When general manager George Paton met the media on Monday at the NFL owners meetings, he provided an interesting nugget about Nix and the acquisition of receiver Jaylen Waddle.

“I wasn’t with him when he found out, but he was pretty excited when I walked down to the training room. He obviously went to dinner with all of us. I think Bo thinks he is a quasi-GM sometimes,” Paton said. “Sometimes he is right, and sometimes he is wrong, but I think he’s right on this guy. This guy is pretty special.”

So, too, is Nix. The Broncos know this. A transition is happening right before our eyes. Nix’s stature in the organization is growing, a testament to his maturity and remarkable first two seasons.

Reticent to question anything from coach Sean Payton as a rookie, Nix began voicing his opinion about preferring uptempo last season. He also has no issue screaming at Payton over slow substitutions, something that played out on a weekly basis.

And the offseason has only amplified his gravitas.

He cemented every belief about his character by the way he tackled his ankle rehab, and showed his growth by speaking up about Waddle. Write it off as him having a strong opinion because he played against the receiver at Alabama in the Iron Bowl if you must.

In my belief, there is more to it than that.

Folks in charge want to know what Nix thinks. And we would be foolish to believe that Nix did not welcome Davis Webb’s promotion to offensive coordinator with anything but open arms. He became close to Webb over his first two seasons, his development progressing rapidly under the quarterback coach.

Webb had leverage this offseason as a hot head coaching candidate. There was no reason for him to stay without being given some play-calling duties. Payton reluctantly relinquished the role — don’t blame him, since he remains good at dialing up gems. And in case you didn’t hear, it was — all together now — his decision.

But there is no way this change happens without Payton, Paton or owner Greg Penner — or some combination thereof — having a conversation with Nix.

This is how the NFL works. As a rookie, it was Nix’s time. Last season, it was his team. In his third season, he will become the face of the Broncos, a role filled by Payton since 2023, as he navigated a hairpin U-turn.

Nix should be coming off a third straight playoff berth and in line for a $50 to $60-million a year contract. That kind of deal comes with perks, spoken or not.

We have seen this evolution with Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. They were all rookies once. Now, you can’t mention their team without thinking of them.

Nix is quickly ascending into this role. The good news? He gets it. He knows the Spider-Man principle — with great power comes great responsibility.

The star franchise quarterback is the answer to every question. And he is both the excuse and the target of criticism when expectations are not met. It all comes with it, especially when the salary matches a gross national product.

Since being drafted, Nix has passed every test. If he reaches his potential next year with a Super Bowl berth, it will be obvious that he is the fulcrum on which the organization pivots.

Avs sweaters: The Avs are in position to clinch the NHL’s best record. It is not because of a certain sweater. Best line seen on this: The Avs are the favorites to win the Stanley Cup. The Quebec Nordiques are the favorites for the top draft pick. Time to stop wearing the blue jerseys.

Go-Go Rox: Adding Jake McCarthy and Willi Castro has given the Rockies a throttle. They had 10 stolen bases through six games. They posted 87 last season. The Rockies have no plans to stop running. “It’s how we are going to play,” outfielder Mickey Moniak said. Coors Field awards more than power. Nice to see a front office recognize this.

At 31 years old, the Broncos pass game coordinator and quarterbacks coach has become a top head coaching candidate. He is viewed as the new Sean McVay, a wonder kid capable of running an offense and a franchise.

As the Broncos prepare to host the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game, it is time to acknowledge two truths: Payton had onions to hire a coach in his 20s, and Webb has never been more important than this week.

Webb stopped playing in 2022 and joined Payton’s staff in 2023. Everything about his hiring hinted that he was a meteor in the business. After the interview, Payton was looking over his notes and wondering why he even let Webb leave the building. He phoned him on his way to DIA and just like that the former top college prospect had a headset.

Webb has been on the fast track ever since. During the past preseason, Payton allowed him to call plays. It went well to no one’s surprise. That Bo Nix posted 53 passing touchdowns and 25 wins in his first two seasons is a credit to Payton’s play calling, but Webb deserves a tip of the cap.

He is a buffer. He is brilliant. And this game plan demands his best work, steeling Jarrett Stidham for the biggest challenge of his career, or any career for that matter. Webb is only two years older than Stidham. But his football knowledge belies his age. He has been keeping notebooks of plays for decades.

It is why he ran the Buffalo Bills’ quarterback room in his final season as a backup, becoming good friends with Josh Allen. So of course he is a candidate there. And with the Las Vegas Raiders.

He has the ability to digest loads of information and make it practical and useful for his pupils. That is critical for Stidham. He is cramming for the test. And while his confidence is real, Webb is a person he can confide in, letting him know what plays he likes, what makes him comfortable.

The Broncos are attempting to reach their ninth Super Bowl. If Payton pulls it off with a backup quarterback, it becomes his magnum opus.

And it will have happened only because he had the guts to hire a backup quarterback a few weeks after he signed Stidham as a free agent.

Pasties, anyone: New England passes the eye test as a good team. But let’s not pretend they navigated Pikes Peak to reach the NFL’s Final Four. They faced the easiest strength of schedule since the 1999 Rams. It is why winning on the road at Denver — something they have never done in the playoffs — remains daunting, even without Bo Nix starting.

Center of attention: The pushback for Andruw Jones’ election to the Hall of Fame was surprising. I voted for him. Yes, his .254 batting average is unsightly. But Jones deserved the honor for this reason: He is one of three center fielders with 400-plus home runs and 10 Gold Gloves. The other two? Ken Griffey Jr. and Willie Mays. There are no qualifiers needed when explaining Jones’ entrance to Cooperstown.

