AFC Championship game 2014 injury report: Aqib Talib injures ribs

The AFC Championship Game featured some hard-hitting, exemplified by perhaps the smallest player on the field knocking out one of the most physical.

In the first quarter of Sunday's contest, Denver Broncos wide receiver Wes Welker came across the field and belted New England Patriots cornerback Aqib Talib, knocking him out of the game with what was termed a rib injury. Patriots coach Bill Belichick was enraged with his former charge, claiming it was a dirty play afterwards.

Talib never returned to action, and the man he was supposed to be guarding, Demaryius Thomas, went on to have a huge game including 134 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Throughout the rest of the contest, few injuries seemed to take place. Denver cornerback Tony Carter had to leave the game in the second half to go through concussion tests, not to return to the action. Running back Knowshon Moreno also departed with a chest injury but should be good for the Super Bowl after X-rays came back negative, according to NBC Sports.