DENVER (AP) - Jake Plummer was praised for protecting the ball this season and cutting down on the turnovers that hounded him for years.
That was before Sunday's AFC championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Broncos' quarterback lost two fumbles and threw two interceptions in the Steelers' 34-17 victory.
Plummer threw seven interceptions and lost two fumbles during the regular season. But his mistakes were costly against Pittsburgh.
His first fumble late in the first quarter led to Pittsburgh's first touchdown and a 10-0 lead. He was intercepted by Ike Taylor in the second quarter, and the giveaway set up a 38-yard scoring drive that gave the Steelers a 24-3 lead.
``The interceptions were bad,'' Plummer said. ``They capitalized on some turnovers and put us into a hole.''
Plummer was playing with a chest cold, but said that only affected him when he was trying to scramble.
``I won't use that as an excuse,'' he said. ``I tried to make some plays, but when they are playing deep like that, it's tough going.''
Pittsburgh linebacker Joey Porter said he thought Plummer could be easy to rattle, especially if the Steelers were ahead.
``In the past, I've seen this crowd turn on him,'' Porter said. ``I knew he was just a bad play away before they were turning on him. If we forced him into making some bad plays, he was going to get down on himself. That was the whole game plan and it ended up working.''
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BLOWN-OUT BRONCOS: When the Denver Broncos lose in the playoffs, they tend to lose big.
Sunday's loss marked the fourth time in their last five playoff games that Denver has lost by at least 17 points.
The Broncos managed only a field goal in a 21-3 wild-card loss to the Baltimore Ravens in 2000, then were outscored 90-34 by the Indianapolis Colts in wild-card games in 2004 and '05.
Pittsburgh started the trend, which dates back almost three decades, by beating Denver 33-10 in a divisional playoff game in 1978.
But Denver's most embarrassing blowouts - by far - occurred in the Super Bowl.
In 1988, the Broncos took an early 10-0 lead against the Redskins, only to watch Washington score 35 points in the second quarter in a 42-10 defeat. Two years later, Denver lost 55-10 to the San Francisco 49ers.
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HOME-FIELD ADVANTAGE?: The Broncos may have won four previous AFC championship games in Denver, but the Steelers were on a roll on the road Sunday.
The Steelers became the first team to win three away games to make it to the Super Bowl since the 1985 New England Patriots. They also handed the Broncos their third loss in the playoffs at home in 15 tries.
Pittsburgh beat the Broncos 24-17 in a 1984 divisional playoff game in Denver at the old Mile High Stadium.
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FRAZIER OUT: Steelers LB Andre Frazier missed the second half after he hurt his ankle on the second-to-last play before halftime.
Frazier was injured while tackling Broncos returner Charlie Adams during the kickoff after the Steelers had scored to make it 24-3.
Frazier was pulling Adams down, when Adams rolled onto him. The twisted Frazier was then hit by Broncos safety Sam Brandon. He was carted off the field. The Steelers gave no update on his status after the game.
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FOOTE HOMECOMING: With all the hype surrounding Jerome Bettis' chance to finish his career in the Super Bowl in his hometown of Detroit, few have mentioned that linebacker Larry Foote also will be playing close to home.
Foote wants to keep it that way, since he expects to get plenty of calls asking for favors.
``I ain't got no tickets,'' he said laughing. ``And I lost my cell phone last night.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
