Three takeaways from the Broncos’ 23-20 loss to the Chargers at SoFi Stadium on Sunday:

1. That’s gut punch No. 2. One week after the Broncos melted down in a one-point loss to the Colts, they blew a 17-10 second-half lead against the Chargers. Los Angeles kicker Cameron Dicker booted a 43-yard game-winner with no time remaining on the clock. Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert made winning plays in the fourth quarter, while Broncos quarterback Bo Nix again faltered in crunch time. Nix is now 2-8 in one-score games as the starter.

2. The Broncos still can’t beat an elite quarterback, a bugaboo that plagued them last season as well. Those Broncos went 0-6 against Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert. These Broncos had control of a key road game but saw it vanish under the magic of Herbert, whose sidearmed touchdown to Keenan Allen tied the game with 2:37 left in regulation. The Broncos are an undisciplined team. It cost them against the Colts and the Chargers. Talanoa Hufanga earned a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct on the Chargers’ tying drive.

3. Courtland Sutton added a bullet point to his resume as a future Ring of Fame inductee. With a 52-yard touchdown pass in the final minute of the first half, Sutton passed Broncos all-timer Haven Moses on the franchise’s receiving yards list. Sutton’s breakthrough score also woke up the Broncos’ offense from a 29-minute nap. The Broncos “O” had 32 yards before Sean Payton rolled the dice on fourth-and-2 with a deep shot from Nix to Sutton. Good call, good catch.