The Denver Broncos went from unbeaten to overmatched during a 60-minute beating by the Baltimore Ravens.
Rookie Lardarius Webb returned the second-half kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown, and Baltimore ended a three-game losing streak with a surprisingly easy 30-7 victory yesterday.
It was Denver's first loss under rookie head coach Josh McDaniels. The Broncos (6-1) came in with the NFL's top-ranked defense, a plus-7 turnover differential and one of the league's best kick returners in Eddie Royal. Denver had also outscored the opposition 76-10 after halftime.
The Ravens, however, dominated every facet of the game. "We didn't play our best ball, but they're a pretty good team and they beat us pretty good today on all sides of the ball," Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton said.
Baltimore (4-3) limited Denver to 200 yards, scored off the game's lone turnover, won the special teams fight and outscored the Broncos 24-7 in the second half.
Denver started the day as one of three unbeaten teams in the NFL and was trying to go 7-0 for the first time since 1998. Baltimore needed a win to avoid falling under .500 and dropping two games behind Pittsburgh and Cincinnati in the AFC North.
In a duel between an undefeated team and a desperate one, the Ravens prevailed. Baltimore held Royal in check, bottled up Orton and became the first team this season to rush for more than 100 yards against Denver.
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