1985 10-06-85 Houston Oilers at Denver Broncos pt 1 of 3

brought to you everyone and welcome to bio high stadium beautiful afternoon 70 degrees sunny skies a sellout 75 thousand the 112th straight sellout here at mile high stadium tom hammond and reggie rucker ready to bring you the action as the houston oilers take on the denver broncos tony zindejas set to kick it off for the oilers the broncos will receive deep vance johnson and greg lang the broncos are recorded two and two of the houston orders one and three in this young season [Applause] [Music] [Applause] short of the 25-yard line alan laidy on the coverage for the houston orders so the denver broncos will put it in play and reggie rucker what about offensive keys to the game for denver this afternoon for the denver broncos it's the solid rushing of sammy winder the all-pro running back controlling the football up front against this young defense of the houston owers of course john elway the quarterback for the denver broncos he'll put his team into action from their own 23-yard line slot formation to the left wyoming to the lone setback first play of the game johnson in motion elway pitches to winder find some room outside across the 25 to about the 27 before bo easton comes up from his free safety spot to make the stop let's set the offensive starting lineup now for the denver broncos john elway has passed for over 200 yards in each game so far this season sammy winder coming off a great game against miami johnson watson two tight ends wright and k to begin the game up front studdard hood brian howard and lanier gain at five on the first place second and five from the broncos 28 hits to the other side winder up close to the first down gets up just shy of the 35-yard line it'll be close to first down territory let's take a look at the defensive lineup now for the houston oilers and they've been a little weak against the run here is the front three childress stensrud and baker the linebackers for the oilers lyles riley abraham and needs in the secondary which has been doing a good job brown allen bostic and eason first down for the denver broncos the initial first down of the game marked the ball at the 33-yard line one of the keys to the game time is the play of billy bryan the center for the denver broncos if he can handle stendru by himself watch for the danger guards who are good ones on the pulling tactics outside with weindicarion watson wide left johnson in motion take the winder this is elway's first pass just overshot his man sewell steve sewell streaking down the right sideline couldn't quite get there [Applause] steve sewell the number one draft choice from the university of oklahoma they will use sewell in the h-back formation where he will fake a lot of the run action now they're trying to isolate number 30 on a linebacker going down the right sideline now elway with his great throwing arm looks back across the field and just lets one fly just out of the reach of steve sewell that'll set up a second and 10 situation from the broncos 33-yard line no score in the game opening series 13-18 first quarter elway scrambling gets about to the 39-yard line jesse baker one of the defensive ends who has led houston in sacks each season since 1979 making the stop on elway let's watch number 67 center of your screen mike stendru big strong middle guard forces the broncos to double cover him and that's what stendru must make the broncos do now they scrambled for about five yards on the play it'll be third and five from the bronco 38-yard line will operate from the shotgun formation will hide and sewell alongside complete for the first down to midfield to sampson clint simpson making the reception for the first down robert abraham inside linebacker and steve brown from the corner combining for the stop now in third and obvious passing situations the broncos get either clint sampson or vance johnson their speed people in the game watch the gun that elway has right there on the money to sampson who takes a good shot inside and hangs on to the football was a flag on the plate houston was offside the broncos declined the penalty number 79 defense penalty decline first hand jerry seaman the referee this afternoon the oiler sideline hugh campbell of course has struggled since coming to houston and compiled a great record in the canadian football league tom the one thing you don't want to do with elway ironically is you don't want elway to get outside because he is most dangerous when he is throwing on the run first down from the broncos from midfield split backs in the backfield play action elway dumped it off intended for lange looks like he just got rid of it as he was getting some pressure from the houston defense and this young houston defense is developing into a very good one they don't have the offense right now that you would expect from a team as talented as they are on offense but this young defense and you watched them all day particularly the cornerbacks brown and allen they will play right to the very last gun and they will play hard and they will play well there you see the stats on defense second in the afc against the pass it's been against the run after week 13th in the afc and next to last in the entire nfl second and ten from midfield for the broncos sewell in motion elway straight back in trouble still scrambling he's gonna run it slides after a gain of about three he was way back in trouble got away from the rush meads finally took him to the turf after about a three yard game when you began to compare john elway to the great quarterbacks mourinho and the moons and so forth the one thing you have to concede to elway is this he can get away from the rush he has escapability watch the good move down get out of the way jerry seaman you're in the way there now elway will come down the left sideline here now one thing elway can do to take this pressure away from himself is to slide they go in feet first and they can't hit you this way you're going to get a headache we'd like to welcome those viewers who have just joined us from the pittsburgh miami game we're in mile high stadium tom hammond and reggie rucker no score opening series of the game the broncos took the opening kickoff they have advanced just beyond midfield on this first series and will be pacing a third and six from the 46-yard line of the oilers we don't know at this point who is down tom i maybe you saw the number it is a houston oiler player and right in front of the bronco bench and we can't pick up the number because the players are all standing right around the last play was a scramble by john elway who was trapped about 20 yards behind the line was able to avoid the rush of mike stensruth and was able to get a gain of about three on the play johnny meads we understand is the player down mead's 6-2 225 2-year veteran