Manning missed six games due to a partial tear of the plantar fascia in his left foot and had his worst statistical season since his rookie year with the Indianapolis Colts in 1998.

[120] Following an ineffective performance by Osweiler during the first half of the team's Week 17 win over the San Diego Chargers, Manning made his return during the third quarter of that same game, and re-claimed the starting quarterback position for the playoffs.

On the 14th play of the drive, a pass from Flacco to wide receiver Steve Smith, Sr. that was almost a touchdown was deflected by Broncos' cornerback Bradley Roby near the goal line, falling incomplete.

Coming off their hard-fought win over the Ravens, the Broncos traveled to Arrowhead Stadium for an AFC West duel with the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday Night Football.

Following an exchange of punts, the Chiefs were attempting to re-claim the lead midway through the fourth quarter, when Smith was intercepted by cornerback Chris Harris, Jr. at the Broncos' 10-yard line with 6:40 remaining.

[124] Following a questionable fumble by Thomas on the Broncos' opening possession of the second half, Lions' quarterback Matthew Stafford threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to running back Ameer Abdullah.

Five plays later, the Broncos expanded their lead, with Manning throwing an 11-yard touchdown pass to tight end Owen Daniels just before the two-minute warning to put the game out of reach.

Two plays later, the Vikings narrowed the Broncos' lead, with quarterback Teddy Bridgewater finding wide receiver Mike Wallace alone in the end zone for a 4-yard touchdown just before halftime.

Trailing 9–7, the Raiders were once again attempting to take lead, until Broncos' cornerback Chris Harris, Jr. stepped in front of an errant Carr pass and returned an interception 74 yards for a touchdown.

The Broncos increased their lead to 10–0 early in the second quarter, when cornerback Aqib Talib returned an interception off Browns' quarterback Josh McCown 63 yards for a touchdown.

Coming off their bye week, the Broncos played host to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football, with both teams entering the game with 6–0 records.

The Broncos' defense then held the Packers scoreless for the remainder of the game, and their offense added to their lead, with running back C. J. Anderson rushing for a 28-yard touchdown, followed in the fourth quarter by a 24-yard field goal by McManus.

The Broncos narrowed the gap on their initial possession of the second half, with Manning throwing a 64-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, then tied the game, with a 29-yard field goal by placekicker Brandon McManus.

However, the Colts decided not to take the points due to a defensive holding penalty on Broncos' linebacker Danny Trevathan, which enabled Luck to end the game on a quarterback kneel.

Six plays later, the Broncos were attempting to add to their lead on a 4th-and-goal, however, the Bears' defense prevailed after running back Ronnie Hillman was inadvertently tripped by Owseiler on the hand off at the 2-yard line.

[136] The Broncos then increased their lead to 17–9 early in the fourth quarter, when Osweiler fired a 10-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Cody Latimer, who was playing in place of the injured Emmanuel Sanders.

Each team proceeded to trade punts on their next two offensive possessions, until Brady connected with wide receiver Brandon Bolden on a 63-yard touchdown pass at the beginning of the fourth quarter to give the Patriots a 21–7 lead.

The Broncos' defense forced a punt on the Patriots' next possession, which was aided by an offensive holding penalty on guard Tre' Jackson that nullified a 51-yard pass completion from Brady to wide receiver Keshawn Martin on a third-and-long play.

[138] The Patriots were not done yet, as Brady engineered a 5-play, 51-yard drive, which culminated with placekicker Stephen Gostkowski kicking a game-tying 47-yard field goal as time expired, sending the game to overtime.

Coming off their overtime win over the Patriots, the Broncos traveled to Qualcomm Stadium for their first of two matches with their AFC West division rivals, the San Diego Chargers.

Toward the end of the first quarter, the Broncos added to the lead, when linebacker Danny Trevathan intercepted an errant pass by Chargers' quarterback Philip Rivers and returned it for a 25-yard touchdown.

In the third quarter, the Broncos' defense recovered two forced fumbles, while on offense, McManus missed wide right on a 52-yard field goal attempt and Osweiler threw an interception deep in Chargers' territory.

The latter field goal occurred after wide receiver Demaryius Thomas dropped a crucial pass in the end zone from quarterback Brock Osweiler with only four seconds before halftime.

The Bengals took the opening possession of the game and marched down the field, with quarterback A. J. McCarron, playing in place of the injured Andy Dalton, throwing a 5-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver A. J.

[142] The Broncos took the initial possession of the second half, and pulled to within 14–10, with quarterback Brock Osweiler connecting with wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders on an 8-yard touchdown pass, which was the only scoring play of the third quarter.

The Bengals started their first offensive possession of overtime at their own 33-yard line, and on their first play, McCarron attempted a pass that was incomplete, as his arm was hit by Broncos' linebacker Von Miller.

The Broncos then drove 65 yards in 13 plays that consumed 6:48 off the clock, and re-claimed the lead, with running back C. J. Anderson marching for a 1-yard touchdown, coupled with quarterback Peyton Manning throwing a quick pass to wide receiver Demaryius Thomas for a two-point conversion.

However, instead of kicking a field goal, Brady threw a short pass to wide receiver Julian Edelman, who was tackled for 1-yard loss by cornerback Chris Harris, Jr.

Following a defensive holding penalty on Panthers' cornerback Josh Norman on a third-and-goal, the Broncos added to their lead, with running back C. J. Anderson rushing for a 2-yard touchdown, coupled with Manning completing a pass to wide receiver Bennie Fowler for a two-point conversion with 3:13 remaining.

[149] Numerous individual, franchise and league records and milestones were either tied, reached or broken during the season: Four Broncos were selected to the 2016 Pro Bowl: Cornerbacks Chris Harris, Jr. and Aqib Talib, and linebackers Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware.