Stafford’s 20,000-Yard Night Dies on Two Hufanga Picks

Matthew Stafford threw his 33rd career pick-six in a 30-26 loss at Denver, breaking Brett Favre’s NFL record. Hours earlier he had become the first passer with 20,000 yards for two franchises.

Talanoa Hufanga returned that throw 66 yards with 4:49 left, then picked Stafford in the end zone after a spike with two seconds on the clock. The Broncos had trailed 16-0 at halftime. They are 2-1. The Rams are 1-2.

Stafford Hits 20,000 Yards, Then the Record He Did Not Want

On third-and-11 with 8:16 left in the first half, Stafford completed a 15-yard throw to Konata Mumpfield that put him at exactly 20,000 passing yards as a Ram. The club said he is the 20,000 passing yards with two teams pioneer, after 45,109 yards in 12 seasons with Detroit from 2009 to 2020. He first cleared 20,000 as a Lion in 2014. Last week he passed Philip Rivers for sixth on the career touchdown list. Los Angeles posted “QB1of1, literally.”

The same receiver later caught the throw that put the Rams back in front. Mumpfield finished with four catches for 93 yards, the longest a 48-yard score after Riley Moss fell down, making it 26-23 with 3:38 left. Stafford went 30-of-55 for 390 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. Davante Adams had seven catches for 137 yards, his second straight 100-yard game in a Rams uniform.

The historic half was a 16-0 lead built on a 5-yard Tyler Higbee touchdown and Harrison Mevis field goals from 36, 35, and 40 yards. The historic fourth quarter was the other column. Hufanga’s 66-yard return was Stafford’s 33rd interception taken to the end zone, one past Favre. No other quarterback has 30. Dan Marino sits at 29.

NFL PICK-SIX LEADERS

Stafford had tied Favre at 32 on Dec. 30, 2025, when Atlanta’s Jessie Bates III took one the other way. He needed three games in 2026 to stand alone. He still had 47 seconds after Bo Nix’s sneak, drove to the Denver 14, and spiked the ball with two seconds left. A false start moved it to the 19. Five receivers came out. Hufanga caught the last throw in the end zone.

“I mean, it’s a tough one,” Stafford said. Los Angeles came in as a preseason Super Bowl pick and has now lost twice in three weeks. He owns 17 comebacks in the final two minutes, most among active quarterbacks. Sunday added a record he will not put on a wall.

Hufanga Jumps Kyren Williams and Ends It in the End Zone

The pick-six came on third-and-6 from the Denver 38. Hufanga jumped in front of running back Kyren Williams, cradled the ball, and cut back as Stafford chased him. It was Hufanga’s second career pick-six against this quarterback. Wil Lutz’s kick made it 23-19, Denver’s first lead of the night.

To be honest, Matt Stafford is a lot faster than you think. I might be slow, but he’s fast. I’ll give him his credit because I had to cut back on that play.

Talanoa Hufanga, Broncos safety

He had nearly two interceptions earlier and told himself to wait. “My goal this year was not to drop any interceptions, so to kind of cap it off with two definitely helped it,” he said. The box score gave him two interceptions, 66 return yards, a sack, and five tackles. Sean Payton, who watched the safety he signed out of San Francisco close a prime-time game, did not hedge.

I love him. I love coaching him.

Sean Payton, Broncos head coach

Denver signed Hufanga to a three-year contract on March 13, 2025, after four seasons with the 49ers. He was a 2022 first-team All-Pro with 97 tackles, four interceptions, and a pick-six. Injuries then cut him to 17 games across two years, including a torn ACL in 2023. The 49ers let him walk. On Sunday he took the ball from Stafford twice in five minutes.

HUFANGA PICK! BRONCOS WIN! pic.twitter.com/nQRTuF2jB8

— NFL (@NFL) September 28, 2026

The clip that closed the night is the second take, not the long return. Stafford still had a shot from the 19. Hufanga was there again.

