Manning, Broncos rally from 24 points down to shock Chargers
SAN DIEGO -- Down 24 points at the half, Peyton Manning had no worries.
"I think guys understand from the past two weeks we can score quickly and that we are able to come back," Manning said of his Denver Broncos teammates.
Manning threw three touchdowns and Denver's defense produced the other two in the second half as the Broncos rallied for a 35-24 victory over the San Diego Chargers on Monday night before 68,604 at Qualcomm Stadium.
The win allowed Denver (3-3) to force a first-place tie with the Chargers (3-3), who lost their second consecutive game. But the way the Chargers fell apart in the second half, after coasting to a 24-0 halftime lead, stung even more, particularly coming against their AFC West rival.
"I don't really know what to say right now," Chargers safety Eric Weddle said. "We've got to get back to work. It's a tough loss. They made plays, we didn't."
"Every loss hurts," said Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers. "Regardless of what negative or bad plays (were made), or how you lose a game, when you lose a game, it's rough. Especially a game when you had such a big lead."
Four Bronco interceptions -- three in the second half -- helped secure the Chargers' demise. Cornerback Chris Harris, who started in place of Tracy Porter, who missed the game because of an illness, picked off two Rivers passes, the final one coming with 2:05 remaining to seal the decision.
"We just had some things that didn't go our way and we just had a hard time overcoming them," said Manning, who completed 24 of 30 passes for 309 yards and an interception. "But in the second half, everyone was accountable, was professional (and) we got back to the plan. I thought it was important to get off to a good start with that first drive. Hitting (Demaryius Thomas) on that touchdown, that sure kind of set the tempo for the second half."
After failing to generate much offense in the first half, the Broncos came to life in a big way in the second. Manning guided them on an 85-yard drive in eight plays on the opening possession after intermission, when he hit Thomas on a 29-yard touchdown pass to cut San Diego's lead to 24-7.
The Broncos (3-3) pulled to within 24-14 when San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers, who was sacked by Elvis Dumervil, fumbled and cornerback Tony Carter picked it up and raced 65 yards for a touchdown with 4:56 left in the third quarter.
Two fourth-quarter touchdowns by Manning gave the Broncos the lead. The first came early in the quarter, when Manning tossed a seven-yard pass to Eric Decker to cut San Diego's lead to three. He followed that with a 21-yard strike to Brandon Stokley for a 28-24 advantage with 9:03 remaining in the quarter, as the home crowd sat stunned.
"It's a good feeling," Denver cornerback Champ Bailey said. "That's what it is all about."
Rivers finished 25 of 41 with two touchdowns, both of them in the first half to tight end Antonio Gates.
"That's obviously as tough as it gets," Charger coach Norv Turner said. "Right now, we're not about to put together a complete game. Obviously, at halftime, we talked about the things we had to do in the second half. The mistakes we made with the ball just added to their energy. You can't make those plays and expect to win a game."
KEY: As Manning said, the Broncos scoring on their opening drive of the second half put the Chargers on their heels and they never stopped backpedaling. When Manning hit Decker with a touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, the Chargers' body language resembled the stunned fans watching their team come unglued.
CHARGERS QUOTABLE: "It hurts because you try so hard and you come into a game like this and start off on the right track, trying to do the right things, doing what you've been working on all week. And having a collapse like that is just uncharacteristic of us." -- Tight end Antonio Gates
BRONCOS QUOTABLE: "We have been in this situation before. We knew if we kept on fighting we could give ourselves a chance. Everybody on the field kept on fighting. We took advantage of it. We still had confidence in ourselves. Thankfully, we were able to make the plays." -- Linebacker Von Miller
