The Broncos are climbing, but the bigger story in the AFC West is how much chaos sits around them. Denver is 3-2 after five games, and that record looks better when you remember the schedule has been brutal. It also looks a little messy, because the same offensive problems keep showing up and the team still wins in a way that leaves plenty of questions behind.
That said, there’s real value in being 3-2 through this stretch. Denver has already dealt with what’s described as arguably the toughest schedule in the league so far, and the idea is that this gauntlet won’t be there again in 2026. For now, the Broncos keep finding a way, even if it’s not pretty.
- Denver Broncos (3-2)
The defense showed more life in Week 5, and it needed to. The Chargers were dealing with a rookie-heavy offensive line and a thin group of wide receivers, so Denver had the kind of matchup that should allow its defense to settle in a bit. Even so, the offensive side remains a source of head-scratching issues that haven’t been cleaned up.
That’s why the Broncos feel like a team with both momentum and warning signs attached. The record is solid, the schedule has been unforgiving, and the future at least offers some optimism. But until they start winning cleaner, the concerns aren’t going away.
- Las Vegas Raiders (3-2)
The Raiders have dropped two straight, and after a close loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 4, they followed it with a blowout defeat against the New England Patriots in Week 5. If you’re in Las Vegas, the hope has to be that those are just two rough games that get left behind quickly.
Even with the skid, though, the Raiders are still above where many expected them to be. It’s year one with the new coaching staff, and the roster is still in rough shape overall. At 3-2, they’ve already outperformed expectations, and there’s at least a sense they can hang around .500 this season, which would be a major step forward from last year.
- Los Angeles Chargers (0-5)
The bottom has dropped out in Los Angeles. The Chargers haven’t found anything to build on, and the situation has gotten bleak enough that trade-deadline selling and even in-season coaching changes are being raised as possibilities. Justin Herbert has struggled, but the issues go beyond that, with the personnel already looking below-average before injuries started piling up.
The offseason also gets hammered here, with the front office said to have missed badly and head coach Jim Harbaugh said to have missed on his hire of Mike McDaniel. Right now, there just isn’t much going right for the Chargers. Kansas City still sits alone at the top of the division, and the gap between the Chiefs and everyone else looks wide.
- Kansas City Chiefs (4-0)
The Chiefs were on a bye in Week 4, but they remain the team to beat in the AFC West. They’re the only unbeaten club in the division, and they’re getting what the source calls legendary returns from Kenneth Walker III, their top free agency signing.
Kansas City’s defense has been good enough, Patrick Mahomes looks like his old self, and Andy Reid still has a chance to squeeze more magic out of this group. The roster has obvious holes on both sides, but as long as Mahomes and Reid keep working like this, the Chiefs are going to feel like a juggernaut again.
In Other News...
Broncos Starter Hit With Another Fine And Fans Will Have Opinions
Quinn Meinerz has already found himself in the league offices crosshairs once this season, and now the Broncos guard is dealing with another fine that will draw plenty of attention from fans who have followed his on-field personality. Meinerz was previously fined for a dice-rolling touchdown celebration, a penalty that fit the NFLs usual habit of policing the line between flair and excess, even as Denver came away with a Week 3 win over the Rams.
This latest issue comes from a social-media post tied to the leagues drug-test collection process, a move that runs afoul of NFL policy. Meinerz is appealing the fine, and for Denver it adds another off-field wrinkle around one of its more recognizable starters, the kind of story that tends to linger longer than the result of a Sunday game. [Read more 🡒]
Broncos Face One Big Patrick Surtain II Question After Week 5 Ruling
Patrick Surtain IIs Week 5 absence has given the Broncos an early-season problem in the one place they least wanted one. The All-Pro cornerback went down with a non-contact injury and will sit out against the Chargers, leaving Denver to patch together its secondary against a division opponent while Riley Moss is also unavailable. The timing matters, too, because the Broncos are already dealing with other roster shuffling after Pat Bryant was placed on injured reserve.
The bigger question now is how long Denver has to manage without its top corner, and the teams move after the ruling offered at least one clue. Surtain was not put on injured reserve, which suggests the Broncos are holding out hope for a relatively short absence rather than bracing for a lengthy one. If that read proves accurate, the most obvious target on the calendar is November 1 against Kansas City, and everything between now and then will say plenty about how well Denver can survive a stretch without its best cover man. [Read more 🡒]
Bo Nix Has Become The Broncos Biggest Offensive Concern
Bo Nix has spent the first five games trying to find the same rhythm that made him such an interesting piece of Denvers offense, and the Broncos have felt the effects of that drift. The quarterback is still working back from the injury he carried out of the previous playoffs, and the results have been uneven enough that a 3-2 start has not hidden the broader concern around how the offense is functioning.
What stands out most is the hesitation. Nix has not been nearly as decisive pushing the ball downfield, and his legs have not provided the usual escape hatch when plays break down, leaving Sean Payton with a clear need to steady the position. The Broncos are winning enough to keep the season moving, but the longer the offense remains inconsistent, the more Nix becomes the central question hanging over what comes next. [Read more 🡒]