PREGAME: The Re/Max parachute team is flying into Arrowhead stadium to deliver the game ball, and soon we’ll have a flyover courtesy of F/A-18E Super Hornets from California.
COIN TOSS: The captains are on the field for the coin toss. The Broncos have called heads and won the toss. They have elected to receive and will field the opening kickoff.
Q1 15:00: Eric Decker is back to receive the kickoff from Ryan Succop, and the rookie fields it at his own 4-yard line and runs it back to the 30-yard line. The starting offense is on the field. Ryan Clady, Zane Beadles, J.D. Walton, Chris Kuper and Ryan Harris are starting along the line, and Kyle Orton and Knowshon Moreno make up the backfield. Eddie Royal and Brandon Lloyd are starting at wide receiver with Daniel Graham and Dan Gronkowski at tight end. Moreno takes a direct snap for 3 yards on first down, and Orton finds Gaffney on an 18-yard pass.
Q1 13:37: On first down from midfield, Orton completes a 9-yard pass to Dan Gronkowski. Moreno runs 4-yards up the middle on the next play, and Orton gets sacked by Tamba Hali on the subsequent first down. Orton finds Eddie Royal for a 3-yard gain on the next play, but can’t complete a pass to Brandon Lloyd on third down. Britton Colquitt comes into to punt Javier Arenas calls for a fair catch at the 9-yard line.
Q1 11:03: The Broncos defense just jugged onto the field. Kevin Vickerson, Jamal Williams and Justin Bannan make up the defensive line, while Mario Haggan, Joe Mays, D.J. Williams and Jason Hunter are starting at linebacker. Perrish Cox, Renaldo Hill, David Bruton and Champ Bailey are starting in the secondary. Matt Cassel lines up under center on the Chiefs’ first play, and he gives the ball to Jamaal Charles for an 8-yard gain. Cassel hands off to Thomas Jones on the next play for 4 yards and a new set of downs.
Q1 10:05: On first down from the 21-yard line, Dexter McCluster carries the ball for 5-yards on a reverse before he’s stopped by Jason Hunter. Cassel can’t complete a pass on second down, and Perrish Cox breaks up a pass on third down. Eddie Royal fields a punt from Dustin Colquitt (Britton’s brother) for 7 yards. The Broncos will start from their own 37-yard line.
Q1 8:59: Orton lines up under center and gives the ball to Moreno up the right side. The shifty back evades a couple of Chiefs before Glenn Dorsey pulls him down for a 2-yard gain. On second down, Orton takes the snap and rolls left to avoid pressure. His deep attempt to Brandon Lloyd is almost picked off by Jon McGraw. On third down, Kansas City brings multiple blitzers and Javier Arenas takes down Orton for the Kansas City’s second sack of the game. Colquitt punts to Arenas, who returns the ball 8 yards to the 30-yard line.
Q1 7:45: Cassel takes the snap under center and Fires a pass for Dwayne Bowe, who hauls it in for a 9-yard gain after getting his feet just in bounds in front of the right sideline. Denver is challenging the ruling on the field of a complete pass.
Q1 7:28: The ruling on the field is overturned, so the Chiefs face second-and-10.
Q1 7:14: Thomas Jones carries for 1 yard on second down, but Cassel finds Jamaal Charles for a 10-yard completion to convert the third-and-long. Charles takes the handoff for 2 yards on the next play and finds room up the middle for 4 more yards before Joe Mays and D.J. Williams take him down. Cassel converts the Chiefs second straight third down by finding Dwayne Bowe over the middle for 19 yards.
Q1 4:04: On first-and-10 from Denver’s 39-yard line, Cassel scrambles for 5 yards. Charles carries for 4 more yards, and Thomas Jones breaks catches a ball in the flat and breaks free for a 20-yard gain. The Chiefs face first-and-goal from the Broncos’ 5-yard line, and have converted three straight third downs.
Q1 1:56: Charles carries for 3 yards on first down, and the Chiefs have put in DT Shaun Smith as their goal-line fullback. Cassel finds his big tight end Leonard Pope all by himself in the back of the end zone, and the Chiefs strike first.
CHIEFS 7, BRONCOS 0
Q1 1:15: Decker is back to receive the kickoff and he carries it well past the 20-yard line, but there is a flag on the play. Denver is called for an illegal block in the back, and the Broncos start from the 10-yard line. Moreno carries the football for 5 yards on first down, and Orton is calling an audible on second down. The quarterback hands off to Moreno, who runs behind Spencer Larsen for 3 yards. That brings us to the end of the first quarter.
Q2 15:00: On third-and-2, Orton finds Brandon Lloyd on a 13-yard pass to start the quarter on a high note. Moreno gets the call on the next play, running up the middle and spinning his way down for 3 yards. Orton lines up under center and pitches left to Moreno, who deflects one tackler and jumps over another for another 3-yard gain. Denver calls a timeout as they face third-and-4 from the 31-yard line.
Q2 13:04: Brandon Carr jumps in front of Orton’s third-down pass, but he can’t hold on to the interception, so Britton Colquitt comes on to punt. Javier Arenas fields the punt around the 20-yard line and returns it about 10 yards, but there’s a flag on the field. The Chiefs are called for holding, and they’ll start from their own 10-yard line.