Avs issues: The Avs have finally had their first hiccup with four losses in their past five games. This was always going to happen. And as much as it is annoying, it is necessary. Adversity helps focus expectations, providing a reminder that nothing has come easily for the Avs since winning the Stanley Cup. They will be fine. Now, if injuries surface, especially during the Olympics, it is time for fingernails to disappear.

Big Blue: Count me among the minority. I don’t see John Harbaugh as the perfect fit with the New York Giants. A blue blood name with a blue blood franchise. An adult in the room. The dots connect. Perhaps too easily. The Giants dissolved last year because they could not hold a lead. No one has been worse at protecting leads over the last few years than Harbaugh. And he had Lamar Jackson. Harbaugh can work. But let me see how his offensive coordinator does with Jaxson Dart before this is celebrated as the second coming of Bill Parcells or Tom Coughlin.

Has it really come to this? That we have to pray for Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph to get a second chance as an NFL head coach?

The cycle got thrown for a loop with the firing of John Harbaugh. But even as the Super Bowl-winning coach finalizes a deal with the New York Giants, eight vacancies remain. And you are telling me that Joseph, with the resume he has put together over the past three seasons, is not deserving of one?

Hogwash.

Joseph has shown himself more than capable after creating a brotherhood of bullies with the Broncos defense. The group ranks first in sacks (68), yards per play (4.6) and red zone touchdown percentage (42.6), and third in points per game (18.3). He blends humility with knowledge, and his refusal to point fingers inspires devotion from players. Just throw on the film and watch how hard guys run to the ball, and execute their assignments.

Joseph has talked in some capacity with nearly every team that has an opening. The knee-jerk response is that he was horrible in his first chance. The record said as much. He only lasted two seasons with the Broncos, compiling an 11-21 record. He was drinking out of a firehose and not allowed to hire his staff, leaving many to backstab or undermine him.

He has the seven-year itch. He is ready after padding his resume in Arizona and Denver since 2018.

Yet, his candidacy does not seem to be taken seriously in a league where offensive minds are valued more by owners.

Baltimore is the best job, and the idea of Joseph fixing the Ravens’ defense with Davis Webb calling plays for Lamar Jackson is tantalizing. Same goes for the Titans, and possibly the Raiders, depending on your view of Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza as the No. 1 overall draft pick.

Joseph fits in a lot of places, especially if he brings Webb with him. He is not getting his due. Or the respect he deserves. In the end, Arizona could be the landing spot. Ownership appreciated his work as the defensive coordinator under Kliff Kingsbury and how he held things together behind the scenes. He would likely be given three years to get the Cardinals back on track.

Patience helps. But not as much as a quarterback. He would have to mend fences with Kyler Murray, or eat dead money and find a different answer.

Joseph deserves another opportunity. And if he does not land a job in this cycle, there is no defense of that.

Iron Mike: Mike Tomlin’s resignation sent seismic shockwaves through the NFL. I’ve written multiple times in this spot that this was likely his last year with the Steelers. He did not feel appreciated, but the truth is, he hadn’t won a playoff game since the 2016 season. He is a culture builder, a leader. He will benefit from a year off in broadcasting and return fresh with a new perspective on offense.

Seaton leaving: is not a surprise. Despite what CU fanboys scream, Seaton regressed last season, missed multiple games with an injury and did not put on good game tape against Utah. To regain his first-round status, Seaton needs better coaching. And, obviously, more money. But that has led to a potential odd destination. Mississippi State? Sure, the Bulldogs can pay him, but they are an SEC also-ran. Would he really choose his old CU line boss and current Bulldogs coach Phil Loadholt over a powerhouse? That seems like a miscalculation.

Receiver in the backfield: Even before Saturday’s anticipated chill and windy weather, it was obvious the Broncos need to run to win. The Bills’ rush defense stinks. As much as I want Jaleel McLaughlin to carry the load, Marvin Mims Jr. represents a secret playmaker. When the Bills crack, they become the San Andreas Fault. They have allowed more long touchdown runs than anyone. This is where Mims in the backfield could go off. One 35-yard burst could change the game. Sean Payton will write “Run It” on his playsheet. Now, do us all a favor and do it. ]]> 7396463 2026-01-16T15:24:55+00:00 2026-01-16T15:26:39+00:00 /2026/01/16/josh-allen-john-elway-peyton-manning-broncos-bills-nfl-playoffs/ Fri, 16 Jan 2026 18:46:27 +0000 /?p=7395811 You carve Josh Allen in the playoffs the way you carve a turkey at Thanksgiving. Cut off the legs.

Don’t let him be John Elway in John Elway’s house. It’s bad enough that Allen comes into Denver with Disney dropping rose petals at his feet and the NFL blowing sweet kisses at his back.

He’s the best player left in the postseason. He’s the last generational quarterback standing in the AFC. He’s the only sexy name still swinging at a party that usually has Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson or Joe Burrow waiting to break his heart.

It’s his turn, they say.

Fine. Make him earn it.

Make him throw.

into Peyton Manning.

Take away the feet.

Score enough points to force the arm.

Allen’s got an 8-6 lifetime record in the NFL playoffs. He’s also 2-5 when he’s had to pass it more than 36 times in a game. Allen’s 0-3 when he’s chucked it 40 or more times.

The talking heads want to make Saturday’s AFC Divisional tussle at Empower Field complicated. It isn’t.

