Oladokun held his own. He didn’t make any real mistakes in the opening two quarters of his first start, and even threw a five-yard touchdown pass to Brashard Smith early in the second quarter. That, paired with several great stops deep in their own territory, actually let the Chiefs enter the locker room at halftime with a one-point lead. The Broncos had to settle with just a pair of field goals after their drives repeatedly stalled out.
Finally, after a long 14-play drive that lasted nearly 10 full minutes in the third quarter, the Broncos took the lead again. Nix scrambled into the end zone himself from nine yards out. By that point, the Broncos had more than doubled Kansas City’s time of possession.
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Yet that lead didn’t last, as Harrison Butker drilled a 47-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter to tie the game back up.
The Broncos, however, killed nearly the entire rest of the clock after that to put the game to bed. They nearly had to settle for a short field goal inside of the two-minute warning, but got the Chiefs to jump on fourth down to give them a fresh set.
Eventually, Nix found RJ Harvey in the back of the end zone to complete the 14-play drive and put the Broncos on top for good. From there — even though Oladokun led the Chiefs deep into Denver territory with several passes to Travis Kelce — the Chiefs picked up one last stop to seal their win.
Nix finished throwing 26-of-38 for 182 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He and Harvey each had 43 yards on the ground, and Courtland Sutton led them through the air with 40 yards on four catches.
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Oladokun went 13-of-22 for 66 yards with a touchdown. Kareem Hunt had 38 yards on seven carries, and Kelce — in what may have been his last home game before retirement — had 36 yards on five catches. The Chiefs, who have lost five straight, now hold a 6-10 record.
The Broncos now will wait and see, and can potentially clinch the No. 1 seed in the AFC later this weekend if things go their way. They’ll win the division if the Houston Texans beat the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday, too. Otherwise, the division will come down to next weekend’s matchup between the two teams in Denver.
While it’ll likely take a better showing offensively against the Chargers to end the season on a win, the Broncos still got the job done on Thursday night. With playoff seeding on the line, that’s all that matters.
Follow along with Yahoo Sports for live updates, highlights and more as the Broncos and Chiefs close out the NFL’s Christmas Day slate in primetime.
Live37 updatesThu, December 25, 2025 at 6:33 PM PST
Jack Baer
Jack Baer
Jack Baer
Bo Nix: 26-of-38, 182 passing yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 76.9 passer rating
RJ Harvey: 14 rushes, 43 rushing yards, 5 catches, 33 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown
Chris Oladokun: 13-of-22, 66 passing yards, 1 TD, 79 passer rating
Jack Baer
The Broncos sweep the Chiefs and are still alive in the quest for the No. 1 seed in the AFC at 13-3. The Chiefs fall to 6-10 in what could be Travis Kelce’s final game at Arrowhead Stadium.
Jack Baer
Chris Oladokun overthrows Hollywood Brown and we’re done here.
Jack Baer
Chris Oladokun hits Travis Kelce for a 14-yard gain, then scrambles for another seven. Less than 30 seconds left as the Chiefs try to pull off a miracle.
Jack Baer
On 3rd-and-1 at the KC 44, Kareem Hunt breaks off a 14-yard run to enter Denver territory.
Jack Baer
On 3rd-and-goal, Bo Nix finds RJ Harvey in the back of the end zone and the Broncos take back the lead with 1:45 left. The Chiefs need a touchdown with 1:45 left and one timeout.
Jack Baer
WOW. The Broncos line up for the direct snap with RJ Harvey, an obvious offside bait, and Chris Jones (!) falls for it. It’s 1st-and-goal for Denver with two minutes left.
That’s the Chiefs’ first penalty of the game.
Jack Baer
Nick Bolton comes up big to force 4th-and-2 for the Broncos. Now comes a significant fourth-down decision after the two-minute warning.
Jack Baer
With 5:52 left and 3rd-and-10, Lil’Jordan Humphrey gets wide open for a 17-yard gain. That gets Denver into field goal range and a fresh set of downs.
Jack Baer
The Broncos defense gets the stop, but Harrison Butker is good from 47 yards to tie this game. Given how much the KC offense has struggled to move the ball, that Brashard Smith return was massive.
Jack Baer
The Chiefs third-stringer hasn’t even broken 50 yards, but he’s had a couple nice plays tonight.
Jack Baer
Chris Jones takes down Bo Nix for a drive-killing sack and ends the Denver drive. Then Brashard Smith returns the ball 45 yards to put Kansas City already in striking distance.
Jack Baer
The Chiefs got 5 yards from a neutral-zone infraction penalty and -1 yards from the rest of the plays. The Broncos are on the verge of getting the ball back with the lead as the third quarter ends.
Jack Baer
The Broncos convert on a 4th-and-inches, then Bo Nix runs in a nine-yard touchdown. Gutty drive by Denver to take the lead.
Jack Baer
Facing 1st-and-20 after an OPI call on tight end Evan Engram, the Broncos post their longest play of the day with a 23-yard strike from Bo Nix to Courtland Sutton.
Jack Baer
Harrison Butker is good from 53 yards out and it’s a four-point lead for the Chiefs. They had been nearing the red zone but a Dondrea Tillman sack ended up killing the drive.
Jack Baer
The Chiefs QB scrambles, straight-up drops the ball on the run, then picks it up and hits JuJu Smith-Schuster for a 12-yard gain. That’s his longest pass of the game.
Jack Baer
Kansas City returns to the kick off to the 37 and we’re off in the third quarter.