Denver Broncos: The 5 Greatest Super Bowl Moments

Things started off so well.

The 1987 season was a bit of an odd one for the Broncos. There was the sister-kissing tie versus the Green Bay Packers.  There was the  blowout loss to the Houston Oilers and a shutout over the Detroit Lions.  Denver finished 10-4-1 good for first in the AFC West.

Denver Broncos

On the season, only Elway and Karl Mecklenburg were voted to the Pro Bowl but Elway did win League MVP for the season.  Denver wasn’t considered a contender for much of the season but during the Elway era you also couldn’t really count them out.

A playoff romp and revenge against the Oilers led to the AFC Championship game against the Cleveland Browns.  A barn-burner, the final score of the game was 38-33 in Denver’s favor. Cleveland QB Bernie Kosar threw for 356 yards and three touchdowns in an incredible performance dulled by The Fumble, Jeremiah Castille‘s strip of Earnest Byner at the Denver 2-yard line has become NFL lore.

On to the Super Bowl and the Washington Redskins, who were heavily favored at 14-2.  Denver’s first possession, after a Redskins 3-and-out looked to set the tone for the game.  Elway, from his own 43 dropped a perfect pass into the waiting hands of Ricky Nattiel for a Broncos touchdown.  A Rich Karlis field goal would follow and the Broncos entered the second quarter with a 10-0 lead.

What happened in that second quarter is best left to history but we will mention that Timmy Smith, who torched Denver for 235 yards, did not make the Redskins roster the following season.

Salt in the wound.