Want to beat the Bills? Don’t let him run. Don’t let them run.

“Yeah, I think, with him, it’s just understanding the type of player he is,” Broncos defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers, who saw plenty of Allen as a member of the New York Jets, told me earlier this week. “That’s a physical football team. That’s a physical player. (He’s) a big guy also — you’re talking about a guy that’s 6-foot-5 and 250 (pounds), so he’s bigger than every linebacker in the NFL and half of the ends in the NFL.

“So you understand that the brand of football they’re going to play. And you have to match it. You have to be willing to match it.”

It was too easy for him last January. Too easy for all of them. The Bills brought baseball bats and two-by-fours to last January’s AFC wild-card tussle. The Broncos brought a happy stare.

James Cook’s first carry went for 16 yards around his right tackle, the Broncos were gashed, Bills Mafia smelled blood, and the tone was set. Buffalo ran it 17 times on first down in a 31-7 rout a year ago before their game-ending kneels. The Bills averaged an unsightly 6.5 yards per carry on those first-down runs. In terms of execution and physicality, it was like watching the JV tackle the varsity.

Allen did the rest. On third-down-and-3-yards-or-fewer, he converted all five of the chances he faced vs. Denver — four of them on QB runs. The Bills’ signal-caller was 2 for 2 on fourth-down-and-2-or-less, with one conversion turning into a 24-yard touchdown.

“He’s a special player, obviously,” Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph noted earlier this week. “(There are) certain guys in this league that can take over games, and (Allen is) one of those guys. But we knew to win the championship here, it was going to go through Patrick (Mahomes) and Lamar (Jackson) and Josh and Joe Burrow. I mean, that����ap the AFC side. Unfortunately, that����ap where we live. So we knew we (had) to face one of those guys eventually.”

In hindsight, maybe we should be a little thankful. Allen and the Bills reminded the Broncos of what they weren’t. What they lacked. So coach Sean Payton and general manager George Paton went out and added steel to the spine last spring, signing away safety Talanoa Hufanga and linebacker Dre Greenlaw from the 49ers.

Hufanga was a heat-seeking missile who came exactly as advertised. Even though Greenlaw was hurt much of the year, Denver allowed the fourth-fewest average rush yards on first down (3.91 per carry) in the NFL during the regular season. (The Bills’ offense, meanwhile, ranked sixth in yards per rush — 4.84 — on first down.)

The Broncos had the NFL’s No. 3 defense in average rush yards allowed on third-and-3-or-less (2.75 per carry). Denver allowed just one 100-yard rusher all year (Jonathan Taylor, back in Week 2). That hadn’t happened since 2015. The Broncos’ defense had allowed an average of five 100-yard rushers over the previous three regular seasons.

“We were watching that (31-7) game, seeing how (the Bills) played us last year and all that different stuff,” wideout/returner Marvin Mims told me. “But so many different pieces (are gone) that you don’t even think about. It’s like, ‘Dang, he’s not here anymore … we’re not doing this as much anymore.’ So it was kind of weird, looking back at it.

“But at the end of the day, (it was) a learning experience, for sure, for the guys that are still here and for everyone that was a part of it. And just kind of knowing (that) those dudes (in Buffalo) know what they’re doing. They’ve been in this stage multiple times, within all their careers, their core  — and so (it’s about) just going out there and just trying to do the best we can and knock them off.”

You can’t let up, either. Since the ’20-21 postseason, Allen has led the Bills on 10 playoff drives in the final 8:30 of the fourth quarter while Buffalo was trailing. His numbers:

• 36 completions on 59 pass attempts (61%)

• 14 rushes, 78 yards, 5.6 yards per carry

• 3.8 points per Allen possession

“And that truly is the tough part,” Franklin-Myers continued, “is that you have to be willing to play (all the way). If it’s 60 minutes, if it’s 100 minutes — you have to be willing to play every second, because that’s what they’re going to do.

“And at the same time, no lead is big enough for them. You can be up 30 points on them. That’s a smart team. One play sparks them and they come back. So, man, you’ve got to be physical.”

You’ve got to take away the lower body. You’ve got to force Allen to play to your strengths — not his. You’ve got to make him test Patrick Surtain II, Riley Moss and Ja’Quan McMillian.

When Allen has had to throw it 41 times or more in the regular season, he’s 10-13. The dude’s 1-3 in postseason games when he commits a turnover. He’s 7-3 when he doesn’t. To win in January, it’s about making the finest miss on the finest of margins.

“I mean, it truly is,” Franklin-Myers stressed. “It’s about who’s going to make the most mistakes. But, I mean, Sean (Payton) says it all the time: ‘It’s the turnovers.’

“You have everybody’s hopes and dreams in your hands when you have the ball in your hands. You only hope that, as a home defense, every chance we get, we punch it out. And on offense, that we protect as much as possible. In the playoffs, these games are close, and teams are either taking care of the ball or making awful mistakes. And that’s how you see some of these games getting out of hand, too.”

Don’t sweat the narrative. You’ve already lost it. Sweat the small stuff. Make Allen throw. If the Winter Soldier is one-dimensional, it won’t be long before everybody in ����apountry eats.

“Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills are going to the Super Bowl,” ESPN analyst and former NFL defensive back Ryan Clark declared on “First Take” on Monday. “Josh Allen showed us once again (against Jacksonville) that he’s Superman.

“Superman is a metahuman. There are no more metahumans in the AFC (bracket). Patrick Mahomes ain’t there. Lamar Jackson ain’t there. Joe Burrow is not there … What we saw from (Allen) in the fourth quarter (Sunday) is what the Buffalo Bills should be thinking every single game. ‘If it’s close and it’s late, we have the best player left playing.'”

