the AFC West, with an 8–5 record, three games ahead of the Chargers, who were 5–8. However, in the next two weeks, the Broncos suffered back-to-back losses to the Panthers and Bills, while the Chargers won two straight. This set the stage for the 2008 season finale, when the Broncos and Chargers met at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium to decide the AFC West division title. The Broncos were blown out 52–21 by the Chargers, and would become the first team in NFL history to enter the final quarter of a regular season with a three-game lead and squander the division lead. The Broncos and Chargers finished the season tied at 8–8, but the Chargers won the AFC West based on a better division record (5–1 to the Broncos 3–3). The Broncos missed the playoffs for a third consecutive season. On December 30, 2008, two days after the disastrous season-ending collapse in San Diego, Mike Shanahan, the longest-tenured and winningest head coach in Broncos' franchise history, was fired after 14 seasons. Two weeks later, on January 11, 2009, the Broncos hired former New England Patriots' offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels as the team's new head coach. Three months later, following a turbulent transition from the Mike Shanahan era to Josh McDaniels, the team traded Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler to the Chicago Bears for quarterback Kyle Orton. The Orton era With their new quarterback, Denver began 2009 well by winning the first six games. The first three wins included a rally at the Bengals, 12–7, as well as relatively easy wins vs. the Browns, 27–6, and Raiders, 23–3. The next three wins came against a tougher stretch of opponents, vs. the Cowboys, 17–10, vs. the Patriots, 20–17 in overtime, and Chargers, 34–23. The Broncos' revamped defense played a huge role in each of the six wins. But after the bye week, the team suddenly collapsed, losing four in a row. They managed to break their losing streak, with back-to-back routs of the Giants and Chiefs. Those would be the Broncos' last wins, as they dropped their remaining four matches, including a one-point loss to the Raiders at home followed by a close 30–27 defeat at the Eagles. Denver's last hope of getting into the playoffs ended with a 44–24 home loss to Kansas City. Ending the season with an 8–8 team record, Kyle Orton had 21 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, 3,802 yards and