The Broncos are heading into Arrowhead, where they haven’t won since 1979. And Sammy Winder, who was on a pace for another 1,000 yard season and was leading the team with 6 touchdowns on the year, is sidelined with a touch of the flu.
No Sammy? No problem. After a Chiefs punt, the Broncos drive 52 yards in 10 plays and Gerald Willhite dives into the end zone from a yard out to put the Broncos in the lead.
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| Gerald Willhite going over the top |
The Chiefs punt again, and this time it is blocked by Randy Robbins who also recovers it at the Kansas City 9, and the Broncos get a field goal to make it 10-0.
The Broncos completely dominate the first quarter, with 96 yards of offense compared to 7 for Kansas City.
Things don’t improve much for the Chiefs when they switch ends of the field. Gene Lang bulldozes in from a yard out on the second play of the second quarter to extend the Denver lead to 17-0. Randy Robbins then blocks his second punt of the day, setting up Willhite’s second touchdown of the day.
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| Willhite heading for another six |
The rushing attack seems to be doing just fine in the absence of Winder, and will end up breaking the 200-yard mark on the day.
The Chiefs finally show some life and answer with a long drive to momentarily get the home crowd back in it, with Ethan Horton scoring from a yard out to get Kansas City on the scoreboard.
Willhite is injured late in the first half and carted off the field with a concussion.
Denver gets a field goal with the clock ticking down to end the half, pushing their lead to 27-7. Audible boos are heard as the teams head into the locker room.
This game was almost entirely drama-free. If there ever was a time the outcome was vaguely in question it came in the third quarter. The Chiefs kicked a field goal to make it 27-10 and then they drove deep into Denver territory. If they can get it in the end zone, they are only down 10 with plenty of time on the clock. They decided to go for it on 4th-and-3 from the 10-yard line, but Bill Kenney is sacked by Rulon Jones to end the threat with three and a half minutes left in the third.
The Broncos are now alternating Gene Lang with rookie Steve Sewell in the run game. We’ve seen a lot of Vance Johnson so far in the 1985 season, but this is the first extended look at Sewell, who was picked 5 spots ahead of Vance in the draft. He finishes the game with 64 yards on 20 carries.
Following a 12-yard pass to Butch Johnson for a first down, Lang breaks a 26-yard run on the last play of the third quarter. They get the ball to the one, but Sewell can’t punch it in on 3rd and goal. Karlis kicks a 19-yard field goal to go up 30-10. The drive consumed seven minutes of game clock and that's pretty much the ballgame.
This a dark stretch for the Chiefs. They beat the Raiders and Seahawks early in the season to start 3-1, but this is their fourth consecutive loss. The fans are not happy. Boos and jeers are heard from what sounds like a near-empty stadium. However, the Royals are next door preparing to play game 7 of the World Series in a few hours. Bret Saberhagen will pitch a complete-game shutout and the Royals will win 11-0 to claim the title. So the KC sports fan will wake up Monday morning having forgotten all about this lackluster midseason performance by their NFL team.
Marv Albert and Bob Griese were on the broadcast for this one. They mention that Jessica Elway, the first child of John and Janet, was born a week earlier. Marv also mentions that 14 Chiefs had children during the offseason and that coach John Mackovic had commented that if they did as well on the field as they did in the maternity ward they should have a great season.
And in response, Bob says, "the way they are playing, he may have a baby."
Weird comment, but maybe it should have been the title of the Chiefs' 1985 highlight video: So Bad, Our Coach had a Baby...
This win gets the Broncos to 6-2 and keeps them tied atop the AFC West with the Raiders.
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