St. Louis Blues

Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning stood at the podium Sunday afternoon, and pointed blame in the mirror.

Across the hall, offensive coordinator Adam Gase walked through the locker room and shook his head.The pendulum of disgust and exasperation swung back and forth, player to player, coach to coach.

The scoreboard told the ugly truth of the Broncos’ most odious regular-season performance in Manning’s three seasons in Denver.

St. Louis Rams 22, Denver 7.

The fallout could be more unnerving, the wagging between who the Broncos were and who they want to be. The past was easy to see on Sunday. The Broncos’ performance flooded memories of the Super Bowl loss to Seattle, conjured up images of the first half in New England two weeks ago. The Broncos have yet to win when Manning doesn’t play well. The alarm blared again at Edward Jones Dome, an unlikely place given the opponent’s record and use of a backup quarterback.

“I have to play better,” said Manning, whose streak of 15 consecutive games of two touchdown passes ended. “I give them all the credit.”

The Broncos’ goal of a championship faces obstacles because of a slumping offensive line and a rash of injuries, including the loss Sunday of Emmanuel Sanders (concussion) and tight end Julius Thomas (ankle).

Manning creates breathtaking stats on a weekly basis. A number on the final game sheet left an indelible image. 0. That’s how many trips the Broncos made into the red zone. They entered the game averaging 31.8 points and only penetrated the Rams’ 30-yard line twice. Denver scored its fewest points since Manning took the steering wheel of the offense in 2012.

“There are a lot of teams that wish they were 7-3. But as an offense we have to perform better,” said running back C.J. Anderson. “We will get in the film room and there will be a lot of ‘this happened and that happened.’ As a man, you have to take constructive criticism.”

Even before Sanders left in the third quarter, the victim of a brutal hit by safety Rodney McLeod, the day game was turning into a nightmare. Forget battling for homefield advantage in the playoffs. Kansas City is now tied with Denver atop the AFC West, both teams 7-3, and the Broncos must still go to Kansas City.

“We aren’t used to losing,” cornerback Chris Harris said. “We are going to see what this team is about. It’s a good test for everybody.”

Denver was white-knuckling hope late in the fourth, trailing 19-7.

With a fourth-and-3 from the 28-yard-line, Manning surveyed the Rams’ defense. The defenders frothed.

“It wasn’t anything new, just our stuff,” linebacker James Laurinaitis said. “We were playing extremely fast.”

Rather than bring pressure up the middle, Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams pulled a blitz out of his sleeve. Defensive end Robert Quinn lined up to Manning’s left. On the snap, Quinn circled toward the center, slicing untouched upfield. Manning was sacked by Aaron Donald, leaving the Broncos unraveled and frazzled with 9:41 remaining.

“The back seven covered their tails off,” said Quinn. “We made (Manning) a little bit uneasy.”

Squeamish was a more apt description of the Broncos overall. The offensive line was penalized five times and never established the run (28 yards on 10 carries).

Denver knew it was in for a fight because of St. Louis’ defense. That the Rams were the ugly guy in the fight didn’t hurt either. Desperation goes beyond winking at a gap-toothed bar patron at closing time. With but three victories the Rams played with equal doses of urgency and freedom.

On their first drive, the Rams showed why they beat the Seahawks and 49ers. They marched for a field goal, and in a phrase often repeated, it could have been worse as Shaun Hill threw behind Kenny Britt on a 33-yard completion.

Denver’s first drive stalled on a 1-yard completion to Julius Thomas. He didn’t return in the second quarter. Running back Montee Ball exited after re-injuring his right groin. And Sanders, who scored Denver’s touchdown, spent the second half out of action due to the concussion protocol.

The idea of an upset became real in the fourth quarter with the Broncos trailing 16-7. Manning looked for Jacob Tamme, the team’s only healthy tight end. E.J. Gaines blitzed and Manning rushed his throw as he was hit. Alec Ogletree undercut the route and intercepted the pass.

Denver’s defense held St. Louis to a field goal, keeping it a two-score deficit. And while the defense was oddly passive much of the game, giving Hill plenty of time to pick out targets, it stiffened enough to give the Broncos gasps of breath. The Rams entered the red zone three times, and netted only three field goals from Greg Zuerlein during one stretch. He remained the Rams’ best weapon, though, while Broncos kicker Brandon McManus remained all but invisible. Broncos coach John Fox passed on 55 and 56-yard field-goal attempts in the first three quarters, making the choice to go for it on fourth down in the fourth quarter obvious for Manning.

He couldn’t avoid a sack, however. And the Broncos now can’t escape questions about their future.