The Denver Broncos host the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round in the 2025 NFL Playoffs and have two home games ahead of them to clinch a berth in Super Bowl LX. Denver is 14-3 at home in the Bo Nix era, so this team simply does not lose much at home.
Nix himself has been on fire in front of the home crowd, but both sides of the ball as a whole can be dominating. This is the first Broncos' home playoff game since the 2015 AFC Championship Game where they took down Tom Brady and the juggernaut New England Patriots.
Denver has already gone further than they did in the 2024 NFL Playoffs, as they got bounced out in the Wild Card Round. That is a huge testament to the players and the job that they did this year. Well, heading into the Divisional Round, it's clear that the one Bronco under the most pressure isn't even one of the players.
The Denver Bronco under the most pressure is clearly head coach Sean Payton
Sean Payton talks a big game - this is an undisputable fact. He talks a lot to the media and isn't afraid to say what's on his mind. Payton has talked glowingly about the 2025 Denver Broncos, even before the season began.
He's at times said Bo Nix could turn into one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, and it's not like Payton has generally been wrong much since taking over. Well, with how far the Denver Broncos have come, the veteran coach really keeps silencing the doubters, but there comes a time where this team has to begin making some strides in the playoffs.
Sean Payton has a 9-9 playoff record and has only won multiple games in the postseason one time, which was the Super Bowl back in 2009. Since that Super Bowl, Payton's teams are 5-8 in the postseason. Yes, winning in the playoffs is hard, but Payton doesn't really have a great track record in the postseason outside of the Super Bowl run, which was now over 15 years ago.
On a broader scale, a lot of Sean Payton's legacy as one of the best coaches of all-time is on the line here in the next five or so years. Every Broncos fan knows how talented this roster is, and Denver does have a roster advantage most weeks.
It's time for Sean Payton to have this team ready to roll - however that may look on the field is irrelevant, but the Denver Broncos are paying Sean Payton a ton of money, and he has a ton of influence in this organization. Sean Payton is really under a ton of pressure here.