They do. And if I’m Sean Payton, I’ve got that quote playing on a loop all week at Dove Valley. I’m plastering it on signs that get hung up all over Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit. Where everybody can read it. So everyone can feel it.

The best coaches play the underdog card the way . Any sound bite is a potential weapon. Any pithy comment could be turned into a rallying cry or rocket fuel. Context? Ha. Doesn’t matter. It’s just gotta stick.

Michael Malone, during his Nuggets days, was a genius at creating enemies, of underlining slights that may or may not have ever been real. Liam Coen’s use of Payton’s “small market” comment about Jacksonville last month was a great example of crafting something completely innocuous into an aluminum bat — then handing it to your guys to go bash the speaker’s team in the ankles with it.

Payton should’ve known better, in hindsight. But now it’s his turn. See that rusty knife lying over there in the corner? Shouldn’t even be that hard to sharpen the blasted thing, let alone twist it.

The Broncos are the Jan Brady of AFC story arcs. Bills this. Bills that.

As far as the national sports networks are concerned this week, Payton and his players might as well be extras in their own movie.

Remember the 2023 Nuggets postseason? Just replace “LeBron James” with “Josh Allen,” and you’ll have a pretty good idea of where the noise is going. Which means, until Saturday, you might want to keep the earmuffs within arm’s reach. Earmuffs and a stiff drink.

By Monday, ����apountry’s biggest week in 10 years had already jumped feet-first into ludicrous — especially on the respect front. Get this: The Bills opened the week as a 1.5-point favorite for Saturday’s Divisional Round game. On the road. Against the AFC’s top seed. In January. At altitude.

If that struck you as unusual, that’s because it is. According to YahooSports.com, Denver is just the third No. 1 seed since

The 2017 Eagles were the last ‘1’ seed to make that list. They won their postseason home opener and rolled all the way to a Super Bowl title. The 1971 Vikings were the other team, and Minnesota wound up falling at home to Dallas in its initial playoff contest.

So the Broncos are the rubber game in NFL history. Precedent says Payton has Allen and the Bills right where he wants them.

The Broncos are 4-1, straight up, as a Vegas underdog this season. We remember the 2025 team as one that constantly seemed to play down to its competition. But we’re forgetting the team that, more often than not, met the moment.

Philly on the road. Dallas at home. Kansas City at home. The Packers at home. Before Monday night, the last team to beat the Texans was Denver, in Houston, all the way back on Nov. 2.

And did you notice how every one of those wacky wild-card games Saturday and Sunday felt so darn familiar? That’s because, for the most part, they looked exactly like the ones the Broncos have been playing all year long. And winning.

They’re built for this. They have been from Week 1.

Now? Now the Broncos are a No. 1 seed in name only, as far as the cognoscenti are concerned, a team of wallflowers standing in the way of the narrative. The coasts have decided it’s Josh Allen’s turn. It’s ����apountry against the world. And the world’s favored by a safety.

“If Cam Newton and John Elway walked into that little machine they had , it would come out as Josh Allen,” Clark continued Monday.

“When you are that talented, when you can run that way, when you are powerful that way, when you can throw the football and place it anywhere on the field — and there is no Kryptonite in the form of Patrick Mahomes, you have to go do it. And this is the year Josh Allen gets it done.”

You don’t have to be taking Bozempic to get fired up for this one after that. If Payton’s keeping receipts, Superman is about to enter a no-fly zone.

The linebacker motioned one back and asked a question, quietly, not knowing whether he actually wanted the answer.

“Was it the worst of all time?”

The answer brought no comfort.

Technically, Sept. 24, 2023 was not the worst defensive outing in NFL history. But it was, far and away, the worst in Broncos history.

Seventy points allowed. More than 350 yards surrendered running and passing each to Miami.

Denver was not just 0-3 under head coach Sean Payton, but off to the worst defensive start in franchise history under new coordinator Vance Joseph after the worst game in franchise history. The next week, the Broncos trailed 28-7 to Justin Fields and the Bears, who shredded Denver’s defense, too, before a massive second-half comeback.

To put it mildly, Joseph had a bad opening month in his return to Denver as the coordinator. He already arrived with questions, given his earlier head coaching tenure with the club ended when he was fired after two seasons. Payton very publicly talked about several other candidates he’d considered for the coordinator posting before landing on Joseph.

As Joseph tried to mesh some of his own system with a more Vic Fangio-style scheme run previously by Ejiro Evero in Denver — a style many of the returning players liked — the new coordinator found himself inside a burning defensive building.

“I mean, 70 points is a (crap) show,”  said defensive tackle Zach Allen, who has had Joseph as his coordinator for all seven of his NFL seasons dating to 2019 in Arizona. “You do that, you’re 0-3, then Chicago, you’re down 28-7 at half and it����ap like, ‘Oh my god.’”

“It was brutal,” cornerback Riley Moss, a rookie in 2023, told The Post recently. “That was my first NFL experience, like, is this how this (crap) is supposed to go? Obviously not.”

Two years later, Joseph is among the most popular head coaching candidates in the NFL.

Far from getting fired or continuing to struggle, the veteran coordinator instead turned the Broncos into one of the most feared defenses in football.

Far from the passive, read-and-react front deployed in 2023, Joseph has engineered an unprecedented assault on opposing quarterbacks, racking up 131 sacks and 306 quarterback hits in the past two regular seasons.

