Broncos

The Broncos are atop the AFC West with an 8-2 record. Denver QB Bo Nix said he doesn’t pay attention to the hype around the team. 

“We make this entertainment business a lot bigger than what it is and we forget everybody is just out here having a good time, having fun, doing the best they can,” Nix said, via Jeff Legwold of ESPN. “For me it’s quite simple, I delete my social media, I don’t have it, so unless somebody says it to my face I don’t really hear it — and nobody is ever bold enough to say it to your face. I don’t get on social media.”

Nix reflected on his college career at Auburn when they suffered a loss to Florida. It taught him not to listen to outside noise. 

“Went to Florida and we lost and that’s when I got to know the bad side of this sport,” Nix said. “It’s unfortunate for sure, but at the same time, it’s what comes with the territory. It’s also a gift because it allows other people to see how you respond to adversity. There’s a lot of younger kids out there, a lot of people out there who want to be in our shoes … it’s good for them to see not everything is pretty, not everything is happy-go-lucky.”

Denver HC Sean Payton acknowledged that their 52 offensive penalties, which is No. 2 in the NFL behind the Jaguars, as a reason for their slow starts. 

“It’s our jobs, offensively, to put ourselves in a position of starting faster,” Payton said. “I like that this year, we’re doing better in these one-score games, but to go where we want to go there has to be improvement.”

Chiefs

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes said the team still has a great chance at winning the division if they handle their business.

“That’s always our first goal,” Mahomes said, via PFT. “It’s like the first goal we have that coach Reid puts up, is win the division, and we understand that it’s always a challenge and you have to go up against really good football teams that are scouting you all year long. We’ve been really good at that over these last seven, eight, nine years — whatever it is. We got to continue to get better and better. We have a lot of division games in front of us. If we can go out there and handle business and do what I think we can do, we can find a way to win this division. Everything is out in front of us, we just have to go out there with the right mindset.”

The Chiefs play Denver this weekend, which is a great chance for them to gain ground in the AFC West.

“Obviously, if you lose this game, with them having the tiebreaker and, what would that be, four games ahead of us? It’d be tough to go back and get that one,” Mahomes said. “All you can do is just handle this week, that’s all you can really worry about. We still play a lot of great football teams, but like I said, I feel like if we play our best, we can beat anybody.”

Raiders

Raiders WR Tre Tucker credited former Las Vegas receivers for helping him prepare to become the team’s first option at receiver.

“I got to learn with tremendous guys,” Tucker said, via Raiders Wire. “Davante Adams, Jakobi, Hunter Renfrow. For times like this, I’m built for it. Being a leader in the room, I’ve been in their position. I was a rookie not too long ago. I can relate to them [our younger players]. Chip [Kelly] says mental toughness is about moving onto the next important thing. When you mess up, it’s over. Move onto the next important thing.”