The history says young players make mistakes sometimes, that it's all part of the ever-bumpy learning curve.

The captain says he knows all that, but with five games left to play and the possibility of a playoff spot still hanging over what the Broncos have done, both good and bad this season, people need to get over it.

"We're all professionals, this is what we do," Broncos tight end Daniel Graham said. "Regardless of how many years you've been in here, we expect, everybody expects, you to go out there on Sunday and play the best you can. That's how it is - tough love. Can't make excuses, for anything."

Shanahan has talked this season of walking the line between trying to fix all of what has ailed the team thus far while trying to maintain the confidence of a youthful roster.

A tricky task to be sure for this team, especially since the Broncos have shown, in their five losses, that a little early trouble often leads to bigger problems on the scoreboard - that they could use a little more rebound.

"Definitely, have to get some thick skin, and we need that thick skin," defensive end Ebenezer Ekuban said. "Young guys come to me all the time and they want to live one play or one comment all week. I just tell them you have to leave that behind. Fix it and leave it because, if you don't, it's just going to mess you up more and the criticism only gets worse, things only get worse. You have to bounce back."

The Broncos haven't done that, at times.

Against Kansas City, after taking a 7-6 lead, the Broncos fumbled on the possession following their touchdown. The defense didn't get the stop, and the Chiefs scored quickly for a 13-7 lead. The Broncos missed a field-goal attempt to end the next possession, and the Chiefs went on to win by 14 points.

Against Jacksonville, leading 7-3, the Broncos fumbled at the Jaguars' 7-yard line on the first possession of the second quarter. The Jaguars turned the turnover into a touchdown and went on to win by seven.

Against New England, the Broncos fumbled on their first two possessions and never regained their balance. They had two more turnovers in the first half, and the defense couldn't stop the run in what became a 34-point loss.

Against Miami, quarterback Jay Cutler was intercepted on his first pass attempt of the game at the Broncos' 36-yard line. The Dolphins turned that into a field goal and led wire-to-wire in a nine- point win.

And last Sunday, the Broncos took their opening drive to the Oakland 7-yard line in 11 plays. Then a miscommunication resulted in a fumbled exchange between Cutler and running back Peyton Hillis in what became a 21-point loss.

"As young as we are, especially offensively . . . anytime it ends in a turnover like that - you think you should get seven, go up, make a statement for the game, set the tone, and it doesn't happen - it hurts," Cutler said. "I think this team, especially offensively, gets down a little bit, and it takes us some time to rally. . . . A lot of that is on my shoulders, getting guys ready to play. The turnover was on me, too."

Ekuban said it's all part of the progression from college Football to pro Football. It's part of the process all people go through as they begin their careers and are suddenly tossed into a situation where others have more experience and different expectations, while positive reinforcement, from coaches or teammates, isn't always part of the deal.

"A lot of young guys come from places where everything they've done is good, everything they've heard is positive, always positive feedback, always pats on the back," Ekuban said. "Then you get in the league, everybody is just as athletic and the going gets a little tough, because the thing that enabled you to overcome tough times, being more athletic, better than the other guy, isn't always there.

"And it can be hard for some guys to listen to the criticism - when they struggled a little bit - or live with the results. But they learn about working to overcome things, doing a little more. And they learn that people have their best interests at heart, but they're not always going to present it like you're used to. It's your job."

That has been Shanahan's message as well. To mark down what has been good, try to fix what has not been good and move on.

Graham, Ekuban and almost every veteran player in the Broncos locker room has talked about the importance of younger players learning to move on to the next game, that one loss can quickly become a streak of failures if people don't keep their composure.

"You have to fight through it," Shanahan said. "Everybody has to understand that."

"That's how it is," Graham said. "It's part of doing this job."

INFOBOX

Handle with care

The Broncos haven't always shown the ability to bounce back this year. When they have the lead, they usually keep it, but they haven't often been able to claw their way back if they don't.

* When leading . . . Record

After one quarter 4-1

At halftime 3-0

After three quarters 5-0

* When trailing . . . After one quarter 1-3

At halftime 2-5

After three quarters 1-5