Coming off their AFC West division-clinching win over the Chargers, the Broncos traveled to Paul Brown Stadium for an AFC duel against the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football. The Broncos grabbed the early lead, with cornerback Aqib Talib returning an interception off Bengals' cornerback Andy Dalton 33 yards for a touchdown. However, on the first play of the Bengals' third possession, running back Jeremy Hill reeled off an 85-yard touchdown run to tie the score. The Bengals claimed the lead in the second quarter, with a 37-yard field goal by placekicker Mike Nugent. On the Broncos' next possession, quarterback Peyton Manning was intercepted by Bengals' safety Reggie Nelson, and the Bengals capitalized, with Dalton connecting on a 2-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jermaine Gresham. A 49-yard field goal by Nugent with one minute remaining in the first half increased the Bengals' lead to 20-7. The Broncos had one last possession before halftime, however, placekicker Connor Barth missed on a 49-yard field goal attempt. On the Broncos' initial possession of the second half, return specialist Omar Bolden returned the opening kickoff to the Bengals' 21-yard line. Four plays later, running back C. J. Anderson scored on a 1-yard touchdown run. However, the Bengals had a response, as Adam Jones advanced the ensuing kickoff to the Broncos' 27-yard line. Three plays later, Dalton threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Giovani Bernard. The Broncos then scored 14 unanswered points, with Manning throwing a pair of touchdown passes to wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders &#8212; from 4 and 5 yards out &#8212; to give the Broncos a 28-27 lead. The second scoring play came after Broncos' linebacker Von Miller forced a fumble off Hill just as the Bengals were attempting to add to their lead. Rain started to fall in the fourth quarter, and on the Broncos' first fourth quarter possession, Manning was intercepted by Jones deep in Broncos' territory, however, a 15-yard taunting penalty on Nelson pushed the Bengals out of field goal range. The Broncos were forced to punt on their next possession, and return specialist Brandon Tate advanced all the way to the Broncos' 9-yard line. The Broncos defense forced the Bengals to settle for a 23-yard field goal by Nugent to give the Bengals a 30-28 lead with 7:53 remaining in the game. The two teams traded punts on their next possessions, and the Broncos attempted a rally, however, Bengals' cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick returned an interception off Manning 30 yards for a touchdown. With the rain intensifying, the Broncos had one last possession, but Manning threw another interception to Kirkpatrick, this one deep in Bengals' territory &#8212; Manning's fourth interception of the game &#8212; to seal the victory for the Bengals. This was Peyton Manning's first loss to the Bengals in nine career games.. How many points ahead did Nugent's 23-yard field goal put the Bengals?