DENVER - The battered and bumbling Denver Broncos couldn't render the San Diego Chargers irrelevant when they had the chance, and now they'll have to beat them to get to the playoffs.
The Broncos blew an early 13-0 lead and lost to the Buffalo Bills 30-23 Sunday in the second-coldest game in Denver's history, setting up an all-or-nothing game against the Chargers next week for the division title and a playoff berth.
The Broncos (8-7) led the Chargers (7-8) by three games with three to go, but now face the possibility of having led the AFC's woeful West by themselves from opening weekend through Christmas with nothing to show for it.
“Unfortunately we're not going to be able to go up there and take it easy,” receiver Brandon Marshall said. “We're going to have to go up there in their back yard and prove to them that we're better than them. They're a good team, they're playing better now, and they've got all the momentum.”
None of which matters, suggested Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler.
“If you would have told us at the beginning of the year that it was a one-game series with us down in San Diego to go to the playoffs, we probably would have taken it,” Cutler said. “We've got to keep our heads up.”
The Chargers beat Tampa Bay earlier in the day, and Denver will be facing a fired-up team in San Diego on Sunday night that everybody had given up for dead.
“Everybody was doubting them, talking bad about them this year,” Denver linebacker D.J. Williams said. “Now they have a chance to throw everybody's words back in their face with a victory.”
And keep the Broncos home for the postseason for the third straight year.
P.J. Pope became the sixth tailback to start in the Broncos' battered backfield - and he went to the sideline in the first quarter with a tight left hamstring. Selvin Young came in and carried the load until leaving with a pinched nerve in his neck late in the third quarter, leaving Tatum Bell as the only healthy ball carrier.
Cutler threw for 359 yards and broke Jake Plummer's franchise record with 4,210 yards for the season, but he threw an interception to Kawika Mitchell at the goal line with six minutes left and then, with less than a minute left, cornerback Reggie Corner knocked the ball out of Brandon Stokley's hands in the end zone.
“I had both hands on the ball,” Stokley said. “I've got to catch it. That's what they pay me to do.”
The Broncos built a 13-0 lead only to watch Trent Edwards score on a 2-yard keeper and Rian Lindell kick field goals of 37, 49 and 28 yards as Buffalo (7-8) surged ahead 16-13 in the third quarter.
The Broncos, who outgained the Bills 532 yards to 275, retook the lead on Cutler's 6-yard keeper. The celebratory mood among the frozen fans, who endured temperatures that dipped into the single digits, ended quickly when Fred Jackson's 65-yard catch set up Steve Johnson's 3-yard touchdown grab that put Buffalo back on top, 23-20.
Nobody was more affected by the bitter cold than Broncos kicker Matt Prater, who came up short on a crucial field goal try just before halftime that swung the momentum and was forced to kick a series of squibs on kickoffs that continually gave Buffalo great field position.
After Prater's 43-yarder tied it with 11 minutes left, the Broncos again were burned by a squibbed kickoff and Jackson's 8-yard touchdown run made it 30-23 with 8:54 left.
Bills 30
Broncos 23
The Broncos (8-7) led the Chargers (7-8) by three games with three to go, but now face the possibility of having led the AFC's woeful West by themselves from opening weekend through Christmas with nothing to show for it.
“Unfortunately we're not going to be able to go up there and take it easy,” receiver Brandon Marshall said. “We're going to have to go up there in their back yard and prove to them that we're better than them. They're a good team, they're playing better now, and they've got all the momentum.”
None of which matters, suggested Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler.
“If you would have told us at the beginning of the year that it was a one-game series with us down in San Diego to go to the playoffs, we probably would have taken it,” Cutler said. “We've got to keep our heads up.”
The Chargers beat Tampa Bay earlier in the day, and Denver will be facing a fired-up team in San Diego on Sunday night that everybody had given up for dead.
“Everybody was doubting them, talking bad about them this year,” Denver linebacker D.J. Williams said. “Now they have a chance to throw everybody's words back in their face with a victory.”
And keep the Broncos home for the postseason for the third straight year.
P.J. Pope became the sixth tailback to start in the Broncos' battered backfield - and he went to the sideline in the first quarter with a tight left hamstring. Selvin Young came in and carried the load until leaving with a pinched nerve in his neck late in the third quarter, leaving Tatum Bell as the only healthy ball carrier.
Cutler threw for 359 yards and broke Jake Plummer's franchise record with 4,210 yards for the season, but he threw an interception to Kawika Mitchell at the goal line with six minutes left and then, with less than a minute left, cornerback Reggie Corner knocked the ball out of Brandon Stokley's hands in the end zone.
“I had both hands on the ball,” Stokley said. “I've got to catch it. That's what they pay me to do.”
The Broncos built a 13-0 lead only to watch Trent Edwards score on a 2-yard keeper and Rian Lindell kick field goals of 37, 49 and 28 yards as Buffalo (7-8) surged ahead 16-13 in the third quarter.
The Broncos, who outgained the Bills 532 yards to 275, retook the lead on Cutler's 6-yard keeper. The celebratory mood among the frozen fans, who endured temperatures that dipped into the single digits, ended quickly when Fred Jackson's 65-yard catch set up Steve Johnson's 3-yard touchdown grab that put Buffalo back on top, 23-20.
Nobody was more affected by the bitter cold than Broncos kicker Matt Prater, who came up short on a crucial field goal try just before halftime that swung the momentum and was forced to kick a series of squibs on kickoffs that continually gave Buffalo great field position.
After Prater's 43-yarder tied it with 11 minutes left, the Broncos again were burned by a squibbed kickoff and Jackson's 8-yard touchdown run made it 30-23 with 8:54 left.
Bills 30
Broncos 23
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