SAN DIEGO -- I arrived here for Monday night's pivotal AFC West game between the Denver Broncos and San Diego Chargers and learned of a key injury issue.

The Broncos announced starting cornerback Tracy Porter is ill and he did not travel to San Diego for the game. That means Chris Harris or Tony Carter will start.

That is a crucial loss for Denver. Porter is a ball hawk and brings experience and confidence to the defense. Expect San Diego to try to exploit the loss of Porter often by having Philip Rivers throw often to the area where Porter was supposed to be.

This game should be closely contested and the loss of Porter could prove to be damaging for Denver. Thus, this is a significant game-day development.