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Broncos look to lock up playoff berth, face 49ers

Dec 31, 2006 - 2:24 PM San Francisco (6-9) at Denver (9-6) Sunday 4:15 pm EST

DENVER (Ticker) -- Denver Broncos coach Mike Shanahan made the bold move to rookie quarterback Jay Cutler four weeks ago.

Now Cutler is on the verge of helping Shanahan to his latest playoff appearance Sunday when the Denver Broncos host the San Francisco 49ers in the season finale for both teams.

Denver would secure a wild-card berth with a win in this contest or with a Kansas City loss to Jacksonville earlier Sunday.

In his 12th season as Broncos coach, Shanahan has guided the franchise to a pair of Super Bowl titles and seven playoff appearances, including three straight.

With his team sporting a 7-4 record, Shanahan made the move to replace veteran Jake Plummer with Cutler, the 11th pick in April's draft, as the club's starting quarterback.

After losing his first two starts, Cutler has rebounded to win his last two, becoming the first quarterback in league history to throw for multiple touchdowns in each of his first four games. He has eight TDs and four interceptions overall.

Cutler threw for 179 yards and two touchdowns with an interception in last Sunday's 24-23 wild victory over Cincinnati. The victory was secured when the Bengals botched a snap on an extra point with 41 seconds remaining.

Pro Bowl cornerback Champ Bailey also recorded his league-leading ninth interception in the win over San Francisco.

Closing Mike Nolan's second season as coach, the Niners were eliminated from playoff contention with last week's 26-20 loss to Arizona.

One of the major bright spots for the Niners this season has been running back Frank Gore, who leads the NFC with 1,542 rushing yards, 114 more than Tiki Barber of the New York Giants.