Initial thoughts from the Broncos’ 38-0 win over the Chiefs in Week 18 at Empower Field: 1. Off to Buffalo: Will the last demon exorcised from Empower Field please turn out the lights? The Broncos’ most successful regular season since Peyton Manning hung up his six-shooter ended with a historic, and emphatic laugher. Let’s get this out of the way first: Did Andy Reid show up intending to win? Not with that version of Carson Wentz, no. But so what? You can only pound who’s in front of you. The Broncos shook off nearly a decade’s worth of misery, both against the Chiefs, and the NFL, in one swoop. Denver’s 38 points against Kansas City were the most since Dec. 30, 2012. Which was also the last time a Broncos team led KC by more than 17 points at halftime (21-3). The win also marked consecutive home victories over the Chiefs for the first time since 2013-14. The orange and blue are shuffling off to Buffalo, to the postseason, and doing it with style. Take Our Poll 2. Nix trix: And the Broncos don’t get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2015-’16 without solving the league’s most basic truism: Gotta have a combo at coach and quarterback. It was costly. And it was a long time coming. But the Broncos finally got there with Sean Payton and Bo Nix. This franchise can start moving forward again, now that it knows that it can build around the latter. And how’s this for marking your territory as a rookie? Nix’s 18 passing scores at home were a new NFL rookie record. His 18 straight completions were the most ever by a first-year NFL QB to open a game, and only two behind Hugh Millen’s record of 20 straight for the Broncos’ single-game consecutive completion record. 3. Sutton incentives: Courtland Sutton redid his contract in the summer to try and help the Broncos soldier through the expensive and painful Russell Wilson divorce. In September, he converted $11.75 million of salary into a bonus and added three void years to his deal — lessening his cap number by $9.5 million this year. No. 14 got some of that money back on Sunday, as his 89 receiving yards by halftime ensured that a $500,000 contract bonus would kick in. Sutton’s half-million came late in the second quarter, putting him at 1,072 receiving yards for the season with a half left to play. The veteran’s deal called for a $500,000 payout once Sutton hit 1,065 yards on the year. A 47-yard catch in the first quarter got him to 1,000 yards, making him the first Broncos player to hit the 1K mark in receiving yardage since 2019. 4. Orange and true: Why should the Broncos petition the NFL to wear their ’77 Orange Crush throwbacks as often as possible? It’s not nostalgia. It’s not fashion. As our old pal Ron Burgundy once said, it’s science. The Broncos went into Week 18 averaging 1.92 points per drive. Over their first 16 drives this season while wearing the classic ‘D’ on a blue helmet, the Broncos whupped the Raiders 34-18 and took a 24-0 lead into halftime against the starter-less Chiefs. Points per drive: 3.63 — a better clip than both the Lions (3.06) and Bills (3.00) were toting on offense going into their respective season finales. The lesson? As long as the Broncos are crushing it in the throwbacks, keep those bad boys in the rotation. Related Articles Denver Broncos | After years of waiting, Broncos WR Courtland Sutton relishes opportunity to play in postseason Denver Broncos | Broncos end postseason drought, secure No. 7 seed behind rookie QB Bo Nix’s sizzling finale: “Our goal wasn’t just to make the playoffs” Denver Broncos | Renck: Broncos, Bo Nix prove they belong with emphatic playoff-clinching rout of Kansas City Chiefs Denver Broncos | PHOTOS: Denver Broncos win 38-0 over the Kansas City Chiefs in NFL Week 18 Denver Broncos | Broncos finish season with team-record 63 sacks: “It really is a special group” Want more Broncos news? Sign up for the Broncos Insider to get all our NFL analysis.