New England Patriots Quarterback (12) exchanges pleasantries with Denver Broncos QB Peyton Manning (18) during their AFC Championship clash at the Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado on Sunday 24th of January 25, 2016.
Peyton Manning lumbered his way down the field for a 12-yard gain and a first down Sunday and eventually won the 17th round of his epic rivalry with Tom Brady as the Denver Broncos reached the Super Bowl with a defense-dominated 20-18 victory over the reigning champion New England Patriots.
Manning on Sunday threw for two first-half touchdowns and Denver's formidable defense withstood a thrilling late rally from the Patriots, which saw New England offense dominate the fourth quarter and come within a missed two-point conversion of forcing overtime.
Ultimately a missed extra point conversion by Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski early in the game proved decisive, leaving New England needing to make the two-pointer after Brady connected with Rob Gronkowski to score a touchdown with 17 seconds left to make it 20-18.
But Denver's NFL-best defense held firm to settle an absorbing American Football Conference championship decider at Mile High Stadium.
The victory ended Brady and the Patriots' hopes of winning back-to-back Super Bowls while Manning will now head to San Francisco on February 7 aiming to win the second championship of his career at the age of 39.
"This is a sweet day, a sweet victory. To me this victory is a great example of what this season has been like," Manning said.
"It hasn't been easy, been a lot of different people stepping up at different times ... but everybody did their part and it truly was a team win."
Brady meanwhile paid tribute to Denver's ruthless defense.
"We could never play on our terms. It was an uphill battle all day," he said.
"It was just tough for us to get into a rhythm," added Brady, who also refused to blame Gostkowski for his missed kick.
"He's a great player, he's the best," said Brady. "Everyone misses one at some point."
- Defenses on top -
Tom Brady of the New England Patriots, seen late in the fourth quarter during their AFC Championship game against the Denver Broncos, at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado, on January 24, 2016 - (AFP)
The pre-game hype had focused around the contest between Manning and Brady, the most successful quarterbacks of their generation with five Super Bowl titles between them.
But until the late fourth-quarter rally, the duel between the two never fully materialized as defenses on both sides came to the fore, with outside linebacker Von Miller outstanding for the Broncos.
Brady and Manning were sacked for a combined seven times -- the highest number of sacks in any meeting between the two legends.
Denver's defense took a vice-like grip almost from the outset, forcing the Patriots to punt on each of their first three possessions as Brady struggled to gain any sort of foothold in the game.
The Broncos, by contrast, scored off their first possession, Manning marching his team up field on an 83-yard drive that culminated with the Denver quarterback connecting with Owen Daniels for a 21-yard touchdown.
The Patriots managed to stay in touch and scored when running back Steven Jackson barreled over for a one-yard touchdown.
Crucially however, Gostkowski shanked his extra point attempt, only the second fluffed shot at goal of his career and his first since 2006.
Denver's iron defense then forced another error, a flustered Brady seeing his attempted pass to Gronkowski picked off by Miller to give Manning another prime scoring position.
Manning didn't disappoint, finding Daniels for his second touchdown of the game with a perfectly flighted 12-yard pass to the back of the end zone to take it to 14-6.
Another sack of Brady forced the Patriots to settle for a 46-yard field goal from Gostkowski, who atoned for his earlier miss by ramming it straight down the middle for 14-9.
Brandon McManus restored Denver's eight-point lead with a 52-yard effort late in the second quarter which made it 17-9 at the half.
A further Gostkowski field goal early in the third quarter put New England back to within five points at 17-12 but with Denver's defense dominant the Patriots still struggled to generate much on offense.
Another McManus field goal put Denver 20-12 ahead and left the Patriots needing to overturn an eight-point deficit.
Twice in the fourth quarter, the Patriots attempted and failed to make fourth down conversions as they chased a second touchdown and on the Patriots third and final rally Brady lobbed a 40-yard pass to a double-covered Gronkowski to keep a desperation drive going on fourth-and-10.
Then, on fourth-and-goal from the 4 with 12 seconds on the clock, Brady found Gronkowski again. The tight end stepped in front of Chris Harris Jr. for a touchdown and take the score to 20-18 and the game came down to one play - a needed 2point conversion to tie things up.
The Broncos defense made it once again as Aquib Talib deflected Brady's pass skyward and Roby made the pick in the end zone but the rally and siege wasn't over with 12 seconds on the clock until the Patriots attempt to get back into the game via an onside kick right down the middle was recovered by the Broncos.
And the franchise is now headed to its eighth Super Bowl. This marks No. 4 for Manning, who could become the first quarterback to lead two different franchises to titles. His last appearance was ugly. A 43-8 loss to Seattle two years ago.
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AFP and news wires
