ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — A few weeks ago, the playoff speculation and chatter surrounding the Broncos may have been a bit premature.
No longer.
With just four weeks to play in the regular season, the postseason race is in full swing — and the 8-5 Broncos are well aware of the stakes that come with a Week 15 visit from the Colts.
"Six weeks ago, I'd always kind of roll my eyes," Head Coach Sean Payton said Wednesday, "but now you get into four weeks left for all these teams, and each team knows exactly where they're at and what they need to do, ourselves included."
Payton said "at the right time" he discusses playoff scenarios with his team, and guard Quinn Meinerz said the impact of Sunday's game was part of the messaging from Wednesday's team meeting.
"We definitely have awareness of that," Meinerz said. "… I think it's good to talk about and to understand what's at stake here and what everything means, especially [since] a vast majority of this team hasn't been to the playoffs and is looking for that first moment of that. We know what's at stake, and we know what kind of week we have to have in preparation for this game."
With a win over the Colts, Denver would earn a head-to-head tiebreak advantage over Indianapolis and boost its playoff odds to 91 percent, according to Next Gen Stats. A loss would drop the Broncos' playoff odds to 51 percent and allow Indianapolis to climb within a game in the wild-card race.
"We're not acting like it's not a big deal," tight end Adam Trautman said. "It is a big deal. Obviously there's percentages when you win or lose this game or whatever the case is, and we understand that. So we know how important this is."
As tackle Mike McGlinchey explained, there's also no desire in the Broncos' locker room to take a step backward or relinquish the hold the team has on the final wild-card spot.
"Right now we're in the driver's seat, and we want to stay there," McGlinchey said. "And I don't think there's anybody in this locker room that doesn't believe that we're capable of doing that. Sean hit it on the head today. There's no time [and] there's no room for error, and we've got to do what we've got to do, week in and week out — and it starts this week."
Meinerz said the ability to play in several impactful games in 2023 helped prepare Denver for the high-stakes showdown on Sunday, and he said the Broncos' organization is now designed to be ready for those matchups.
"This entire program has been built around playing in big games and getting ready for the next one," Meinerz said. "This week, this is the next big game for us and this team and the program that we've been establishing and building here. We're all excited for the challenge, because this is why you work so hard, is for moments like this."
And while the Broncos are currently focused on the eighth-seeded Colts and have maintained a game-by-game approach, there's no doubt that there are many more big moments still to come. Just four days after their battle with Indianapolis, the Broncos could have a chance to move up even further in the standings when they face the Chargers.
That continued climb — rather than a stagnant finish to the season — remains the Broncos' goal as they race toward the final four weeks of the year.
"We're not talking about who's behind us," McGlinchey said. "We're talking about what's in front of us, and we've got to go get it."
