ICYMI in NFL’s Week 17: Is Manning Denver’s QB again?

Denver Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak, left, hugs San Diego Chargers head coach Mike McCoy after their 27-20 win against Chargers in an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2016, in Denver.

Manning had not played since he was removed in the third quarter of the Broncos’ Nov. 15 loss to the. As Miami built a lead and clung to it, the players began paying more attention.

“We didn’t want them to lay down, but we wanted them to lay down a little faster than that”, Aqib Talib said with a chuckle. That was just one play that showed the ceiling of the Broncos; the floor was evident with five giveaways. I would rather take our break right now, evaluate where we are as a team, physically, and put a plan in place.

The Denver Broncos are built around their strong defense; however, they must have good quarterback play in order to make a deep run in the playoffs. Those wins, plus the Week 8 romp over the previously undefeated Packers, were all at home.

Before his reappearance against the San Diego Chargers, Manning had thrown 17 interceptions and nine touchdown passes.

The Arizona Cardinals own the other NFC bye as the number two seeds, but they got a reality-check from the Seattle Seahawks who cooled off the red-hot Cardinals 36-6.

-The Broncos didn’t just clinch homefield advantage for the AFC playoffs on Sunday.

Manning led Denver to 20 points in 1 1/2 quarters despite going just 5 of 9 for 69 yards.

The Chiefs have won 10 consecutive games. The Patriots have the longest all-time and active streak with seven straight AFC East titles dating back to 2009, matching the Los Angeles Rams’ run from 1973-79. If they were able to overcome all those shortcomings and still be the best team in the AFC, imagine what damage they could do in the playoffs if they eliminate these mistakes, peak in the post season and play to their full potential. “They didn’t give it to us this year”.

Manning, a five-time NFL Most Valuable Player who had never appeared as a backup as a pro, admitted it was “different” but was pleased to make a solid contribution.

“You saw our offense roll right when he got in we came down and scored”, Emmanuel Sanders, Wide Receiver said. “Since me and Von Miller walked in the building [in 2011], we’ve been winning”. Thomas only recorded one touchdown on the season with Peyton Manning at the helm, largely due to Manning’s lack of deep ball attempts.

The road to Super Bowl 50 in the AFC will go through Sports Authority Field at Mile High – barely – thanks to Peyton Manning and the Broncos defense.

Denver coach Gary Kubiak would not commit on who would be the starting quarterback when the Broncos join the playoffs in the divisional round.

-Quarterback Brock Osweiler was pulled from the game in the third quarter with the Broncos trailing 13-7. That much was obvious during the last six games, in which Denver finished 4-2 while averaging a modest 20.5 points per game. That one wasn’t Osweiler’s fault.

-Cornerback Chris Harris Jr. underwent an MRI exam on his shoulder Monday.

The narrative has been Peyton’s lack of mobility, particularly from under center, has prevented the Broncos from getting the most out of Kubiak’s typically strong running scheme.

-Safety T.J. Ward saw his workload increase to normal levels after he was limited in the previous week’s win over the Bengals.

The big question a lot of experts and fans are wondering is who will start for the Denver Broncos?