He did it, at the core, by being himself.

“That����ap a Harvard Business School case study of leadership right there,” Allen told the Post.

‘I’ll go out on my shield’

In the spring of 2023, the only remnants left from Nathaniel Hackett����ap time as Denver’s head coach were in the defensive meeting rooms.

The Broncos’ defense put forth a salty 2022 season under Evero before finally caving late in a lost season.

When Payton was hired, he cleaned out just about everybody on staff except a pair of talented young assistants in secondary coach Christian Parker and defensive line coach Marcus Dixon.

Joseph and players talked about taking some of the previous defensive principles and incorporating them into his system.

“Year 1, there definitely were people who were like, ‘I want to stick to the old ways and Evero’s way,’” Allen said. “And Vance tried to do that because it was a successful defense. We were kind of mixing the two.”

That quickly backfired when the season began. It wasn’t their only problem, but Joseph decided quickly that striking a balance wasn’t going to work.

“He wanted to try to meld a little bit of that, but especially after that Dolphins game, he was like, ‘If it����ap going to go like that, I’ll go out on my shield,’” inside linebacker Justin Strnad told The Post.

The problem: There’s no good way to make a massive overhaul on the fly. The Broncos’ defense did improve dramatically, though, over the rest of the season. Denver won five straight and pushed to the doorstep of the playoff picture before finishing 8-9.

Publicly, the Broncos’ quarterback situation dominated offseason headlines. First, cutting Russell Wilson and taking $85 million in dead salary cap in the process. Then, drafting Bo Nix.

Joseph, meanwhile, helped oversee a defensive overhaul that drew far less attention.

Parker and Dixon left for jobs in Philadelphia and Minnesota, respectively — two very productive defenses in their own right. Denver promoted Jamar Cain to defensive line coach and hired Jim Leonhard to coach the secondary.  Stalwart safety Justin Simmons was cut in the spring, the biggest in a series of personnel changes. The Broncos signed safety Brandon Jones in March and traded for defensive tackle John Franklin-Myers during the draft.

Then the group showed up for organized team activities in May. Joseph had a message in the first defensive meeting.

“He said, ‘I’m just going to rip it and do it my way,’” Allen recalled.

Added Moss, “We all kind of sat down and they taught us, this is how we’re going to do it. If you see it another way, yes, you can bring it up. Yes, we can have that conversation. But this is how we’re going to start off doing it.”

‘It����ap something special’

Over the subsequent two seasons, few defenses have been more consistent and more disruptive than Denver’s.

Joseph’s group this year finished third in scoring and second in total defense. First in the red zone and second on third downs.

Over the past 34 regular-season games, the Broncos have 33 more sacks than anybody else. The Vikings are a distant second, with 98.

There are myriad reasons for the success. The Broncos have major hits in free agency like Allen, Jones and safety Talanoa Hufanga, among others. They’ve developed a host of draft picks and undrafted players into All-Pros and high-quality starters like outside linebackers Nik Bonitto and Jonathan Cooper, nickel Ja’Quan McMillian, Moss and more.

They, of course, have one of the best defensive players in football in cornerback and reigning defensive player of the year Pat Surtain II.

Those are premium tools and Joseph’s carpentry has been excellent and ornate.

“V.J.’s an aggressive play-caller. He’s going to dial stuff up,” Strnad said. … “His defense, there’s a lot of moving parts. Even on some of the pressures — not to give things away, but there are blitzes where you’re reading things on the fly that can change what goes on on that blitz. There’s a lot of things that go into the defense, but he’s done a great job.”

Joseph preaches players before scheme and lives by it.

He’s convinced players who struggled early that they could excel.

Bonitto this summer recalled Joseph bringing him up to his office after a dismal rookie year and telling him he could be special.

Moss, same thing.

“As a rookie, I was still kind of, ‘Can I play in the NFL?’” Moss said. “Everyone questions that. But he’s always been behind me, always had my back.”

Joseph’s match-heavy system requires players to think on the fly and communicate at a high level, but now, three years in with much of the core, they operate daily as Ph.Ds.

“He’s really good at just understanding (situations) and he’s not tied to, ‘It has to be this play, this play, this play,’” Allen said. “He looks at, what are our strengths? What are our weaknesses? And then he works in that space. From day dot, he’s been awesome with that. …

“This year, it was just that perfect mix where it����ap the culmination of the talent and then on top of that, I think he’s done a hell of a job of explaining why we’re doing certain stuff and getting guys to 100% buy into it all. When you combine those two, it����ap something special.”

‘His standard is set high’

Of course, should Joseph land a head coaching job, that kind of expertise is not necessarily waiting for him in a new locker room.

Systems take time to learn. Talent takes time to accumulate.

The New York Giants have a wealth of defensive difference-makers as they pursue a head coach, but not every team with a vacancy can say the same. Baltimore and Miami each have talent, too.

Plus, defense is just part of the equation when you’re in the big chair. The Broncos were in quarterback purgatory when Joseph had the head coaching job in 2017-18 and it showed. The current openings range from having promising young quarterbacks in place — Jaxson Dart with the Giants and Cam Ward in Tennessee — to Las Vegas owning the No. 1 pick in April’s draft, question marks in Atlanta, Cleveland, Miami and Arizona and MVP winner Lamar Jackson in his Baltimore prime.

Quarterback, staff, ownership, general manager. There are so many elements at play for head coaches that go beyond how to get your nickel on a free run to the quarterback in a critical moment.

