Super Bowl XXII

The game

At first, it looked like the Broncos would be the one who would blow out the Redskins. But in the second quarter, Wahington clinched the victory by exploding for 356 yards of total offense, 7 touchdowns, and 35 points.

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On the Broncos' first play from scrimmage, quarterback John Elway threw a 56-yard touchdown pass to receiver Ricky Nattiel. The Broncos quickly forced Washington to punt, and on the second play of Denver's ensuing possession, Elway completed a 32-yard pass to wide reciever Mark Jackson. Then he caught a 23-yard pass from halfback Steve Sewell, making him the first quarterback ever to catch a pass in the super bowl. But the Redskins managed to halt Denver's drive on the 6-yard line, and kicker Rich Karlis kicked a field goal to increase the Broncos lead to 10-0. Denver managed to drive to the Redskins 30-yard line on their third possession, but Washington safety Alvin Walton sacked Elway for an 18-yard loss on third down, pushing the Broncos out of field goal range.

Related Topics:
John Elway - Ricky Nattiel - Alvin Walton

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Meanwhile, the Redskins could not get anything done in the first quarter. They were forced to punt on every drive. And late in the period, quarterback Doug Williams twisted his leg while being sacked and had to leave the game. By the time the period ended, the Broncos has more then twice as many total yards of offense (142) as the Redskins (64). And with Denver's 10-0 lead, Washington seemed to face insurmountable odds since no team in Super Bowl history had ever come back to win after a 10-point deficit.

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But Williams returned with 14:17 left in the second quarter, and suddnely everything seemed to go right for the Redskinds and wrong for the Broncos, just like what happened to Denver in the second half of Super Bowl XXI against the New York Giants.

Related Topics:
Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants

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On the first play of the second quarter, receiver Ricky Sanders got behind defensive back Mark Hayes (who tried to jam him at the line of scrimmage), caught the pass from Williams, and took it 80 yards for a touchdown. Then after forcing the Broncos to punt, Washington advanced to the Denver 27-yard line. Facing third down and 1, with Denver's defense expecting a running play, receiver Gary Clark made a diving catch in the end zone for a touchdown to increase Washington's lead to 14-10.

Related Topics:
Ricky Sanders - Mark Hayes - Line of scrimmage - Gary Clark

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Denver then managed to advance to the Washington 26-yard line on their next drive. But after Elway threw an incomplete pass on third down, Karlis missed a 43-yard field goal. On the first play of the Redskins' ensuing drive, Williams threw a 16-yard completion to Clark. Then on the next play, running back Timmy Smith, a rookie in his first NFL start, took off for a 56-yard touchdown run, making the score 21-10.

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The Redskins increased their lead to 28-10 on their next possesion with a 50-yard touchdown pass from Williams to Sanders. Then 4 plays after the ensuing kickoff, Washington defensive back Barry Wilburn intercepted a pass from Elway on the Redskins 21 yard-line. And again, the Redskins stormed down the field to score. First, Smith ripped off a 43-yard run, then Williams completed a pair of passes to Sanders to reach the Denver 7-yard line. Two plays later, Williams threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to tight end Clint Didier to make the score 35-10.

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In the entire second quarter alone, Williams had completed 9 out of 11 passes for 228 yards and 4 touchdowns; Smith had rushed 5 times for 122 yards and a touchdown; and Sanders had caught 4 passes for 168 yards and 2 touchdowns.

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By the end of the game, Elway was sacked 5 times and threw 3 interceptions. And Washington got another touchdown again, a 4-yard run by Smith in the fourth quarter, to close out the scoring 42-10.

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Smith finished the game with a Super Bowl record 204 rushing yards, and scored 2 touchdowns. His 58-yard touchdown run in the second quarter tied Tom Matte in Super Bowl III for the second longest run in Super Bowl history. And Smith's 9.3 yard per carry average was the third highest. Sanders caught 9 passes for a Super Bowl record 193 yards and 2 touchdowns. Meanwhile, running back Gene Lang was the Broncos' leading rusher, but with only 38 yards on 5 carries. Elway finished the game with 14 out of 38 pass completions for 257 yards, 1 touchdown, and 3 interceptions. He was also Denver's second leading rusher with 32 yards on 3 carries. Jackson was Denver's top receiver with 4 catches for 76 yards and a touchdown.

Related Topics:
Tom Matte - Super Bowl III

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Scoring summary

• DEN- Nattiel 56 pass from Elway (Karlis kick)
• DEN- FG Karlis 24
• WAS- Sanders 80 pass from D. Williams (Haji-Sheikh kick)
• WAS- Clark 27 pass from D. Williams (Haji-Sheikh kick)
• WAS- Smith 58 run (Haji-Sheikh kick)
• WAS- Sanders 50 pass from D. Williams (Haji-Sheikh kick)
• WAS- Didier 8 pass from D. Williams (Haji-Sheikh kick)
• WAS- Smith 4 run (Haji-Sheikh kick)