Broncos' Biggest Studs & Duds from Week 18 Loss to Chiefs

The Denver Broncos capped off another losing season by continuing their pathetic losing streak to the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday. The Broncos' 28-24 loss had better bring significant change to the Mile High City or the team will be doomed to mediocrity for another season.

All eyes are on Dove Valley to see if GM George Paton will clean house, starting with the head coach. Meanwhile, we're continuing the postmortem with a look at the studs and duds from Week 18.

Stud: Drew Lock | QB

Lock was inaccurate to start the game but kept the team alive by using his legs as he rushed for two scores and 35 yards. His accuracy improved as the game went along and he was able to engineer another scoring drive in the third quarter.

Lock had victory in the grasp and was about to put the game away, before a running back fumbled. This costly turnover, when the Broncos were deep into Chiefs' territory, doomed Denver. Lock’s stats will not impress anyone going 12-of-24 for 162 yards, but the box score often doesn’t tell the whole story.

Dud: Kyle Fuller | CB

A promising free agent pick-up in the offseason turned into a disaster. Fuller had another terrible game with horrific tackling attempts as he continued to get beat like a rug.

He has been a weak spot in the secondary all season and was again versus the Chiefs, even with Ronald Darby and Patrick Surtain II sidelined. Fuller provided little to the team all season and was terrible on Saturday.

Stud: Tim Patrick | WR

All of Patrick’s six catches for 95 yards came when the team really needed it and he was the only receiver with significant contributions. His yardage accounted for more than half of Denver's passing production.

Once the Broncos find a competent offensive coordinator and a quarterback who can get the ball to receivers consistently, Patrick will shine. Fans can only hope that happens next season.

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Dud: Bradley Chubb | OLB

Chubb has made this list far too often and that is because he should be held to a higher standard. It wasn’t that he played poorly, he just didn’t represent anything close to what a former top-5 draft selection should. He applied pressure on Patrick Mahomes, but couldn’t finish the job.

Chubb made tackles, but none were impactful. The worst part was when he had to sit out for an extended period because he was too winded after running for about 20 yards. That is inexcusable.

In his absence, the Chiefs made several plays that led to a touchdown. Chubb is often injured and when he plays he does not impact the game significantly.

Stud & Dud: Melvin Gordon | RB

Gordon was a big reason the Broncos were in control of the game. He played hard and churned out 110 yards on only 12 carries. His touchdown on the huge 47-yard run in the third quarter put the Broncos back in the lead and it appeared as though they could pull off the upset.

Gordon and Patrick accounted for almost all of the offensive output on the day. Gordon makes both the studs and duds list because despite being the main reason the Broncos had any chance to win the game, he was also the reason they lost.

Deep in Chiefs' territory and on the cusp of putting the game away, Gordon fumbled the ball. He has cost the Broncos more than once this season by coughing up the ball when holding onto it was of the utmost importance.

It's difficult to place all the blame on Gordon since nobody touched Melvin Ingram as he made contact with the ball-carrier as the hand-off was completed seemingly, deep in the backfield. If it was Gordon's only fumble at a critical time this year, he would not have made the duds list, but it wasn’t and it cost the Broncos the win.

Follow Thomas on Twitter @ThomasHallNFL.

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