DENVER (AP) — The Denver Broncos are determined to make their first loss in a month a recalibration.
“We got hit in the mouth today, and they played a good game and we let it get away,” quarterback Bo Nix said after Denver’s 34-20 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday ended their 11-game winning streak along with their 12-game home winning streak. “But you’d rather have it hit you now than in the first round of the playoffs.”
Wins by New England and the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday tightened the AFC playoff race with the Broncos (12-3) falling into a tie with the Patriots in the chase for the No. 1 overall seed. The Chargers’ win at Dallas pulled them to within a game of Denver in the AFC West.
The Broncos had uncharacteristic breakdowns in all three phases against the Jaguars. Wil Lutz clanked a field-goal attempt off the upright to start things off, the defense missed many tackles and the offense sputtered in trying to keep up with Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence.
Their slipups raised the stakes for the Broncos’ remaining two games beginning Thursday night at Kansas City (6-9), where Denver hasn’t won in a decade. The Chargers (11-4) visit Denver in Week 18 for what is shaping up to be a winner-take-all game for both the division crown and the AFC’s lone first-round bye.
“I wouldn’t call it a wake-up call because we were playing well,” Nix said. “It’s just one of those that will reset you and put you back in, get you back to where you need to be. It’ll put you in a good mindset if you’ll let it. And like I said, you can’t let this one linger. We have to move on and attack this week on just a short couple of days.”
Linebacker Alex Singleton was also relieved the slipup came in December, not January.
“It’s going to happen,” Singleton said. “This is the NFL and when you can control what you can control now, I mean, there’s nothing better than a short week to flush stuff and go play another game. Let’s get it out of our system and go win two games and people can say whatever they want.”
What’s working
Denver’s pass rushers had five more sacks, giving the Broncos 63 on the season and tying the franchise record they set last season. Getting sacks Sunday were John Franklin-Meyers (two), Riley Moss, Malcolm Roach and D.J. Jones. But only two of those sacks came in the last three quarters and OLB Nik Bonitto admittedly played poorly, saying he was unprepared for the game: “I don’t think I played to my standard. I feel like I could have been a lot better. I didn’t come ready to play today and that kind of reflected on the rest of the defense.”
What needs help
The Broncos suddenly had a tackling problem to go with their penchant for penalties, leading to explosive play after explosive play by the Jaguars, none more deflating than Parker Washington’s 63-yard catch-and-run that set up Travis Etienne’s 10-yard TD catch to give the Jaguars a two-TD lead in the third quarter. The game pitted the two most penalized teams in the NFL but the Jaguars were only whistled twice for 20 yards whereas the Broncos were flagged six times for 61 yards.
Stock up
RB RJ Harvey pinballed his way for a 38-yard touchdown to tie the game at 17 early in the third quarter. That was the rookie’s 11th touchdown. Harvey had 121 scrimmage yards: 50 yards on seven carries and 71 yards on four receptions. The only other major impact came from WR Courtland Sutton (six catches, 86 yards, one touchdown).
Stock down
Nix had a clunker one week after the best game of his career. He can still tie Russell Wilson’s record for most wins (24) in a quarterback’s first two seasons. But he’ll have to beat the Chiefs on Thursday night and the Chargers in Week 18 to match that mark.
Injuries
WR Pat Bryant was released from the hospital after suffering a concussion in the final minute of the game when Nix’s high pass left him vulnerable to the big hit he absorbed.
Key stats
The 10 sacks the Broncos need to break the NFL record of 72 set by the 1984 Chicago Bears, who had a dozen sacks in their final regular-season game that season.
Next steps
To get within reach of their goals to win a division title and the top seed in the AFC playoffs, the Broncos need to win in Kansas City for the first time since Sept. 17, 2015, when they visit the hobbled Chiefs on Christmas night.
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