ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — When Head Coach Sean Payton arrived in Denver in the early months of 2023, the Broncos' primary focus was clear.
As the Broncos looked to end a playoff drought, their aim began with unseating the Chiefs from atop the AFC West.
"There's a history with all those division opponents, and usually you have to find a way to beat the one that's at the top," Payton said Wednesday. "That was our task right away. It was Kansas City. They had won this division however many years in a row."
That focus remained in 2025, as Payton outlined the Broncos' three goals for the season. The first, he mentioned on several occasions, was winning the division — and the Broncos made that a reality for the first time since 2015.
Now, the challenge begins anew, with the Broncos aiming to stay atop the AFC West. But as Payton and several Broncos veterans noted ahead of Week 1, the key to earning a second consecutive division title comes from an internal focus rather than looking around the division at possible challengers.
"When you win it, now you've got to find a way to stay there," Payton said. "… We're competing in a good division — a real good division. You just look around, everyone's gotten better. But the focus more is internal — our improvement and playing well."
Veteran tight end Evan Engram — who also won a division title in 2022 with Jacksonville — agreed with his head coach's sentiment, citing a series of internal characteristics.
"It's a standard we've set for ourself," Engram told DenverBroncos.com. "It's the goals that we're trying to reach. I think we just have a really good team that's able to look in the mirror and know things we have to work on. We're able to take tough criticism, we're able to take tough coaching. I think all of our focus is on that and improving. The results, when we go up against our opponents, kind of take care of themselves.
"Obviously, when you're a top dog, you're kind of chased. But I think it comes down to how we see ourselves. We see ourselves as a great team, and we know we have to go prove it."
The Broncos' chance to do that begins in Week 1 as they travel to face the Chiefs on "Monday Night Football." The two teams have collectively won every AFC West title since 2010, and the early season game could prove significant as the season progresses. Denver's practice on Wednesday was about 50 percent devoted to "getting a jump start" on preparation for Kansas City, according to Payton, and the Broncos expect a difficult challenge in facing two-time MVP Patrick Mahomes.
"You've seen enough things, where, he's going to be 100 percent," Payton said of Mahomes. "And we're preparing for his best. We know how talented he is."
The difficulty of the matchup and the challenge that awaits only reinforces the sentiment that Denver's focus must be granular as the team looks to continue its success in the division.
"I don't know if your mentality changes," defensive lineman Zach Allen said. "It's just more of, look, we're in a really good division with a lot of good teams. All four teams are really competitive. We've just got to take it week to week. I don't think we're really looking at it down the line like that or already doing standings watching.
"I think the big thing is we just want to try to go 1-0 this week vs. the Chiefs, and obviously everybody knows how good they are. It's going to be a challenge, but we're excited."
