Colts Upset Broncos In Divisional Playoff 24-13

It was Super Bowl or bust for the Broncos, and they certainly busted on Sunday at home in a stunning 24-13 loss to the Colts in the Divisional Playoffs. The Broncos season is over just like that. The Broncos looked flat, got outcoached and outplayed, and deserved to get eliminated. It was a game that might have seen the end of Peyton Manning's career, the end of John Fox in Denver, and the true passing of the torch to Andrew Luck as the next superstar QB in the NFL. It is amazing how everything that looked so bright for the Broncos during the season, just came to a crashing halt on Sunday. 12-4 record, AFC West Title, a bye, and a home playoff game, and the Broncos blew it all in one of the most uninspired games I have ever witnessed as a Broncos fan. There are a lot of things to look at, so here are my thoughts and observations about what went down on Sunday....

1) Great start to the game for Denver. They forced a 3 and out, and Peyton Manning leads a touchdown drive on the first series with sweet throw to Julius Thomas down the sideline and a beautiful fade to Demaryius Thomas for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead.

2) After the Colts tied the game up at 7, I thought the turning point was when Manning got strip sacked and Indy recovered the fumble. Denver was putting together a nice drive at the time. Andrew Luck went to work from there and a touchdown pass to Dwayne Allen made it 14-7. The Colts were in control of the game from that point.

3) The Broncos were able to run the ball early with C.J. Anderson and Ronnie Hillman. Why did they abandon the run so easily? After realizing that you were getting a C game from Peyton Manning, just go back to what they did in December and grind out the Colts on the ground. I'll never understand that.

4) Down 14-7 in the 2nd quarter, Manning threw incomplete to Wes Welker on a 3rd down. He missed a wide open Ronnie Hillman on an out and up down the sideline that would have been a touchdown and tied the game at 14.

5) The Broncos paid Aqib Talib big money in the offseason, and he flat out sucked in this game. He got burnt by T.Y. Hilton early and often in the first half, and he committed two defensive holding penalties. It was a complete no show by Talib.

6) Awful job by John Fox and Jack Del Rio as far as defensive strategy goes. They waited to long to adjust, couldn't generate any pressure on Luck, and had no answers for most of the game for what the Colts were doing offensively. I hope Del Rio takes the Raiders job because he was a disappointment in Denver the last three years as the DC.

7) Von Miller and Demarcus Ware couldn't generate any pressure on Luck. Even when the Broncos got some sort of pass rush, Luck easily stepped up and made the 4 or 5 ridiculous throws that he makes every week.

8) Denver kept throwing deep, but Manning was off target all day long to Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas. Give the Colts credit: They played man-to-man coverage all day on the Broncos receivers, and dared Manning to throw it deep, and he couldn't do it. It was similar to what they did last year in the game between these two in Indy.

9) The Broncos were lucky to only be down by 7 after Adam Vinatieri missed a 44 yard field goal in the 2nd quarter. The Broncos offense again did nothing, and after getting a gift interception-more like a long punt- they were able to convert it into a field goal and make it 14-10 at the half. I had a feeling that maybe that would change the momentum since they were getting the ball in the second half, but I was dead wrong.

10) After another 3 and out by the Denver offense, Luck went to work and this is where the game really changed. He put together a masterful drive, and the key play was a huge 3rd and 16 conversion to Coby Fleener down the seam inside the Denver 5. Luck threw a bullet to Hakeem Nicks to make it 21-10, and at that point I thought the Broncos were doomed. You could just feel it.

11) After C.J. Anderson single handedly converted a 4th and 1 with an amazing run, all Denver could do was settle for a field goal and a 21-13 margin. They needed a touchdown on that drive and they couldn't do it. Settling for the field goal there was a big sequence.

12) After Denver's defense finally rose to the occasion and forced a 3 and out, the Broncos offense continued to struggle and had their own 3 and out to give in the Indy the ball back early in the 4th. That was the ball game right there.

13) The Colts dominated up front and moved the ball effectively on the next drive, and put the game away with a Vinatieri field goal to give them a 24-13 lead. There was no way Denver was coming back at that point. Peyton Manning and that offense just didn't have it in them to do it on this day.

14) It was a bitter loss for the Broncos. Their offense didn't show up, and you can't score only 13 points at home in the playoffs when you average over 28 for the season. Peyton Manning was playing with a quad injury and it showed. Outside of the first drive, he couldn't complete any deep passes, tried to dink and dunk his way down the field, and the Colts swallowed everything up. Demaryius Thomas had a really bad game marred by some terrible drops, Wes Welker was a non-factor as usual, and Julius Thomas was invisible after that first catch he made. C.J. Anderson was the only Bronco who played like he wanted to be there. As far as the defense goes, they were supposed to step up and win these games when the offense wasn't clicking. They failed miserably on Sunday. The Colts were a step ahaed in all phases, and the Broncos got exposed at the worst time.

15) The whole game was just weird, and the Broncos looked like they were flat after having the bye week. This was a very telling loss for the franchise. For the second time in three years, the Broncos lost in the Divisional Round at home as big favorites. Denver came into the game as 8 point favorites over the Colts. A 12-4 season in which the Broncos were considered Super Bowl contenders ended in a very disappointing way. This column is basically about wrapping up the game against the Colts and I will spend a lot of time recapping the season and what lies ahead for the Broncos in the coming weeks. I'll talk about the ramifications it has on Peyton Manning and if he is going to retire or not at a later date. Manning's late season slump continued in this game, and that was the one thing I feared. I also feared Andrew Luck coming and stealing the torch away from Peyton, and he did just that. I'm not shocked Denver lost to the Colts, but I'm very surprised the way it went down. The 2014 season was not supposed to end like it did on Sunday.