DENVER – The Colts entered Sunday’s game chasing the Broncos for the No. 7 seed in the AFC.

It turns out the Broncos are the team racing up the playoff rankings.

With a 31-13 win over the Colts – and a simultaneous loss by the Chargers to the Buccaneers – Denver moved up to 6th place in the wild card race ahead of Thursday night’s showdown in LA.

“That was the team that was close on our heels, but we want to catch up with more teams, get up to No. 5 and get the best ranking we can,” tight end Adam Trautman said after the Broncos’ win . “Obviously we just have to focus on the Chargers.”

According to the New York Times playoff simulator, the Broncos now have a 48 percent chance of finishing either fifth or sixth in the AFC — and that number would rise to more than 80 percent if Denver can beat the Chargers on Thursday. With a win, the Broncos would officially secure their first playoff berth since winning Super Bowl 50.

“It’s a great opportunity that’s in front of us,” wide receiver Courtland Sutton said. “I haven’t even felt it yet, and to be able to know that if we do well we can improve our playoff ranking is an incredible feeling. There is a nice little stage ahead of us. Some. “There are really good games coming up.”

The Broncos follow their trip to LA with a road trip to the Bengals before closing out the regular season at home against Kansas City. And while a ninth win represents the team’s first winning season since 2016, this Broncos team has much higher goals.

“It feels good, but we’re not here to break season records,” tackle Mike McGlinchey said. “We’re here to win playoff games and get to the dance. This is another step in that direction, which is really, really cool.”

Head coach Sean Payton echoed McGlinchey’s sentiments and said the high standards that exist in Denver are one of the reasons this job is so special.

“The appeal for me was the tradition here, the years of continued success here and the importance of this game here,” Payton said. “You can only find a few cities that you can say that about, and then you find the right ownership group. There were certain things that were really important. The football tradition and history here really appealed to me. I knew Peyton (Manning). ) and John (Elway) forever, but it was a place where fan base expectations were high. If you’re in the entertainment industry, you don’t want to be in Rhode Island. When you’re in this industry, you want to be in a place where it really matters and the expectations are high.”

Payton admitted that it was “nice to get the ninth win,” and he joked that he would have “a few cupcakes” for the media to celebrate the achievement.

For the Broncos, however, the ninth win is merely a stepping stone toward where the team can go next.

“That’s exactly what you want to do,” McGlinchey said of being on the cusp of a playoff spot. “That’s exactly where we want to be.”