Chargers lose to Broncos, will play Patriots in wild-card playoffs
DENVER– Sometimes the punching bag fights back.
That was the case Sunday as the Chargers, playing their backups, put up an impressive fight against their division rivals, the Denver Broncos, vying for first place in the AFC.
The Broncos won 19-3, but both teams were stifling on defense while failing to establish anything close to an offensive rhythm.
The seventh-seeded Chargers (11-6) will play a wild-card game against second-seeded New England (14-3), who beat Miami, 38-10, in Sunday’s finale.
Denver (14-3) enjoys a bye week and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Other AFC playoff matchups pit No. 6 Buffalo (12-5) against No. 3 Jacksonville (13-4) and No. 5 Houston (12-5) in the winner of Sunday night’s game between Pittsburgh and Baltimore.
Sunday’s game was far more competitive than the enthusiastic crowd at Empower Field might have suspected, with the Chargers’ second-string defense battling them at every turn.
On an unseasonably warm afternoon, the Broncos were worryingly cold.
The Chargers rested 14 of their starters, including quarterback Justin Herbert, who has worked his way into the Most Valuable Player conversation. But they couldn’t generate much offense with backup Trey Lance at the helm.
Lance completed 20 of 44 passes for 136 yards with one interception. However, he led all rushers with 69 yards and, in the final moments, allowed his team to score the only offensive touchdown of the game.
The outcome was never really in doubt because Denver’s defense didn’t move. But the Broncos’ offense was never in sync.
Chargers tight end Oronde Gadsden II catches a pass against Denver Broncos safety PJ Locke during the first half Sunday.
(David Zalubowski/Associated Press)
Denver failed to score a touchdown on offense — their only such score came on a pick-six — and got four field goals from Wil Lutz.
It was the lowest-scoring game for the Broncos since a 10-7 win over Las Vegas in Week 11.
The game was the Chargers’ Next Man Up against a Bo Nix, who threw for 141 yards with a lackluster passer rating of 78.4.
Each quarterback was sacked four times.
Denver entered the game with the second-ranked defense in the NFL, behind Houston, with a club-record 64 sacks already in the books. The Broncos wore 1977 uniforms – blue helmets, orange jerseys, white pants – and their defense was teeming like those “Orange Crush” days of old.
Granted, it’s now a 17-game season, but the Broncos had 14 wins for the first time since 1998, Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway’s final season.
But these Chargers are no pushovers. They were looking to go undefeated in AFC West play and got to 5-0 with a wide array of liners, especially along the offensive line.
This game was huge for only one Chargers regular: wide receiver Keenan Allen, who needed six receptions and nine yards to collect contract bonuses totaling $1 million. He achieved both.
Besides Herbert, members of the Chargers offense who did not play included receivers Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston, as well as the entire starting line.
On defense, the Chargers were sitting on starters Derwin James, Khalil Mack, Daiyan Henley and Elijah Molden.
Denver running back RJ Harvey is tackled by Chargers defenders during the second half Sunday.
(C. Morgan Engel/Getty Images)
They basically had nothing to do in this game and the score was 10-3 at halftime. The Broncos rushed for 81 yards on their first drive…and a total of 32 yards the rest of the half.
With so much at stake for his team, Broncos coach Sean Payton was determined to keep precision football at the forefront. This included extra practice during the week leading up to the game and no crowd-distracting plays on the video board. He wanted the crowd to be as loud and focused as possible.
At the same time, the Broncos were uncompromising – they were determined to win – and unconvincing.
