The Denver Broncos secured their spot in the AFC Championship today. They defeated the San Diego Chargers 24-17 at Sports Authority Field.

The Broncos were up 17-0 heading into the fourth quarter. The Chargers were able to put in a late surge, but it was too little too late for them. San Diego scored a touchdown to make 24-14, and then after a successful onside kick, a field goal made it 24-17. The Chargers wouldn’t get the ball back. The Broncos got the ball back with 3:53 left in the game, and the Chargers had only two timeouts left. The Broncos were able to get some huge first downs, and eventually take a knee and end the game. The play of the game came with about three minutes left in the game on 3rd and 17. Instead of playing it safe and running the ball then punting to the Chargers and relying on the defense, they chose to air it out and Julius Thomas caught a sideline pass for a first down. Thomas would catch another third down pass on that same drive to help secure the game.

The Broncos had more than 100 total yards more than the Chargers in this game. San Diego struggled heavily on offense until the fourth quarter. They were never able to establish a running game, and Phillip Rivers was dreadful until the fourth quarter.

The Broncos who only had 18 rushing yards in the last meeting had 133 yards on the ground this time. And the Chargers who had 177 rushing yards on the December 12th meeting had only 65 this game.

Knowshon Moreno led the way on the ground for the Broncos with 82 rushing yards and a touchdown. Through the air Peyton Manning was 25/36 for 230 yards a pair of touchdowns and an interception. The two Thomas’ led the receivers. Julius had six catches for 76 yards, and Demaryius had eight catches for 54 yards and a touchdown.

A quick summary, the Broncos were able to sustain long drives and put points on the board. The Chargers couldn’t do anything until the last minutes. Phillip Rivers was...CONTINUE READING