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Kansas City Chiefs Waste Golden Opportunity Against Denver Broncos

By Erik Lambert

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Sep 17, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Denver Broncos wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders (10) celebrates after scoring against the Kansas City Chiefs during the first half at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

One got the feeling it was going to be their night.  This would be the ultimate turning point, shifting the balance of power away from the Denver Broncos into the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs.  Peyton Manning was constantly under siege, couldn’t complete passes and the offense was running it all night long on a pretty good Denver defense.

Then the Chiefs began to selfdestruct.  Over and over again.

Nothing equalizes an NFL game more than turnovers and Kansas City, normally so good at protecting the football, gave the ball away five times including a heartbreaker with under a minute to play when they could’ve just knelt on the football for overtime.  The stat sheet showed almost everything in favor of them.

The defense had three sacks, an interception and held the Broncos to 61 yards rushing.

Jamaal Charles had 125 yards rushing and a touchdown.

In the end it came down to three players:  Manning, Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders.  Try as they might Kansas City had no answer for those three in the second half, particularly the final drive when they led an 80-yard march to a tying score that set up the incredible ending sequence on Charles’ second fumble of the night.

This game proved more than anything that Denver remains the cream of the crop in the AFC West.  Manning’s arm looked plenty strong enough and their defense will likely rank among the best in the league.  Until the Chiefs learn to get out of their own way in big games, a problem that has haunted them for years, that won’t change.

Denver moves into first place in the division and already through one of the harder parts of its schedule.  Kansas City must try to regroup against the Packers.

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