In the Broncos locker room, though, players are just as likely to rave about Joseph the leader and person as they are Joseph the tactician.

Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning , “I’m not sure there’s a better characteristic or quality for a head coach than, ‘Do your players play hard for you?’”

There are different ways to achieve that. Hufanga has seen multiple versions during his years in San Francisco and now as a first-year Broncos safety.

With Joseph, he said, two words come to mind: Accountability and consistency.

“There’s games this year where we’ve come in afterward for film and he’s been like, ‘This call is on me,’” Hufanga said. “ And you’re like, dang, there’s not a lot of coaches that are going to do that. They’re going to figure out a way to coach you through a play, but he’ll be like, ‘This play here:  bad play, bad call, bad timing. That����ap on me. That����ap not on you guys.’”

If the guy standing at the front of the room is willing to put failure on his own shoulders, Hufanga said, then there’s no room for anybody else to pass off blame.

“That����ap what he expects out of us, too,” the All-Pro candidate said. “If I make a mistake, I’ve got to be willing to own what I was thinking during that play. Why did I make that mistake? That way, they can help coach me to better processing and better reads. …

“If he’s going to do it, then who are we to not be accountable, too? We want to be our best for him. We’ve got to go out there and play to his standard. And his standard is set high.”

Hufanga said Joseph is “ferocious in the way he attacks life” and said he hasn’t noticed a difference at all as the season’s progressed and Joseph’s name has come up more and more as a head coaching candidate.

“Some people can get lost, especially like in his situation, where he’s getting odds to go other places or could be thinking about other opportunities, but, man, he’s been the same person every single day,” Hufanga said. “And that����ap all you can ask for in this profession. That����ap what he expects out of us and that����ap the way he coaches us.”

Make no mistake, though, Joseph has been taking notes throughout his time in Denver. He’s talked extensively about what he’s learned from Payton and how he’d apply it if he gets the chance to run his own team again.

“How he paints the picture for each player. Each week’s game plan,” Joseph said on Thanksgiving, of what he’s taken from Payton’s style. “The best thing he has done is change the culture and that����ap players. How we draft players — the draft process is a deep dive into players. The person, the player, what����ap the vision for the player? There’s no guessing when you’re drafting players and we’ve drafted really well the last three years.

“Even in free agency, very careful of who you bring into your culture. The culture is changed by the players.”

The Broncos are hoping for a long playoff run and a trip to the Super Bowl to start February. Along the way, several teams will be kicking the tires on Joseph. Six of the seven with head coaching openings have asked to speak with him about head coaching jobs.

That would have been hard to imagine given the way his coordinator tenure started in Denver, but it����ap plain to see why he’s in demand now.

“He’s a fighter. He persevered through it,” Allen said. “I’ve been with him the longest, obviously, but everybody here loves him.  It����ap awesome to see his success. He’s not just a great coach. He’s a great person.”

The Baltimore job came open Tuesday when the organization fired 18-year veteran head coach John Harbaugh. It created the most surprising opening of the seven in the NFL so far this cycle and certainly the only with a perennial MVP candidate at quarterback in Lamar Jackson.

Joseph also had Thursday interviews with Las Vegas and the New York Giants. Joseph has already had an initial interview with Tennessee on Wednesday and is also slated to speak with Arizona. Atlanta also requested an interview with him, but it’s unclear whether that conversation will actually materialize.

Joseph’s slate could potentially get even busier after an eighth NFL job opened Thursday when Miami fired coach Mike McDaniel. Joseph served as defensive coordinator for the Dolphins in 2016 before getting Denver’s head coaching job, which he held from 2017-18. That means he knows the club and knows owner Stephen Ross well.

At just 30 years old, Webb is a fast-riser in the industry. If he doesn’t land a head coaching job this cycle he is likely to be one of the most popular offensive coordinator candidates as the coaching carousel spins over the coming weeks.

Webb is familiar with the Giants, in particular, because he was drafted by the club in the third round of the 2017 draft. That year, he served as Eli Manning’s backup. He returned to the Giants in 2022 and spent most of the season on the practice squad. He started the final game of the season that year, attempted 40 passes and then within a matter of weeks was hired by new Broncos head coach Sean Payton to coach quarterbacks.

Since then, his career trajectory has only trended further and further upward.

Broncos special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi is also expected to interview for the New York Giants’ head coaching job.

All initial head coaching interviews are conducted virtually. Because the Broncos played Sunday and have a bye through the Wild Card round, initial interviews can take place between Wednesday and the conclusion of the Wild Card games.

After that, subsequent interviews cannot take place until either after Denver is eliminated from the playoffs or, if the Broncos make the Super Bowl, the week following the AFC championship game.

“I saw Jim before we played Denver. Jim’s a heck of football coach,” Schottenheimer told reporters in Texas. “You talk about a great football player, man. We had some great years together in New York. Again, I would not say we’ve stayed in touch. This business is hard. You get going a million miles (an hour). You gotta speak to what Sean and what that entire staff has done there. Vance Joseph is a guy I have a ton of respect for.

“Jim’s an excellent coach.”

Pittsburgh (10-7) will host Houston (12-5) in the opening round of the playoffs on Monday, Jan. 12, following an electric fourth quarter that saw four lead changes, including three in the final four minutes.

The Ravens were poised to swing the lead back their way one last time after Lamar Jackson connected with Isaiah Likely for a 28-yard gain that put the Ravens within Loop’s range.

The rookie’s kick never had a chance, sailing well to the right of the goalposts as the Steelers poured onto the field to celebrate their first division title in five years.

