Denver Broncos: 5 things we learned in win vs. Chargers

Case Keenum’s got the clutch gene

Case Keenum hasn’t been the most effective quarterback over the course of four quarters every game this season, but he’s come up big for the Broncos in the fourth quarter of a number of games.

This Chargers game included some of Keenum’s best plays and throws as a Bronco, and two of them came in crunch time.

Backed up deep in their own territory, Keenum had to find a way to gain a couple of big chunks on plays and wound up finding Emmanuel Sanders over the middle of the field on a play that set the Broncos up past midfield.

He then made a throw that isn’t going to count in the stat book because Tim Patrick was called for offensive pass interference. It ended up not having any consequence on the game, but Keenum’s throw to Patrick was a rocket into tight coverage.

After the penalty, Keenum made a perfect throw deep down the middle of the field to Courtland Sutton that set the Broncos up for the game-winning field goal.

It was a really impressive drive by Keenum and the offense and it came just a couple of weeks after the Broncos nearly mounted a comeback against the Houston Texans in the fourth quarter. The offense had set up the field goal team for a game-winner but Brandon McManus missed it from 51 yards out.

The Broncos could very well be 5-5 right now and would be 6-4 if not for Keenum missing a throw against the Chiefs. That was the opposite of clutch, but more often than not, Keenum has come through when the Broncos had a legitimate chance of winning a game late in the fourth quarter. We’ll see how many more times this comes into play this season.