Broncos Close Out the Bengals 31-23

The Broncos entered Sunday's game at Cincinnati at 4-3. The only thing that mattered was that they left Cincy at 5-3. "By Any Means Necessary" should have been the theme heading into this game. The Broncos did get that fifth win with a 31-23 victory. As Denver fell behind 20-17 early in the fourth quarter, you could just feel that Peyton Manning was about to put the game into his hands and win the game on his own. He did just that. That is what great quarterbacks do, and that is why the Broncos went after Manning so desperately. Manning's two touchdown passes erased the three point hole, and the Broncos were able to hold on for an all important road win, and they continued to hold a one game lead in the AFC West. The Broncos are 5-3 after eight games, and if they hold serve in the second half of the season, that would give them 10 wins and essentially a playoff berth. Here are my thoughts and opinions on the game.......

1) The Broncos controlled most of the first half, and if it weren't for two key drops by Brandon Stokley and Jacob Tamme, then the Broncos could have had a bigger lead than the 10-3 lead they entered halftime with. I was feeling pretty good at the half, and my confidence soared after Trindon Holliday took the second half kickoff all the way back for a touchdown to make it 17-3.

2) Speaking of Holliday, the guy has some big play ability in the return game, but he also makes you cringe. His misplay of a kickoff with the Broncos leading 17-13 was a big gaffe, and it paved the way for the Bengals to take a 20-17 lead early in the fourth quarter. Obviously, his kick return was a key moment in the game and gave the Broncos some breathing room in the third quarter, but I have the feeling that Holliday will be making me hold my breath everytime he is back to return a kick.

3) The one guy that scared me on the Bengals was A.J. Green. Green routinely beat Champ Bailey during the game, and he finished with just under 100 yards receiving and a touchdown. It felt like he had about 150 yards receiving, but that is what you expect from a guy of Green's caliber. He was the only guy on that Cincy offense that could beat the Broncos and he almost pulled it off.

4) The Broncos defense was lights out in the first half. They got pressure on Andy Dalton on numerous occasions, and Von Miller finished with three sacks. Their run defense was stout, and Chris Harris and Wesley Woodyard continue to stand out. The one thing about this Broncos defense is that it is going to give up plenty of yards, but they seem to have a knack of getting stops when they need to-especially in the second half. They did give up a touchdown drive after they took the 17-3 lead, but the other touchdown they gave up was on a drive that started deep in their own territory following Manning's second interception. They did a nice job of holding the lead once Denver got it back.

5) To show you how close all of these games are in the NFL think about the following sequences. At 17-10 in the third quarter, the Broncos were inside the 15, and Manning threw a pick to Terrance Newman in the endzone on a second down play. It was a great play by Newman because he beat Eric Decker to the spot. If the Broncos score there, then it is a 24-10 game and they probably win comfortably. The Bengals got momentum and got back into the game for good. Another key moment was in the fourth quarter. With Denver up 24-20, the Bengals faced a 3rd and 15. Dalton threw a perfect pass to Green over the middle for a first down that would have put the ball at midfield, but the play was called back because of a hold. The next play, Dalton threw an interception to Champ Bailey, and Manning finished off the drive with a touchdown pass to Eric Decker to make it 31-20 and effectively putting the game out of reach.

6) Manning was really good all day with the exception of his two picks. The first one was actually a better play on the ball on Newman, but you can't have redzone interceptions-especially when he had Willis McGahee wide open underneath for a walk in touchdown. The second pick was a bad throw by Manning because Newman wasn't fooled at all by Decker's double move, and that interception set up another Bengals touchdown that gave them the 20-17 lead. Outside of those two plays, Manning was great once again. He threw two touchdowns to Eric Decker, and his touchdown pass to Joel Dreesen was a great read and great play. After Manning's two picks, you could see how pissed off he was on the sideline. You knew he was going to come back and bury the Bengals. You could just see it coming.   The next two drives he finished off with touchdown passes and put the game away. The great ones do that, and Manning is one of the best ever, so it really didn't surprise me.

7) Can the Broncos stop trying to run the ball on 3rd and long situations early in the game? Every week they always face third and long, and they always try to run the ball with McGahee. I understand that the run is designed to counter what the defense is showing, but every week they try it at least in those situations and it never works. You have Peyton Manning. Don't take the ball away from him!!! Let him throw for the first down.

8) The Broncos did suffer a blow on the injury front went Chris Kuper went down to an ankle injury. It looked bad during the game, but the prognosis is a high ankle sprain, and he will probably be out for four weeks. He should be back for the last four games and the December stretch run.

9) The bottom line is that the Broncos won, and they are 5-3. After facing a difficult first half of the season schedule-wise, they have positioned themselves nicely to win the AFC West. Any road game is a tough one in the NFL, and the Bengals proved that to be the case. After eight games, the Broncos offense is one of the top offenses in the NFL, and that is a result of having Peyton Manning at the controls. He has 20 touchdown passes already, and he is on pace to get 40. The Broncos record for TD passes in a season is 27. That record is held by John Elway and Jake Plummer. Manning might get 27 by Thanksgiving. Their receiving corps is solid, and McGahee seems to do just enough in the run game. The defense isn't great, but they seem to get the stops when they need it, and their entire defense is aided by Manning and the offense. The Broncos travel to Carolina next week for another early game on Sunday. Once again, the focus is going to be about getting on that plane back to Denver at 6-3.