That would be atop the AFC playoff bracket. The Broncos will get a bye next weekend before hosting a Divisional Round game on either January 16 or 17.
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The Broncos (12-4) secured the AFC’s top seed when Manning replaced Osweiler on Sunday and led Denver to a 27-20 win over San Diego.
Manning will get the call if Kubiak makes his decision based on experience, which he very well might do. What he went through physically, which was tough on him because he wasn’t himself, there were hard times through this.
In my opinion starting Peyton Manning is a no brainer, not only he has more experience but just having him on the field makes the team better when he is healthy.
For the first time since 1994, when he was a freshman at Tennessee, Manning was initially in a backup role owing to injuries that sidelined him since mid-November.
SEAHAWKS 36, CARDINALS 6 (at Glendale, Ariz.) – Russell Wilson threw three touchdown passes in a second-quarter outburst and the Seahawks emphatically snapped the Cardinals’ nine-game winning streak.
DENVER (AP) – It could be Peyton Manning starting for the Denver Broncos when they open the playoffs in two weeks. But he was victimized by five Denver turnovers, including two interceptions that weren’t his fault and fumbles by two other players.
As a result, Manning was not in uniform for the Broncos’ win last Monday night over the Cincinnati Bengals. Manning promptly led an 8-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a C.J. Anderson touchdown run to give Denver the lead back.
Not that Manning gunned a last-second touchdown pass to earn Denver’s 12th victory of the year. The longer this drags out, the bigger the distraction for a team that doesn’t need any more drama.
Kubiak needed to see how Manning would do before the playoffs began, and he’ll find out this week how his sore foot held up.
Nor was he concerned about Osweiler’s confidence being churned. I am focused on how to get ready for the game. I mean, yeah, we had some turnovers, but a couple of them definitely he had nothing to do with.
And really, Manning’s health has always been at the crux of the quarterback debate, even as Osweiler went 4-2 during his absence.
Whitney Mercilus and JJ Watt had three sacks each as the Houston Texans clinched their first AFC South division title since 2012, wrapping up the regular season with a 30-6 triumph over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Asked about his standing after Sunday’s game, McCoy said: “I’m the head football coach until they tell me different”.
Seattle allowed the fewest points in the league – 277 – but the Broncos, who yielded 296, would have bested that, too, were it not for a trio of pick-6s by Peyton Manning early in the season. Brock’s done a great job with this football team. “They also understand through the course of the season what has taken place with our team and how we’re going to handle it”, Kubiak said. “He took advantage of his today”, coach Gary Kubiak said.
Kubiak played a hunch Sunday so it follows that he’ll go with his gut again for the playoffs rather than go over stat sheets and all the analytics over the next 72 hours.
Kubiak said Denver’s opponent – Chiefs, Texans or Steelers – won’t factor into his QB decision, either.
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“I don’t worry about who we play”, Kubiak said. While Manning did nothing spectacular, he put 20 points on the board and resuscitated a quarterback controversy that seemed to be settled.
