Once again, the Denver Broncos never seen to make it easy, but a win is a win. The Broncos came out in Week 18 and clearly didn't want to do anything fancy. The gameplan on offense was very clearly to not really try and win the game, but more so play to not lose.
This is understandable, do an extent, but it's also quite frustrating, as the Los Angeles Chargers were playing a ton of backups in this one and really didn't have much to play for. Despite that, the Broncos struggled to simply move the ball down the field.
The passing attack was non-existent, and the rushing attack was inconsistent outside of a few nice runs here and there. But once again, a win is a win. The Broncos finish the 2025 NFL Season with a 14-3 record and the top seed in the AFC for the playoffs. We've heard Sean Payton talk about earning the top seed as a goal, and it's been accomplished. However, what exactly does the no. 1 seed mean for the Denver Broncos?
Here is what the No. 1 seed means for the Denver Broncos in the AFC Playoffs
The first thing it means is that the Broncos won a ton of games this year. It was not always pretty, but the best teams in the NFL find ways to win, and we saw this by the Denver Broncos, as they went on an 11-game winning streak, which is simply something you don't see in the NFL.
As for the playoff implications, the two main advantages that the no. 1 playoff seed gives is the first-round bye into the Divisional Round and home-field advantage through the entire postseason. The Broncos will not have to play a Wild Card game and will get to treat that round as a bye week.
This is huge for players needing to get healthy, and it could perhaps be enough time for guys like JK Dobbins and Dre Greenlaw to return to the lineup. Denver advancing to the Divisional Round also means that they'd have to win just two games to reach Super Bowl LX.
The last small advantage is that the Broncos will play the lowest remaining seed in the next round. It does not matter which team that would be - the lowest seed after the Wild Card Round comes to Mile High for the Divisional Round.