KANSAS CITY, Mo., Oct. 20 (UPI) -- Keith Burns blocked a punt in overtime Sunday and a pass interference penalty on cornerback Eric Warfield then helped set up a 25-yard field goal by Jason Elam as the Denver Broncos rallied for a 37-34 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.
A backup middle linebacker, Burns broke through the middle of the line and blocked Dan Stryzinski's punt on the Chiefs' first possession of the extra session, giving Denver the ball at the Kansas City 32.
"I was more surprised than anything because I was blocked all day," Burns said. "I just took full advantage of what I saw. I'm sure they'll fix it in December when we play them again."
On the ensuing drive, the Broncos were faced with a third and seven at the 29. Brian Griese lofted a pass for Rod Smith down the right sideline, but Warfield pulled the receiver down at the seven.
Elam converted his short field goal on the next play, giving the Broncos (5-2) a dramatic win.
Griese had a huge day against the NFL's worst defense, passing for a career-high 376 yards and two touchdowns as the Broncos overcame a 34-20 deficit in the fourth quarter. Denver's Shannon Sharpe had 12 catches for 214 yards and two touchdowns.
"I was really proud of the way our team fought for 60 minutes," said Broncos Coach Mike Shanahan, who improved to just 2-6 all-time at Arrowhead Stadium. "You can look at a lot of different areas and say we didn't play our best football game.
"But you can't disrespect the effort that we had and the way we came up with big plays. It gave us a chance to tie the game and eventually win."
It also was another big day for Chiefs running back Priest Holmes, who rushed for 112 yards and three touchdowns against the NFL's top-ranked rushing defense. Holmes leads the NFL with 12 rushing touchdowns and has 14 touchdowns overall.
Kansas City (3-4) has lost its last two AFC West games by a combined four points.
The game was the 12th in the NFL this year in which at least 70 points were scored. There were only four such games all of last season. Four of the 70-point games this year have involved Kansas City.
A big play on special teams early in the fourth quarter seemed to give the Chiefs control when linebacker Monty Beisel blocked Tom Rouen's punt and Glenn Cadrez recovered at the Denver five.
Two plays later, Holmes barreled up the middle for his third touchdown of the game, a two-yard run that gave Kansas City a 34-20 lead with 12:42 remaining.
Holmes is on pace to shatter Marshall Faulk's single-season record of 26 touchdowns, set in 2000. His touchdown total is the most in NFL history after seven games.
But the Chiefs, who surrender more than 32 points per game and over 430 totals per contest, could not hold the lead.
Griese needed less than two minutes to engineer a five-play, 70-yard drive that he capped with a 28-yard touchdown over the middle to Sharpe that pulled the Broncos within 34-27.
It was Sharpe's 53rd career touchdown reception, moving him past Dave Casper into second place all time among tight ends.
"I might have been Sterling Sharpe there today," said Sharpe referring to his older brother. "I thought last week might have been one of my most complete games ever, but today had to be my best."
"I know that Shannon has been frustrated this year because up until today, he hasn't been able to make what he felt was a big enough impact," Griese said. "Well, today I'd have to say we made up for it. Anyone who thought that maybe he had lost something found out today that there couldn't be anything further from the truth."
Sharpe was not the only one to have a field day against the Cheifs as the Broncos rolled up 507 total yards.
Chiefs Coach Dick Vermeil bemoaned his club's defensive problems.
"We've been around these guys the whole offseason, and all through training camp," he said. "We've got to just keep making them better, or quit making these kinds of mistakes.
"But these are our guys, I can't go over to the market and get some guys on sale."
Kansas City had a chance to increase the lead with 3:47 remaining, but 42-year-old Morten Andersen, who had made 25 straight field goals, was short from 43 yards.
That gave Griese time to orchestrate an 11-play, 67-yard drive in which he made a host of big plays along the way.
Griese had a huge 26-yard completion to Sharpe over the middle to the Kansas City 33. But his biggest play came on fourth and six when he found Smith for eight yards to the 21.
Mike Anderson capped the impressive drive with a two-yard run with 21 seconds remaining, tying the game at 34-34.
Anderson, who has seen his role in the backfield diminished, carried nine times for 34 yards. Rookie Clinton Portis had 15 carries for 70 yards, including a two-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
Holmes once again was the story in the backfield for the Chiefs. The NFL's second-leading rusher opened the scoring 5:36 into the contest with a one-yard run. Holmes has 766 yards on the ground this season, behind only San Diego's LaDainian Tomlinson (785).
The Chiefs played surprisingly well on defense in the first half, holding the Broncos to only a pair of field goals by Elam. Andersen kicked field goals of 41 and 32 yards in the second, helping Kansas City to a 13-6 lead.
Holmes helped the Chiefs control the ball in the half, gaining 59 yards on 13 attempts. Denver came into the contest allowing just 62 yards per game on the ground.
