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Ravens steamroll Broncos 30-7
AP Sports Writer
Photo by NICK WASS/AP
Denver quarterback Kyle Orton, left, lies on the field after being sacked in the fourth quarter by Baltimore cornerback Chris Carr on Sunday.
BALTIMORE - The Denver Broncos went from unbeaten to overmatched during a 60-minute beatdown 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 Sunday.
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 also had 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 (Sunday) on all sides of the ball," Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton said. "We didn't really do a whole lot." 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.
"They just did a better job of executing. Desperation had nothing to do with it," Broncos safety Brian Dawkins said.
Baltimore held Royal in check, bottled up Orton and became the first team this season to rush for more than 100 yards against Denver. Given two weeks to think about a three-game skid in which they lost by a combined 11 points, the Ravens started fast and never relented.
"We know we're capable of doing this kind of thing," said Joe Flacco, who went 20 for 25 for 175 yards and a touchdown. "We had a chance in the other games. (Sunday) we finished. That's why we won." Baltimore went up 13-0 when Webb turned the second-half kickoff into his first NFL touchdown. After breaking free around his own 30, the speedy rookie cut right and outran his pursuers into the end zone.
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