The Denver Broncos did not get off on the right foot in the Sean Payton era, as the team limped out to a 1-5 start, and it seemed like Payton was, at that point, in over his head and just was not going to be able to revive this franchise.
Well, since that point, the Broncos went 7-4 to finish out the 2023 season, went 10-7 in 2024, and recently went 14-3 in the 2025 season. Since that 1-5 start, the Broncos have gone a combined a 31-14 in the regular season, which is a 12-win pace over a 17-game season.
Anyway, there isn't any reason to believe that this cannot continue in the 2026 season. With July now here, and us having a few weeks to kill before training camp, let's look at the five best wins of the Sean Payton era. How did we do?
Ranking the best Denver Broncos games of the Sean Payton era to date
5. Broncos beat the Chiefs at home in the 2023 season
The Broncos had not beaten the Chiefs since the 2015 season at this point. In this game, the young Broncos pass-rushers came out and played an aggressive style of football, really never letting the Chiefs into the game at all. The Broncos kept the Chiefs out of the end zone and at long last had snapped the Chiefs win streak.
This also seemed to break open the flood gates in that regard, as Denver beat Kansas City once in 2024, and actually swept them in 2025.
4. Broncos beat the Chiefs at home to end the 2024 season and clinch a playoff spot
Speaking of the Chiefs, the fourth-best win in the Payton era has to be when the Broncos beat the Chiefs at home to close out the 2024 season, as this clinched a 10-win season for the Broncos, but, more importantly, clinched the team's first playoff spot since the 2015 season.
Had the Broncos lost this game, the Cincinnati Bengals would have clinched that final playoff seed. Sure, the Chiefs rested most of their notable starters, but this win ended one of the longest active playoff-drought streaks in the NFL at the time, and it came in the Broncos beautiful throwback uniforms.
3. Broncos beat the Chiefs at home in the 2025 season on a walk-off field goal
You might roll your eyes at this list having a third Chiefs game, but this one was hugely important. Much of the chatter leading up to this game was the Broncos really being able to put the AFC West out of reach with a victory. On the flip side, many had looked at the game as being a must-win for the Chiefs to keep their divisional hopes alive.
Coming into the game, the Broncos were 8-2, and the Chiefs were 5-4 and fresh off their bye week. Had the Chiefs won, they would have been 6-4, and the Broncos would have fallen to 8-3, so that would have made it a lot more difficult to secure the division than what actually happened, as the Chiefs dropped to .500, and the Broncos had then gotten to 9-2, putting them four wins ahead of the Chiefs.
And, of course, the Broncos and Chiefs came down to the wire, so it was an entertaining game even without considering the divisional implications. Wil Lutz kicked a game-winning field goal, that wasn't blocked this time, to secure victory.
2. Broncos beat the Giants with 33 points in the fourth quarter in 2025
In perhaps the most unlikely win the Broncos have had in years, the team found themselves 19-0 against the New York Giants entering the fourth quarter. It was a day when the team honored the Super Bowl 50 squad and the late, great Demaryius Thomas.
By all accounts, it was a game the Broncos simply could not lose no matter what, but that's what it was looking like before the fourth quarter came around. Most fans saw this game, whether on TV or in-person, so I don't need to cover just how the Broncos did it, but the late-game heroics came out yet again in the most improbable win of the season.
Lutz was also clutch in the end, kicking a game-winning field goal after Bo Nix and the offense had managed to get the team into field goal range in just two plays.
1. Broncos beat the Bills in the 2025 AFC Divisional Round
The news that broke shortly after this game does make this a bittersweet moment looking back at it, but the Broncos victory over the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round was downright outstanding in every possible way.
The Broncos weren't going to blowout the Bills, as this was a playoff game likely against the two best teams in the AFC. And, yet again, as the Broncos had done all season, they found themselves on the winning end of a back-and-forth affair.
Marvin Mims Jr. drew a key pass interference penalty in overtime, and Lutz kicked a chip-shot, game-winning field goal through for the win.
Nix himself was absolutely on fire this game, picking apart Buffalo's secondary and also leading the Broncos in rushing yards. This game really also felt like the game where Nix proved himself more to the doubters, as it became clear after the win that Nix was every bit of a franchise quarterback and plenty good enough to keep leading the Broncos.
Did we get this list right?
Add us as a preferred source on Google