Call the police there has been a robbery. The Denver Broncos absolutely stole their 13th consecutive divisional road victory from the Kansas City Chiefs Thursday night.
Trailing 17-24 with 2:27 left in the contest the Broncos looked like they were finished. The ruckus crowd of 76,404 fans at Arrowhead Stadium were bracing for a Chiefs win until Peyton Manning reminded people of why he is an all-time great and the defense shocked the football world with :27 to go.
With a slew of penalties and turnovers by both teams the game went back and forth. Manning and the Chiefs quarterback, Alex Smith were hit and hit hard by some of the best pass rushers in the NFL all night. Just like last week, the Broncos put together a last offensive drive to put points on the board but this week it was only to tie. The defense did the rest. Jamaal Charles and the Chiefs were attempting to get into field goal range with just seconds remaining to win the game but Brandon Marshall punched the ball loose. Bradley Roby scooped it up, juked Smith and ran into the end zone to the shock of everyone watching. The Broncos scored 14 points in 13 seconds to win the game.
Best quotes of the night
“You don’t walk into this place, in this environment, and get into a position we were in and find a way to get back out of it and win. The only way you do that is if you’re made of the right stuff and you have everybody heading in the right direction,” head coach Gary Kubiak said moments after the win. “Great victory, keep moving forward.”
“I’ve never been in one quite like that. I’ve been in a couple crazy games but never one quite like that,” Manning said in his postgame press conference. “That first two minute drill, it doesn’t get any harder than that on the road, playing here at Arrowhead, its loud and it’s a great stadium. D.T. (Demaryius Thomas) made awesome plays and Emmanuel (Sanders), good call by the Coach to put Emmanuel out on that route and it was a great way to end it. And to get the turnover there at the end, it’s pretty unique.”
Offensive MVP
Peyton Manning struggled out of the gate for the second straight week. The twitter universe was exploding with negative chatter about the five-time league MVP yet he remained calm and collected. After he threw his second interception of the season for a touchdown, he settled into the Manning of old.
Down 14-0, Manning led the Broncos on two scoring drives to tie the game at 14-14 at halftime. In the second half, under constant pressure he stayed in the game and led a 10-play drive in the two-minute drill to tie the game with a strike to Sanders with :36 remaining.
He finished the evening completing 26 of 45 passes for 256 yards with three touchdowns, one interception and a quarterback rating of 86.9. He was also the fastest player to reach 70,000 career passing yards, joining Brett Favre as the only other player to do so.
Honorable mention: Emmanuel Sanders caught eight passes for 87 yards and two touchdowns.
Defensive MVP
The Broncos defense forced four of the five Chiefs turnovers in the contest and kept the team in it when they were struggling against an impressive Chiefs defense. But it was once again an Aqib Talib interception that turned the tide in the game.
The Broncos had just put their first points of the game on the board after a lengthy 80-yard drive in the hurry up offense. With the team still down 14-7, the Broncos needed a big play on defense. Talib provided that spark. The Chiefs appeared to be in a running formation but Smith quickly made a three step drop and looked right at a curling Jeremy Maclin five yards down field. Talib looked in the backfield and made a great break on the ball to intercept the pass. Not only did it stop the Chiefs’ drive but gave the Broncos the ball at the Kansas City 15 yard line. Four plays later, tight end Virgil Green caught the game-tying touchdown pass.
It was Talib’s second interception of the season in as many weeks and was the 29th of his career, tying him with Asante Samuel for most interceptions by a cornerback in the NFL since 2008.
Honorable mention: Brandon Marshall had five total tackles and forced the game winning fumble by Jamaal Charles.
Best statistics of the night
The Broncos defense forced the Chiefs to go 0-for-7 on third down and 1-for-4 in the red zone. On three of those attempts the Broncos forced a fumble (David Bruton Jr.), sacked Smith (Antonio Smith) and caught an interception (Chris Harris Jr.). Those two numbers were monumental to the team’s comeback and shocking victory.
The Broncos offense went 3-for-3 in the red zone after struggling to score touchdowns last week and throughout the preseason down near the goal line.
Worst quote of the night
Kubiak when asked about possibly changing pass protection during second quarter of the game after a failed fourth down:
“No to be honest with you, I don’t know if I’ve ever been so mad in my life. We had 2nd-and-1and we get three downs and we can’t make a yard. I said a lot of things I wouldn’t want people to hear. I was disappointed because just the moment we were at; I just didn’t like what was going on.”
Offensive LVP
Ryan Harris looked old and slow Thursday night and he allowed a sack, several quarterback hits and hurries. He also, like the rest of the line, failed to get any push on running plays. With Chris Clark gone and Michael Schofield still unprepared to be a starting tackle Harris must improve soon.
Defensive LVP
It is hard to pick a player out of a team that forced four turnovers. The team as a whole, in first half combined to be the least valuable player of the week in one important aspect of the game. They compiled four personal fouls for late hits and roughing the passer in the first two quarters of the game. Luckily, it only cost them seven points. The culprits were DeMarcus Ware, Darius Kilgo, Von Miller and Malik Jackson.
Worst statistics of the night
Manning was sacked three times and hit an additional seven times on the evening. He took far too many shots from a physical defense. It will be hard for him to stay healthy at the current rate he is getting hit at.
The Broncos were called for eight penalties for a total of 85 yards, several of which resulted in first downs for the Chiefs. That matches the eight they were called for in week one.
Up next
The Broncos will travel to the Detroit Lions next Sunday and face a team that went 11-5 last season behind a solid defense and an explosive offense. Last week the Lions lost a barn-burner to the San Diego Chargers, 28-33. Sunday they will take on the Minnesota Vikings (the Broncos’ week four opponent) at 11 a.m..
The Broncos will have to continue to work on the evolution of Manning’s successful offense of recent years and what has made Kubiak a successful offensive coach in the NFL while the defense simply needs to continue to play fast and sound.
T.J. Ward was the only player to leave the game with an injury Thursday, reportedly suffering from leg cramps.
*quotes provided by Denver Broncos media relations
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