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Mile High Roundtable: Broncos at Chiefs | Week 15 | Predictions & Picks
Khalid Alshami (@KhalidHAlshami) 8-5: Drew Lock fever is hitting Broncos Country with no signs of cooling down and it's easy to see why. Lock has the juice, the team is rallying around him and playing with more energy, hoping to finish the year on a high note. The young QB has shown some flaws but has also flashed his big arm and play-making ability. While the defense could be without both Dre'Mont Jones (questionable) and DeMarcus Walker (out), the unit has stepped its game up the past two weeks with big plays in key moments. Denver has won three times in Kansas City when playing in December, but for some strange reason, my gut says Lock is going to light it up in his homecoming and outshine Patrick Mahomes while the Broncos serve up some revenge for their earlier meeting this season.
Pick: Broncos 34, Chiefs 29
Josh Carney (@JCarney_Sports) 8-5: Lock's magic will run out this week on the road against a tough team in a hostile environment. At this point, the Chiefs appear to be back to full strength, which is terrifying for any team. In Arrowhead, the Chiefs will jump out to an early lead, putting Lock in a near-impossible situation on the road in one of the loudest stadiums in the league.
Pick: Chiefs 26, Broncos 13
Keith Cummings (@KeithC_NFL) 1-5: The Lock show rides into his hometown this Sunday and it begs the big question; are we or are we not all believers yet? This rivalry certainly provides a test that should give us insight into what the star rookie's really got in his arsenal.
Bold Prediction: Lock gets another welcome seven points on the board from his own defense and slings three more TDs as he gashes the Chiefs’ secondary deep. Phillip Lindsay works the clock late and the Broncos gut this baby out on the road.
Pick: Broncos 34, Chiefs 31
Carl Dumler (@CarlDumlerMHH) 5-8: Kansas City in December is one of the toughest places to win. The Chiefs also seem to be peaking at the right time on defense and present a bigger challenge than the past two opponents have for Lock. Having said that, this will turn into a bit of a shootout but unfortunately, a fourth-quarter interception thrown by Lock secures a very close victory for the Chiefs as they sweat this one out. Lock makes plenty of good plays, though — keeping the hype train going and securing his 2020 position as the starting QB for the Broncos.
Pick: Chiefs 30, Broncos 27
Thomas Hall (@ThomasHallNFL) 7-6: After the Broncos went into Houston as underdogs and gave the Texans a solid drubbing, there is much excitement surrounding the team. Lock's big road win has hopes running high for another big victory this Sunday. Lost in last week’s victory was Denver's inability to run the football and stop the run. The score nullified the Texans run game, but when they were running the ball early, Houston was doing it at will. That doesn’t bode well for the Broncos against the Chiefs. Kansas City's losses this season have occurred when the opposing team’s rushing attack has dominated their own efforts. Couple that with the injuries to the Broncos offensive and defensive lines and it's tough to find good reasons to believe the Broncos can steal a victory in Kansas City.
Pick: Chiefs 23, Broncos 10
Chad Jensen (@ChadNJensen) 6-7: Last week, I questioned whether the spark Lock gave the Broncos would last through a tough Conference matchup on the road but I ultimately believed that it would and I picked the Broncos. No longer am I wondering whether Lock's spark has a shelf life. It's here to stay. However, that doesn't mean the rookie is impervious to the buffetings of the NFL learning curve. That step back will come but something tells me it won't be this week on the road at Arrowhead. This will be an extremely emotional game for Lock, who's returning home to the stadium he's sat in many times as a fan — just 22 miles from the home he grew up in. The Kid from Lee's Summit will be energized, as will the Broncos as a team, riding high from a two-game winning streak and hellbent on finally breaking their eight-game losing streak at the hands of the Chiefs. The stars don't appear to be aligning for Denver, considering the season-high 18 players on the injury report, but while the Chiefs have been playing a more complementary brand of football, something is still off with Mahomes. Lock will throw another interception but the Broncos will take the ball away twice. After the Chiefs get out to an early lead, Lock leads his team back and closes the distance to stun the NFL and finally balance out the law of averages in this historic AFC West rivalry.
Bold Prediction: With his knee more fully on the mend, Von Miller finally breaks loose with a multi-sack game, including a strip-sack of Mahomes (finally).