out of nichols state and a starting outside linebacker all right we'll take a break now no score from denver houston against the bronco the maids of the houston orders being taken from the field on a stretcher appeared to be his right knee that was banged up so meads leaves the field frank bush will come in at an outside backer to take his place john elway in the huddle for the denver broncos his team facing a third down situation with the first drive of the game one of the things coach dan reeves said his broncos must do to win the game today is convert third downs a crucial one here third and six l way in the shotgun [Music] good protection almost intercepted pressure now on elway he throws the football and they're dropping him and that's what houston wants to do all right denver with its first punting situation in the game it'll be a fourth down at a punting situation chris norman the two-year veteran out of south carolina in punt formation for the denver broncos [Music] tries to get the corner a big bouncing out of bounds beautiful kick by norman they'll mark it inside the five yard line norman doing a great job a 42-yard kick out of bounds at the four no score from denver back to denver and today the chamber of commerce could brag about here at mile high stadium 70 degrees beautiful game and the game is holding up as advertised so far tom the aggressive houston all is with that excellent cornerback combination that they have going against these denver grown folks and after the great punt by norman houston will get his first offensive possession at its own four-yard line warren moon the quarterback for the oilers give to the first man crew and not much there as the broncos stack it up right in the center larry moriarty hit just about at the line of the scrimmage we talked about the key to the game for denver what about houston offensively for houston we're going to talk the same thing rushing the ball along first down trying to pick up four yards or more this will keep warren moon out of those obvious passing situations where he has been sacked 22 times in the last four football games second and eighth they got a couple of yards on the first play so they're not living up to reggie's key to the game so far only two on their first running play second and eight from their own six give this time to moriarty and again not much there as he tries the center of the denver bronco line give him a yard or two he's about to the seven yard line barney chavis on the stop for the broncos that set the lineup for you the oilers warren moon at quarterback woh folk and moriarty are the running backs wide receivers smith and drew hill with jamie williams the tight end and the offensive line salem munchak romano schumacher and matthews remember they allowed 12 sacks of moon against the cowboys a week ago third and six five defensive backs on the goal for denver to give to wolf hook wilfred comes across the 15 fights his way almost to the 20-yard line and an oiler first down good smart play calling by the oldest to take pressure off of warren moon with the draw play there's the defensive line of the broncos denver ranking eighth in the afc and defense shavus carter and jones up front the linebackers ryan hundley starting today music and woodard and in the secondary for denver wright wilson hardin and foley mike rozier into the lineup he is the tail back in the eye formation for the houston oilers first down oilers ball marked at their own 20-yard line [Music] moon pitches to rozier rosie field and stopped by jones jones got in to stop rozier for a loss no score here in denver let's go to bob costas championship series starting tuesday night here on nbc as toronto will be hosting kansas city gets all the league championship action american and national leagues here on nbc sports gives a rose here brazil tries to pick him way third and mecklenburg comes in to make the stop the man that's leading the afc and sacks with the defense against the run an obvious fasting situation you can expect the oil is to do a lot of this drawer plays and screens watch number 77 mecklenburg leading the afc in sacks catches mike rozier on the draw play he not only saxon but he tackles him as well it'll be third and 12 for the houston oilers with the ball marked at their own 18-yard line wolfpack and rozier in the backfield warren moon calling signals for his orders their first possession of the game no score eight and a half minutes remaining first quarter moon completes his first pass to wolford and he'll be taken out of bounds shy of the 25-yard line and well shy of the first down marker safety mike hardin comes up to make the stop here final scores miami a winner over pittsburgh 24-20 it was cleveland outlasting new england san francisco pouring it on the falcons in atlanta that's in the fourth quarter another fourth quarter score chicago has come from behind to lead tampa bay green bay putting it on detroit 43-10 and a new coach didn't help buffalo the colts air out 49-17 fourth quarter new orleans over philadelphia by two the eagles have come back vance johnson deep to receive the punt from lee johnson of houston takes it at the 40 to the 45 midfield he's got a wall johnson taken down just shy of the oiler 30-yard line steve tasker making a saving tackle after the punt by johnson good return of the punt by vance johnson for the denver broncos they'll have excellent field position a 38-yard kick but a 31-yard return by johnson just shy of the euler 30-yard line the irony with this play is that vance johnson came to denver by swapping choices with houston and you know the player that houston got with the draft choice the fella that just kicked the ball lee johnson fastest man in the draft a year ago number 82 vance johnson they set up a wall for him that was great too once he got to the outside he had plenty of running room so the broncos with excellent field position they'll begin from the oiler 31-yard line and john elway came up to the line of scrimmage saw something he didn't like i think in his own alignment and quickly called for a timeout so the broncos are forced to waste a timeout and we'll be back to denver in a moment no score oilers and bronco denver goes first down here's a pitch back to winder to the 30 inside to the 26 yard line where he's knocked out of bounds childress coming up to make the stop for the oilers but not after a good gain on the play by sam winder last year of course the broncos won the afc west the oilers struggled reggie here's one of the reasons the broncos a year ago with 25th and defense and 20 seconds in offense in the national football league but they were in black numbers and take away giveaway notice the oldest in 84. they were in red numbers their record 3 and 13. very significant statistic gain of 5 for winder on that last play second and five for