NFL Latest: Peyton Manning, officially a backup quarterback

Sunday evening, we learned that the Denver Broncos secured a first-round playoff bye, and will be the No. 1 seed in the AFC thanks to a win against the San Diego Chargers, and a loss by the New England Patriots.

Peyton Manning will be back on the field but it will be in a backup role as the Denver Broncos attempt to clinch a first-round bye with a victory over the visiting San Diego Chargers on Sunday.

The AFC playoffs will go through Denver, as the Broncos have clinched the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs for the third time in four seasons.

Or it could be Brock Osweiler. He did, leading the Broncos to a 27-20 victory over the Chargers.

He did do something, going 5-9 for 69 yards, but Manning didn’t exactly light the world on fire, keeping him from taking too much credit for the win. However, a win by the Steelers means they would go to Denver against the No. 1 seeded Broncos with the Texans/Chiefs victor playing in New England.

If the Broncos can continue to make it hard for opposing offenses to move the ball down the field, they’ll be a favorite to represent the AFC in the super bowl this year. The game can be watched on TV on the CBS network or online through free live stream via the link below.

“Just my gut told me to turn it over to (Manning) and let him lead the football team”, Kubiak said. That one wasn’t Osweiler’s fault. A dropped pass was intercepted and he threw another pick when the ball and his arm were hit as the pass left his hand.

Not surprisingly, the coach declined to say who would start at quarterback when the Broncos, now winners of five straight AFC West titles, play on January 17 in the second round of the playoffs.

Sunday’s game offers this fascinating nugget: Manning has not entered a game as a backup since his 1994 freshman season at the University of Tennessee, when he sat behind Jerry Colquitt and Todd Helton on the depth chart.

How many healthy bodies can the Chargers put out on the field, especially given recent setbacks to guys like running back Melvin Gordon (done for the season) and a number of players on the offensive line? Denver didn’t commit a turnover during his six drives.

After giving up a 72-yard touchdown to Demaryius Thomas on the game’s opening possession, the defense forced turnovers on four of the next five drives.

The biggest thing to take away from this is that Manning did not throw the ball a whole lot. But with eight minutes remaining in the third quarter Sunday, there was Manning trotting into the huddle.

They also led the league with 52 sacks and allowed 18.5 points per game.

“[The bye] helps, but you’re talking about the week off. You’ve got to take care of the week”, said running back C.J.

On the season, the San Diego Chargers average 292.3 yards in passing and 83.2 yards in rushing. They are one of three teams, along with the Raiders and Rams, who could be moving to Los Angeles next year.

The Steelers’ first round foes will be the Cincinnati Bengals, who beat Baltimore 24-16 to complete the third 12-win season in club history. If they can find consistent, proficient play from beginning to end Sunday, they’ll have the kind of performance upon which they can build. They’ll need efforts like that to win in the coming weeks.