Denver Broncos secure No. 1 seed in the playoffs for first time in a decade with a win in their regular season finale

For the ninth time since 1975, the Denver Broncos have secured the No. 1 seed in the AFC at the conclusion of the regular season. They achieved the feat — which means a bye next weekend and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs — by beating the Los Angeles Chargers 19-3 at home on Sunday.

With the win, the Broncos end the regular season with an impressive 14-3 record. That included only one loss at Empower Field at Mile High — a 34-20 defeat on Dec. 21 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Broncos already secured their first AFC West title eight days ago and now can enjoy two weeks of rest before their first playoff game.

The only other time the Broncos had 14 wins in a regular season was in 1998 when John Elway was the quarterback.

Denver could face the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Chargers, Houston Texans or Pittsburgh Steelers in two weeks. If the Broncos win in the Divisional Round of the playoffs, they'll advance to the conference championship game, which would also be played in Denver. A win there would mean a trip to Super Bowl LX, which will be played in the San Francisco Bay Area. The game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, takes place on Feb. 8.

Broncos coach Sean Payton said he's excited to be playing at least one playoff game at home.

"To be able to play in front of our fans with the crowd noise, the atmosphere. ... It's been a while since they've hosted a playoff game," he said. "Certainly, it's a fan base that deserves that opportunity. I get excited for them, and I get excited for our team. All of it's important. Having been through this nine, 10 other times, you've seen it all — and you recognize how important it is."

Sunday's win also marks the first time the Broncos have beaten the Chargers since their head coach Jim Harbaugh was hired in 2024.