NFL Week 13 Predictions: Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs (-7)

Betting Overview:

Whatever head coach Josh McDaniels is doing in Denver, Broncos fans just want him to stop.

The preseason NFL predictions had the Broncos as a playoff team, but as the NFL scores keep rolling in the NFL betting world is realizing that getting rid of Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall really were huge mistakes made by McDaniels. As the head coach continues to dismantle what was a good football team, the Broncos fans are left playing second fiddle to the hated Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders.

The Chiefs have become one of the most potent running offenses in the NFL. The Chiefs have ridden their running game all the way to a 7-4 record and top spot in the AFC West. In order to stay ahead of the hard-charging San Diego Chargers in the standings, the Chiefs will have to keep winning these divisional games and hope that the Chargers start to falter.

Offense:

The Denver Broncos have one of the best quarterbacks in the league, but they cannot win football games. Kyle Orton has thrown for 3,370 yards and 20 touchdowns this season, yet the Broncos are 3-8.

One of the problems for the Broncos is the lack of a running game to go along with their passing game. Knowshon “No Show” Moreno only has 472 rushing yards this season and four touchdowns. Moreno has been hampered by injuries this season, but he has not been very impressive even when healthy. The Broncos do not fumble a lot, but when they do it seems to cost them big time.

The Chiefs make it very clear how they score points.

They take running backs Thomas Jones and Jamaal Charles and they run the ball all day long. Jones and Charles have 1,733 rushing yards combined. When the opposing defense is nice and beat up from the run, quarterback Matt Cassel can throw it over the top and hurt you deep. Everyone knows that the Kansas City running game is coming, but few have been able to stop it.

Defense:

The Chiefs know how to run the ball on offense and then stop the run on defense. But Kansas City has problems with their pass defense. They cannot seem to get any pressure on the quarterback when they need to, and their secondary has problems covering the deep ball. Since the Broncos have no running game, it may be interesting to see if the Chiefs defense can step up and stop the Broncos passing game.

The Broncos are in big trouble in this game. Denver’s run defense ranks 31 in the league, and they have not shown the ability to stop anyone to this point. Even if the Broncos shut down the passing game, they will not have an answer for the Chiefs rushing attack.

The Bottom Line:

It is always fun when the Broncos and the Chiefs play, but this is one of the first times in years that a game this late in the season has been so important to the Chiefs. The Chargers are doing their usual second-half surge, and the only thing the Chiefs can do to fend off San Diego is keep winning.

Pick: Kansas City Chiefs