In relief of an injured Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos quarterback Brock Osweiler made his first NFL career start count. Osweiler threw two touchdowns, as the Broncos' defense held on late to preserve a 17-15 road win over the Chicago Bears -- spoiling Bears head coach John Fox's first game against his former team. Here's some notes, quotes and observations from the AFC West leaders' big win.
Notes:
Brock Osweiler completed 20 of 27 passes for 250 yards and the aforementioned two touchdowns. The most important stat of all, however, is the fact that he threw zero interceptions. Peyton Manning leads the NFL by far with 17 interceptions thrown.
Bears RB Jeremy Langford almost led Chicago all the way back late, scoring on a 2-yard run with 24 seconds left to cap off a 65-yard drive for Chicago. However, he was unable to escape Denver's front seven on a game-tying two-point conversion attempt, sealing the win for the Broncos.
Broncos RB Ronnie Hillman gave Osweiler a big boost in his first career start, running for 102 yards and opening up one-on-one coverage for Osweiler to exploit through the air.
Three promising drives for Chicago ended in field goals as Chicago was unable to reach the end zone until Langford's TD in the closing seconds.
Quotes:
"It did not look like a guy on his first time out." -- Broncos coach Gary Kubiak on Brock Osweiler.
"He came in the same fun-loving coach. Cool, calm and collected. Just another game on the schedule. Maybe behind closed doors, he was amped up for it, but he showed nothing outside of the norm with us." -- Bears cornerback Tracy Porter on coach John Fox facing his former team.
"He just wanted to come in and execute and we didn't do a good job of that for him." "I knew that was coming." -- Gary Kubiak fielding question about whether Brock Osweiler or Peyton Manning will start next week. He declined to comment.
"There are more guys to say 'hi' to after the game." -- John Fox on how he felt facing the Broncos.
Observations:
For all the commotion surrounding the Broncos' recent two-game losing streak, the reality of Denver's situation is a lot better than people are giving them credit for. If the Cincinnati Bengals lose tomorrow, the teams will be tied for the #2 spot in the AFC Playoff chase at 8-2. With all the adversity this team has faced this season, a first-round bye for Denver would be one heck of an accomplishment.
The Chicago Bears saw their two-game winning streak snapped and their playoff hopes put on life support at 4-6. The team continues to make progress under head coach John Fox, but there's still holes on both sides of the ball that need to be addressed before the Bears can ascend to legit championship contender status. Missed opportunities have plagued the Bears for a large chunk of the season, including today.
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