Your wide receiver does dance and your quarterback does rock and roll.

Apologies to both Loggins and Messina, who could not have had in mind Brandon Marshall and Jay Cutler since neither was born back when music was fun.

But for high-wire heroics from Marshall and strong-arm daring from Cutler, the pair of them took the Broncos right back to the time of the orange jerseys that the Broncos wore in blotting out Kansas City on Sunday.

Or at least back to where the Broncos were when everything looked downhill, back at the beginning of the season when Cutler to Marshall was going to redraw every NFL playbook, when they were on every highlight reel.

"I was hungry for the end zone," said Marshall. "I smelled and I got it."

Twice that would be, and more than finding and smelling, also tasting.

"I kissed the end zone," Marshall said, referring to his first touchdown catch since Cleveland.

It was more than pitch and catch, but pitch, catch and preen, a sure sign that things are better if not where they should be. Marshall was in full pose, making sure that any camera that wanted him got him, even allowing enough time to change film.

"This is football in December, when the best man wins," said Marshall, who passed 1,000 yards receiving for the second year in a row, and shouldn't the best man make sure everyone knows it?

Beating the Chiefs ought to have been easier, and as close as the playoffs are, all the Broncos did was assure themselves of a nonlosing season.

The Chiefs came to town pretagged as lowly, forlorn, clueless, pathetic, just the sort of clutter that has dragged the Broncos down to the same level at times this season. That and an inability to perform well at home had to be overcome.

"We might get the home playoff game," Cutler said. "We've got to win at home."

Yet the thing may come down to the final game in San Diego, with the Broncos patched and repaired, growing while in motion, learning under fire.

"Anytime you have eight rookies starting, you can't anticipate that," said Mike Shanahan. "By no means are we perfect, but to have the adversity that we had today, I'm very proud of how they played."

An example would be the matching of rookie Josh Barrett against Kansas City luminary Tony Gonzalez, a matchup that was at least a draw, with Gonzalez catching five passes, one for a touchdown.

"He (Barrett) made some big plays today," said Shanahan.

The biggest had to be Barrett's coverage of Gonzalez on the last Kansas City play, designed for the Chiefs tight end but ending with Dre Bly bringing down scrambling Chiefs quarterback Tyler Thigpen just short of the goal line on fourth down, essentially saving the game for the Broncos.

Still, it was mostly Cutler as it has been in every result for the Broncos: good Cutler, win; bad Cutler, lose. He was 32-of-40 with two touchdowns to Marshall and, of course, the one to Kansas City.

"He was cool, calm and collected," said Shanahan, "and he made the plays that he had to on third down and the long drives."

The drive of drives was the final one, 95 yards to break a 17-17 tie, Cutler hitting 8-of-10 passes, the final one a 6-yarder to Marshall.

This could have been, all in all, Cutler's best game, even with the early pick that dug a hole for the Broncos to climb out of. Cutler adjusted to the loss of Peyton Hillis at tailback by simply taking complete command of the game.

Hillis continued the curse of the crippled backfield, straining his right hamstring, the sixth starting back to be injured.

"It seems we have one go down every game," said Cutler, not counting on his fingers.

That would be left to Shanahan, who now must rummage around the roster and the practice squad just to find bodies. Tatum Bell, the default starter, possibly should ask to be brought off the bench, just to break the curse.

"We have a couple of guys who can go out there and perform," said Shanahan, not for the first time this season. And it is getting harder to doubt him.

Cutler made up for Hillis' absence by running the ball himself, doing a pretty good imitation of a fearless banger.

"Anything can happen," said Cutler. "That's the kind of mind-set we have. This is the time of the season when you want to play your best football. We don't want to squeak it out in order to get in."

Not that the Broncos would give it back if that's how it works out.

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