PRO FOOTBALL : Broncos Get Stuck in Kansas City for 37-10 Loss : Chiefs Intercept Elway Four Times and Keep Denver From Clinching AFC West

By beating division-leading Denver, 37-10, Sunday and intercepting four John Elway passes, the Kansas City Chiefs kept up a strange, four-year hex on the Broncos’ strong-armed quarterback.

Since coming into the NFL as the No. 1 draft choice in 1983, Elway has been the quarterback for four victories and three losses against Kansas City. But he’s thrown only three touchdown passes while suffering 16 interceptions.

“For some reason, we play well against Denver,” said safety Deron Cherry, who thwarted one thrust Sunday with an end zone interception.

“It’s not a matter of how badly he’s (Elway) played, but how well we’ve played,” cornerback Albert Lewis said. “He can kill you. But we just match up well against them in the secondary.”

Todd Blackledge, in relief of injured Bill Kenney, threw two touchdown passes as the Chiefs snapped a three-game losing streak and improved their record to 8-6. Elway’s backup, Gary Kubiak, threw an interception in the final minutes that Lloyd Burruss returned 72 yards for the final score as the Broncos dropped to 10-4 and left town still needing one victory for the AFC West title.

“I don’t know what it is,” Elway said when asked about his problems with Kansas City. He wound up hitting 23 of 42 passes for 246 yards, but suffered 5 sacks along with 4 interceptions.

“Hopefully, I’ll be able to figure it out,” he said. “We played well here last year, but one in four years is not good.”

Tackle Pete Koch, who supplied much of the pass rush Sunday, said Elway’s frustrations against Kansas City may lie in the nature of athletic competition.

“Statistics can be very misleading,” Koch said. “Elway is one of the NFL’s best. But I don’t think there’s an athlete in this league who doesn’t have a team he tends to excel against and a team he tends to have a lot of trouble with.”

Blackledge, benched for ineffectiveness seven weeks earlier, threw a 9-yard scoring pass to Stephone Paige in the second quarter and hit Jeff Smith with a 17-yard touchdown pass in the third. Boyce Green, following Gary Spani’s interception in the fourth period, scored on a one-yard plunge to put the Chiefs ahead, 24-10, with 12:56 remaining in the game.

Nick Lowery, who kicked three field goals, had a 30-yarder in the first period and a 45-yarder in the fourth. Lowery’s third field goal carried 44 yards with 2:58 left in the game.

Sherman Cocroft’s interception in the second quarter gave the Chiefs the ball on the Broncos 17 and, moments later, Paige caught a Blackledge’s pass for a 10-3 lead. Elway’s two-yard touchdown pass to Sammy Winder made it 10-10 in the final seconds of the first half.

Then the Chiefs went ahead 17-10 when Smith beat Randy Robbins for the touchdown pass in the back of the end zone.

The Broncos, who beat the Chiefs, 38-17, in Denver three weeks earlier, could win the AFC West title tonight if Seattle beats the Raiders.