On Tuesday morning, Broncos Country celebrated the announcement that Denver would open the 2026 season against the Kansas City Chiefs on the first “Monday Night Football” broadcast of the year. By Tuesday night, the fine print had arrived, however.
The game will be played at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. Not at Empower Field. Not in front of the home crowd that watched this team go 14-3 and earn the AFC’s No. 1 seed a season ago.
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On Wednesday’s edition of “Stokley and Evans, with Mark Schlereth” on 104.3 The Fan, the hosts worked through the layers of a scheduling decision that has left a sizable portion of the fan base feeling slighted. And Schlereth made it clear that he understood the frustration.
“I get it; I think it should be here in Denver,” Schlereth said. “You swept them last year, you won the division, you went 14-3, you went to the AFC Championship (Game) — and you have to open up on the road. You should be pissed if you’re Broncos Country!”
The numbers make the grievance hard to argue with. Denver was the superior team by every measure last season. The Chiefs limped to a 6-11 record and missed the playoffs entirely. On merit alone, the home opener should belong to the Broncos.
But merit, as Schlereth acknowledged, isn’t the only variable the league considers when building its schedule.
“Let’s throw a little respect on Kansas City, what they’ve done over the last decade,” he said.
And then the real reasoning came into focus.
“When you think of all the ancillary things that go along with that — Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift, now they’re married, she’s gonna be up in the box — the schedule release is about what gives us the best TV ratings,” Schlereth added.
Travis Kelce Shares Details From His Recent Trip Overseas With Taylor Swift: ‘London Is Fun’https://t.co/WHXzuVB93R
— billboard (@billboard) May 13, 2026
It is a blunt assessment, but an honest one. The NFL is a television product first and Kansas City — despite its dismal 2025 campaign — remains a ratings magnet for reasons that extend well beyond the field. The league didn’t make this decision to disrespect Denver. It made it to maximize eyeballs.
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Still, Schlereth’s advice to the team itself carried a different tone entirely. Rather than dwelling on the perceived slight, the Broncos should view the opener as a chance to make a statement — starting the year 1-0 against a division rival, on the road, with the entire country watching.