Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler got lippy at the constant trash-talking by San Diego players and allegedly made an obscene gesture in their direction last December.

His Chargers counterpart, Philip Rivers, was caught on television smiling and repeatedly shouting, "Atta baby!" in taunting fashion as his team clinched a lopsided win against Denver in a highlight that's sure to be well-worn by week's end.

And that was with the AFC West already decided last Christmas Eve.

Now, with a win-and-in scenario for a division title and playoff berth at stake Sunday at Qualcomm Stadium, it's time to see who really gets the last laugh between Cutler and Rivers in a rivalry made more heated by Cutler's addition to the Pro Bowl squad, perhaps even at Rivers' expense.

"Obviously, there were a lot of people out there who thought he should have went over me or Brett (Favre), which is fine," Cutler said Wednesday. "It doesn't bother me. I'm going. Brett's probably going. So it just adds to the drama and excitement."

As if more intrigue was necessary.

At the mention of Rivers' name, Cutler previously has referred to him as "my buddy" - under his breath.

In an October television interview, the Broncos quarterback was asked about Rivers and admitted, "We're not the best of friends at all," adding that he's "just not a big of a fan of the guy" because "I don't like how he carries himself. I don't like some of the stuff he does on the field."

In the spirit of the season, Cutler was asked at his weekly news conference whether it was time for a little peace on Earth.

"Are you asking me to retract my statements? No, I'm not going to," Cutler said with a smile that seemed to genuinely reflect the anticipated villain's role he'll have Sunday. "He's playing really well right now. But what happened has happened, and I haven't forgotten about it. I don't think a lot of guys on this team have forgotten about it. So it is what it is."

And what it amounts to, like both losses last year by Denver in the series that led to all the bitter feelings, is a one-sided affair.

Denver tight end Tony Scheffler, one of Cutler's closest friends, said of the quarterback's enmity toward Rivers, "It's real."

But from the Chargers quarterback's viewpoint, there's no animosity, at least in his public statements to date.

"There really isn't," he said to San Diego reporters Wednesday. "It got a lot of attention a year ago. There's nothing there."

The matchup behind center, though, should be something.

Cutler has thrown for 4,210 yards, setting a Denver single-season passing record. He also has the most completions in Broncos annals, and the team's fortunes have risen and fallen with his performances. The club is 10-0 when Cutler has a 100-plus passer rating. And he had four touchdowns, and a controversial nonfumble, in the Broncos' thrilling 39-38 home victory against San Diego in Week 2.

Rivers leads the NFL in passer rating and has 32 touchdown passes, one short of Dan Fouts' single-season franchise record set in 1981. He has nine touchdowns and only one interception during the three-game winning streak that helped set up the playoff play-in Sunday.

"I believe it spices it up for the audience out there. But, at the end of the day, we have to win a Football game," cornerback Dre Bly said of the QB matchup. "I know Jay's not going to get into a whole bunch of riffraff. He'll let his play do the talking for him."

Just as Rivers' play has spoken volumes.

"You look at the way he's played this year," Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey said. "He's carried that team."

And, deserved or not, Rivers also is toting baggage, especially in Denver, from his antics last December.

But that might just be a narrow and misplaced view around these parts, since in San Diego, Rivers widely is viewed as an emotional player who might, at times, come off publicly as aloof but generally is a good guy who wears his heart on his sleeve.

"I'm kind of perplexed by it," Chargers coach Norv Turner said of the supposed Cutler-Rivers flap, adding, "I really don't see it as an issue."

Try telling that to Cutler's critics in Southern California, who, safe to say, will take Cutler's repeated barbs at Rivers as evidence that it's the Broncos quarterback who's the petulant one leading his team.

"It probably won't be pleasant. I don't think it will be with the holiday spirit, at all," Cutler predicted of his anticipated reception. "I don't think they like me, which is fine. It adds to the game, adds to the excitement, adds to the rivalry with us."

Denver tight end Daniel Graham promised the offense will have Cutler's back, regardless.

And the two quarterbacks just might play their hearts out and shake hands afterward.

"I don't know. It depends on how it goes," Cutler said.

And, by some chance, should Rivers replace Favre, who has turned down Pro Bowl berths before, the two quarterbacks soon could find themselves in the same position group in Hawaii to hash everything out once and for all. Or not.

"I'm pretty sure they won't be hanging out riding Jet Skis together," Scheffler said.