2014 Denver Broncos season
| 2014 Denver Broncos season | |
|---|---|
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| Head coach | John Fox |
| General manager | John Elway |
| Owner | The Pat Bowlen Trust |
| Home field | Sports Authority Field at Mile High |
| Results | |
| Record | 12–4 |
| Division place | 1st AFC West |
| Playoff finish | Lost Divisional Playoffs (Colts) 24–13 |
| Pro Bowlers | 11 (see Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections) |
| AP All-Pros | 3 (see Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections) |
| Uniform | |
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The 2014 Denver Broncos season was the franchise's 45th season in the National Football League and the 55th overall. It also marked the third season with Peyton Manning as the team's starting quarterback as well as the fourth under head coach John Fox.
The Broncos entered the 2014 season as the defending AFC champions, hoping to compete for another Super Bowl run, following a 43–8 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII. The offseason was dominated by numerous roster changes, including the retirement of longtime cornerback Champ Bailey. One day before the start of the team's training camp, the Broncos announced that owner Pat Bowlen relinquished control of the team due to his battle with Alzheimer's disease.
Like the previous two seasons, the Broncos set numerous individual, league and franchise records, including Peyton Manning becoming the NFL's all-time leader in career touchdown passes and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas setting a new franchise record for receiving yards in a single season, despite the team's offensive philosophy changing toward a run-oriented offense in the second half of the season. Manning threw a total of 40 touchdown passes, but only four came in the last four games of the regular season and the playoffs. In addition, Manning achieved only one 300-yard passing game within the team's last seven games (including the playoffs), courtesy of the emergence of running back C. J. Anderson, who achieved 1,282 all-purpose yards, the majority of which came in the second half of the regular season and the playoffs. One day after the Broncos' 24–13 playoff loss to the Indianapolis Colts in the Divisional round of the playoffs, media reports indicated that Manning had been playing with a strained quadriceps since a Week 15 game against the San Diego Chargers.
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