Pick: Broncos 27, Chiefs 24
Trevor Judge (@TrevorJudge) 7-6: I know it's hard to broach the subject but the Chiefs flat out embarrassed the Broncos at Mile High earlier this year. Kansas City's defense finished the game with a whopping nine sacks. But that was a team plying with little-to-no confidence with a statuesque Joe Flacco in the pocket. This is an entirely different team riding cloud-nine and coming off a big-time win on the road in Houston. It sounds like the rest of the team is coming into this game with a ton of confidence. I'm going to keep rolling with Lock until he comes back to Earth.
Pick: Broncos 27, Chiefs 24
Zack Kelberman (@KelbermanNFL) 5-7: This is one of those either-or games for the Broncos. Either Lock pulls off another upset — his biggest yet, which would shift the hype train into warp speed — or he crashes back to Earth on the road against a Super Bowl favorite and its reigning MVP. This is hardly an unwinnable game for the Broncos, riding high from their pasting of the Texans, but it's going to take a full 60 minutes of near-perfect football. No turnovers. No mental miscues. No conservative play-calling or playing not to lose. Remember this; even if Lock falters, even if he throws three picks, it's okay. It's a good thing. It's a learning experience. It will make Lock — and the Broncos — better. If Denver loses? It's okay. If Lock can't quite hang with Mahomes just yet? It's okay. The future is the brightest it's been in a half-decade, and one loss doesn't alter that. There will be glimpses of greatness from Lock, but also rookie moments where he falters. Unlike Houston, the Chiefs won't take him for granted. Which is a positive sign in and of itself.
Pick: Chiefs 24, Broncos 19
Nick Kendell (@NickKendellMHH) 6-7: The Broncos are riding a two-game winning streak for the second time this season. After squeaking out a close one at home vs. the Chargers, the Broncos went into Houston and out-dueled a Division leader and one of the best young QBs in the game in Deshaun Watson. Can the Broncos take down another 2017 first-round QB in Mahomes? With the Chiefs’ defense playing at a sneaky high level, especially against the pass, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Lock’s play regress a bit this week, especially in a game that will be essentially a homecoming for the Missouri native. In the end, it will likely come down to two things. Can the Broncos run the ball effectively, something they have been struggling to do recently, and can Denver's defensive line win enough at the point of attack to stymie the Chiefs ground game and maintain pressure on Mahomes without needing to allocate extra rushers? If the Broncos can do this, they have a chance. Let’s keep this hype train rolling. Why not?
Pick: Broncos 31, Chiefs 27
Bob Morris (@BobMorrisSports) 8-5: Broncos fans have many reasons to be excited about Lock’s performance against the Texans. Now comes a bigger test — the Chiefs have a better head coach than the Texans, a comparable quarterback and a better (though not dominant) defense. It’s easy to think that the Broncos are in a position to knock off another playoff contender who is coming off a high from beating the Patriots. However, the Chiefs are a better team overall than the Texans, so one shouldn’t assume that this is going to be another easy feat. We’ll see Lock continue to improve, regardless of what stats or the final score suggest. But the Chiefs are in a better position to exploit the Broncos’ weaknesses on both sides of the ball. I don’t see the Chiefs blowing out the Broncos, because Lock brings more energy to the team than Flacco did, but I don’t believe Denver will make it three wins in a row.
Pick: Chiefs 24, Broncos 20
Lance Sanderson (@SandersonMHH) 8-5: Arrowhead Stadium is historically known as one of the toughest places to play when the calendar turns to December and Denver seemingly always struggles to play in these kinds of games. Lock is going to have even more of a difficult time hearing the play-calls through the raucous Chiefs crowd. Kansas City's defense isn't a menacing unit but they're very opportunistic and have intercepted seven passes over their last three games. Give me the Chiefs but it's going to be close.
Pick: Chiefs 31, Broncos 27
Erick Trickel (@ErickTrickel) 6-7: The Broncos offense is starting to really click and jive with Lock at the helm, but they're still a unit with many questions. The Chiefs are relatively healthy and Chris Jones is going to be tough for Denver's interior O-line to handle. The defense will struggle to slow down a healthy Chiefs offense and I simply don't see the Broncos offense keeping up. Additionally, the Broncos have only three wins at Arrowhead in December all-time. I just don't see them picking up a fourth as they drop this one.
Pick: Chiefs 31, Broncos 20
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