Editor’s note: This story first ran on Jan. 5, 1987.
The Denver Broncos have done this before, but it was nine long years ago in another day and another time and it seemed as if it might never happen again.
Sunday, it did.
Sunday, the Broncos won an American Football Conference semifinal playoff game and advanced into the AFC championship game next Sunday at 10:30 in the morning, MST, against the Cleveland Browns in Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium.
Sunday, they beat New England 22-17 and they’re one victory away from the Super Bowl.
And when Rulon Jones thundered through to sack Patriots quarterback Tony Eason in the end zone for a safety with 1:37 to play, the celebration began and it won’t stop now for at least another week.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had that much fun on a football field,” Jones said.
The Broncos have done this before, but it was way back in 1977 when they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Oakland Raiders on the way to Super Bowl XII.
They had not done it at all since 1981. They had not won a playoff game.
Until Sunday.
“I’ve thought about this for six years now — what it would feel like to win a playoff game,” said Reeves. “I under-estimated it. I can’t tell you how exciting it is.”
Jones’ sack meant much more to the Broncos than the two points the safety gave them. When Jones leveled Eason, he obliterated the memories of that 41-16 loss to Seattle two weeks ago, that 24-17 loss to the Steelers in the conference semifinals two years ago, that 31-7 loss to the Seahawks in the 1983 wild-card game and all the rest of the playoff frustrations the Broncos have endured since ’77.
“When I saw Rulon sack him, I felt like we earned it,” said linebacker Tom Jackson, a veteran of those foreign playoff wars so long ago. “I felt like it was really appropriate that Rulon, who plays as hard as he can on every down in his life, should get that sack.
“We’ll look back, and maybe that will be one of the most important plays in Broncos history.”
Maybe. But the way the Broncos put themselves in position for that sack was important, too.
They got there with a running game, of all things. They rushed for 188 yards, and they hadn’t run for that much yardage since the third game of the season.
Sammy Winder had 102 of those yards, and no Denver running back has had more than 100 rushing yards in one game since that same third game of the season.
Denver played ball-control offense through the second half, maintaining possession with conservative, but successful, plays for 20:20 to the Patriots’ 9:40 in the last two quarters. Much of the reason for the conservatism was a series of injuries to offensive players in the second quarter — injuries that left Denver without running back Gerald Willhite (dislocated shoulder) and tackle Dave Studdard (bruised calf) in the second half.
Later, Denver lost guard Paul Howard (torn knee ligament) probably for the rest of the playoffs — however long that may be. And for all of the second half, quarterback John Elway played on a gimpy ankle, the result of a sprain late in the first half.
“I guess his ankle is OK,” said Patriots coach Raymond Berry. “What do you think?”
Elway had a free play on the pass to Johnson, since New England linebacker Don Blackmon was offside. Eschewing his primary receivers, Gene Lang and Orson Mobley, Elway went for broke, throwing deep.
Johnson came back to the pass to beat New England cornerback Ernest Gibson on the play, and then fell into the end zone as Gibson overran him.
“He had to adjust to me and not to the ball,” Johnson said. “I kind of leaned to the side. Unfortunately for him, I pushed off on him a little bit to adjust to the ball. I had to, to adjust to the pass. We were right next to each other when I caught the ball. I didn’t grab him or push him. I just leaned off him a little bit.”
The Broncos needed it, after Eason threw 45 yards to Stanley Morgan for a go-ahead touchdown on a flea-flicker lateral from Most Tatupu with 2:50 to play in the third quarter.
That gave New England a 17-13 edge.
“To me,” said Berry,” it was just one of those games that goes back and forth and is going to go down to the wire and we’d end up winning. My only surprise is that we didn’t.”
There were many, many other memorable moments for the Broncos Sunday. There was Steve Sewell’s 8-yard gain on third-and-four with 2:39 to play and Denver needing to hold onto the ball. There were Rich Karlis’ two perfect field goals, from 27 and 22 yards. There was Elway’s 22-yard touchdown run on a scramble.
There were the defense’s six sacks, the most the Broncos have had all season.
“We had a tremendous pass rush,” said linebacker Jim Ryan. “We made Eason very nervous. I really think he was shaken up out there. We could see that early in the game. We talked about it after the first couple of series. He was very nervous.”
He was nervous enough to hold the ball while Jones bore down on him with 1:37 to play, nervous enough to take the safety and give the Broncos the playoff victory — nine long years after the last time.
