This is the first Broncos home playoff game in seven years so the crowd is amped for this one. It's only the Broncos 7th playoff game in their 25-year history, but already the third against the Steelers. And you know it's gotta be Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen in the house for this one.
The hallmark of the Broncos defense in 1984 was the turnover, and they came up with two in the early going. Rich Karlis missed a field goal after the first one, but the Steelers immediately fumbled the ball away again. This time the Broncos cashed in, taking a 7-0 lead after John Elway connected with Jim Wright for a touchdown.
Pittsburgh managed to hold onto the ball on their next possession and moved deep into Denver territory. Louis Wright nearly has an interception in the end zone, but has the ball knocked out of his hands. The Steelers end up with a field goal to cut the lead to 7-3.
The Broncos break out a gadget play on their next drive. Elway laterals to Gerald Willhite, who then goes deep for Steve Watson. He hauls it in for a 52-yard gain, although the play probably would have scored if Willhite had thrown a better pass. The Broncos still move into prime scoring position and have a first-and-goal at the Steeler eight-yard line. However, they fail to score when Elway throws a bad pass under pressure on third-and-goal coming out of a timeout and is intercepted.
The Steelers put together a pair of good drives before halftime. Gary Anderson misses a field goal to end the first one, but they get a touchdown out of the second to take a 10-7 lead into halftime.
The Steelers get the ball to start the second half, but can’t move it. Roger Jackson blocks the punt which rolls out of bounds at the four-yard line. Sammy Winder loses a yard, then a gadget play with Willhite and tackle-eligible Dave Studdard doesn't materialize. After Elway throws incomplete under pressure on third down, the Broncos settle for a 21-yard Karlis field goal. The game is now tied, but another golden opportunity has slipped away. And as the game comes back from commercial break, we see Elway's upper thigh getting wrapped on the sideline due to a groin pull apparently sustained on the third-down attempt.
The Steelers again fail to move the ball, and the Broncos are back in business after a good punt return by Willhite. Elway is limping after every throw, but it doesn't stop him from firing a bullet to Steve Watson for a 20-yard touchdown. The Broncos are back in the lead with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter. Watson is having one of the finest days of his career: he finishes with 11 catches for 177 yards and a touchdown.
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| Steve Watson hauls in 3rd quarter touchdown pass |
The Steelers answer right back with a touchdown drive and tie it up at 17 when Louis Lipps catches a short pass and powers his way over the goal line. The Broncos can't sustain a drive and are set to punt it back to the Steelers as the fourth quarter begins.
Lipps, who has just been selected to the Pro Bowl as a kick returner, bobbles and then drops the punt at his own 20 yard line. There's a scramble and a pile-up, but the refs signal that Lipps recovered the ball.
The Steelers and the Broncos exchange punts, and then the Steelers start to move the ball. Walter Abercrombie and Frank Pollard are breaking off big gains on the ground, and a pass to Weegie Thompson picks up a first down at the Bronco 11. Weegie Thompson! One of the great NFL names of the 80s. The tide seems to be turning in the Steelers’ favor. The Broncos can’t stop their ground game. The Steelers are over 170 yards rushing for the game. However, true to their bend-but-don’t break form, the Broncos defense stiffens and Gary Anderson comes on to try a chip-shot field goal to put Pittsburgh in the lead.
He shanks it. From 26 yards away. For as much talking up of the kickers as Dick and Merlin did, neither kicker had a very good day, each missing a pair.
They flash a stat: Broncos have won 6 of 8 games in 1984 decided in final 4 minutes. They’ve done this before.
The Broncos now have the ball, a little momentum, and one of the best fourth-quarter QBs of all time. All they need to do is run out some clock and get into scoring position.
But Elway's hurt. He's looked a little worse after every throw. He’s picked off on the second play, and it's returned to the Broncos 2-yard line. This time the Steelers won’t be denied. Pollard scores his second touchdown of the day on a second effort on third and goal to give the Steelers a 24-17 lead.
The Broncos make a last ditch effort with the time left on the clock, but it might as well have been Jack Elway under center. The season is over. We don’t get the Elway and Marino matchup in the AFC Championship Game, although it felt like there would be many more of those to come. However, the closest it ever comes to happening is when they meet in a divisional round game near the end of their careers.
Ultimately, it's a game of what-ifs for the Broncos.
What if the Willhite to Watson pass went for six? What if they hadn't had to settle for three after the blocked punt? What if the Lipps fumble had bounced their way? What if Elway doesn’t get hurt?
The Steelers rushing attack of Pollard & Abercrombie is the highlight - 169 yards on 40 carries. Even so, the Broncos defense seems like it did the job. The Steelers only had 17 points with three and a half minutes left. However, after a season of living off takeaways at the rate of 3.5 per game, the defense only gets the two early on. Would a couple of second-half takeaways have changed the outcome?
It felt like the Broncos should have scored 28 in this one. But they struggled with the pressure applied by the Steelers pass rush. And once Elway got hurt, it seemed like they were just living on a prayer. What would have happened if they had gone to Gary Kubiak in the fourth quarter?
We don’t know the answers to these questions although it’s fun to wonder about. On this day, the Steelers were just a little better.
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