Denver Broncos prepare for trip to New York to face Bills next Sunday in first playoff game since 2015 season

The surprising Denver Broncos and rookie quarterback Bo Nix are preparing to travel to upstate New York to face the Buffalo Bills next weekend in the team's first playoff game since Peyton Manning and Von Miller helped the team win the Super Bowl following the 2015 season.

"The fans deserve it, it's been a long time coming," said Nix on Sunday evening.

The schedule for the NFL's Wild Card Weekend was released after Denver's 38-0 win over the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Broncos now know they will be playing Buffalo on Sunday.

The game is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. Mountain Time at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park. It will air on CBS and Paramount+.

The Broncos entered the season with low expectations but ended with an impressive 10-7 record in the regular season. That didn't include any games against the Bills and their star quarterback Josh Allen, who secured the No. 2 seed in the AFC after going 13-4.

The last time the Broncos played the Bills was on Nov. 13, 2023. In that game, Denver shocked Buffalo on Monday Night Football in a 24-22 victory.

According new CBS Sports rankings of all of the 14 teams who made the postseason this year, the Broncos are No. 12.

"Bo Nix still isn't getting enough national credit for the cool dual-threat presence he's brought to Mile High, and their top-three scoring defense can offset most lapses by Sean Payton's attack," wrote CBS' Cody Benjamin.

Benjamin ranked Buffalo at No. 5, calling Allen "a one-man wrecking crew."

Denver's playoff drought was the longest for a team after raising the Lombardi Trophy by four years. The Broncos' clincher came 3,255 days after the 24-10 win over the Carolina Panthers on Feb. 7, 2016 in Super Bowl 50, and their reward as the AFC's seventh seed is a trip to face Miller's current team next weekend.

"Man, we look forward to the challenge," Denver head coach Sean Payton said.