the denver broncos no score in the game eight minutes to play first quarter elway hands again to one gets up just shy of the 20 and perhaps a yard shy of the first down avon riley makes the stop today we said a key to this game was the center versus the middle guard billy bryant number 64 versus number 67 stindru watch brian 64 in the middle of your screen along with winford hood take care of sten's root result winder right up the middle for a great game why is that such a key to this game reggie because if bryan can handle stingroot one-on-one the broncos get double team blocking on both ends and there should be running wins for one third and one for the broncos i formation in the backfield wind to the tailback they go straight ahead they give the lang and he pounds ahead enough for the first down childress makes the stop but lang got first down yardage and the broncos keep their drive alive let's take a look at the blocking right in the center of the screen once again they're doing a job on number 67 stingray that's not to say stingroot isn't doing a fine job because he is that's just the focal point of the denver rushing attack dean morality was working on in that time morality 6'5 285 4-year veteran out of utah first and 10 from the 20-yard line broncos looking to score the first points of the game fires it inside good defensive coverage that time when the flag goes down perhaps past interference will be called on steve brown well let's take a really good look at this because i think this will point out the new rules steve johnson number 24 steve brown i'm sorry he's excellent at holding the receiver up now watch him go for the ball that looks like an excellent play but passing appearance was cold steve watson was the intended receiver for the broncos here's interference number 24 defense first down so steve brown was called for a pass interference and they'll mark the ball at the 11-yard line where the broncos will have a first down mark cooper into the lineup for the broncos bringing the play from the sideline dan reeves calls all the plays for the broncos lang and winder in the backfield he gives straight ahead lying packs his way down to the five yard line riley and abraham make the stop well a moment ago that big pass interference call on steve brown and today before the game reggie rucker talked to brown about the new pass interference rules every time and another flag goes down as winder is stopped short of the first down abraham inside linebacker coming up to make the stop we'll check the flag so he's going to be a holding call against denver so the broncos drive momentarily at least stalled by the penalty coach dan reeves said they've really been working on eliminating penalties that hurt him a week ago against the dolphins it's been a breakdown here a breakdown there for the denver broncos we'll continue on in a moment holding number 64. offense still second down and quite frankly danny reeves can't seem to get it all together but this is the highest scoring team in the american football conference but the thing that's hurting denver they've always in the past had that good take away ratio they've always been able to score touchdowns and pick up fumbles and run them for touchdowns that win football games with their defense and their defense isn't doing that this year broncos now with a second and 14 after the holding penalty against billy bryan that's the man we've been watching the broncos center is going against mike sten's room elway to pass rolls to his right for the end zone up for grabs and incomplete bo easton the safety there on the coverage they had good coverage that time he used to let it go into a crowd as stinsor was pressuring him and couldn't find anyone we talked about how dangerous john elway is once he begins to scramble i don't know how wise it is to make a throw like this i think this ball gets away from john now watch the pass here it's wobbly and it's high it does slip out of the hand of john elway because quite frankly i think john wanted to throw that football away elway has passed for 200 yards in each of the first four games of the season for the broncos you know kenny houston the defensive backfield coach of the houston orlando says that his cornerback steve brown and patrick allen and now number one draft towards richard johnson are two of the finest covering defensive backs in all of pro football the thing that they need now is recognition paul howard shaken up on the play starting right guard for the broncos 12-year veteran out of brigham young and being taken to the sideline this isn't the prototypical modern day offensive line tom it's not very big but they are very quick they get out on the streets very quickly and they have good pass drops third down 14 yards to go at the 15-yard line of the oilers elway from the shotgun pressure for the end zone and out of the end zone incomplete again they put pressure on elway the key as jerry glanville told us today the defensive coordinator of the houston oldest is to pressure him put plenty of pressure on john elway now elway reads the coverage very well but i'll tell you once again those houston cornerbacks are covering the denver receivers like blankets only one of six this afternoon for elway jesse baker applying the pressure that time and rich carlos will come in to attempt the field goal the broncos this season have scored every time they've been inside the opponent's 20-yard line and carlos will attempt to keep the string going he is hit 12 in a row which is a new denver record he's eight for eight in 1985. this one 37 yards flags down [Applause] they blew the whistle and threw the flags before they got the play underway jerry seaman prior to the snap number 88 false start five yard penalty clarence k the tight end guilty of the false start we might mention right here tom that ritz carlos has made a denver record 12 straight field goals in a row of course that would have been 13. they're going to move him back five but i don't think it will hamper mr collice's efforts at all he is the third leading scorer in the afc and scored 36 points so far this season so they'll move it five yards further back carlos perfect eight for eight this year and if you go back to last season as reggie said he is 12 for 12. so a 37-yarder coming up for rich carlos [Music] kicker make it 13 in a row for carlos and denver again has scored once they got inside the opponent's 20-yard line they're 100 and that's that this season first score of the game we've got a timeout 75 thousand the 112th consecutive sellout and the broncos have just taken a three-nothing lead as rich carlos has hit his 13th consecutive field goal so with five minutes remaining in the first quarter the broncos are on the scoreboard first carlos kicks it out of the end zone and the oilers will put the ball in play did