Denver 35, San Diego 24
When: 8:30 PM ET, Monday, October 15, 2012
Where: Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, California
Temperature:
78°
Head Official:
Jeff Triplette
Attendance:
68604
By SportsDirect Inc.
Broncos 35, Chargers 24: Peyton Manning threw three touchdown passes and completed his first 13 throws of the second half as visiting Denver erased a 24-0 halftime deficit and engineered the fourth-greatest regular-season comeback in NFL history.
Manning, who was 24-of-30 for 309 yards - including 13-of-14 after intermission - connected with Brandon Stokley for a 21-yard touchdown to put the Broncos ahead 28-24 with 9:03 remaining. Denver (3-3) sealed it when Chris Harris returned Philip Rivers' career-high fourth interception 46 yards for a touchdown with 2:05 left.
Rivers and Antonio Gates, the most prolific quarterback-tight end combination in NFL history with 51 touchdowns, teamed for an 11-yard score in the first quarter and their 15-yard TD with 24 seconds left in the second gave San Diego (3-3) a 24-0 halftime lead. Rivers was 25-of-41 for 242 yards. Gates caught six passes for 81 yards.
The Broncos began their comeback when Manning hit Demaryius Thomas with a 29-yard touchdown pass on the opening drive of the third quarter. Manning's second touchdown throw - a 7-yarder to Eric Decker with 13:33 left - made it 24-21.
San Diego committed five of its six turnovers in the second half, including a Rivers' fumble which was scooped up by Tony Carter and returned 65 yards for a touchdown to make it 24-14. Denver muffed a punt and fumbled a kickoff in the first half, leading to 10 points, and Quentin Jammer returned Manning's interception 80 yards for a score in the second quarter.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Denver CB Champ Bailey played his 200th game. ... Gates passed Ozzie Newsome and moved into fourth all-time among TEs with 8,007 yards. ... The Chargers had six possessions in the second half, resulting in five turnovers and a punt.
Top Game Performances
Receiving
Denver |
|
San Diego |
Eric Decker
| Player |
Antonio Gates
|
6 |
Receptions |
6 |
98 |
Yards |
81 |
16.3 |
Avg Yards |
13.5 |
1 |
Touchdowns |
2 |
55 |
Long |
23 |
Team Stats Summary
|
Yards |
Scoring |
Defense |
Team |
Tot |
Rus |
Pas |
TD |
FG |
INT |
Sck |
FF |
Denver
|
365 |
56 |
309 |
5 |
0 |
4 |
4.0 |
3 |
San Diego
|
307 |
90 |
217 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
0.0 |
1 |
Upcoming Games
-
San Diego will play their next game on the road against Cleveland.
The Chargers have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
-
Denver will play their next game at home against New Orleans.
The Broncos have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.