Broncos loss in L.A. was only their second most painful this year

The Denver Broncos loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday night is going to sting for some time.

After all, the Broncos were up 24-13 late in the third quarter, and the wheels came off.

Yes, Chargers QB Justin Herbert made some spectacular plays, but Los Angeles essentially finished the game on a 21-0 run. Only a Wil Lutz field goal with under a minute left got the final score to a more respectable 34-27.

And while this might mean Denver is the No. 7 seed in the AFC, if they even make the playoffs at all, it was only the Broncos second most painful loss this season.

What happened in Kansas City on Nov. 10 was actually worse. Not being able to make a 35-yard field goal at the buzzer to hand the Chiefs their first loss of the season was inexcusable. That kick being blocked is still hard to comprehend.

There’s two kinds of disgust as a fan after a heartbreaking loss. Either your team had a long and painful collapse over an hour, like the Broncos did last night, or you were stunned in an instant. That’s what happened inside Arrowhead Stadium during Week 10.

Both are miserable, there’s no twisting that. But the numbness I felt after the Chiefs loss was actually more painful than the anger of Thursday night. The defeat by the Chargers you could see coming for a bit and had some time to mentally prepare. The shocking loss to Kansas City appeared out of nowhere. It was a true kick in the gut.

There’s room for debate on this topic, hence why I put out a poll on social media. However, as a fan, preparing for the inevitable gives you time to brace for the depression.

Think about the two worst losses of the Peyton Manning era. The divisional round against Baltimore after the 2012 season versus Super Bowl XLVIII to conclude 2013.

The infamous Ravens play, where Rahim Moore looked like a little-leaguer trying judge a fly-ball on Joe Flacco’s fling, is the single-worst moment in Broncos history for my money. I couldn’t move or speak for literal hours after that happened.

In the Super Bowl against the Seahawks, everyone knew it was over after Percy Harvin returned the opening kick of the second half for a touchdown. It didn’t mean there wasn’t tremendous disappointment, but you realized that Denver was going to lose the biggest game in sports.

In a weird way, the losses to the Chargers and Chiefs this year have made this season feel more real. That die-hard fandom is back, something that many of us had lost over the last few years. We know this Broncos team is actually good, and when a team with real potential loses it hurts more.

The good news? Neither of those outcomes happened in the playoffs. There’s still more football to be played, and this journey can still be special.

The only problem is 11-4 would feel a lot better than 9-6 when it comes to making the postseason and eventual seeding. But these are growing pains, and that’s the mark of a team on the rise once again.

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