Von Miller and the Broncos' defense overwhelmed the Chiefs on Sunday. (US Presswire)

It was easy -- almost too easy.

The Broncos (13-3) never trailed in their 38-3 win over the hapless Kansas City Chiefs (2-14), and after a first-quarter fumble by RB Ronnie Hillman that Brandon Flowers returned 64 yards, didn't make any mistakes. Even that miscue elicited a proper response -- if a scary one, considering that QB Peyton Manninghelped chase down Flowers, which forced the Chiefs to settle for a Ryan Succop field goal.

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Denver outgained the Chiefs 488 yards to 119 and had a four-to-one advantage in first downs (32 to 8). The game was never in doubt, and the Broncos emerged without any new major injuries, making the game a perfect tune-up for a playoff run that will begin in the divisional round at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on Saturday, Jan. 12.

Offense: A

The first impression was the most accurate one Sunday: a gorgeous 29-yard pass from Manning to WR Brandon Stokley on the Broncos' first play from scrimmage that set up a 3-yard Knowshon Moreno touchdown run seven plays later. The Broncos were again able to establish the run, but did so by committee; Moreno, Jacob Hester and Lance Ball combined for 165 yards on 37 carries, but none had more than 15 rushes. Of the three, Hester actually led in yardage per carry (7.9 yards) and showed an unexpected burst that could lead to more playing time in the playoffs. Even rookie backup QB Brock Osweiler got some extended action, as he played the entire fourth quarter. While he didn't test his arm downfield, he did complete a pair of third-down passes to set up a 42-yard Matt Prater field goal and looked comfortable running the offense. Previous game's grade: A-

Defense: A

They made it look easy against the Chiefs, forcing punts on eight of 10 series that didn't end in a kneeldown, forcing five three-and-outs and exercising such dominance that the Chiefs didn't even cross their own 35-yard-line in the final 39 minutes of the game. They sacked Quinn once every five pass plays; the final tally of four sacks pushed the Broncos' season total to 52, their second-highest figure. Most impressively, the Broncos finished the season ranked second in total defense. Their offense was fourth. Who would have thought when the season began that the defense would actually be the stronger phase? This is a formidable team all around with no obvious weakness anymore. Previous game's grade: A-

Special teams: B

With KR/PR Trindon Holliday sidelined, S Jim Leonhard and CB Omar Bolden handled punt and kickoff return work, respectively. Neither were busy; Leonhard returned just two of eight punts, while Bolden watched both kickoffs he saw sail for touchbacks. Most importantly, no one fumbled; ball-handling was a trouble spot a week earlier with two muffed punts, one each by Holliday and Leonhard. Broncos P Britton Colquitt finished with a 41.0-yard net average and broke his own single-season club record for net punting, while K Matt Prater was perfect on five extra points and a 42-yard field goal, allowing him to set the Broncos' scoring record by a pure kicker. (RB Terrell Davis and RB/K Gene Mingo scored more points in 1998 and 1962, respectively.) Previous game's grade: B-

Coaching: A

Denver's defensive game plan effectively neutralized Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles, successfully gambling that daring Quinn to pass would paralyze the Chiefs offense, since he had no downfield threat without WR Dwayne Bowe available. But the success of the coaching last week was in motivation; the Broncos took the Chiefs seriously and weren't caught peeking ahead to the postseason. Fox and the Broncos didn't resort to any immature tactics like blocking out-of-town scores from being displayed. The RedZone channel blasted on the massive televisions above the end zones during pre-game warmups, so the Broncos were well aware of what was transpiring elsewhere. They trusted their team to focus on the job at hand through the noise, and it responded marvelously. Previous game's grade: A-

For up-to-the-minute Broncos updates, follow Andrew Mason on Twitter at @CBSBroncos.