It is flat-out insane how many similarities there are between the 2015 season and the 2025 season for the Denver Broncos. The New England Patriots defeated the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round at home and have officially moved on.
The Broncos will host the Patriots in the AFC title game, and the last time Denver hosted the AFC title game, obviously, it was against New England, back when Tom Brady and Bill Belichick were still in charge. This game was somewhat close for much of the first half, and even into the second half, but the Patriots just shut the door.
The Texans offense couldn't get much going, as CJ Stroud was flat-out horrendous on Sunday afternoon. The Broncos will start Jarrett Stidham in the AFC title game, and on the flip side, the team's defense will have to deal with Drake Maye, a second-year breakout QB who should receive some MVP votes.
The Denver Broncos host the New England Patriots in the AFC title game, again
Funnily enough, the last two times the Denver Broncos have hosted the Patriots in the AFC title game, the Broncos came out on top. The previous time before 2015 was the 2013 NFL Season, where Denver fielded the best scoring offense of all-time.
And in 2015, Denver had one of the best defenses of all-time. This was going to be a tough game, even with Bo Nix in the lineup. The way to beat the Patriots might honestly be to send a ton of pressure at Drake Maye, as left tackle Will Campbell did struggle a bit in the Divisional Round, and the offensive line in New England simply isn't close to how good Buffalo's was in the Divisional.
Denver should also seek to hold the ball on offense for as long as possible, so establishing the run is going to be a huge key here as well. With a week before the game, the Denver Broncos will have time to gameplan and put Stidham in the best possible scenario to win.
The defense is going to have to step up and play a lot better than they did in the Divisional Round. The matchup is set, as the Broncos find this improbable 2025 season now hosting the AFC title game.
If the Broncos win, they would advance to Super Bowl LX, and, as we all know, it would be the first time Denver gets back to the big game since the 2015 season.