Peyton Manning is still adjusting to life as a back-up but showed his enduring quality by coming off the bench and piloting four Denver scoring drives in a 27-20 win over San Diego that clinched homefield advantage for the Broncos in the NFL playoffs.
The victory, after reigning Super Bowl champion New England fell 20-10 to the Miami Dolphins on the final day of the regular season, lifted the Broncos to the American Football Conference West division title and the top seed in the AFC.
Manning, who missed seven weeks with a foot injury and was in uniform as No2 to Brock Osweiler, received a thunderous ovation when he took over from the ineffective starter in the third quarter.
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He promptly launched an 80-yard, eight-play drive capped by C.J. Anderson’s one-yard touchdown run that gave Denver a 14-13 lead.
With Manning at the helm the Broncos also got a rushing touchdown from Ronnie Hillman and two Brandon McManus .
Broncos coach Gary Kubiak said he decided to go with the 39-year-old Manning after the Broncos coughed up their fifth turnover of the game – even though the errors weren’t all on Osweiler’s head.
“Just my gut told me to turn it over to him,” Kubiak said. “I’m just very proud of him. He’s worked
really hard to stay there for us and it couldn’t be a bigger day to be there for us.”
Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib said Manning’s entry into the contest “lifted the whole stadium”. “I don’t know if it was just his presence, but it was just a little energy that came through the building.”
Manning, a five-time NFL MVP who had never appeared as a backup as a pro, admitted it was “different” but was pleased to make a solid contribution.
“I think when I was in there, we ran the ball better,” he said. “We held on to the ball, caught the ball better. That’s just kind of how it worked out.”
Unless Peyton Manning is physically compromised after playing yesterday, it’s hard to imagine Gary Kubiak deciding not to start him
— Ed Werder (@Edwerderespn) January 4, 2016
A first-round bye will be welcome for New England, whose quarterback Tom Brady absorbed some hard hits as he completed just 12 of 21 passes for a season-low 134 yards and no touchdowns.
“We didn’t do enough things well enough to win,” coach Bill Belichick said after the Patriots offense was held to 196 total yards. “That was a problem across the board.”
In the final game of the regular season, the Minnesota Vikings ended Green Bay’s four-year reign atop the NFC North with a 20-13 victory over the Packers at Lambeau Field.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers kept the Packers pressing until the bitter end, but his desperation pass as time expired was deflected in the end zone.
The Vikings won their third straight game and will host the Seahawks in the first round of the playoffs, when Green Bay visit NFC East champions Washington.
