Panthers punish Broncos 30-10
December 15
Denver Post
"Back in the discomforts of Front Range living rooms, legs may be twitching uncontrollably. Spouses should understand nerves may be frayed. Perhaps pacing will help. This season has been too difficult, too erratic for Broncos fans to relax now. What never really seemed like a comfortable three-game lead with three games to go suddenly has the feel of all-or-nothing next Sunday against the Buffalo Bills. In a series of unfortunate events for those watching at home Sunday, the Broncos were whipped by the Carolina Panthers 30-10 a few hours after the San Diego Chargers scored two touchdowns in the final 1:13 to defeat the Kansas City Chiefs 22-21. "It's good for us," Broncos defensive end Ebenezer Ekuban
said. "It'll wake us up. We want to be playing our best football in December. We don't want to back in. Teams that back in most often lose that first game in the playoffs. We need to get playing better." The 8-6 Broncos, who have offset shocking losses to Oakland and the Chiefs by upsetting Atlanta and the New York Jets on the road, still should be in great shape to win the AFC West title. They play the slumping Bills, who have gone 2-8 since a 4-0 start, at Invesco Field at Mile High next Sunday. Win that game and the Broncos will clinch. Or, should the 6-8 Chargers lose on Sunday at 9-5 Tampa Bay, the Broncos will have clinched their division and their first playoff berth since 2005. If the Broncos lose and the Chargers win, then it will be permissible to panic. That would leave a one-game showdown Dec. 28 in San Diego. "That's giving somebody that's on a respirator life again," Broncos receiver Brandon Stokley said. "We can't have that happen. It's not even an option." The Broncos have a two-game lead, but the Chargers would have the tiebreaker by virtue of a superior division record. If the Broncos and Chargers both finish 8-8, Denver would miss the playoffs."
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