Ravens vs. Broncos: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2015 Regular Season

It wasn't exactly a performance reminiscent of the Denver Broncos we've come to know, but the victory counts all the same. The reigning AFC West champions prevailed 19-13 at home over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1.

The Broncos won despite Peyton Manning having one of his worst games in the last few years. He went 24-of-40 for 175 yards and an interception. Mike Tunison provided a nice visual representation of Manning's passing:

ESPN.com's Mike Sando hinted that Sunday could be part of a growing trend for the legendary quarterback:

According to Dianna Marie Russini of ESPN, a pervading sense of doubt about Manning's abilities exists throughout the league:     

The win did little to dispel the notion the 39-year-old is fast becoming a shell of his former self.

However, it's unlikely Manning himself will look back on the game and dwell too much. This past Wednesday, he acknowledged the team could potentially suffer some setbacks early in the new season.

"We've got some new guys playing, and we've got some new things we're doing. I am excited to see how we perform," said Manning, per Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. "I have said all along, the thing is for us to improve throughout the season, throughout the course of a game. Hopefully you can be efficient enough to win. I think that can be a lot like our season—keep improving."

You'd trust Manning will improve over the coming weeks, and if he does, Denver will be a dangerous team.

The Broncos held the Ravens to just 173 yards of total offense. Justin Forsett and Javorius Allen averaged 3.1 and 3.3 yards per carry, respectively, while Joe Flacco had just 117 yards through the air. The secondary also bottled up Steve Smith Sr., limiting him to two receptions and 13 yards on seven targets.

The first half was generally only notable for the fact Flacco seemed to somehow reach peak Flacco-ing. The Ravens quarterback averaged three yards an attempt, a stat that left NFL Fantasy Football completely baffled:

Neither the Ravens nor the Broncos moved the ball much offensively through the first two quarters. On the six drives in which nobody scored, the two teams combined to gain 23 yards on 27 plays.

Manning's struggles were particularly baffling, but credit Baltimore for putting him under constant pressure. This stat courtesy of the team illustrates how well the Ravens were at getting in the backfield and harassing the quarterback:

"

The #Ravens defense has 3 sacks in the first half. Peyton Manning wasn't sacked 3 times in a game last year.

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) September 13, 2015"

Despite the offense's issues, Denver still entered the locker room with a 9-3 lead on the strength of three field goals by Brandon McManus, the longest of which came from 57 yards out. He also hit another from 56 yards out, which put him in special company, per ESPN Stats & Info:

FanDuel's Brandon Marianne Lee wanted to congratulate any fantasy owners who had McManus in their lineups on Sunday:

Since the offense was doing little to turn around the deficit, the Ravens defense took things into its own hands in the third quarter. On the first drive of the second half, Jimmy Smith intercepted a pass intended for Jordan Norwood and ran it back 24 yards for the touchdown.

Garrett Downing of BaltimoreRavens.com ventured Smith is already paying back the money Baltimore invested in him during the offseason:

A 44-yard field goal from Justin Tucker on the Ravens' next drive gave Baltimore a 13-9 lead with roughly nine-and-a-half minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Then, Flacco made his only major mistake of the game. With 20 seconds left in the quarter, Aqib Talib stepped in front of Smith to intercept Flacco's pass and returned the ball 51 yards for the score, per the NFL:

A 33-yard field goal from McManus in the fourth quarter provided some much-needed insurance on the scoreboard as Denver clung to a six-point lead, 19-13. The drive was also important since it drained 10:56 off the clock. By the time the Ravens got the ball back, they had a little under three minutes to drive 80 yards for the go-ahead score.

The three points proved particularly critical as Flacco got Baltimore down to the Denver 16-yard line—well within range for Tucker. But the Ravens couldn't settle for the field goal and had to go for the touchdown. That led to Darian Stewart's interception in the end zone, which sealed the result.

All of the general warnings about reading too much into a Week 1 result certainly apply to a certain extent, but Broncos fans have to be concerned about whether Manning is truly nearing the end.

John Elway, Joe Montana and Dan Marino all retired at 38. Brett Favre's first retirement also came at 38. Manning turned 39 in March. Bill Simmons couldn't help but make the comparison to past greats:

Can Manning last another full season? As the tweet from Sando showed, his numbers trended downward in the latter stages of the 2014 campaign, and Manning could have a similar dip again, especially if he is continually subjected to the pressure he faced Sunday.

The Broncos will likely go as far as Manning can take them. As strong as they are defensively, their Super Bowl hopes hinge largely on No. 18's performance under center.

The song is largely the same for the Ravens as it has been ever since Flacco's arrival. The 30-year-old doesn't need to be prolific in order for Baltimore to be successful, but 117 yards on 32 pass attempts isn't going to cut it either.

At least the Ravens should be able to turn things around in Week 2. They travel to the Bay Area next week for a matchup with the Oakland Raiders, who are fresh off a 33-13 drubbing at the hands of the Cincinnati Bengals.