--CB Champ Bailey suffered a left elbow injury trying to tackle Chargers RB LaDainian Tomlinson. He missed one series and played the rest of the game with what appeared to be a brace on his arm. The normally durable Bailey also missed seven games with a groin injury.

--K Matt Prater missed an extra point against the Chargers. Prater started the season strong but faded, in part because of fatigue in his leg. Prater said he expects the team to bring in someone to compete with him next year.

--WR Brandon Marshall caught 100 passes for the second straight year but was inconsistent at times.

--WR Eddie Royal finished with 980 yards, a rookie record for the Broncos. With another year of conditioning and learning the offense, Royal could take a forward next season.

--DE Jarvis Moss was inactive against the Chargers. The 2007 first-round pick got more playing time this year but didn't distinguish himself. He faces a make-or-break year in 2009.

REPORT CARD VS. CHARGERS

PASSING OFFENSE: C -- QB Jay Cutler did what he could in a mostly predictable offense. The Broncos ran shotgun sets almost every play because of the lack of depth at tailback. The Broncos passed 49 times and ran only 10 times. Cutler threw for 316 yards but also a pair of damaging interceptions.

RUSHING OFFENSE: B -- Tatum Bell ran only eight times but was pretty good in those attempts. He rushed for two long touchdowns and finished with 86 yards. Bell was out of football for two months, but a good performance in Denver's must-win game could help him get a job in 2009.

PASS DEFENSE: D -- Philip Rivers passed for only 207 yards, but he attempted only 20 passes, and that doesn't count a 52-yard pass-interference call on the first series of the game. The Broncos let receivers run open all over the field, and Rivers was able to pick and choose which teammate he would throw to.

RUSH DEFENSE: F -- The run defense had a total meltdown. Darren Sproles had 115 yards. LaDainian Tomlinson had 96 yards and three touchdowns. Even rookie Jacob Hester had 37 yards and a touchdown. The Chargers averaged 6.9 yards per carry against a Broncos defense that looked slow and didn't play a very physical game either.

SPECIAL TEAMS: D -- Matt Prater missed an extra point, continuing his late-season slide. The Broncos actually did a good job covering kicks against Sproles, but once again, they couldn't make a big play in their own return game.

COACHING: D -- The Broncos coaches did a great job to get a beaten-up team to 8-5 with a three-game lead in the division. Then the team had a historic collapse and missed the playoffs. The December loss that will hurt the most was the Week 16 game against an underdog Buffalo team. Denver was just overmatched against the Chargers.