the oilers get any kind of lift that time because the broncos had advanced inside their five-yard line but they were able to hold them to a field goal i think the the the confidence that this young all the defense is growing is evident it and and they're hoping i would think that permeates through the other side of the football which the is the offensive unit hugh campbell in his second season as head coach of the oilers a record of four and 16. houston leads this series with denver 17 wins for the oilers nine wins for the broncos warren moon on first down out of his hands it'll be an incomplete pass incomplete pass and not a fumble as moon was blindsided denver leads three nothing let's go to bob costas nfl 85. tom this is wesley walker's first reception of the season a 38-yard throw from ken o'brien and a fine catch moments later tony page scored on a short run and the jets have tied the bengals in cincinnati 7-7 they're in the second quarter [Music] and here in denver the broncos leading the oilers three nothing four minutes 55 seconds first quarter second and ten for moon and the orleans here's the draw play rozier hit once bounces off gets to the outside and turns nothing into a gain of a couple of yards before woodard from the outside linebacker spot can take him out of bounds it's so hard to compress your offense to a point where you're running on first down and then running draw plays on second and third here's the reason why they're so afraid to throw the football right now stack differential the teams last year with the best sac differential were all in the playoffs a year ago and in 1985 is that stat holding up reggie sure is denver is still in the plus area and houston olas are in red letters they have to get to black letters houston 14th in the afc and offense especially weak in that department so far this season 1-3 record although a couple of those losses have been deceptively close moon under pressure lets it go incomplete almost intercepted by hardin tony lilly on the coverage for the broncos and almost able to pick it off moon has really been under pressure warren moon virtually under siege by the pressure of first the dallas cowboys and now the denver broncos watch him once again roulon jones number 75 coming on the outside number 31 is mike harden on a safety blitz and that's unusual for the denver broncos because they don't usually blitz their safeties tony lilly got a hand on it couldn't hold it punt formation for lee johnson has averaged 42.1 as you see his longest has been 59 yards vance johnson awaits the punt had a good return earlier in the game this time can't get to the outside and will be taken down at about his 32-yard line mike akew down on the coverage for the houston oilers 50-yard punt five-yard return for vance johnson well i hope you'll join in [Applause] four and a half minutes to play first quarter broncos first and ten from their own 32 they have a three-nothing lead elway to winder plows his way up across the 35 to the 36 with frank bush who came in for the injured johnny meads hanging on for dear life meads left the game with a knee injury and will not return this afternoon when you have a man like john elway as your as your quarterback and you know his offense is deep downfield sami weiner's rushing yards there in 85. the temptation is to want to throw the football a lot but dan reeves has intimated to us that he is going to take advantage of what they do best that's run the football super sam winder comes off 103 yard performance against the dolphins a week ago his fifth highest career rushing game he got four on that last place second and six elway goes long sampson collides with an offensive man flag goes down patrick allen on the coverage samson trying for the reception we'll see what the call is unless the defensive back is looking back for the football let's take a look at it now watch 29 he has to be looking back for the football he is not looking back for the football he runs into the receiver correct call by the officials number 29 defense first down second pass interference call against the houston secondary they are second in the afc in pass defense the first call win against steve brown this time patrick allen guilty of interference he gives the broncos a first down at the 29-yard line of the oilers [Music] broncos a three-nothing lead clock stopped 3 48 to play first quarter with split backs in the backfield samson in motion scrambles he's got a lot of running room slides down just shy of the 20-yard line let's check some other scores now from around the national football league this afternoon final score miami in the orange bowl coming from behind to beat pittsburgh cleveland wins by four over new england also a final san francisco after a slow start beating the falcons another final chicago remaining unbeaten 27-19 at tampa bay green bay really pouring it on the lions this afternoon and indianapolis getting its offense in gear against the buffalo bills new orleans squeaking out at home against the eagles second and four for the broncos handoff in the backfield lying is going to be stopped for about no gain on the play bo eason from his free safety spot coming up to stop lying and knock him out of bounds eason uh second-year man out of california davis six to 200 pounds number 74 winford hood is filling in for the injured key bishop number 74 coming around watch the pulling block good block there by hood lang continuing on outside picks up some good yardage but it was a good block by winford hood that sprung frank bush getting a little penetration for the oilers it'll be third and three gain of a yard on that last play third and three for the broncos premature movement elway scrambling to his right being chased by childress he goes out of bounds and we'll see whether the oilers jumped offside or whether they were drawn by the broncos if it's against the oilers it'll be a denver first down see if we can pick it up ready well we can't see elway so we can't see the inflection maybe that bobbing his head would cause and sometimes that's what it is it's the quarterback's rhythm jerry seaman and cruz sorting things out here's the call off side right side defensive line five yard penalty so a key mistake by the oilers they had the broncos with a third down and three to go and with the penalty it'll be a bronco first down keeping the drive alive when you take a look at it though tom the houston oil is defensively playing really terrific football i believe except for the one pass interference call they're playing outstanding the offense of the houston oilers is putting too much pressure on the defense to stay in the football game and the broncos traditionally outscore you in the first quarter because of this mile high air as i contended and on the other hand the oilers had been outscored in the first quarter