INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Denver Broncos quarterback Brock Osweiler played like a relaxed reliever on Thursday.
He couldn’t have picked a better time.
With Paxton Lynch inactive and Trevor Siemian out after two series, Osweiler trotted onto the field, ran for one touchdown and threw for two more to lead the Broncos past Indianapolis 25-13 for their first road win of the season.
“I was just a little kid having fun tonight,” Osweiler said. “That’s really what it was. I’ve been on a little bit of a rollercoaster ride for about two years. Just to go out there, Thursday Night Football, with my teammates, I was just having fun.”
The difference was obvious.
Osweiler played more like the guy Denver (5-9) took in the second round of the 2012 draft and the guy Broncos fans remember filling in for the injured Peyton Manning during the 2015 Super Bowl season.
He wound up 12-of-17 with 194 yards and no turnovers and ran for an 18-yard TD, too. C.J. Anderson ran 30 times for a season-high 158 yards.
Denver may need Osweiler to keep playing this way a couple more times after Siemian was diagnosed with a sprained left shoulder. Coach Vance Joseph couldn't say whether he'd have his starting quarterback against Washington.
If Siemian can't go, Osweiler may get another shot.
That’s two wins in five days — and the Broncos’ first outside the Mile High City since Dec. 4, 2016. The victory assures Denver of avoiding its first winless season on the road since 1964.
But it sure wasn’t easy, and at times, it was downright rugged.
Siemian was taken to the locker room after being driven into the ground by Colts linebacker Barkevious Mingo late in the first quarter.