Divisional Round: Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs (Arrowhead Stadium), with a Conference Championship spot at stake. Kickoff: Sun January 4, 1998 at 4:00pm. Winner advances to the Conference Championship. The losing team's season is over.[1][2]
The divisional round is where the bracket is supposed to take its real shape. Denver Broncos traveling to Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, with the league watching to see whether the better team or the better matchup wins. Bye-week home favorites carry the weight of expectation; the visiting wild-card winner walks in with no one expecting them and nothing to lose.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Arrowhead Stadium shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
Denver Broncos versus Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of Denver Broncos-Kansas City Chiefs cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 11-5 | W2 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 11-5 | L1 |
| Tennessee Oilers | 8-8 | W1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 7-9 | W3 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 6-9-1 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New England Patriots | 10-6 | W1 |
| Miami Dolphins | 9-7 | L2 |
| New York Jets | 9-7 | L1 |
| Buffalo Bills | 6-10 | L3 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 3-13 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Chiefs | 13-3 | W6 |
| Denver Broncos | 12-4 | W1 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 8-8 | W2 |
| Oakland Raiders | 4-12 | L5 |
| San Diego Chargers | 4-12 | L8 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 13-3 | L1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7-9 | L1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 7-9 | L2 |
| New Orleans Saints | 6-10 | L1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 5-11 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | 13-3 | W5 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 10-6 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 9-7 | W2 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 9-7 | W1 |
| Chicago Bears | 4-12 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New York Giants | 10-5-1 | W3 |
| Washington Redskins | 8-7-1 | W1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 6-9-1 | L3 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 6-10 | L5 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 4-12 | -- |
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Denver Broncos vs Kansas City Chiefs: 1997 Divisional Round (Part 2)Denver Broncos None, Kansas City Chiefs None
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0771414 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 00101010 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| No scoring this quarter. | ||
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Broncos | Terrell Davis 1 yard rush ( Jason Elam kick) | 7-0 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | Pete Stoyanovich 20 yard field goal | 7-3 |
| Chiefs | Tony Gonzalez 12 yard pass from Elvis Grbac ( Pete Stoyanovich kick) | 7-10 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Broncos | Terrell Davis 1 yard rush ( Jason Elam kick) | 14-10 |
Denver Broncos defeated Kansas City Chiefs 14-10 at Arrowhead Stadium in the Divisional Round. The final scoring play was Broncos: Terrell Davis 1 yard rush ( Jason Elam kick). Top line of the day: Elvis Grbac: 260 pass yards on 24-of-37, 1 TD, 0 INT. Denver Broncos move on to the conference final.[1][2]
Denver Broncos walked out of Arrowhead Stadium as the team that survived a Divisional Round Kansas City Chiefs will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 14-10. A one-score game throughout. The decisive points came on the fewest possible margin, which is how these matchups usually resolve. The final scoring play came from Broncos: Terrell Davis 1 yard rush ( Jason Elam kick). Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Denver Broncos move on to a conference championship.
Denver Broncos 14, Kansas City Chiefs 10. Round: Divisional Round. Attendance: 76965. Q2: 1 scoring play. Q3: 2 scoring plays. Q4: 1 scoring play. Top performers:
- Elvis Grbac: 260 pass yards on 24-of-37, 1 TD, 0 INT
- Terrell Davis: 101 rush yards on 25 carries
- Andre Rison: 8 catches for 110 yards
Divisional Round, played at Arrowhead Stadium. Final: Denver Broncos 14, Kansas City Chiefs 10, with Denver Broncos taking the result by 4. **Second quarter**
- Broncos: Terrell Davis 1 yard rush ( Jason Elam kick)
Third quarter
- Chiefs: Pete Stoyanovich 20 yard field goal
- Chiefs: Tony Gonzalez 12 yard pass from Elvis Grbac ( Pete Stoyanovich kick)
Fourth quarter
- Broncos: Terrell Davis 1 yard rush ( Jason Elam kick)
Top performers
- Elvis Grbac: 260 pass yards on 24-of-37, 1 TD, 0 INT
- Terrell Davis: 101 rush yards on 25 carries
- Andre Rison: 8 catches for 110 yards
| Broncos | Chiefs | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 16 | 18 |
| Total Yards | 272 | 303 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 0 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 10/19 | 24/37 |
| Pass yards | 170 | 260 |
| Pass TD | 0 | 1 |
| Interceptions | 0 | 0 |
| Sacks taken | 1 | 4 |
| Sack yards lost | 7 | 34 |
| Net pass yards | 163 | 226 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 32 | 24 |
| Rush yards | 109 | 77 |
| Rush TD | 2 | 0 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 4 | 2 |
| Fumbles lost | 2 | 0 |
| Penalties | 8 | 7 |
| Penalty yards | 64 | 65 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN | |||||
| John Elway | 10/19 | 170 | 0 | 0 | |
| KAN | |||||
| Elvis Grbac | 24/37 | 260 | 1 | 0 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN | ||||
| Terrell Davis | 25 | 101 | 2 | 41 |
| Howard Griffith | 4 | 9 | 0 | 4 |
| Derek Loville | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| John Elway | 1 | -1 | 0 | -1 |
| KAN | ||||
| Marcus Allen | 12 | 37 | 0 | 14 |
| Elvis Grbac | 4 | 22 | 0 | 11 |
| Kimble Anders | 3 | 9 | 0 | 6 |
| Donnell Bennett | 3 | 4 | 0 | 8 |
| Louie Aguiar | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Greg Hill | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN | ||||
| Ed McCaffrey | 3 | 56 | 0 | 43 |
| Shannon Sharpe | 2 | 33 | 0 | 22 |
| Dwayne Carswell | 1 | 26 | 0 | 26 |
| Rod Smith | 2 | 19 | 0 | 17 |
| Willie Green | 1 | 19 | 0 | 19 |
| Terrell Davis | 1 | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| KAN | ||||
| Andre Rison | 8 | 110 | 0 | 34 |
| Joe Horn | 1 | 50 | 0 | 50 |
| Tony Gonzalez | 3 | 26 | 1 | 12 |
| Ted Popson | 5 | 26 | 0 | 13 |
| Lake Dawson | 2 | 20 | 0 | 12 |
| Danan Hughes | 1 | 13 | 0 | 13 |
| Marcus Allen | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| Kimble Anders | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| Tamarick Vanover | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
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