Rodgers passed for a season-high 294 yards and made it 26-24. Chris Boswell missed the extra point, giving the Ravens a chance to win with a field goal.

Jackson, dealing with a painful back contusion, passed for 238 yards and three scores, including a pair to Zay Flowers in the fourth quarter. Each of Flowers’ TDs put Baltimore in front.

Pittsburgh responded each time, and will now welcome the Texans while looking to end a playoff victory drought that stretches to the 2016 AFC championship game.

Patriots, Jaguars vying for top seed. The Broncos received a massive belated Christmas gift on Monday courtesy of Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh, who relinquished all gamesmanship and said point-blank that Los Angeles would rest star quarterback Justin Herbert. Denver would have to absolutely implode to lose Sunday’s matchup. In such an event, though, New England (13-3) and Jacksonville (12-4) would be set up to seize that vaunted No. 1 seed in the AFC. The Patriots are playing a 7-9 Dolphins team that’s been mathematically eliminated; the Jaguars face 3-13 Tennessee, one of the worst teams in the NFL. Denver can’t afford to get too cute here.

Fernando-mania. The Raiders are the NFL’s hottest current mess. They’ve lost 10 straight. The Pete Carroll experiment seems all but destined to end after one unceremonious year. 48-year-old minority owner Tom Brady was captured by TMZ getting a little close with 25-year-old influencer Alix Earle on New Year’s Eve. Las Vegas continues to be in the news for plenty of reasons beyond the actual on-field product. The good news? Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is only solidifying his case as a legitimate No. 1 pick, with a 14-of-16 line for 192 yards and three touchdowns in a drubbing of Alabama at the Rose Bowl on Thursday. Raiders general manager John Spytek has to be licking his chops.

Rivers done, again. The great season-saving Philip Rivers Experiment is over, as the 44-year-old will now step back into retirement after three losses in Indianapolis. What a valiant effort it was, though: Rivers has a higher QBR (39.3) in three starts in 2025 than the Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa or the Raiders’ Geno Smith have this season. The Colts announced rookie QB Riley Leonard will start in Week 18, with Indianapolis (8-8) removed from playoff contention. Rivers, though, expressed nothing but gratitude for the opportunity.

“I got three bonus games that I never saw coming,” , “and couldn’t be more thankful that I got an opportunity.”

Around the NFC

Teach me how to Purdy. It’s time to officially crown San Francisco as serious NFC contenders. The 49ers were a distant afterthought in their own division a couple months back, floating at 6-4 behind Seattle and the Rams. Suddenly, the Niners have ripped off six wins in a row with the return of starting quarterback Brock Purdy, who’s playing with rarely-before-seen levels of confidence. Case in point: hitting a nasty Dougie after a touchdown against the Bears last Sunday in a 24-of-33, 303-yard, five-total-TD performance. As , heaven “forbid a white guy has a little bit of motion.”

Packers get secondary help. Green Bay’s seen an unexpected influx of Cowboys into their building in 2025. First came Micah Parsons. Now, former All-Pro Trevon Diggs is joining the fray after Dallas cut bait and waived him this week. The cornerback is far from the same player who led the NFL with 11 interceptions in 2021, torched for four touchdowns and a 157.2 quarterback rating in eight games this season. But there’s still talent in there, and perhaps Diggs will be motivated by a fresh start.

Can Stafford seize an MVP? The race for the league’s top award is still wide-open entering Week 18. Support for the Rams’ Matthew Stafford, long the season favorite, has faltered significantly after he threw three interceptions in Monday’s 27-24 loss to the Falcons. The stats don’t lie, though: Stafford’s 42 touchdown passes are nine more than any other NFL quarterback entering the final regular-season game of the year. If Stafford gets back on track against the 3-13 Cardinals Sunday, consider the Most Valuable Player discussion wrapped up.

Game of the Week

Baltimore at Pittsburgh

It’s a Sunday Night doozy. Lamar Jackson vs. Aaron Rodgers for sole possession of an AFC North title — and a playoff berth. Loser’s bounced out of the bracket entirely. Jackson confirmed this week he’ll play after missing last Saturday’s win with a back contusion, in what’s been an overall-frustrating year for the MVP due to injuries and roster instability.

There could be major long-term ramifications on the line for both organizations in Pittsburgh on Sunday.  A Ravens loss could bring an end of an era to the John Harbaugh-Jackson partnership in Baltimore, with trade rumors swirling around Jackson for the better part of a strange season. A Steelers loss could bring an end to the Mike Tomlin era in Pittsburgh, with rampant speculation (okay, there’s speculation literally every year) around Tomlin’s job security. Sunday should, in general, bring a unique new chapter in a historic NFL rivalry.

Baltimore 24, Pittsburgh 20

Lock of the Week

Tennessee at Jacksonville

There aren’t a ton of playoff teams with a ton left to play for in Week 18. The Jaguars are one of them. And they just so happen to be facing the 3-13 Titans. Tennessee’s been playing much-improved offensive ball across the last month, as rookie Cam Ward has six touchdowns and zero interceptions in his last three starts. Still, the Jaguars should be motivated to put this one to bed early to preserve a shot at the one-seed and get their starters some second-half rest.

Jaguars 31, Titans 20

Upset of the Week

Washington at Philadelphia

Don’t look now, but the reigning champs should be squarely back in the thick of the Super Bowl discussion. Philadelphia’s offense is still a sludge. But Vic Fangio’s defense is playing as well as any unit in the league: the Eagles have surrendered just 14.5 points a game across their last eight weeks.

