A year after breaking a long losing streak against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Denver Broncos are trying to end another tough stretch this Sunday when they play the Las Vegas Raiders at home.
Kansas City has dominated the AFC West for eight years, while the Raiders and Broncos have taken turns at the bottom of the division during that time.
However, the Broncos (2-2) have lost eight games in a row to the Raiders (2-2), which is surprising considering how similar the teams have been over the last few seasons.
If you exclude their games against each other, the Raiders have a record of 24-35 since 2020, while the Broncos are at 25-33.
Losing 16 times in a row to the Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes is one thing, as the Broncos did before winning 24-9 last season.
But it’s another story to keep losing to players like Aiden O’Connell, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Derek Carr, who won his last six games against the Broncos after starting with a 5-6 record against them.
The Broncos’ last victory in this long-standing rivalry was on December 29, 2019, when Shelby Harris blocked Carr’s 2-point pass to Hunter Renfrow, securing a 16-15 win for Denver.
This victory also ended the Raiders’ playoff hopes and marked the end of Oakland’s time as an NFL city, as the Raiders moved to Las Vegas the following year. Since then, they have won all four home games against the Broncos, averaging 28-16, and all four games in Denver, averaging 26-19.