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Defense carries Chiefs past Broncos; Peyton Manning benched

By Dennis Georgatos, The Sports Xchange
Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid. Photo by John Sommers II/UPI
Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid. Photo by John Sommers II/UPI | License Photo

DENVER -- A banged-up Peyton Manning was no match for the Kansas City Chiefs' relentless defense.

The Chiefs pressured Manning into a mistake-filled outing that included four interceptions and culminated in his third-quarter benching, and Kansas City shut down the Denver Broncos long enough for a 29-13 victory Sunday.

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"Listen, defense, defense, defense," Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. "They did a tremendous job, five turnovers. They were able to put pressure on Peyton. That doesn't happen very often."

Charcandrick West ran for a touchdown and caught an 80-yard scoring pass from Alex Smith, helping the Chiefs (4-5) snap a seven-game losing streak to the Broncos (7-2). Cairo Santos added five field goals.

"It's a great feeling, just winning period, especially a division game," Chiefs safety Eric Berry said. "That's what we needed right now at this point."

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It was the second straight loss for the Broncos after opening the season with seven consecutive wins.

Though Manning became the NFL's all-time leading passer with his first completion of the day, he was also lifted from the game after playing ineffectively and struggling to dodge pressure while playing with sore ribs and a foot injury.

He finished 5 of 20 for 35 yards before being benched.

"I felt good enough to go out there and play," Manning said. "If you look back on it now, I have a hard time saying that's why I played badly. Could that be the reason? I guess it always could be. But to me, that's an easy way out."

Broncos coach Gary Kubiak said he made the decision to pull Manning because, "I was protecting him. ... I was worried about him."

Kubiak also second-guessed himself for allowing Manning to play after the rib issue cropped up late in the week.

"I probably should have right there said, 'No, he's not going to go this week,' " Kubiak said. "But he's a competitor. He wanted to play."

Manning was replaced by backup Brock Osweiler with 6:34 left to play in the third quarter after throwing his fourth interception.

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Kubiak said Manning remains the starter and he will start next week's game at Chicago if his health permits.

Osweiler led the Broncos on a drive that Ronnie Hillman finished with a 1-yard touchdown run with 5:27 left to play, averting the Broncos' first-ever shutout at home. The 2-point conversion try failed when a scrambling Osweiler was tackled short of the goal line.

However, Osweiler also had an interception in the end zone, by Berry and the Chiefs capitalized on the turnover with Smith hitting West for the long catch-and-run touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

In all, the Chiefs scored 20 points off Denver's five turnovers.

"It may be one of the best defensive performances in a long time," Smith said. "To start the game the way we did, getting an interception, and getting the touchdown, was big, just to start fast like that as a team. From there, we kept the pedal down, kept the momentum going."

Osweiler, who also had a 7-yard touchdown pass to Andre Caldwell in the late going, finished 14 of 24 for 146 yards.

Manning completed a 4-yard pass to Hillman during the first quarter of Sunday's game against Kansas City on Sunday to become the NFL's all-time passing yardage leader, surpassing the previous high by Brett Favre.

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The completion boosted Manning's career yardage total to 71,840. Favre finished his career with 71,838.

The game was stopped momentarily to acknowledge Manning's feat. Hillman gave Manning the ball back for a keepsake and the quarterback tossed it to the Broncos sideline to have it put away.

Manning, the NFL's only five-time MVP, is in his 18th NFL season. He spent his first 14 years in the league with Indianapolis, where he won a Super Bowl as a member of the Colts.

Manning underthrew his first pass of the day, intended for newly acquired tight end Vernon Davis, and it was intercepted by cornerback Marcus Peters, leading to West's 4-yard touchdown run and helping Kansas City jump out to a 19-0 halftime lead.

It was the first time Denver had been shut out in the first two quarters of play in three years.

Manning threw two more interceptions in the first half. Cornerback Sean Smith's pick led to a 49-yard field goal by Cairo Santos and Santos added a 34-yard field goal following linebacker Josh Mauga's interception of a Manning pass intended for tight end Owen Daniels.

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Santos added field goals of 48 and 33 yards.

NOTES: The Broncos were without OLB DeMarcus Ware, who sat the game out with a back injury. ... CB Bradley Roby started in place of CB Aqib Talib, who served his one-game suspension for poking Colts TE Dwayne Allen in the eye last week. ... Chiefs RB Knile Davis, who has slipped recently on the team's depth chart, was among the players deactivated for the game. ... Chiefs S Tyvon Branch left the game in the first half with a foot injury and did not return. ... Broncos S T.J. Ward was ejected from the game in the fourth quarter for unsportsmanlike conduct.

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