15:00: The Broncos received the ball to start the game, so Matt Prater is out to kick off to begin the second half. Fred Jackson takes the squib kick 17 yards out to the Buffalo 44-yard line, where the Bills offense takes over.

14:44: Marshawn Lynch takes the first-down carry for four yards. On second down, Buffalo is called for a false start. That makes it second-and-11. Trent Edwards takes the snap in the shotgun formation, finding tight end Robert Royal for an eight-yard pickup before he is forced out of bounds by D.J. Williams.

On third-and-3, Edwards is in the shotgun again. He takes the snap and finds Fred Jackson — he barely gets the first down before beind forced backwards by Dre’ Bly.

12:44: Lynch takes the carry on first down again, picking up another five yards. On second down, Edwards quickly gets the ball out to Josh Reed, who is pushed out of bounds by Champ Bailey just past the first-down marker.

11:30: First-and-10 for the Bills, and Edwards is once again in the shotgun, flanked by two running backs. He gives it to the one on the left, Fred Jackson, and he picks up three yards.

On second down, Edwards tries to find Roscoe Parish in the red zone, but it’s off his fingertips and almost intercepted by Josh Barrett.

10:47: Now it’s third-and-7 for the Bills at the Denver 30-yard line. The play call is a handoff to Lynch, who is stopped behind the line by Elvis Dumervil. There’s no gain on the play, setting up fourth-and-7.

Rian Lindell is in to attempt the field goal for Buffalo. It’s a 49-yard attempt. The kick is up and sneaks through the right upright. It’s good, and the Bills have come back to tie the Broncos, 13-13.

9:52: Lindell is set to kick off for Buffalo, and Selvin Young is back deep to receive. He picks up 22 yards to the 29-yard line, where Jay Cutler and company will take over.

Just heard the wind chill on the field is -1 degrees. Uh, that’s chilly.

Play resumes, and Young takes a handoff for no gain. On second down, Cutler tries to find Brandon Marshall in traffic, but it’s broken up.

9:09: Now it’s third-and-10 for the Broncos from their own 29-yard line, and Cutler calls a timeout with the play clock winding down. It’s Denver’s first of the half.

Cutler takes the snap in the shotgun and finds Marshall streaking down the middle of the field. He hauls it in for what looks like a first down, but the ball is drilled out by a sprinting Donte Whitner. It’s a fumble, the Bills recover and the Buffalo offense takes over at its own 42-yard line.

8:52: On first down, Edwards lets the ball fly as he gets hit. It’s short, but Dre’ Bly is called for pass interference — it’s a 22-yard penalty.

Now on first down from the Denver 36-yard line, Fred Jackson takes a carry for two yards. On second down, Edwards fakes a handoff before bootlegging to his right and picking up a first down.

7:20: It’s play-action again on first down, this time Edwards fakes the handoff, rolls to his right and fires the ball to Josh Reed, who picks up a first down at the Denver 11.

On first-and-10, Edwards takes the snap, fakes a handoff to Lynch and gives it to Roscoe Parish on a receiver end-around. Dre’ Bly sniffs out the play, however, and brings Parish down at the line of scrimmage.

6:00: Second-and-10 for Buffalo from the Denver 11. Elvis Dumervil fights off his blocker and gets to Edwards for what looks like a sack, but Edwards fights away as Dumervil is thrown to the ground. Edwards rolls to his right and tries to find Marshawn Lynch, but it bounces off the running back’s hands out of bounds. There’s a flag on the play, however. The tackle who ripped Dumervil off of Edwards is being called for holding. The penalty is declined, setting up third-and-10 from the 11.

Edwards is in the shotgun, drops back and pitches what looks like a shovel pass to Jackson. It’s complete, but Jackson is knocked down by Dumervil after a one-yard gain.

4:58: Lindell kicks in a 28-yard field goal, and Buffalo takes its first lead of the game. The Bills lead the Broncos 16-13.

4:52: Cutler and the offense take over at the 16-yard line after Young bobbled the kickoff before picking up 10 yards.

Cutler starts off quickly on first down, finding Daniel Graham down the middle of the field for a big gain — 24 yards — down to the Denver 40-yard line.

First down again, Cutler drops back and tries to find Marshall, but as he adjusted to find the ball, Buffalo’s Terrence McGee smacked the ball away.

4:04: Second-and-10, Cutler in the shotgun. He drops back and looks for a wide open and streaking Eddie Royal — not sure what the Buffalo defense was looking at — but he is hit just as he lets the ball goes and overthrows the rookie. Cutler stands by himself a few yards back after the play with his hands on his hips.

3:55: The team takes a little long to get to the line, however, and the Broncos are called for a delay of game penalty. That sets up third-and-15, but Cutler rolls to his right, avoids pressure and launches the ball to Daniel Graham in triple coverage, but Graham comes away with the ball for a 23-yard gain. First-and-10 Denver.

The team hurries up to the line and right away Cutler finds Tony Scheffler down the middle of the field for another first down. Clearly the Broncos are working the tight ends.

2:30: It’s first-and-10 for the Broncos at the Buffalo 22-yard line. The offense jogs up to the line. Cutler takes the snap, drops back and almost avoids the pressure — but he’s caught by his shoelaces by Kawika Mitchell for a sack.

Selvin Young was shaken up on the play, but he walks off the field under his own power, flanked by trainers.

A shirtless fan painted in orange and blue is shown on the scoreboard, and the crowd gives him a standing ovation. Now play resumes and Cutler throws a high pass to Marshall, who leaps in the air and comes away with it.

1:15: With the ball at the 18-yard line, Cutler jogs up to the line and sets up in the shotgun. It’s third-and-6. He takes the snap and finds Brandon Stokley sprinting across the field. Stokley takes it and runs with it toward the sideline, picking up the first down and setting up first-and-goal from the six.

0:38: On first down, Cutler takes the snap, bootlegs to his left, picks up a HUGE block by Ryan Clady in front of him and dives for the pylon. Touchdown, Broncos. It’s Cutler’s second rushing touchdown of the day.

The Matt Prater extra point is through the uprights, and the Broncos retake the lead against the Bills, 20-16.

On the drive, Cutler passed the 4,000-yard mark for the season. He’s just the third quarterback in Broncos history to throw for 4,000 yards in a season — John Elway and Jake Plummer were the others.

0:33: Lou Green takes down Leodis McKelvin after an 18-yard return on the kickoff. The ball is now at the Buffalo 28, first-and-10 for the Bills. The crowd at INVESCO is on its feet as Champ Bailey latches onto Jackson and takes him down after a gain of four.

INJURY UPDATE: Selvin Young has a pinched nerve. His return is questionable.

The quarter comes to an end on the Jackson run. The Broncos lead the Bills, 20-16.

-Gray Caldwell, DenverBroncos.com

Tags: Gray Caldwell, Live Blog, Third Quarter, Week 16

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