Broncos Clips
Jaguars kicker Cam Little kicked the longest field goal in NFL history, 68 yards, last season in Las Vegas. He also kicked the second-longest field goal in NFL history, 67 yards, last season in Jacksonville. And he kicked the longest field goal in any football game, 70 yards, in Jacksonville last preseason. Suffice to say Little has a strong leg.
And on Sunday, Little will be in the kickers’ paradise of Denver.
With Jacksonville at Denver on the Sunday afternoon schedule, Little will be at the NFL’s highest altitude, which means he’ll have a strong chance to break his own record for the longest field goal in NFL history. The lower air density at Denver’s Mile High elevation means NFL kickers can kick a football about five yards farther than they can in Jacksonville or other sea level fields.
The Jaguars also played in Denver last year, and Little’s longest attempt was from 47 yards. He made that, but what really stood out was what he did in pregame warmups: He made a 73-yard field goal, after missing an earlier warmup attempt from 75 yards.
Making a field goal in game conditions is harder than making one in warmups, and whether a situation ever arises in the game when the Jaguars have a reason to attempt a 70-yard field goal remains to be seen. But if there’s ever been a player and a place who are the right match for breaking the NFL’s all-time field goal record, it’s Cam Little in Denver.
With Week 1 in the books, it’s time to start thinking about Week 2. There’s one game that stands out, mainly for where it has been tucked into the TV schedule.
The entire slate for the second week of the season has only two games pitting a pair of 2025 playoff teams against each other: Steelers-Patriots in the 1:00 p.m. ET cluster and Jaguars-Broncos in the late-afternoon window.
But Jaguars-Broncos isn’t one of the 4:25 p.m. ET games. It begins at 4:05 p.m., with a regional TV audience. The big window goes to Commanders-Cowboys on Fox (Raiders-Chargers and Seahawks-Cardinals are also in that spot.)
Yes, the Cowboys are the Cowboys. They continue to draw big TV crowds. But the Jaguars went 13-4 last year. They thumped the Broncos in Denver in Week 16, 34-20. This time around, it’s the home opener at Mile High Stadium. And, suddenly, the Broncos will be feeling more than a little antsy, after losing badly to the Chiefs on Monday night.
The scheduling decision fits nicely with Jacksonville coach Liam Coen’s belief that his team is being overlooked. It gives him extra grist for the “disrespect” mill. Which should make it easier to get the players ready for a repeat of last year’s underrated performance against the team that won the No. 1 seed in the AFC.
From a programming standpoint, it makes sense to go with the Cowboys. Still, Jaguars-Broncos should be a better — and more consequential — contest.
The message to Coen and the Jags is clear. To get more attention, you’ll have to command it. The best way to do that in the short term will be to send the Broncos to 0-2.
On Monday night, a report emerged that multiple Broncos coaches had reached out to retired quarterback Drew Brees about the possibility of joining the Broncos for the AFC Championship after starter Bo Nix suffered a season-ending foot injury.
The report overlooked key details, such as Brees no longer being able to throw with his right arm. Most importantly, it ignored the fact that it would have been impossible to sign Brees, since he remains on the Saints’ reserve-retired list. (There’s also a tampering issue arising from the report that then-offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi and offensive assistant Pete Carmichael contacted Brees, presumably without permission from the Saints.)
Coach Sean Payton was asked if he had a comment on the report, following the Week 1 loss to the Chiefs.
“No, I just know I was the odd man out, and I never heard anything about it, so it never came to anything,” Payton told reporters. “I was only told about it later. I didn’t; I was just like you guys.”
Even without Payton directly contacting Brees, a potential tampering issue arises if Lombardi and Carmichael did indeed contact Brees without permission from the Saints.
The broader point for any retired player is this: Find a way to get released, so that you can return at any time. That’s why Philip Rivers was able to rejoin the Colts late last year. Placement on the reserve-retired list complicates a potential return to play for another team — especially since he’d have to pass through waivers before signing, if his current team is willing to release him from the reserve-retired list.
Broncos head coach Sean Payton was not happy with anyone on the team, least of all himself, after Monday night’s 31-10 loss to the Chiefs.
“Obviously not a great evening. Didn’t do a lot well at all in the game,” Payton said. “That starts with me, that starts with our coaching staff. I thought they won, really, in every phase.”
Payton handed over play calling to offensive coordinator Davis Webb, and Payton was asked afterward whether it was especially frustrating not to be in control of the offense.
“As a head coach, always, whether you’re calling the plays or not — regardless of who’s calling the plays, when you have a game like that and you’re the head coach, it’s frustrating, it’s disappointing. I don’t know that the feeling is any different whether you’re calling them or not, honestly,” Payton said.
The Broncos’ two running backs, J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey, combined for just 11 carries for 54 yards. Payton said he would have liked to see more running the ball, but he wasn’t necessarily blaming Webb for that. Payton noted that the Broncos consistently found themselves in long-yardage passing situations and were trailing for the entire second half.
“Our third down numbers weren’t good, our rushing numbers weren’t good, pick your spot,” Payton said. “Lot of long yardage, lot of throws, not enough runs.”
Asked how he’ll evaluate Webb as a play caller going forward, Payton said he’ll review his performance the way he would a player’s.
“No different than a player, just evaluating the first quarter, the game, and then making the corrections and learning,” Payton said.
The Broncos have a lot of corrections to make.
Kenneth Walker shared carries with Zach Charbonnet in Seattle. He is the man in Kansas City.
