Sam Farmer breaks down what went wrong and right for the Chargers in their regular-season finale against the Denver Broncos ahead of the wild-card playoffs.

After winning the AFC West, the Denver Broncos now know their full schedule of opponents for the 2026 NFL season. In addition to playing their AFC West rivals, the Broncos will face the Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks and the same-place finisher from the AFC South at home in 2026.

The Denver Broncos won the AFC West in 2025. We already know their 2026 opponents and what it means for their playoff chances next year.

What has been in doubt is how the Broncos' postseason will shake out, but with a win against the Los Angeles Chargers in the last game of the season, there is no more uncertainty on what the Broncos' playoff path will look like.

After a 3-yard gain by Denver running back RJ Harvey in the second quarter against the Chargers in Week 18, Broncos left tackle Garett Bolles lingered down on the turf in obvious pain. Trainers came out to tend to Bolles, who remained down for a couple minutes before looping an arm around a staffer and limping off to the sideline medical tent.

Broncos left tackle Garett Bolles went down midway through the second quarter on run play with an ankle injury and is questionable to return. Bolles was able to walk off the field under his own power. Frank Crum entered the game at left tackle for Denver.

What just happened? What does it mean? What are the pertinent factors (and, perhaps, tiebreakers) prominently in play as each conference's seven-team bracket begins to crystallize? All will be explained and analyzed up to the point when the postseason field is finalized Sunday,

After clinching the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs and securing a bye for the wild-card round, the Denver Broncos have also clinched a bottom-eight pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft. The Broncos currently hold seven picks for April's draft, but that number could grow in the coming months.