in 1985 44 tonight back now 47 to nothing they trailed three nothing here with 253 to go in the first quarter this drive with the broncos aided by two penalties here's the reverse give it to vance johnson got one man to beat whoa to the five and out of bounds at the one johnson on the reverse an electrifying move by vance johnson here it is the fake up field the handoff from winder to oil is missed deep in the backfield now what's the move by vance johnson coming in here four two nine in the 40. he makes a great move inside then high steps it broncos are in business and police and makes a saving tackle right at about the one watch it from the end zone once again one of the fastest men in professional football today vance johnson he really puts the charge into the broncos offense when he is in the football game but a move on patrick allen right there that turned island completely around before eason makes the tackle they're gonna mark it at the three yard line it'll be first and goal for the broncos from that point there's another loss for the oilers linebacking core that is robert abraham really one of the outstanding linebackers particularly at that inside position in pro football they've already lost meat i wonder if this defense can stand that type of loss so two starting linebackers both right side linebackers have gone down for the oilers abraham and before that meads alan lyday will come in to replace abraham why they a defensive back plays safety reggie we're talking about the mile high altitude here and of course you played here uh what effect did it have on you how did it manifest itself this thin air well i always believe that the visiting teams didn't have the recuperation time that they normally have at sea level consequently they were fatigued and the broncos were always able to score first get out ahead of you and then you were ultimately always trying to catch up with them feet here 5284 mile high stadium and the broncos traditionally have outscored their opponents here in the first quarter perhaps what reggie says it takes a while to adjust to the altitude right now they're threatening to go up 10 nothing on the oilers clint sampson put the block on abraham that sent abraham to the sideline first and goal broncos from the oiler three lang and winder the running backs two tight ends hell way to pass scrambles and throws it away nice catch by an usher but reggie elway looked like he started to break up the middle there's the usher who made the good catch well i thought it was a a play in which elway could have run right now gone as far as he could up field and dove for the end zone but he decided not to risk that throws the football away that's a good move as well i look like you during your playing career elway's had his problems this afternoon one of seven for only 12 yards remember he has passed for over 200 yards in each game so far this season second and goal from the three hits to winder just sort of the goal line jeff donaldson from a safety spot kept him out of the end zone and it'll be third down for the broncos at about the one a valiant effort here by the oilers defense when you consider that meads and abraham are out of the ball game bostick number 25 good strong hitter that's dan reeves the my former teammate with the dallas cowboys in his fifth season here in denver is 136 and lost 25 hugh campbell on the oilers sideline here's the play winder 75 000 bronco fans applauding super sam winder who takes it into the end zone from a yard out watch it again the offensive line establishing the line of scrimmage moving the orders back off of the ball and a good hard low charge of sami weiner for the touchdown winder is built low to the ground 511 203 pounds four-year veteran out of southern mississippi carlos will try to add the extra point it's good and with a minute 57 to play in the first quarter the denver broncos have taken a ten nothing lead on houston as you watch the charge by sammy weiner for the touchdown two things are very much in inevitable one the orders having given up 54 points in the first quarter this year to zero and also the the the mile-high atmosphere that see that tends to exhaust the visiting team to a point where you get behind this football team that's when they really begin to rush you dan reeves on the denver sideline elway has not had a good day passing so far but the broncos have taken a 10 nothing lead that last drive helped by a couple of crucial penalties houston's not playing that bad defensively but the penalties the key mistakes have hurt them and their offense has to get something going they've had a couple of pass interference calls that are very tight and when you play bump and run tight man-to-man defense like the oldest play you're going to have some of the up and running tight man-to-man defense like the oldest player you're going to have some of those let's look at the scoring drive 7 plays 68 yards 235 to 1 yard run by weiner of course the pass interference was the key to the drive and of course on the third down they had a five-yard penalty on a third and three situation that gave them the easy first down to keep the drive alive robert abraham the euler linebacker they say may have a hit pointer but will return in fact is already back in the game on the special teams carlos ready to kick tasker and druid are deep for the oilers pastor takes it right at the goal line to the 20th flags fly to the 24-yard line we'll check the penalty it's going to be a holding call against the oilers well nothing going right for houston here in the first quarter they continue to make those crucial mistakes recall this negative momentum because they'll take all the cardinals all the league championship action here on nbc from their seven the oilers put it in play to get outside with wolf oak nothing there bucy comes up to make the stop from an inside backer spot for the denver broncos and again the oilers not able to get that ground game going the orders whether they want to or not are going to have to change the pattern of their play calling they've been running the ball on first down running the ball on second down and draw a play on third down it might help if the orders pass the football on first down and run on third down steve foley injured on the play as you see the oilers standing offensively not very good for the oilers uh so far in 1985 12th and rushing last in passing last overall steve foley of the broncos shaken up they're tending to him on the sideline foley who has two interceptions to lead the broncos so far this year the 10-year veteran from tulane and also into the game tom jackson has just come off injured reserve for the broncos 13-year veteran out of louisville he had arthroscopic surgery on her right knee but activated for this game he's an inspiration to this defense he is he is the