{"id":658407,"date":"2026-01-06T12:31:18","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T12:31:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/658407\/"},"modified":"2026-01-06T12:31:18","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T12:31:18","slug":"broncos-should-hope-afc-playoff-bracket-breaks-one-specific-way-denver-sports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/658407\/","title":{"rendered":"Broncos should hope AFC playoff bracket breaks one specific way \u2013 Denver Sports"},"content":{"rendered":"

Denver Broncos fans should be rooting for the easiest path to the Super Bowl.<\/p>\n

Wanting anything else is silly.<\/p>\n

No one remembers at the parade how \u201chard\u201d it was for their team to win a championship. They just want to hoist the trophy \u2014 and that shouldn\u2019t be apologized for.<\/p>\n

And at the end of the day, the AFC playoff bracket breaking a very specific way for the Broncos would be ideal. In a perfect world, all the division winners take their home games.<\/p>\n

That would mean the Jaguars getting past the Bills, the Patriots topping the Chargers and then the Steelers beating the Texans on Monday Night Football.<\/p>\n

This would accomplish a few things.<\/p>\n

First, two of the \u201cscarier\u201d teams in the AFC field would be going home early in Buffalo and Houston. The Broncos would never have to face Josh Allen or the vaunted Texans defense.<\/p>\n

And second, if it goes down this way, the lowly Steelers are coming to Empower Field at Mile High while the Jaguars and Patriots battle it out it in the other divisional game. That would mean getting past Pittsburgh earns Denver a spot in the AFC Title Game.<\/p>\n

The Steelers are clearly the weakest team on the AFC side of things. They went 10-7 in the regular season but didn\u2019t have a ton of convincing victories. They needed a bad miss field goal by the Ravens at the buzzer to even make the dance.<\/p>\n

Head coach Mike Tomlin knows football, but it feels like the Tomlin experience has run its course in Pittsburgh. And QB Aaron Rodgers was once great, but his star is fading fast at 42-years-old<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It\u2019d be absolutely ideal for Sean Payton<\/a>, the top tier Broncos defense and its middle of the road offense to face the Steelers in the NFL\u2019s version of the \u201celite eight.\u201d Nothing is given in sports, but it feels like that\u2019s Denver best shot by a mile of getting to the conference championship game.<\/p>\n

And after that, anything can happen. Maybe if this Broncos team gets one postseason win under its belt it can gain some confidence and run this thing all the way to a Super Bowl victory.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no shame in rooting for specific outcomes in the best interest of your team. It seems like this shouldn\u2019t be controversial, but some folks get caught up in wanting the \u201chardest\u201d path possible.<\/p>\n

Life\u2019s hard, that doesn\u2019t mean cheering for your favorite team should be as well. This is sports after all and winning trophies is what makes it fun.<\/p>\n

In the Broncos case, that Lombardi Trophy has a much more realistic chance of happening if the Steelers are their first playoff foe.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t overthink this one, let\u2019s go Jaguars, Patriots and Steelers and set up the bracket in the most favorable way possible from the jump.<\/p>\n

And while Denver players probably won\u2019t admit that into a microphone, they privately probably feel the same way. It\u2019s been a long season, there\u2019s no shame in wanting a lesser opponent for the Broncos eventual playoff opener.<\/p>\n

Follow @PetersenWill<\/a><\/p>\n

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