That being said, this could be a classic end-of-year stunner. Philadelphia’s resting quarterback Jalen Hurts against the Commanders, despite a shot at the No. 2 seed if they’d beat Washington. That’d signal the Eagles will sit other key starters; Washington’s suffered through a brutal season with Jayden Daniels banged up, but backup Marcus Mariota has done some solid work at times. This could be an ugly, meaningless upset.

Commanders 16, Eagles 13

No problems, Houston. Six weeks ago, who could have foreseen the AFC South being one of the best races out there and not including Indianapolis? The last time Houston lost was to the Broncos on Nov. 1. The last time Jacksonville lost? A week later, to the Texans. DeMeco Ryans and his salty defense have a great chance to run their record to 10-5 and their winning streak to seven Sunday against the Raiders.

Tua the bench. The Dolphins made a big change this week, benching quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Instead of former Bronco Zach Wilson, coach Mike McDaniel is turning to rookie Quinn Ewers. The bigger impact here, though: Miami might well be moving toward dumping Tagovailoa, which after this season would come with $99 million in dead cap charges. That would blow Russell Wilson’s record out of the water.

Steelers closing in. Pittsburgh fell to 6-6 but has since won two straight to get to 8-6 and in control of the AFC North. At one game ahead of Baltimore, Week 18 could still end up being a division championship game. In the meantime, Aaron Rodgers and company have a tough road trip to Detroit, plus a trip to Cleveland to deal with. The good news for Mike Tomlin’s team is that it’s built a bit of margin to work with. At this rate, the second-place finisher is getting left out of the postseason.

Around the NFC

Game of the year. Seattle’s 38-37 walk-off, overtime win against the Los Angeles Rams might have been the best Thursday Night Football game in history. The Seahawks trailed by 16 at home midway through the fourth quarter, stormed back to tie the game and then won on a salty 2-point conversion call dialed up by former Broncos assistant Klint Kubiak and caught by former Broncos tight end Eric Saubert. Incredible game overall. Now Seattle’s alone in first in the rugged NFC West at 12-3.

COY consideration. He’s not going to win coach of the year, but find somebody who’s done a better job than Kyle Shanahan in San Francisco. The club’s dealt with injury after injury, the strange departure of Brandon Ayiuk and plays in the toughest division in football. All the Niners have done is get to 10-4. Not only that, but San Francisco at this point controls its own fate. They got a boost from Seattle on Thursday night. Shanahan’s team has a tough finish, but if they can win out — at Indianapolis, then Chicago and Seattle at home — they’ll be the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

Who wants the South? Does anybody care to be crowned NFC South champion? The Bucs have lost consecutive games to New Orleans and Atlanta. Carolina could have taken control of the division but lost last week to the Saints, too. Now Tampa and Carolina play twice over the final three games of the season to try to sort out who’s going to the playoffs. The Panthers have a tougher game in between — vs. Seattle compared to Tampa traveling to Miami — but the best analysis of this division overall so far has been, basically, “Who knows?”

Game of the Week

New England at Baltimore

With two terrific games already in the rearview and the Broncos and Jaguars also not under consideration for this exercise, we get to potentially the fourth-best game of the weekend. It����ap still a dandy because of where the Patriots and Ravens each sit. New England blew a 21-0 lead to Buffalo and now has Josh Allen looking awfully big in the rearview mirror. The Ravens are flawed and flummoxing, and yet they can still force Pittsburgh into a division title game in Week 18. Who would want to face Lamar Jackson in the playoffs if they’ve won, say, four in a row entering Wild Card weekend? The Patriots have fallen behind Denver for the No. 1 seed, but if they get through this game, finishing vs. Miami and the New York Jets will keep the pressure on Denver and hold the Bills at arm’s length. Easier said than done as three-point road underdogs, but the bet here is they find a way.

Patriots 24, Ravens 23

Lock of the Week

Buffalo at Cleveland

Allen’s gone Superman mode the past three weeks to pull Buffalo from a little wobbly to looking like a force to be reckoned with in the AFC. The past two weeks have seen the Bills trail Cincinnati by 10 in the fourth quarter and trail the Patriots by three touchdowns early. Allen turned them both into wins. Between another MVP-type run and a league-best rushing attack led by Dalvin Cook, this is a group that����ap rounding into form. They need to win their final three and have the Patriots drop a division game against either the Jets or Miami to pull off a full-on division stunner, but even if they end up second in the AFC East, nobody wants to see Sean McDermott����ap team coming to their building on Wild Card weekend. Oh, yeah, and don’t trip up against those sometimes-pesky Browns on the road as a 10.5-point favorite.

Bills 33, Browns 19

Upset of the Week

Los Angeles Chargers at Dallas

The Chargers may feel a long way back of the Broncos in the AFC West, but they’re really not. They’ve just not been able to make up any ground in three months because Denver hasn’t lost since, well, the last time the Broncos and Chargers played Week 3. Jim Harbaugh’s team is beat up and quarterback Justin Herbert gets battered on a weekly basis. And yet the group is 10-4 and just needs a pair of wins and one Broncos loss to set up a division title game in Week 18 in Denver. Easier said than done, considering the run Denver is on and also the fact that L.A. could be underdogs in its next two games on the road against the Cowboys and at home against surging Houston. Still, if ever there’s a team that can be scored upon, it’s Dallas, and Jesse Minter’s defense can at least slow the Cowboys down. The Chargers have a great chance to keep pace despite being 2.5-point underdogs.

Chargers 27, Cowboys 24