spiritual and inspirational leader of the denver denver broncos football team and many people believe that the reason why this defensive outfit hasn't had the kind of success it has had in the past is because of the absence of tom jackson steve busey comes back in as foley is helped to the sideline wolfe got two yards on that last play marked the ball at the oiler nine it'll be second and eight there's tom jackson 57 they have an inspirational player award here with the broncos and they've been in existence for four years jackson has won it all four years [Applause] second and eight for the oilers warren moon timing pattern too tall to handle to wolfrak out of the backfield nothing clicking for the oilers so far let's check some other scores second quarter score in the late games the raiders in the coliseum leading the chiefs seven to three second quarter score as well seattle has kicked a field goal to lead the chargers in the second cincinnati has gone on top of the jets by a field goal and of course here in denver the broncos with a ten nothing lead a minute 13 to play in the first quarter hold on to your hat because you can expect the blitz blitz coming for the broncos on third and eight let's see how moon reacts he tightens his formation to bring in some help with the blocking retreats to his goal line shows a little release pass it's complete but at the 5-yard line a loss in the play moriarty couldn't get anything going as woodard from the outside backer spot came up to make the stop he read it perfectly and the orders again frustrated offensively the denver defense is dictating to the houston oilers what they're going to run watch mecklenburg number 77 outside salem does a fine job of getting getting him away from moon but there's too much pressure up the middle of the offensive line steve foley injured his left shoulder has been taken beneath the stands to the portable x-ray machine where they'll check him out in the meantime lee johnson who is kicked two times for a 44 average today in punt formation with 30 seconds to play in the first quarter standing in his own end zone kicks into the lie and drive pump taken by johnson fumbles kicks it dives on it at about the 38-yard line well it was a line drive kick i think he saw so much running room in front of him that he took his eye off the ball here it is it's a line drive kick as you said tom and that's the best kind of punt to return particularly when the coverage team is backed up in its own into the field he boots the ball unfortunately is able to recover it and i think he had the wind knocked out 20 seconds remaining first quarter the broncos with johnson a little shaken up looks like he had the wind knocked out of him leading by 10 nothing over the oilers and again with excellent field position the ball is on the 39-yard line of the oilers seems like we played this first quarter in order territory this is an important defensive stand for houston norway will pass on first down flags go down pass complete short of the first down watson takes it for about a nine yard gain allen takes him out of bounds penalty flags on the turf i think denver's going to be flagged for holding discussion taking place in elway gives the signal to the denver bench and it looks like it was holding against the broncos here's jerry seaman holding number 53 defense holding number 64. offense offsetting penalties bring it back well once again nothing going right for the oilers offsetting penalties the best offensive lineman that the broncos have number 64 in the center of your screen blocking on number 72 mike soshay soshay doing a terrific job of backing brian right into the lap of elway [Applause] penalty so far in the game the oilers 57 costly yards a couple of actually three key penalties against the oilers 2 for 15 the broncos who will replay first down from the oiler 39-yard line 14 seconds first quarter brock goes with a 10-nothing lead [Music] winder fumbles still loose and finally taken by the broncos james wright falls on it after it was kicked around several times boilers unable to get that free ball that could have been a big break for them the oilers are playing as if they know that this is a key defensive series for them almost got the turnover at that point that's the end of the first quarter of play from denver where the broncos leading the oiler another fumble that's the thing he's been trying to eliminate those little mistakes he has a good record of course here with the broncos and a former teammate of yours that's right in dallas and he was a very good friend and hated to leave him and i'm quite frankly surprised that uh he ever left the texas uh the cowboys i'll tell you he is beleaguered in terms of what can he do to help alleviate some of those small problems now i know that during the course of practice if you make a mental mistake he'll have you run a penalty lap an old tom landry from the shotgun elway facing second and 14 from the oiler 43 swings the pass complete to willheit got some blocking gets to the 35-yard line before bush knocks him out of bounds well a moment ago the oilers had a golden opportunity to pick up the bronco fumble here's how it went here it is this is winder with the football in the all of the scratching and clawing and the ball pops loose they have an excellent chance right there baker to pick it up and run with it but you know that football is shaped the way it is for a reason and no one can seem to pick it up there it is lying on the ground and finally covered by james wright i think it was third and five after a nine yard gain on the last play ball marked at the 34-yard line of the oilers who trailed the broncos 10 nothing opening minute of the second quarter from denver butch johnson wide to the left elway and the shotgun third and five [Music] first down reception finally taken down after getting the first down johnson with the catch and donaldson on the stop elway read the blitz and got the first down really got rid of the ball very quick being in the shotgun formation helped him get rid of the football that time however there is a flag on the play see he's in the shotgun formation so he's already away from the rush now he has time to see his receivers he gets rid of the ball but he still takes a blow from jesse baker this penalty will be against the broncos and will nullify that first down reception by johnson illegal formation only six men on the line of scrimmage offense replay third down tom i believe looking at it on the other side of the football for the houston oil is if they were in the shotgun a little bit more if warren moon had a chance to see some of what's happening in front of him i think they could get away from some of those unnecessary sex i know that warren moon doesn't like the shotgun but it may prove to be the the remedy in this situation third and 11 