The visiting Patriots are the early favorites in the 2025-26 AFC Conference Championship game!
The NFL’s Conference Championship Sunday will begin with the Denver Broncos hosting the New England Patriots. As per the general tradition, the league keeps the AFC game before the NFC counterpart on Conference Championship Sunday.
Denver is coming into this matchup with a mixed bag of feelings. While they have home-field advantage as the top seed from the AFC, the loss of starting quarterback Bo Nix due to an ankle injury will have a massive impact on the team.
As for the Patriots, they are coming into Sunday’s game with immense confidence, having defeated the Houston Texans in the Divisional round. The Broncos’ defense will pose similar levels of difficulty as the Texans, so the question is, can New England overcome 2 tough defenses in back-to-back weeks?
What are the opening odds for the Broncos vs Patriots?
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Early spread lean: New England Patriots -5.5 (-106)
In this AFC matchup, we are leaning towards the New England Patriots to cover the -5.5 point spread against the Denver Broncos. The major reason for this is the fact that Denver has lost its starting quarterback due to an ankle injury, and that may have massive implications for its offense.
The Broncos’ offense was around the middle of the pack in terms of putting points up on the board this season. They averaged 23.6 points a game with Nix under center. Backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham is set to take his first snap of the season in the upcoming game, which does not bode well for Denver.
On the flip side, the Patriots were the second-most efficient offense in the league, averaging 28.8 points per game.
As for the total points, we are taking the Under in the opening odds for this game. Once again, the majority of the reasons stem from the fact that Bo Nix is unavailable, and that is likely to restrict the Broncos’ offense.
Furthermore, the Patriots are equally good on defense, having allowed just over 18 points per game this season. New England has maintained that dominance in the postseason as well, conceding just 3 points to the Chargers and 16 to the Texans in the previous two rounds.
In spite of the fact that the Patriots’ offense has put up a ton of points this year, they will be up against one of the toughest defensive units in the game. As a matter of fact, the Broncos’ defense led the league with the most sacks this season, and finished third in scoring defense, allowing just 18.3 points per game.
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Early player prop: Drake Maye Over 1.5 passing touchdowns (+118)
For the early player prop in this game, we are taking Patriots’ quarterback Drake Maye to throw for over 1.5 touchdowns. The main reason behind this is the fact that Denver has one of the best run defenses in the league.
While the Broncos are more than efficient in pass defense as well, they have fared a little better at stopping the run. As a matter of fact, Denver has allowed just 11 rushing touchdowns in 17 regular season games, and didn’t give up even one in the Divisional round win over the Bills.
The Broncos were also the second-best team in the league this year, allowing just 91.1 yards on the ground. Thus, we believe that the Patriots may have to take the aerial route in order to score touchdowns in this game.
Trends to Monitor
Here are some of the key trends to monitor for the Broncos’ Conference Championship game against the Patriots.
The Denver Broncos are 9-1 at home this season.
The Broncos are 4-1 as underdogs in 2025-26.
Denver is 4-0-1 ATS this season as an underdog.
The New England Patriots are 7-1-0 ATS on the road.
The Patriots have an 8-5 Over record as the favorites.
New England is 11-3 in conference games this season.
Early prediction summary
This matchup had all the makings of being a classic one with two strong defenses going against each other. The Patriots have the better offense, but Bo Nix and company had managed to find the right gear when it mattered the most. Unfortunately, though, Nix is out, and that is a major blow.
Denver’s hopes now rest on the able shoulders of backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham. The 29-year-old, however, has not taken a single snap under center this season. As for the run game, RJ Harvey was easily neutralized by the Bills in the last game, and the Broncos were held to just 70 yards on the ground.
With the current form and the loss of Nix, we feel that the Patriots have the clear edge in this Sunday’s game.
The details for the Broncos vs Patriots AFC Conference Championship are as follows.
Game Details
Information
Date
Sunday, January 25, 2026
Kickoff
3:00 p.m. ET
Location
Empower Field at Mile High, Denver, Colorado
TV
CBS
Streaming
Paramount+, Fubo, NFL+ (mobile)
What time is Broncos vs Patriots?
The Broncos vs Patriots Conference Championship game is set for an afternoon kickoff at 3:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, January 25, 2026.
Where is the Broncos vs Patriots game being played?
The Denver Broncos take on the New England Patriots in the AFC Conference Championship, which will be played at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado.
How can I watch Broncos vs Patriots on TV and live stream?
The Broncos vs Patriots game on Sunday, January 25, will be telecast nationally on CBS. Live streaming options include Paramount+, Fubo, and NFL+ for mobiles or tablets.
The above odds are sourced from FanDuel. Use FanDuel to ace your betting game in all sports!
I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!
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