The Denver Broncos keep finding ways to win close games, and on Sunday they turned the habit into history. Denver beat the Carolina Panthers 26-21 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, their fifth straight victory and their 16th consecutive win in a one-score game — a new NFL record.

Denver made the early running. Wil Lutz kicked a 26-yard field goal on the opening drive, and Bo Nix then threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton to put the Broncos 10-0 up late in the first quarter. The lead looked comfortable, but Carolina refused to go away.

Nix threw his first interception since Week 3 when Carolina cornerback Corey Thornton picked him off in the red zone, ending a run of 180 passes without a pick. Bryce Young took advantage, finding Tommy Tremble for a touchdown, before Lutz added a 48-yard field goal to send Denver into half-time 13-7 ahead.

The Panthers came out firing after the break. Young hit Darren Waller with a 15-yard touchdown pass to give Carolina a 14-13 lead, and the home side then drove to the Denver one-yard line with a chance to extend it. Instead, the game turned on a disputed call. What looked like an incomplete pass to Tremble was overturned on review, with officials ruling the ball had hit Tremble's foot before Denver safety Devon Key controlled it for an interception in the end zone.

Denver made the reprieve count. The Broncos marched 80 yards in 14 plays, with Jonah Coleman scoring from nine yards out to restore the lead at 19-14, although the two-point conversion failed. Nix then connected with Pat Bryant on a 26-yard touchdown pass to make it 26-14.

Carolina still had a response. Young led a 12-play, 64-yard drive that ended with a four-yard touchdown pass to Tetairoa McMillan, cutting the gap to 26-21 with 3:05 remaining. The Panthers got the ball back in the final two minutes with a chance to win it, but Nik Bonitto strip-sacked Young to seal the result, and Denver knelt out the clock.

Young finished 28 of 39 for 276 yards and three touchdowns, but the defeat was Carolina's third in a row and dropped the Panthers to 3-5. The Panthers were also hurt by 13 penalties for 119 yards. Denver, now 7-2 and top of the AFC West, head into their bye week before hosting the Las Vegas Raiders. The Broncos also lost receiver Jaylen Waddle and cornerback Riley Moss to possible concussions, with both ruled out at half-time.