again la in the shotgun after the broncos were penalized premature movement by the oilers that time and it looks like they'll get the five yards back as childress broke too soon well the oilers are just snake bitten well that's a question of a staggered cadence call by elway prior to the snap number 79 encroachment defense still third down five yard penalty sometimes the quarterback will come out of the huddle and they'll call to play like this then there are other times if he wants the defense to come offside he'll go and that's called the staggered cadence and that will bring the defense off size and uh i think that was children's who is a rookie and who isn't used to hearing that kind of cadence call children's the rookies 6-6 267 pounds from texas a m broncos got the five yards back third down six yards to go at the 34-yard line at houston no way under pressure and just through it because he was feeling the pressure threw it way short of the mark watson the intended receiver easton right there on the coverage and the elway feeling the pressure now watch this had he not been in the shotgun they would have sacked him but because he is away from center because he sees things he can just throw the ball away now the rush hasn't sacked him houston certainly has shut down elway today he's only two for nine 22 yards passing here in the first half 14 minutes remaining in the second quarter broncos however do have a ten nothing lead as rich carlos comes in to try to make it 13-0 this will be a 52-yard field goal attempt his longest this year has been 48. no good carlos has his string broken he had hit 13 in a row but on the 14th he misses so we've got a top denver broncos first and ten euler 34 yard line 13 58 second quarter broncos lead at 10 nothing excuse me oilers with the first down play and it is moriarty that gets the call and takes it upside the 40-yard line and the oilers need to get the offense moving the defense has been on the field a long time in fact denver has had the ball nine minutes 21 seconds to only five and a half minutes for houston we talked about how important it is on first down for houston when they run the footballs pick up four yards or more now they did it that time let's see if they don't convert for a first down in the series five yard gain for moriarty at that time steve foley free safety at the broncos separated shoulder will not play again today handoff to rozier gets outside first down into bronco territory to the 45-yard line from the field level mike rozier making his presence known here in the houston lineup the 1983 heisman trophy winner from nebraska has been playing football year round outstanding blocking on the left side of the line jamie williams gets a tremendous block here comes rozier number 33 with the outstanding speed on the outside he hasn't been carrying the ball enough i think the rozier style is to carry the football a lot of times tom played 18 usfl games came right to the nfl but he's given the oilers a first down at the 45-yard line we played mostly in oil or territory so far that's a big first down moon rolls out completes it for another first down to tight in jamie williams who caught it in traffic [Music] jamie williams is the guy that does a lot of blocking for this houston running game he's not known for his past sketching abilities but this is what makes the play the faking senior linebackers one way now moon rose to the right he's an outstanding passer on the run hits jamie williams who picks up a first down [Music] beautiful pass williams on the reception from moon you see his stats for 1985. tony lilly made the stop for denver but an oiler first down there at the 28th of denver stan edwards on the carry for the oilers doesn't get much there music leading the defensive charge for the broncos again the running game has not been good for the oilers that's right and they didn't pick what they pick up that time one yard this is where they've been getting into trouble because they haven't been converting against the nickel defense the other teams are bringing in four or five extra uh people on passing situations and they always haven't handled it well two yards on the carry for edwards carry the ball for only the sixth time this season on that last one second and eight from the bronco 26. moon fakes lets it fly on the run incomplete williams again the intended receiver louie wright with good coverage for the broncos louie wright of course is the veteran 11 years out of san jose state he's one of the good ones once again number 87 jamie williams crossing pattern moon rolling out to that side the play takes too long to develop number 20 lloyd wright who's been playing that cornerback position for a long time and he plays it as well as anybody who's ever played it crucial situation here for the oilers to keep this drive alive third and eight boilers trail the broncos 10 nothing 11 22 remaining in the first half from denver [Music] moon retreats has the time complete drew hill on the reception on the second effort gets the first down and is taken out of bounds roger jackson took him out of bounds but drew hill made the reception for the first down he had an opportunity to see the passing gift of moon there's 77 mecklenburg leading past sacrament afc runs right by warren moon moon unloads that shotgun arm of his and hits drew hill for a first down drew hill takes it down to the 17-yard line there's hill seven-year veteran from georgia tech has a knack for making the long gain on his receptions he's only caught 11 but for 230 yards and two touchdowns coming into today's game first down player running play takes it to the 15-yard line andre townsend from a defensive end spot makes the stop short game maybe a yard the oilers of course have taken their lumps in the first quarter have not scored a point in the first quarter and five games this season while the opposition has piled up 54 including today's 10 points by the broncos and yet they've been competitive in every game that they've played this thus far and of course everyone knows about the washington game a game that they should have won [Applause] [Music] [Applause] second and nine poorly oilers draw play more yardy pikes his way for yardage inside the 10 and down to the nine yard line good second effort by larry moriarty the notre dame grad three-year veteran six one 240 pounds that's the kind of running you need down here where the going gets tough people are in closed spaces and moriarty with that strength and that both at 240 pounds is able to just plow his way straight ahead for positive yachties that's seven on that last carry it'll be third and two for the oilers moriarty the lone setback moon to throw gets rid of it quickly complete but i believe short of the first down to woolfolk and see where they spot the ball it's going to be about a yard