Chiefs sound the alarm on Jonathan Cooper and the Broncos defense

Eric Bieniemy expects an angry Denver defense on Sunday and says the Broncos are "playing some good ball"

Oct 29, 2026, 3:34 PM

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Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy shared which player he’s most worried about on the Denver Broncos defense, and the answer may surprise you.

“That kid Cooper, and I’m not taking away from anybody out there, but when he’s on the field, there’s a different tempo, there’s a different pace,” Bieniemy said Thursday. “There’s a level of intensity that picks up, and so he gets your attention right away.”

Edge rusher Jonathan Cooper retuned to the Broncos last week, who now host the Chiefs at 2:25 p.m. MST Sunday at Empower Field at Mile High this week. Denver is 5-2 and Kansas City is 5-1. The winner leaves Sunday in first place in the AFC West.

Bieniemy said Denver’s defense is “playing some good ball.” He also expects it to be angry after the 31-10 loss in Week 1.

“Knowing this defensive coordinator and knowing this head coach, these guys are gonna come out with piss and vinegar,” Bieniemy said.

Bieniemy and Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph are close friends — both Colorado Buffaloes, but they haven’t talked much this week.

“There’s an inside joke,” Bieniemy said, laughing. “I’m not going to tell it.”

The Chiefs are coming off their first loss of the season, a blowout in Seattle that Bieniemy didn’t try to explain away.

“The grittier team, the hungrier team won,” he said. “They played hungrier. They did all the little things the right way. We didn’t.”

Defensive tackle Chris Jones said the Chiefs won the first meeting with Kenneth Walker’s running and by keeping Denver under 17 points. He also said that game won’t tell them much about Sunday.

“It’s a different team now,” Jones said. “I think Sean Payton has taken over as play caller. So, different schematics, and they’ve been on a drive. … That speaks volumes about where that offense is at right now.”

Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said he expects to see more of Bo Nix’s legs. The Chiefs will change their approach up front because of it.

“When we play these elite athletic quarterbacks, and I put Bo in that group, we do some things differently up front, and we’ll do that,” Spagnuolo said. “I thought we did a good job containing them in the first game. Hopefully we can do the same thing.”

Bieniemy said the Chiefs know what’s waiting for them in Denver.

“We already know what they’re about,” he said. “It’s our job to make sure that we’re coming out and doing the things that we need to do in order for us to be successful.”