How the Broncos Tied a 16-0 Halftime Deficit

Denver did not kick a field goal in the third quarter. Nix threw two touchdowns and two conversion passes, and the game was tied at 16-16 with 2:15 left in the period. A 28-yard punt return by rookie Kolbe Katsis, in his regular-season debut with Marvin Mims Jr. inactive, set up the first score at the Rams 42. Denver converted four third downs on that 12-play, 42-yard drive.

THE 16-POINT THIRD QUARTER

1. 7:44, third quarter: Pat Bryant 5-yard pass from Nix, Nix to Jaylen Waddle for two, 12 plays, 42 yards, 5:08. Rams 16, Broncos 8.
2. 2:15, third quarter: Nate Adkins 8-yard pass from Nix, Nix to Bryant for two, 7 plays, 52 yards, 2:56. Tied 16-16.
3. 8:40, fourth quarter: Mevis 48-yard field goal after a Josh Wallace interception. Rams 19, Broncos 16.
4. 4:49, fourth quarter: Hufanga 66-yard interception return, Lutz kick. Rams 19, Broncos 23.
5. 3:38, fourth quarter: Mumpfield 48-yard pass from Stafford, Mevis kick, 4 plays, 77 yards, 1:11. Rams 26, Broncos 23.
6. 0:47, fourth quarter: Nix 1-yard run, Lutz kick, 10 plays, 65 yards, 2:51. Broncos 30, Rams 26.

Sunday night’s full scoring summary shows the only Los Angeles touchdowns as Higbee’s 5-yard catch and Mumpfield’s 48-yard strike. Mevis was four-for-four. The Rams scored 10 points after halftime. Denver scored 30. Payton called it a gutsy win and his team’s second straight second-half comeback. Nix finished 17-of-34 for 186 yards, two scores, and one interception, then left the ground for the last yard with 47 seconds left.

Wallace’s Interception Comes Off the Board

The drive that beat Los Angeles needed help. AP counted three defensive penalties on the 10-play, 65-yard march. Nix had completions of 39 and 21 yards in there, the long one to Bryant after the Rams had Denver in a long down. The play that will follow the Rams home was third-and-6 from the Los Angeles 11.

Nix threw short toward Bryant on the right sideline. Wallace came down with the ball and got both feet in. A flag for defensive pass interference wiped the interception and gave Denver a first down near the goal line. Rules analyst Terry McAulay said the replay showed Wallace did not commit a foul, and that Bryant appeared to pull him down. A few snaps later, an illegal hands-to-the-face call on third-and-goal from the 5 produced another first down at the 2. Nix scored from a yard, then from inches, depending on which view you trust. The ball was on the line. He went over center Luke Wattenberg.

WHAT THE LAST DRIVE TURNED ON

• The wiped pick: Wallace’s interception on third-and-6 from the 11 came off the board for pass interference on Bryant.
• The second flag: Hands to the face on third-and-goal from the 5 moved the ball to the 2 with a fresh set of downs.
• The sneak: Nix’s 1-yard run with 47 seconds left was the third lead change of the fourth quarter.
• The last chance: Stafford reached the 14, spiked with two seconds left, then threw the end-zone interception after a false start to the 19.

The flag is the argument people will keep. It does not explain the pick-six, or the 16-0 hole the Rams could not sit on, or a red-zone night in which Los Angeles scored one touchdown in four trips. Denver was three-for-three in the red zone. Stafford still had 47 seconds and a Hall of Fame receiver. He used them to find Hufanga again.

Los Angeles Outgains Denver by 225 Yards and Still Leaves 1-2

The Football Database’s final sheet lists 482 net yards to Denver’s 257. Los Angeles ran 116 yards on 23 carries and threw for 390 gross, losing 24 yards on four sacks. Denver ran 78 yards on 25 carries. J.K. Dobbins had 17 carries for 49 yards. Nix added four rushes for 7 yards and the winning score. Time of possession sat at 34:29 to 25:31. The Rams had 26 first downs to 20.

MILE HIGH, BY THE SHEET

Before halftime the gap was worse. Los Angeles had 17 first downs to five, 87 rushing yards to 21, and 186 passing yards to 46. Puka Nacua and Tutu Atwell were inactive, so Adams and Mumpfield and Higbee (eight catches, 62 yards) carried the targets. Courtland Sutton led Denver with three catches for 46 yards. Bryant had two for 44, including the 5-yard score and the 39-yarder on the last drive.