short mike harden perverting woolfolk from making the first down territory and it'll be a fourth down situation for the oilers some other scores the raiders 7-3 over the chiefs at the coliseum second quarter seattle continues to lead 3-nothing over san diego 13-7 the bengals extending their lead over the jets and the rams in front of minnesota by a field goal speaking of field goals we're ready for one here tony zindejas it'll be a 27 yard attempt for zendejas who is five of eight and has been somewhat of a slow player this one however bangs right through the uprights and the oilers are on the scoreboard nine minutes five seconds remaining in the first half it's denver ten houston three tom hammond and reggie rucker mile high stadium in denver where the broncos have a 10-3 lead on the oilers tony zendejas has just hit a field goal for the oilers lee johnson will kick it off now for houston coach hugh campbell alternates his kickers and that's a beautiful kick by johnson it hits about three yards out of the end zone and here in the thin air of denver he banged one out of the end zone i'd have him kicking off myself if he can kick it that far every time johnson one of the kickers for the oilers the other zendejas tony zendejas who just hit the field goal a native of mexico and reggie he's donating money every time he kicks a field goal to the earthquake relief fund that's right fifty dollars per kick and you know he still has relatives who are in mexico city i think rafael ceptian of the dallas cowboys is also involved with that fun sunday house from a family of kickers has several brothers who are in the place-kicking business first and ten denver broncos their lead reduced to seven they put it in play from their own 20. elway has struggled in the passing department has been under pressure all afternoon rolls out gets time then it's batted down it looked like richard byrd might have gotten a paw on it to knock it to the turret now that's a planned play by the broncos they like to drop elway back then put him in a semi scramble the reason why that play didn't work that time is because the houston hall is defensive backs played zone coverage and when you play zone coverage you can't lose your man as well as you do when you play man-to-man and he didn't have any place to throw that football and it was frank bush that got the hand up to knock the pass away he saw the pocket float out for elway as he rolled down to his left houston plays a lot of man coverage that time in the zone this is winder gets back to the 20 and nothing more ray childress on the hit for the oilers as the orders continue to play good defense if they could avoid the penalties they'd be good shape ray childress number 79 has been everything the houston oilers organization thought he might be he's big he's strong he applies pressure straight up the field you you have to cover him with two people i think he's going to be a great one in this league rookie from texas a m 6-6 267 pounds lines up at a left defensive end for the oilers third and 10 for the broncos elway from the shotgun pressure and incomplete intended pursue sewell made a diving stab but again elway feeling the pressure and went to the turf is john grimsley blitzing from a linebacker spot put the pressure on once again it's a marvelous job of applying pressure here 67 stendrew coming around on a game gets in elway's face he hits there he's getting hit there late balls just outside of sewell's reach grimsley was the man that took elway down just as he released the ball and it'll be a fourth down situation for the broncos so the oilers after getting some life into their offense the last series they're going to get the ball back here and perhaps can get that offense cranked up again norman sends a beautiful spiral kick drury deep makes a fair catch inside the 30-yard line beautiful kick that time by norman chris norman of denver broncos with a 10-3 lead timeout eight minutes remaining in the first half of play and norman has just kicked a 53-yarder for the either quarterback getting much done this afternoon moon stats a little better than elways five of nine directed them to a field goal last possession did they do anything differently well they were able to pick up yardage on first down and then they came back on the next series and threw on first down into play as you see from their own 29-yard line trailing 10-3 with eight minutes remaining in the first half from mile high stadium move complete up to the 35-yard line mike rozier on the reception that's his second reception of the season what this is is just a very low risk offense tom apparently hugh campbell has felt that there have been so many things going wrong the players have their confidences have been hurt so much that he has given them an offense and a game plan which they won't turn the football over and they won't have a lot of sex after being sacked 12 times against dallas last week they've worked a lot on the short passes that time they complete wonder rosier for a five yard gain second and five oilers operating from the i formation moon rolls right plenty of time almost intercepted it'll go incomplete tony lilly almost picked it off broke on the ball perfectly and just about had the interception well there were two receivers in that area and i felt warren should have taken the first receiver here's the fake and it's a rollout now there's a receiver right now warren should take that and pick up the first down but he tries to go downfield the play just takes too long to develop almost an interception by tony lilly mike occu the rookie from hawaii the intended receiver almost the interception they're the quarterbacks this afternoon as we said [Applause] either moon or railway getting much done in the passing department this afternoon total offense houston 81 yards denver 78 third and five for the oilers pressure from jones moon escapes up field he's got a first down and out of bounds good scramble by warren moon [Applause] now that's the warren moon we know the one who can get away from trouble because the broncos were bringing everybody that time you see that he does have 69 yards carrying the football coming into today's game in fact to score two touchdowns running watch number 75 roulin jones on harvey salem who has just come back last week after being out most of the year and they really have warren during the houdini act right there it's away from mecklenburg as well as jones and picked up the first down 42-yard line of the oilers houston has it first and ten give de wolfe comes across the 45 up to about the 47-yard line and let's check baseball scores the yankees phil necro

Channel: Larry's Classic Sports

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Id: 0eX9B45QTiU

Length: 60min 18sec (3618 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 25 2021