Broncos end three-game winning streak with brutal effort in Santa Clara

The Broncos may still have a path to the playoffs, but Sunday’s loss to the 49ers appears to be the final nail in the coffin for their 2018 campaign.

San Francisco beat Denver 20-14 on Sunday at Levi’s Stadium. The Broncos fell to 6-7 on the season and now sit a game behind the four teams tied for the final AFC Wild Card spot. The 49ers notched their third win of the season.

After trailing by three scores at halftime, the Broncos gave themselves a chance to come back late. They put together a 14-play, 69-yard drive that ended with a touchdown pass to DaeSean Hamilton. The Broncos trailed by six points with just under four minutes on the clock.

But the 49ers converted two long third downs on their ensuing possession and burned most of the time remaining on the clock. The Broncos took over at their own 40 with five seconds left and tried a pitch play, but it went nowhere.

The Broncos dug themselves a massive hole in the first half. Earlier in the week, Broncos defensive coordinator Joe Woods said the team would continue to primarily play man coverage despite losing top cornerback Chris Harris Jr. to injury. But when they took the field on Sunday, the Broncos sat back in a zone and 49ers quarterback Nick Mullens picked it apart.

Tight end George Kittle was San Francisco’s leading receiver with 210 receiving yards. He found gaps in the Broncos’ defense and when Mullens got the ball into his hands, he blew past Denver defenders for big gains. By halftime, the 49ers had outscored Denver 20-0 and only punted twice. Mullens had 271 passing yards.

But in the second half, the Broncos went back to their usual defensive formula. They sent extra pass rushers and played tight man coverage outside. It worked. In five second-half possessions, the 49ers didn’t score and only earned five first downs.

Offensively, the Broncos didn’t find any rhythm until late in the game. In the first half, Denver only moved into San Francisco territory once and they were knocked back onto their own half of the field by an intentional grounding penalty.

Phillip Lindsay, who has been the Broncos’ best offensive player for most of the season, did next to nothing on Sunday. He was often buried behind the line of scrimmage, but even when he had space, the rookie couldn’t move the ball. He finished with 30 yards on 14 carries, with a touchdown. Fellow rookie Royce Freeman earned more touches as the game went on and finished with 36 yards on six carries, including a 23-yarder in the third quarter.

Denver couldn’t do much passing the ball either. Case Keenum completed 24 of 42 attempts for 186 yards. Tim Patrick caught seven of 10 targets for 85 yards and made a couple of crucial plays down the stretch.

By the time the Broncos started moving the ball in the second half, they were forced to play aggressively. Head coach Vance Joseph opted to leave the offense on the field on fourth down seven times. The team converted five of them, but one failure came with over 8 minutes in the game at the edge of the red zone when a field goal would have left the Broncos within 10 points.

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Bradley Chubb was dominant on Sunday. His two sacks gave him 12 for the season and moved him in front of Von Miller (11.5) for the Broncos’ all-time rookie record. If he can earn three more, he’ll pass Jevon Kearse (14.5) for the league’s rookie record. He also recorded two tackles for losses and two quarterback hits.

PLAY OF THE GAME

The key to the Broncos’ three-game winning streak was their ability to force turnovers that set up easy scores for the offense. Denver struggled to take the ball away from the 49ers for most of Sunday’s game, but Darian Stewart broke through early in the fourth quarter.

Facing a 20-7 deficit, Stewart dove to pick off a pass near midfield. The Broncos were set up in position to pull within one score but turned the ball over on downs.

QUOTE OF THE GAME

“Our record, we’re still in it. Every game now is a must-win. We haven’t talked about that, but we have to now. Every game that we play from on is a must-win.” — Vance Joseph

BY THE NUMBERS

+1 — Denver’s turnover margin

11 — penalties on each team

210 — George Kittle’s first-half receiving yards

WHAT’S NEXT

The Broncos will host the Browns (5-7-1) at Mile High Stadium on Saturday for a 6 p.m. kickoff. Cleveland is coming off a 26-20 win over the Panthers, their third win in four games.