Examining the final stretch of the Broncos' last-second defeat

[Miles]

McManus kicks 65 yards from the Denver 35-yard line into the end zone. Touchback.


First-and-10. 31 seconds to play. Chicago 25-yard line. Mitchell Trubisky pass to Trey Burton for 5 yards.


Initially, the Bears’ first play of the drive seemed inconsequential. Five yards, with 31 seconds to play hardly seemed devastating to the Broncos’ hopes of finishing the comeback win.


But then, the referee explained the yellow flag laying on the field.


Roughing the passer. 15-yard penalty enforced on Denver.


Bradley Chubb applied the pressure — hitting Trubisky as he released the ball — and the referee deemed it too much.


“They called it roughing the passer, so that’s what it was,” Chubb said.


The penalty pushed the ball to the Chicago 45-yard line. A moderate gain would put the Bears in field-goal range.


“Obviously, the critical penalty at the end of the game there, the roughing call was huge because it stops the clock, saves their timeout and gives them 15 yards,” Fangio said. “I haven’t seen the play yet, but that was critical.”


First-and-10. 24 seconds to play. Chicago 45-yard line. Trubisky incomplete pass to Allen Robinson.


Second-and-10. 17 seconds to play. Chicago 45-yard line. Trubisky incomplete pass to Robinson.


Third-and-10. 13 seconds to play. Chicago 45-yard line. Trubisky incomplete pass to Tarik Cohen.


Fourth-and-10. Too many men in the huddle. Penalty enforced on Chicago.


If there ever was a time for the Broncos’ pass rush to come alive, it was this. Through two weeks, Chubb and Von Miller had accounted for zero sacks. They needed one here — and it didn’t come.


Fourth-and-15. Nine seconds to play. Chicago 40-yard line. Trubisky pass to Robinson for 25 yards.


“I feel like if I could do my job and get him on the ground, it wouldn’t have even been there,” Von Miller said. “It’s a double loss for me. Tough day.”


Chris Harris Jr. flew over to touch Robinson down, and both teams spilled onto the field.


“They had a man on the left side,” Harris said. “I saw a dude wide open. I didn’t see the clock. I just saw the dude wide open and I needed to get him down.”


The Broncos seemed to think the game was over, that the clock had hit 0:00. But the Bears argued a second should be put back on the clock — and the referees agreed.


“At the end of the day, the clock is at zero,” Derek Wolfe said. “Where does that one second come from?”


On a replay of that final offensive snap, Robinson appears to be down with one second remaining — but there is no angle of Bears head coach Matt Nagy calling a timeout.


It was awarded.