3 Broncos to blame after pivotal loss to Chargers: Sean Payton's second-half disaster dooms Denver

The Denver Broncos were rolling on "Thursday Night Football," as they were on the road against the rival Los Angeles Chargers. If they were to win, they would clinch their first playoff berth since 2015, and make the Chargers lives a bit more miserable in terms of the Wild Card sweepstakes.

Before halftime, the Broncos had a 21-10 lead after orchestrating touchdown drives on each of their first three drives. But then, a fair catch interference turned into a rare free kick by the Chargers to cut the deficit to 21-13. Once the second half began, it was all Chargers, as they outscored the Broncos 21-6 to pick up the 34-27 win.

It was a total missed opportunity by the Broncos. When it comes to who to blame for the loss, these three names stand out.

3. Vance Joseph, DC

The Broncos were looking good in the first half. Sure the offense got most of the attention, but the defense was holding their own. They were able to hold the Chargers to 10 points and put pressure on Justin Herbert and even had a clutch interception near the end of the second quarter.

Yet, the Chargers made adjustments in the second half, ones that the Broncos had no answers for. While yes, Denver's offense could only muster six points, that was nothing compared to what the defense did under coordinator Vance Joseph.

Joseph deserves plenty of credit for what he was able to do to improve the defense and turn them into one of the best in the entire NFL. Yet, he had no answers for Chargers offensive coordinator Greg Roman, who helped call the plays that led to three touchdowns on the team's final five drives of the game. From an incredible touchdown pass from Justin Herbert to Derius Davis and a successful two-point conversion on a reception by Joshua Palmer, to 34-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Hassan Haskins.

Head coach Sean Payton called out the defense after the game, saying, "five different guys we had free runners."

Overall, Denver's defense allowed 380 total yards on 61 plays (6.2 yards per play). Considering the team had a 21-13 lead, the defense collapsed in the final two quarters. There's no other way to put it.

2. Tremon Smith, CB

The momentum seemingly switched into Los Angeles' favor just before the end of the second half. With just eight seconds remaining in regulation, the Broncos punted the football back to the Chargers. Derius Davis called for the fair catch, but cornerback Tremon Smith ran into the returner. With that, the Chargers were given an extra 15-yards, and the chance to do something that hadn't been done since 1976.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh decided to go for the free kick, which looks like a kickoff from the formation. However, it allowed Chargers kicker Cameron Dicker a chance to go for a 57-yard field goal. Dicker sent the football between the uprights with relative ease to become the first kicker to make a fair catch, free kick in nearly 50 years. Not only that, but it is the longest free kick after a fair catch violation ever.

From there, it was all Chargers. While this may seem like a minor penalty, that had huge ramifications, giving the Chargers hope and improved their playoff odds.

1. Sean Payton, HC

Throughout the first half, it looked like a Sean Payton masterclass. He helped the offense score three touchdowns on their first three drives of the game. As his playsheet said, he wanted to run it, and they did. Solidly.

But with the team up 21-10 with just 41 seconds remaining in the first half, Payton decided to call passing plays. It was an odd strategy to stop the clock instead of running it out and heading back to the locker room for the lead.

A pass from Bo Nix to Javonte Williams for a loss of three yards. An incomplete throw from Nix to Williams. Then, a one-yard run to Williams. That allowed Harbaugh to call a timeout to have a chance at one more play at halftime. Then, the fair catch interference penalty and a made 57-yard free kick happened.

From there, the offense couldn't get anything going and the defense couldn't stop anything the Chargers threw at them. It was the worst case scenario for Denver, and prevented the team from locking up a playoff spot.

While it's not all doom and gloom for the Broncos, Payton needs to ensure nothing like this happens in the final two games of the season.