Following last week’s gut-punching first loss to Indianapolis, Denver took the field Sunday hoping to reverse its regression.

The Broncos faced division rival Kansas City in a rematch of Denver’s week-two, 31-24 come-from-behind victory. Peyton Manning entered the game needing only three passing yards to surpass Brett Favre’s all-time career passing yards record and a win to break Favre’s other all-time record and finally get that 187 th career win.

It wasn’t going to be easy for “the sheriff,” especially with two critical members of the defense inactive. DeMarcus Ware suffered a back injury in last week’s loss and Aqib Talib was forced to sit out as a repercussion of his eye-gouging attempt.

If Denver wanted to win the game, their offense was going to have to step up.

During the first drive of the game, Peyton threw a one-yard pass and a two-yard pass to tie the record before throwing an INT on the next play to Marcus Peters. Kansas City capitalized off getting the ball at the 31 yard-line, and scored on their first possession.

Denver returned to the field down a touchdown and one yard away from history. On second down, history was made when Peyton connected with Ronnie Hillman on a swing pass for four yards.

The game was stopped and the stadium roared. Fans, players, and referees gave number 18 a standing ovation. It was a beautiful moment in the sport and displayed the level of respect the NFL has for Peyton Manning.

The play after history was broken resulted in an incomplete pass that brought out the punt team. Kansas City took over at its own 27-yard-line with momentum entirely in its favor. The drive was fueled by a D’Anthony Thomas’ 36-yard catch-and-run that set the Chiefs up for a 10-0 lead.

The offensive drought continued for Denver – the Broncos’ next six drives resulted in either a three-and-out or an INT. While Denver was lucky to pass the 50-yard line, Kansas City wasn’t wasting any time moving the ball into field goal range. Four field goals later, Denver found itself trailing 22-0 before Coach Gary Kubiak benched Peyton,citing pre-existing foot and rib injuries.

Peyton’s historic evening turned into a bad dream that he couldn’t wake up from, a nightmare that looked like 5/20 passing with 35 yards, a fumble, and four interceptions. It was more like night terrors if you asked me.

Brock Osweiler took the field with 6:34 remaining in the third quarter. Due to Peyton’s previous injuries, Brock took more reps in practice during the week and was ready to give Denver a look into the future. His first drive resulted in a three-and-out punt and his second drive seemed to be promising. Denver started at its one-yard line, but a few Kansas City penalties helped sustain the long drive. On fourth and ten from the KC 20 yard line, Brock threw a nice ball towards the corner of the end zone. It had the right trajectory, and it looked good – until the ball was tipped away from Demaryius Thomas and into the hands of Kansas City’s Eric Berry, ending the drive.

It didn’t take long for Kansas City to capitalize on another turnover. On the second play, Charcandrick West caught a screen pass and was off for the races. Eighty yards later, Denver found itself down, 29-0.

On the long touchdown, Denver lost T.J. Ward for the rest of the game because of a malicious punch to the facemask of a Chiefs blocker. He was ejected and could face disciplinary actions similar to Talib.

At that point, Denver was stripped of its dignity, and the Broncos were done. But Osweiler showed poise by answering with an 80-yard touchdown drive. An ensuing onside kick attempt failed, but Kansas City missed a subsequent field goal attempt.

So Denver got the ball back. Osweiler raced the Broncos down the field for a second score with 1:45 to go, making the final score 29-13.

A couple things we learned about Sunday’s scare: First – Peyton’s foot injury turned out to be a torn plantar fascia. No timetable is set for his return, which is sad because despite setting an all-time record, after an unforgettable career, his last outing could be Sunday’s nightmare. Not the best way to go out when you’re considered the greatest of all time.

I hope he can return for at least one last game to redeem himself. Second – Denver’s defense was on vacation last weekend. I’m looking forward to hearing where and how their trip went.

Talib returns this week, but the Ware may be out for up to a month. His absence certainly didn’t go unnoticed.

Denver’s pass-rush was soft on Sunday, and there was little pressure on Alex Smith. Third – if Brock Osweiler indeed takes over for the remainder of the season, he gave the Orange Nation much promise. Having played less than a half of football, he recorded 146 yards passing, a TD, and 18 yards rushing on three carries. Denver may have lost their sheriff, but the up-and-coming deputy gave fans a reason not to panic.

Yet.