With Patrick Mahomes returning nine months after tearing his ACL and LCL, the Chiefs leaned on Walker and their run game in a 31-10 shellacking of the Broncos. The Chiefs threw 27 passes for 184 yards and ran 38 times for 220 yards.
It was the third-most rushing yards for an Andy Reid team in Kansas City.
Walker, the Super Bowl LX MVP who signed with the Chiefs in free agency, ran for 173 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries and caught three passes for 18 yards and a touchdown. It was the most rushing yards in his career, topping the 167 he had in his sixth career game.
Walker had more yards from scrimmage (191) than the Broncos had as a team (176).
Mahomes ran for a 15-yard touchdown and threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Rashee Rice and a 2-yard touchdown pass to Walker, but he was only 15-of-27 for 184 yards and threw an interception.
Bo Nix had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day in his first game with Davis Webb as his playcaller and in his return from a season-ending ankle injury. The Broncos quarterback threw an interception and lost a fumble — and nearly lost another — while completing 17 of 28 passes for 131 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
His touchdown went 19 yards to Evan Engram, who led the Broncos with four catches for 43 yards.
The Broncos, who trailed only 14-7 at halftime, had only 15 carries for 61 yards.
Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce’s longest reception last season was 44 yards. His second catch of 2026 went 59 yards.
It was his longest reception since 2021, when he had a 69-yard catch against the Chargers in a Thursday night game.
On the catch, Kelce passed Jason Witten for second all-time in receiving yards by a tight end with 13,067. Tony Gonzalez holds the record with 15,127.
Kelce got the Chiefs to the 4, with Jahdae Barron saving the touchdown. They had to settle for Harrison Butker’s chip-shot, 28-yard field goal.
The Chiefs lead 24-10.
The Chiefs needed 1 yard on a fourth-down play at their own 40. They got 60.
Kansas City’s prize offseason acquisition, Super Bowl LX MVP Kenneth Walker, got loose around the right side after Broncos cornerback Riley Moss missed the tackle. Safety Brandon Jones was the only defender who had a chance to stop Walker after that and appeared to have the angle.
He didn’t.
Walker has 16 carries for 149 yards and a touchdown in his Chiefs’ debut, the second-most yards of his career. He had 23 carries for 167 yards and two touchdowns in his sixth career game, which was against the Chargers.
Walker is 4-for-4 on third-and-1 or fourth-and-1 tonight.
The Chiefs lead 21-7.
Patrick Mahomes isn’t completely back from his knee injury, but he has accounted for two touchdowns and the Chiefs lead the Broncos 14-7 at halftime.
Mahomes ran for a 15-yard touchdown on the Chiefs’ first series. The 10-play, 46-yard drive was set up by rookie cornerback Mansoor Delane’s interception of Bo Nix on the third play.
The Chiefs had only 15 plays for 39 yards on their next three possessions before going 80 yards in 10 plays. Rashee Rice had a 13-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown on a pass from Mahomes.
Mahomes is only 8-of-18 for 62 yards and a touchdown after starting 2-for-12. He has completed a pass to six different wide receivers.
He also has two rushes for 23 yards and a touchdown.
Mahomes was a long shot to play the season opener after tearing the ACL and LCL in his left knee on Dec. 14. He underwent reconstructive surgery the following day.
The Chiefs, though, have leaned on their running game and their Super Bowl MVP running back. Kenneth Walker has 14 carries for 89 yards, tying the most rushes in the first half of a game started by Mahomes, and also has two catches for 16 yards.
The Chiefs have outgained the Broncos 182 to 113.
Nix is 12-of-17 for 98 yards with a touchdown and an interception, with Pat Bryant catching four passes for 42 yards. Evan Engram scored on a 19-yard reception.
The Broncos have only six rushes for 23 yards.
The Eagles will place left guard Landon Dickerson on injured reserve with a knee injury.
Dickerson appeared on WIP’s “Players Lounge Show” as news hit that he was headed to IR with what he described as a bone bruise in his right knee.
He said he “played like shit” in the Eagles’ 24-22 win over the Commanders on Sunday.
“I was a complete liability yesterday,” Dickerson said, via Alexis Chassen of bleedinggreennation.com. “Again, that was my fault. I know I said earlier in camp I shouldn’t be out there until I feel healthy. A few weeks ago, [I] got rolled up on in practice. I thought as weeks went by it would get better. It didn’t, and we kind of went out there and finally got some imaging on it today, figured out what was wrong with it.
“Really the best plan going forward is to put me on IR, so I can get this thing better to have a good stretch at the back end of the season versus kind of what happened last year, go out there limping through 18 weeks. I don’t think anyone wants to see that again because that was just ugly. I don’t want to do that again, because that was just some BS.”
Dickerson underwent surgery in August 2025 to repair an injured meniscus and appeared in 15 games, though he later admitted he could have used more rehab time. He went to Columbia for stem cell therapy this offseason.
Drew Kendall, a fifth-round pick in 2025, could replace Dickerson.
Chiefs rookie cornerback Mansoor Delane intercepted Bo Nix on his third career play.
Delane, though, landed on his right shoulder on Courtland Sutton’s tackle at the end of a 5-yard return.
The first-round pick entered training camp with a right shoulder injury.
He was in the training room while the Chiefs were on the field for the Broncos’ second drive.
The Chiefs list him as questionable to return.
Chiefs linebacker Cooper McDonald injured a knee while covering a kickoff after Patrick Mahomes’ 15-yard touchdown run. He also is questionable to return with a knee injury that is being further evaluated.
