KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Patrick Mahomes has been sacked three times in each of the last two games. But for the Chiefs offense line, their toughest test so far will likely come Sunday against the Broncos.
The Broncos lead the NFL with 46 sacks and are led by linebackers Nick Bonitto (9.5), Jonathan Cooper (7.5) and defensive linemen Zach Allen (6) and John Franklin-Myers (4.5).
“They have five really good defensive linemen,” Mahomes said Wednesday. “They can all win in different ways, and they have guys that rotate in and play good as well. So they know what their scheme is. They know how to get after the quarterback.
“And so for us it’s having great protection schemes, changing up the looks for them so they can’t just tee off. And I think just going out there and getting the ball out of my hands whenever I need to and take shots when I need to as well.”
That might be difficult as the Broncos are also the third-best defense in the NFL giving up just 270 yards a game. They’ve also given up the fewest touchdowns with 15.
“That’s a strength of theirs,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “They’ve got a good defense. That’s a nice challenge for our offensive line. We’ve had this string of D-lines that we’re going against and that gives you another opportunity to grow as a group and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”
The Chiefs offensive line got a valuable member back this week as rookie left tackle Josh Simmons is back and practicing with the team. But it’s unclear whether Simmons will start or how much he’ll play.
The Chiefs (5-4) could use all the help they can get as they sit third in the AFC West standings. The Broncos (8-2) lead the division followed by the Chargers (7-3). On one hand, a loss could bury the Chiefs’ hopes of winning the division, but then again the Chiefs have reeled off long winning streaks before.
“They’re first in the division and they have a couple games on us,” Mahomes said. “So it’s huge for the division and that’s always our first goal winning the division. It’s a really good football team, there’s no way around it. So we’re going to have to go out there and play our best football and I don’t think we’ve done that yet.
“So after this bye, let’s go out there and put a great week of practice together and find a way to win in a hostile environment.”
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The only Chief who didn’t practice was running back Isiah Pacheco (knee). The Broncos, meanwhile, could be without running back J.K. Dobbins (foot) and cornerback Pat Surtain (strained pectoral) and linebacker Alex Singleton (testicular cancer surgery) are likely out.
