To think, when this holiday season began, the Broncos were tied for the AFC West lead with the San Diego Chargers, getting ready to play the struggling Bears in Chicago.
Where have you gone, Todd Sauerbrun?
The Broncos blew a 14-point, fourth-quarter lead to the Bears, a demoralizing defeat that spiraled into a playoff-eliminating, 6-8 record.
“Anytime you’re eliminated from the postseason and you have a few games left to play, that motivation is kind of lost,” Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler said. “But the team has a lot of pride and we want to finish the season strong and try to get these next two.”
Pride? Instead of chasing the division lead Monday night, when they play the Chargers in San Diego, the Broncos have a chance to slip into a top 10 draft pick for the first time since 1991, the NFL’s longest drought of top 10 picks.
Dallas was in the top 10 as recently as 2003 and 2002, when they nabbed future Pro Bowl defensive backs Terence Newman and Roy Williams.
Green Bay was inside the top 10 as recently as 2006, when they got linebacker A.J. Hawk.
The New England Patriots had a top-10 pick in 2001 and got Richard Seymour.
The Indianapolis Colts have had three top-10 picks since 1994. All they got were Edgerrin James, Peyton Manning and Marshall Faulk.
Late-round sleepers like Tom Brady and Terrell Davis may make for feel-good stories, but they are exceptions. Let there be no doubt, the talent available in the top 10 is consistently rarefied.
Can the Broncos get there? With two games remaining, the Broncos are in a five-way tie for the 11th-worst record at 6-8. That would put the Broncos’ draft position anywhere from 11th to 15th. Lose out and the 6-10 Broncos would then need 5-9 Cincinnati or Chicago to at least split their final two games and then win all the tiebreakers.
Mike Klis: 303-954-1055 or mklis@denverpost.com