Denver’s defense finished with four sacks, 14 quarterback hits, and eight tackles for loss. The unit that spent the first half chasing the ball spent the second half on Stafford. Hufanga’s sack was one of those four. Omar Speights had the Rams’ only sack. The penalty column ran the other way: 13 flags for 91 yards on Los Angeles, five for 38 on Denver, and four of Denver’s first downs coming by penalty. Attendance was 76,333 at Empower Field at Mile High.

Aaron Donald Finishes With One Assisted Tackle

Donald’s second game back from retirement was quieter than the first. The CBS game log gives him zero solo tackles, one assist, and zero sacks. The broadcast credited him with one quarterback hit. A week earlier, in a 28-6 win over the New York Giants, he had three tackles in 33 snaps after skipping the Week 1 trip to Australia. He had signed a one-year deal in late August, 32 months after a January 2024 playoff loss to Detroit ended his first career.

The three-time Defensive Player of the Year is 35. The Rams as a group had one sack and three quarterback hits. That is the other half of Stafford’s night. He was pressured late, not early, and the interior star who came back to fix that did not show up in the tackle column. Kyren Williams still ran 15 times for 88 yards. It was not enough once the lead started moving.

Week 4 Sends Hufanga Back to the 49ers

Denver is 2-1 and 2-0 at home. Next is a road date with the 3-0 49ers, the club that drafted Hufanga in the fifth round in 2021 and declined to keep him. Payton’s defense just took down a reigning MVP in prime time after being blanked for 30 minutes. The offense that did it still completed 17 of 34 passes for 186 yards. RJ Harvey was evaluated for a concussion. Jonah Coleman was already out. That is the team flying to Santa Clara.

The Rams are 1-2 and 0-1 on the road. They travel to Philadelphia. Stafford has the two-franchise yardage mark and the pick-six record in the same box score, plus 390 yards that lost. Adams has consecutive 100-yard games. Nacua was out. Donald was in, and barely on the sheet. The last throw of Sunday night went to a safety Denver paid to find the ball, and he found it twice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who holds the NFL record for pick-sixes thrown?

Matthew Stafford holds it at 33 after Hufanga’s 66-yard return on Sept. 27. He had tied Brett Favre at 32 on Dec. 30, 2025, against Atlanta, when Jessie Bates III scored. Favre threw his 32 on 336 career interceptions. When Stafford reached 32 he had done it on 196 interceptions, a much higher share of his picks coming back for scores.

How did Stafford reach 20,000 yards with two franchises?

He put up 45,109 yards in 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions and first crossed 20,000 there in 2014. The Rams say a 15-yard completion to Konata Mumpfield on third-and-11 with 8:16 left in the first half made him exactly 20,000 as a Ram, the first 20,000-yard total for two teams in league history. He is fourth in Rams franchise passing yards.

What was Talanoa Hufanga’s path to Denver?

San Francisco took him in the fifth round out of USC in 2021. He won Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2020, then in 2022 posted 97 tackles, four interceptions, a pick-six, nine passes defensed, and two sacks as a first-team All-Pro. A torn ACL in 2023 and a 2024 wrist injury limited him to 17 games over two seasons. The Broncos announced a three-year deal on March 13, 2025.

Which penalties set up Bo Nix’s winning touchdown?

On third-and-6 from the Rams 11, Josh Wallace intercepted Nix near the sideline, but officials called defensive pass interference on the play with Pat Bryant. Terry McAulay said the replay did not show a foul. An illegal hands-to-the-face penalty later moved Denver from third-and-goal at the 5 to first-and-goal at the 2. Nix scored from the 1 with 47 seconds left.

Where do the Broncos and Rams play in Week 4?

Denver visits the 3-0 San Francisco 49ers, Hufanga’s former team. Los Angeles visits the Philadelphia Eagles. The Broncos are 2-1 after the comeback. The Rams are 1-2 after outgaining Denver 482-257 and leaving with two Stafford interceptions.