The Denver Broncos will face the Kansas City Chiefs in the Monday Night Football opener. The game will be played in Arrowhead, and despite that, Denver has the advantage. Here’s the biggest reason why.
The Chiefs have made some major moves this offseason. They traded two-time All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams for in exchnage for four draft picks. They also let go of another important cornerback, Jaylen Watson, in free agency.
To replace the players who left, Kansas City signed Kader Kohou, a former Miami Dolphins cornerback, to a one-year deal. The other move was drafting Mansoor Delane in the first round, specifically to replace McDuffie.
It’s a good move for the long term. For Week One, however, it may backfire. Delane will likely face off against newly acquired Jaylen Waddle for the Broncos. For a debut game, that is not a situation that favors Delane.
The other big signing the Chiefs had was signing Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III. Once again, it’s a nice acquisition for the long term, but it may not be effective in Week One. Denver was second in the league against the run last year in yards.
For Walker, it would have been nice for him to acclimate to his new team against lighter competition. Kansas City has made some moves this offseason to bounce back, but they’d like to mold the pieces before facing a matchup as tough as the Broncos.
It has been five months since Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL. He’s been recovering well and has already posted videos of himself throwing the ball and walking fine. There’s a good chance that he will play in Week One.
With that said, the Broncos are the last team Mahomes would want to face in his return game. They are exceptional at getting to the passer. This Denver team has led the league in sacks over the last two years and had 68 sacks in 2025, which is the second most over the last 15 years.
Like Walker, Mahomes would have liked lighter competition to reacclimate himself to the team. A big issue last year was also the play of the offensive line. Mahomes was sacked 34 times in just 14 games last year, which was the highest rate of his career.
The Chiefs’ O-line is ranked 19th by Pro Football Focus coming into the 2026 season, and they get to play arguably the best defensive line in the league.
The advantage goes to Denver as Kansas City is retooling and will need a few weeks to get firing on all cylinders. That, along with Mahomes returning from injury, puts the Chiefs at a slight disadvantage to open up the season, and the fact that this game is in Arrowhead works against them.
Kansas City, with Mahomes, is undefeated against Denver at home. The home field, though, is essentially neutralized with the injury and roster turnover. It feels like a wasted home game essentially.
On the flip side, this game would do wonders for the Chiefs if they win. It would mean the roster is legit and Mahomes doesn’t need a ramp-up period to return to form. It would be a good reminder to Denver that the AFC West still runs through them.
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