All Is Not Lost for Broncos After All

OAKLAND — The Denver Broncos lost another Pro Bowl player to injury when tight end Shannon Sharpe suffered a fractured collarbone, yet somehow managed to finally win a game in the post-John Elway era.

Brian Griese, the last-minute replacement for his own replacement, passed for 234 yards and a touchdown as the Broncos blew a 13-point halftime lead but came back for a 16-13 victory over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday.

Griese, benched earlier in the week but forced back into the starting role by Bubby Brister’s rib injury, led the Broncos (1-4) on an Elway-type drive at the end of the first half.

“We lost Shannon, we didn’t have Terrell [Davis], we could have had a lot of reasons, all sorts of excuses, to lose,” Griese said. “But I think this team is tired of that.”

Denver held Oakland, which entered with an NFL-best 148 rushing yards a game, to 55 on the ground. The Broncos also had six sacks.

Jason Elam kicked field goals of 48, 47 and 26 yards for the Broncos, who also got a three-yard touchdown pass from Griese to Rod Smith that capped a drive of 57 yards in 40 seconds. Michael Husted kicked field goals of 47 and 19 yards for the Raiders, who also got a 21-yard touchdown pass from Rich Gannon to Derrick Walker.

Griese returned as a starter when Brister--who suffered his injury during a passing drill Friday--felt pain during warmups before Sunday’s game.

Rookie Olandis Gary had 20 carries for 64 yards for Denver. He was a late replacement for Derek Loville, who was slated to replace Davis--sidelined for the season last week because of a knee injury--but strained his left hamstring during the week.