It was almost the perfect “homecoming” for Emmanuel Sanders, who spent the first four years of his career in Pittsburgh. The Broncos big-play threat at wide receiver had a career-high 181 yards on 10 catches, absolutely lighting up his former team in the first half  to the tune of 163 yards from scrimmage, the third most all-time in a half by a Denver Bronco.

“It felt good to start fast,” Sanders said after the game. “It felt good to be back in front of Steelers Nation waving the towels, but I wish the result would have been better.”

The result was the only thing that kept that homecoming from being perfect.

Along with the rest of the Broncos offense, Sanders was effectively shut down in the second half, only hauling in 42 yards through the air, compared to his 139 in the first half.

As Denver went cold, Pittsburgh heated up, outscoring the Broncos 21-0 in the second half on their way to a 34-27 win.

Despite the result, the ever-positive Sanders remained that way after the game.

“This locker room is not going to split. We are a team and we will go through a lot and be tested,” he said. “One thing is we still have our goals to reach. We can still make the playoffs, we can still win the Super Bowl, so everything is going to be alright.”

The Broncos still control their own destiny, in terms of reaching the playoffs, with two games to play, but any path to those goals will have to involve more consistency.

“We will get back into the lab starting on Wednesday at practice and try to improve,” Sanders said. “We have to figure out a way to carry the first half into the second half.”