There are times in an NFL season when it isn’t so much that winning is important as avoiding defeat becomes monumental.
Anyone who says the Broncos picked up a huge win Sunday by defeating the San Diego Chargers 20-17 might be guilty of slight overstatement.
However, what the Broncos accomplished before a finicky sellout crowd at Invesco Field at Mile High was avoiding the catastrophic consequences defeat might have wrought.
There is nothing about the Broncos’ 1-1 record that tips their 2005 season one way or the other. But had the Chargers held on to their 14-3 halftime lead and sent the Broncos to an 0-2 mark?
“We would have been out of the playoffs today,” Broncos defensive end Trevor Pryce said. “Tough? We would have been so far behind the eight ball, we would have been off the pool table.”
Only twice since the NFL expanded to a 16-game season in 1973 have the Broncos started 0-2. In 1994, the Wade Phillips-coached Broncos finished 7-9 and in 1999, the First Year After Elway, the Broncos went 6-10.
When Pryce said the Broncos would have been knocked out of playoffs had they been standing at 0-2, history says he was not exaggerating.
But there is no doom in Bronco- land today. A gallant effort by veteran cornerback Champ Bailey, a coming-out performance by rookie cornerback and returner Darrent Williams, a final-series rumble by the nearly forgotten Ron Dayne, a daring fourth-and-1 go-for-it by coach Mike Shanahan and a game-winning, 41-yard field goal by Jason Elam with five seconds remaining allowed the Broncos to put their 34-10 debacle in Miami behind them.
Their future, which begins next Monday night against Kansas City at Invesco Field, again has exciting possibilities.
This was a win where the offense steps back and allows others to bow.
Quarterback Jake Plummer hit a flurry of short passes, but otherwise the offense had no running attack and sputtered because of penalties, a fumble and execution breakdowns.
“I’ve never been in a game where we had that much field position and found a way to blow it,” Broncos wide receiver Rod Smith said. “That’s real hard for me as an offensive captain. But at the same time, we found a way to win the game.”
Although the offense finally came through when Dayne replaced rib-sore Mike Anderson with 3:48 left in the game and carried seven times for 43 yards and three first downs, win No. 1 goes to the defense.
“Champ Bailey was the game,” Pryce said. “Let’s just call it like it is.”
There is something about Bailey, the first play of the second half and the ballgame. Last week, Bailey suffered a dislocated left shoulder while making a tackle on the first play of the second half, and the Broncos collapsed in a drubbing by the Dolphins.
After the game, Shanahan indicated he expected Bailey to be out three weeks. Instead, seven days later, Bailey became a Drew Brees nightmare.
The Broncos had home-crowd boos ringing in their ears when Brees let everyone from Lakewood to Brighton know his intentions to start the second half.
“Yeah, I saw where he was looking,” Bailey said.
Bailey stepped in front of Keenan McCardell along the sideline and snagged Brees’ pass like it was meant for him. Shoulder harness and all, Bailey returned the interception 25 yards for a touchdown.
And the defense was just getting started. Chargers star running back LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for 41 yards and two touchdowns – setting an NFL record by rushing for at least one touchdown in 14 consecutive games – in the first half, but gained only 11 yards in the second. The Broncos’ defense sacked Brees four times, once causing a fumble.
Momentum gradually shifted Denver’s way. Finally, a superb fourth-quarter punt return by Williams helped put the Broncos on top. For a while, it appeared Williams did it all by himself, returning the punt 61 yards up the middle for an apparent touchdown.
However, as Williams was about to cross the goal line, several members of the Broncos’ extra-point team ran onto the field. An overlooked reaction for dozens of years, the referee this time flagged the Broncos for having too many men on the field.
“We were going out for the extra point,” Broncos tight end Stephen Alexander said, “and they flagged us. They said they’re trying to crack down on that this year.”
Nothing hurt. Although the ball was brought back to the Chargers’ 29, fullback Kyle Johnson plowed in two plays later to give the Broncos a 17-14 lead.
The Chargers tied it on Nate Kaeding’s short field goal with 5:25 left, but the Broncos answered when Dayne rushed them into Elam’s range.
The end was nerve-wracking. Facing fourth-and-1 at the Chargers’ 33, Shana- han went for it, calling for an option pitch to Dayne.
“In the huddle, I was thinking, ‘Oh, boy, hopefully this works,”‘ Plummer said.
Dayne picked up 10 and Elam hooked in his game-winner.
“Things didn’t go right,” Shanahan said, “but we found a way to win against a good football team.”
Or put another way, the Broncos found a way to not go 0-2.
Extra points
TURNING POINT
Second-half revival
The complexion of the game changed on the first play of the third quarter when Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey returned a Drew Brees interception 25 yards to make the score 14-10.
The Denver defense owned the game from that point. But this hard-fought game wasn’t decided until Denver kicker Jason Elam nailed a 41-yard field goal with five seconds remaining to give Denver a 20-17 lead.
“We fought and we fought,” Bailey said. “We weren’t going to lose this one.”
CRAZY PLAY OF THE GAME
Celebration kill-joy
It’s an early candidate for crazy play of the season. With San Diego leading 14-10 with less than 10 minutes remaining, Denver’s electric rookie Darrent Williams returned a punt 61 yards for a touchdown. However, Denver was called for having too many players on the field, which nullified the TD. Several Denver players stepped onto the field as Williams was nearing the goal line and had no effect on the play. Denver survived the call when it scored the go-ahead touchdown two plays later.
“That could have cost us the game,” Denver linebacker Al Wilson said.
HIT OF THE GAME
Brees loses grip
In the third quarter, Denver linebacker Ian Gold crushed Drew Brees, causing the San Diego quarterback to fumble. The ball was picked up by Denver defensive end Courtney Brown at the Chargers’ 35.
BEST
Punter plug-in a plus
Kickoff man: In place of rookie Paul Ernster, who was inactive, Denver punter Todd Sauerbrun kicked off well. Two of his kickoffs went into the end zone. Don’t be surprised if Sauerbrun keeps this duty.
Change of fortunes: Last week, in the season opener at Miami, Bailey was lost on the first play of the second half with a dislocated left shoulder. Sunday, on the first play of the third quarter, Bailey intercepted Brees at the 25-yard line and ran in for an easy Denver touchdown, tightening the game at 14-10. It was a great payoff for Bailey, who fought back to play this week after he was expected to miss time. Bailey never has missed an NFL game.
Defensive adjustments: Denver was a different team on defense in the second half. The unit got after Brees while continuing to stop the running game.
Third-down play: On a pivotal third-and-7 play in the fourth quarter, Denver quarterback Jake Plummer hit tight end Jeb Putzier for a huge first down at the Broncos’ 42-yard line on a 16-yard gain.
WORSTS
Williams loses call
Fortune: Williams, who was at his explosive best, appeared to have a huge fourth-quarter interception at the Broncos 2, which would have ended a San Diego threat. However, after a San Diego challenge, officials ruled Williams bobbled the ball before going out of bounds. Revived, San Diego tied the game at 17-17 with a Nate Kaeding 42-yard field goal.
Surprise: In the second quarter, on a no-huddle quick snap, receiver Keenan McCardell came up to the middle of the field and direct-snapped the ball to third-string running back Darren Sproles, who bolted 12 yards to the Chargers’ 46-yard line. San Diego eventually took a 14-3 lead on the drive. Brees and running back LaDainian Tomlinson were split out as receivers on the play.
Staff writer Mike Klis can be reached at 303-820-5440 or mklis@denverpost.com.
