The Denver Broncos improved their odds of making the postseason to 91% with a victory over the Indianapolis Colts this Sunday. Now, they can clinch their first postseason berth since Super Bowl 50 with a win over their division rival Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday Night Football.
If they fail to defeat the Chargers, they can still clinch a postseason berth with losses by the Colts, Dolphins, and Bengals. However, the Broncos control their destiny and just need to win one of their final three games to clinch the postseason on their own terms.
The 9-5 Broncos head to Los Angeles to take on the 8-6 Chargers on Thursday Night Football. This game will be huge for both teams as the Broncos will look to clinch a postseason berth while the Chargers will look to do the same and snap out of their recent skid that has seen them lose three out of four games.
The Chargers defeated the Broncos earlier in the year, but this is a different Broncos team than the one they saw in week 5. They fell to 3-3 on the year after that loss and have gone 6-2 since and have leapfrogged the Chargers in the playoff standings.
If the Broncos cannot defeat the Chargers on Thursday Night, we'll head into Sunday rooting for the Colts, Bengals, and Dolphins all to lose so the Broncos can clinch that way.
The Bengals will host their division rival Browns, the Colts host their divisional rival Titans, while the Dolphins will host a 49ers team fighting for their postseason lives.
For the Broncos, it is simple. They need to win one of their final three games to clinch a postseason berth. They play the Chargers, Bengals, and Chiefs in the finale and I feel confident they can find a win in one of those three games and end their postseason drought and I believe it will happen as soon as this Thursday Night.