Q2 12:48: Cassel lines up under center, fakes the handoff and finds Thomas Jones for 12 yards and a first down at the 22-yard line. Jamaal Charles run for 4 yards on the next play before he’s stopped by David Bruton. Cassel lines up in the shotgun on second down and hits Jones on another pass for 10 yards and a first down at Kansas City’s 36-yard line. Kansas City is called for a false start, so they’ll face first-and-15 from the 31-yard line. Now they elect to take their first timeout of the half.
Q2 10:32: Joe Mays deflects Cassel’s first-down pass intended for Tony Moeaki, and Charles runs for 10 yards up the left side on second down. Facing third-and-5, Cassel handles the shotgun snap and finds Moeaki on a crossing route over the middle. The tight end picks up 21 yards before Perrish Cox tackles him.
Q2 8:37: On first-and-10 from the Denver 39-yard line, Dexter McCluster is stopped by D.J. Williams and Marcus Thomas for no gain. Cassel’s second-down pass is complete to Leonard Pope for 5 yards, but there’s a flag on the field. The Chiefs are called for illegal motion, so they’re restart second-down with 15 yards to go for a first down. Cassel throws the ball away in the face of pressure, and he hits Jamaal Charles on 10-yard pass, not enough to convert the down. Dustin Colquitt punts 26 yards to the Denver 7-yard line, where Eddie Royal calls for a fair catch.
Q2 6:39: Kyle Orton hands off to Knowshon Moreno on first down, and the running back gets a nice block from Spencer Larsen as he runs 13 yards up the middle for a first down. Orton takes a shotgun snap, fakes a pitch, and then hands off to Moreno on the draw. The back has space up the middle again and runs 10 yards for another first down.
Q2 5:08: Moreno takes his third straight carry for 8 yards, and then runs again on second down for 4 more yards. That’s three straight first downs for the Broncos on the back of Moreno. They face first-and-10 from their own 43-yard line.
Q2 3:46: Moreno runs for 3 yards, and Denver decides to pass again on second down. Orton has plenty of time, but his pass is a little too high for Moreno. The running back must have drifted upfield on the intended screen because the officials flag J.D. Walton as an ineligible man downfield. The Broncos face second-and-12 from their own 40-yard line, and the Chiefs call their second timeout of the half.
Q2 3:27: Orton lines up in the shotgun, handles the snap and fires a pass just over the head of Daniel Graham. On third-and-12, Orton lofts a perfect pass to Eric Decker, who makes the catch over a Kansas City defender for 28 yards and a fresh Denver first down.
Q2 2:22: Moreno takes the carry on first down and rumbles 17 yards to the Kansas City 15-yard line. He runs for 3 yards on the next play, and that takes us to the two-minute warning.
*INJURY UPDATE* Dan Gronkowski is out with an ankle injury and his return is questionable.
Q2 2:00: Moreno takes the carry for 4 yards on second down, and on third-and-3 Orton tosses a pass to the running back, but two Chiefs stuff Moreno. Matt Prater is on to attempt a 25-yard field goal, and he kicks it through the uprights.
CHIEFS 7, BRONCOS 3
Q2 1:19: Prater kicks off deep to McCluster, who returns it to the 27-yard line. Cassel lines up in the shotgun, handles the snap and hits Verran Tucker on a 9-yard comeback route. Tucker steps out of bounds to stop the clock, and Cassel hands off to Charles on a draw play for 10 yards to the 46-yard line. Cassel completes an 11-yard pass to Moeaki on the next play, and the Chiefs use their final timeout of the half.
Q2 0:33: Cassel takes the shotgun snap and can’t find Dexter McCluster, who’s covered well by Syd’Quan Thompson. Cassel’s next pass intended for Tucker is incomplete, and the Chiefs face third-anjd-10 from Denver’s 43-yard line. Cassel drops back and hits Moeaki for 14 yards before he’s stopped by Hill. Moeaki hangs onto the ball, and the Chiefs run up to spike the ball and stop the clock. Ryan Succop attempts a 47-yard field goal, and it sails through, but Denver called a timeout before the kick, so it doesn’t count. Succop hits it again on his second try, putting the Chiefs up by 7 with three seconds left in the half.
CHIEFS 10, BRONCOS 3
Q2 0:03: Succop’s squib kick is handled by Perrish Cox, who runs around looking for a seam but can’t find one. So the Broncos head into the locker room trailing the Chiefs by 7 at halftime.
Tags: 2010, Arrowhead Stadium, Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Week 13
3 and out
OK, defense has had four minutes of rest. Let’s put some hurt on.
and there that goes.
Haley will have to keep that last drive in mind. We controlled the clock and the line of scrimage.
I’m not worried about a FG. Just keep them out of the end zone!
Gonna have to do SOMETHING on D.
Nate Jones has to go bye bye. I’d rather see sydquan out there.
hahahahaha I love it
McD pulls a Shanny Freeze!
do it again
Only down by 7! Are you kidding me. Most of the experts had Kansas City winning by 50 pts at halftime.