San Diego took advantage of a pair of special teams turnovers to jump out to a 10-0 lead midway through the first quarter. Broncos punt returner Trindon Holliday, acquired off waivers from the Houston Texans last week, muffed a punt that was recovered by Chargers tight end Dante Rosario, leading to a 32-yard field goal field by Nick Novak. The Broncos replaced Holliday with rookie cornerback Omar Bolden on the ensuing kickoff, which Bolden promptly fumbled. Two plays laThe Chargers built upon their lead when Broncos wide receiver Matt Willis failed to adjust his route against the blitz as Peyton Manning's pass was intercepted by cornerback Quentin Jammer and returned 80 yards for a touchdown. A few plays earlier, Broncos wide receiver Eric Decker appeared to be on his way for a 85-yard touchdown, but tripped and fell after 55 yards. Following a three-and-out by the Broncos, Rivers led the Chargers on a 10-play, 66-yard drive that ended when he and Gates connected for a second touchdown, this one from 11 yards out that gave the Chargers a 24-0 lead at the half.After the break, Manning and the Broncos defense took over.
Manning took the Broncos 85 yards in eight plays, hooking up with Demaryius Thomas, who beat Jammer on a corner-post route to get the Broncos on the scoreboard. The Chargers appeared to respond with a lengthy drive, even benefiting from some "fumble luck" when a Randy McMichael fumble on third down could not be corralled by Broncos safety Jim Leonhard and actually resulted in a first down for the Chargers. Three plays later, defensive end Elvis Dumervil would hit Rivers, forcing a fumble that was scooped up by cornerback Tony Carter and returned 65 yards for a touchdown that sucked the air out of Qualcomm Stadium.
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