Greg Penner throws shade the way Peyton Manning threw the out-and-go. The Chiefs caught more strays Wednesday at Dove Valley than the ASPCA.
“Is Patrick Mahomes in your sights as you’re building this organization?” the Broncos’ CEO was asked during an end-of-season news conference at Broncos Park powered by CommonSpirit.
To this, Penner dropped back and hit Andy Reid right between the whiskers.
“Absolutely,” he replied with a shot as straight and true as Wyatt Earp’s. “I mean, yeah. We could very easily have been 2-0 against the Chiefs this year. And our absolute goal next year is to win our division.”
Take that, Captain Cheeseburger!
“We’re not looking backwards. We’re looking ahead. And it starts with the division,” coach Sean Payton said. “And there’s a lot of confidence in this team. If we could get past that (Buffalo) game, the next team to be able to play, we’d probably win that round.”
If the Broncos had beaten the Bills, they’d be preparing this week for a third meeting with Kansas City, at Arrowhead. To be fair, Payton should’ve won the first tussle in front of the Red Sea. The Chiefs basically downed tools during the second at Empower Field. So who knows?
This much, though, we know firsthand: Josh Allen made Payton’s chest-thumping a moot point. The Bills’ QB spent three hours last Sunday in Orchard Park carving the Broncos up like a one-man machete.
“I didn’t see a gap last weekend (in Buffalo) until the second half,” Payton said when asked about the distance between his 10-7 and the Chiefs, Bills and Ravens. “And then you see a gap because you’re losing. But I felt really confident we could go in there and play well and win. We obviously didn’t play well enough. But those lines are much finer than you think. I always (use) that term, (that there) is a fine line between a groove and a rut. And it’s a player. It’s two players. It’s the line of scrimmage. It’s the kicking game.”
It’s a running back, coach.
It’s probably two running backs.
Never mind Kareem Hunt. The Broncos need an Isiah Pacheco of their own if Payton’s champagne wishes and Penner’s caviar dreams are to become more than winter bravado after the party’s over.
Only two Broncos QBs over the last four decades have won a playoff tilt in which Denver didn’t also run for at least 95 yards as a team — John Elway and Manning. Maybe Bo Nix is good enough to do this all by himself. But he’s not there yet.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs have had at least one tailback carry the ball at least 170 times in each of the last three seasons, another quiet bedrock in the AFC’s latest dynasty. Point of reference: Since 2022, the Broncos have had a runner hit the 170 mark just once — Javonte Williams in 2023, with 217 totes. The franchise hasn’t produced a 100-yard rusher since Payton arrived.
“We’re going to have more than just one back,” the coach promised on Wednesday. “We’re going to stack that position because it’s too hard in our league to play with just one. Rarely does a team do it. Occasionally, it happens. And certainly we’ll have a chance to evaluate when we get to the off-season evaluation process, like where we feel like we’re at with each position. Certainly that’s an important position.”
Home or away, it’s among the most important this month. The last four teams standing in the AFC — Kansas City (Hunt), Buffalo (James Cook), Baltimore (Travis Henry) and Houston (Joe Mixon) — all featured at least one tailback who carried the rock 170 times or more during the regular season. Cook scorched the Broncos for 120 yards on the ground during Wild-Card Weekend, while Mixon rambled for 106 yards and a score to help the Texans pummel Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers.
Penner and Payton are right on one point: The Chiefs can’t go on like this. The most cost-effective offensive line in the AFC won’t be for much longer. Guard Trey Smith, a sixth-rounder who really hit, is at the end of his rookie deal in March. Cornerback Trent McDuffie reaches the end of his after 2025.
Kansas City went 11-0 in one-score games this past fall, the kind of poker streak nobody in this league can sustain. The Chiefs were 6-5 in those games in 2023, 7-3 in 2022. Regression’s inevitable. But not guaranteed.
“The playoffs are a lot different,” Broncos general manager George Paton noted. “(The) Buffalo Bills … those are the type of teams you’re going to face during the playoffs. So, obviously, we need to take the next step moving forward. And that’s going to be our focus throughout the offseason.”
Want to really shake Chiefs Kingdom? Trade up for Ashton Jeanty.
Actions, kids. Actions, not words. Penner, Paton and Payton have a zombie franchise back up on two feet, shuffling forward and munching brains again. But to run with the big dogs in the AFC, you have to be able to run the ball in January first.
Want more sports news? Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver’s teams.