AFC Notes: Broncos, Chiefs, Orlando Brown, Raiders

Broncos

Broncos OLB Randy Gregory had his one-game suspension for punching Rams OL Oday Aboushi overturned and he will now pay a $50,000 fine instead. 

“Definitely regret it,” Gregory said, via the Denver Post. “I’ve had a lot go on in my journey in this career and definitely not one of my bright spots. It was more of a back-and-forth throughout the game, and I just took the frustration a little too far. I let my emotions kind of lead me and didn’t think of the ramifications of my actions. I’ve got to be better about that.”

“I’ve spent a lot of my career trying to rebuild my image and trust within organizations, the league and the public eye,” Gregory said. “I’m not new to being in this position, whether that be individually or collectively as a team.”

Chiefs

Chiefs OT Orlando Brown said his “most important” goal is to win the Super Bowl. 

“I was brought here to win Super Bowls, and we haven’t accomplished that goal yet,” Brown said, via Nate Taylor of The Athletic. “For me, that’s the big one. That’s most important.”

Brown wants to make sure that defensive pressure is not having an impact on games. 

“Playing in this system, there’s certain things that happen, and obviously I’ve got to do a better job of making sure that pressures aren’t having an effect on the game,” Brown said. “But overall, we’ve been able to win a lot of games, and we’ve had a lot of success offensively. Pat, I think, is leading the league in passing yards. As far as statistics, man, the only one I really care about is W’s.”

Brown had high praise for Patrick Mahomes‘ ability to limit sacks and presence in the pocket. 

“He’s kind of slippery, too,” Brown said. “There’s a few sacks this year that I should’ve given up that he was able to get out of. I can think of at least three off the top of my head. Pat is the best at what he does in the world, his pocket presence, his delivery and just his execution. He makes my job a lot easier.”

Raiders

Raiders QB Jarrett Stidham said that starting Week 17’s game is a “dream come true” for him. 

“You dream of playing in the NFL as a kid,” Stidham said, via Paul Gutierrez of ESPN. “And to start a game in the NFL, it’s a dream come true. But at the same time … I’ve tried to prepare the same every single week. Obviously, I’ve gotten to learn under a bunch of really good guys, players, coaches. So I’ve always tried to treat the weeks the same, and it’s no different this week.”

As for facing the 49ers’ No. 1 ranked defense, Stidham said that he is up for the challenge. 

“It’s a great challenge,” Stidham said. “I’m a firm believer in whatever it is in life that you do, you’re not going to get any better unless you do it against the best. … It’s going to be a lot of fun. I’m super excited about it, and I think would be a great challenge for us. I know we’re looking forward to it.”

Raiders TE Darren Waller said that the team is “rallying around” Stidham and encouraging him going into Sunday’s game.  

“It’s a reaction where you’ve got to kind of take emotions out of it and just realize that the only thing that can be productive is to support Jarrett going forward, and guys are excited about him being able to get an opportunity,” Waller said. “So we’re rallying around him, letting him know we believe in him and just try to do what we can to prepare for San Francisco. Naturally it’s tough, but I believe two things can co-exist — believing in Derek and believing he can always get it done but also supporting Jarrett and moving forward with this week and preparing.”

• Raiders HC Josh McDaniels said Stidham is eager to start and he won’t hold the quarterback to an unrealistically high standard: “I’ve seen a guy eager for his opportunity… I’ve no delusions of grandeur in terms of this is going to be perfect.” (Paul Gutierrez)