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1986 Denver Broncos season

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1986 Denver Broncos season
OwnerPat Bowlen
General managerJohn Beake
Head coachDan Reeves
Home fieldMile High Stadium
Results
Record11–5
Division place1st AFC West
Playoff finishWon Divisional Playoffs
(vs. Patriots) 22–17
Won AFC Championship
(at Browns) 23–20 (OT)
Lost Super Bowl XXI
(vs. Giants) 20–39
Pro BowlersQB John Elway
RB Sammy Winder
G Keith Bishop
DE Rulon Jones
LB Karl Mecklenburg
S Dennis Smith

The 1986 Denver Broncos season was the franchise's 27th year in professional football and its 17th with the National Football League (NFL). They finished the regular season with a record of 11–5, returned to the playoffs after a one-year absence. In the Divisional Playoffs the Broncos defeated the New England Patriots 22–17. Then won the AFC Championship over the Cleveland Browns 23–20. At Super Bowl XXI the New York Giants dominated the second half of the game and won 39–20. This would be the first of back to back Super Bowl losses for the team.

Offseason

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NFL draft

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Main article: 1986 NFL draft
1986 Denver Broncos draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
4 104 Jim Juriga  Guard Illinois
5 134 Tony Colorito  Nose tackle USC
6 151 Orson Mobley  Tight end Salem
6 161 Mark Jackson  Wide receiver Purdue
7 188 Raymond Phillips  Linebacker North Carolina State
8 217 Bruce Klosterman  Linebacker South Dakota State
9 244 Joe Thomas  Wide receiver Mississippi Valley State
10 271 Victor Hall  Tight end Jackson State
11 301 Thomas Dendy  Running back South Carolina
      Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

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Staff

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1986 Denver Broncos staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning


Roster

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1986 Denver Broncos roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

  • 25 Daniel Hunter CB

Special teams

Reserve


Rookies in italics

[1]

Regular season

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The Broncos won their first six games of the season, before being defeated by the then-5-1 New York Jets on Monday Night Football. They won two more games to improve to 8–1, tied with the Jets for the best record in the league. Although they would go 3–4 down the stretch, alternating wins and losses, Denver still finished ahead of the Seahawks and Chiefs in first place in the AFC West.

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 7 Los Angeles Raiders W 38–36 1–0 Mile High Stadium 75,695
2 September 15 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 21–10 2–0 Three Rivers Stadium 57,305
3 September 21 at Philadelphia Eagles W 33–7 3–0 Veterans Stadium 63,839
4 September 28 New England Patriots W 27–20 4–0 Mile High Stadium 75,804
5 October 5 Dallas Cowboys W 29–14 5–0 Mile High Stadium 76,082
6 October 12 at San Diego Chargers W 31–14 6–0 Jack Murphy Stadium 55,662
7 October 20 at New York Jets L 10–22 6–1 Giants Stadium 73,759
8 October 26 Seattle Seahawks W 20–13 7–1 Mile High Stadium 76,089
9 November 2 at Los Angeles Raiders W 21–10 8–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 90,153
10 November 9 San Diego Chargers L 3–9 8–2 Mile High Stadium 75,012
11 November 16 Kansas City Chiefs W 38–17 9–2 Mile High Stadium 75,745
12 November 23 at New York Giants L 16–19 9–3 Giants Stadium 75,116
13 November 30 Cincinnati Bengals W 34–28 10–3 Mile High Stadium 58,705
14 December 7 at Kansas City Chiefs L 10–37 10–4 Arrowhead Stadium 47,019
15 December 13 Washington Redskins W 31–30 11–4 Mile High Stadium 75,905
16 December 20 at Seattle Seahawks L 16–41 11–5 Kingdome 63,697
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

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Week 1

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1 234Total
Raiders 16 6140 36
• Broncos 7 14710 38
Scoring summary
1DENSteve Watson 35-yard pass from John Elway (Rich Karlis kick)Broncos 7–0
1LAMarcus Allen 24-yard pass from Marc Wilson (Chris Bahr kick)Tie 7–7
1LATodd Christensen 16-yard pass from Marc Wilson (Chris Bahr kick)Raiders 14–7
1DENSafety, John Elway tackled by Greg Townsend in end zoneRaiders 16–7
2LAChris Bahr 43-yard field goalRaiders 19–7
2DENJohn Elway 23-yard pass from Steve Sewell (Rich Karlis kick)Raiders 19–14
2LAChris Bahr 42-yard field goalRaiders 22–14
2DENGene Lang 1-yard run (Rich Karlis kick)Raiders 22–21
3LAMarcus Allen 2-yard run (Chris Bahr kick)Raiders 29–21
3DENKen Woodard 16-yard fumble return (Rich Karlis kick)Raiders 29–28
3LARod Barksdale 57-yard pass from Marc Wilson (Chris Bahr kick)Raiders 36–28
4DENRich Karlis 51-yard field goalRaiders 36–31
4DENGene Lang 7-yard pass from John Elway (Rich Karlis kick)Broncos 38–36

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Week 2

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1 234Total
• Broncos 0 777 21
Steelers 0 037 10
  • Date: September 15
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh
  • Game start: 9:00 p.m. EST
  • Game attendance: 57,305
  • Game weather: 64 °F (18 °C); wind 7 mph (11 km/h)
  • Referee: Bob McElwee
  • TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford and Al Michaels
Scoring summary
Q2DENWatson 21 yard pass from Elway (Karlis kick)DEN 7–0
Q3PITAnderson 42 yard field goalDEN 7–3
Q3DENSewell 34 yard pass from Elway (Karlis kick)DEN 14–3
Q4PITErenberg 7 yard run (Anderson kick)DEN 14–10
Q4DENWinder 13 yard pass from Elway (Karlis kick)DEN 21–10

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Week 12

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Week 12: Denver Broncos at New York Giants
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Broncos (9–3) 3 3 3716
Giants (10–2) 0 10 3619

at Giants Stadium

  • Date: November 23, 1986
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m. MST
  • Game weather: 43 °F (6 °C), relative humidity 70%, wind 10 mph (16 km/h)
  • Game attendance: 75,116
  • Referee: Tom Dooley
  • TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg (play-by-play), Merlin Olsen (color commentator)
  • Box Score

Standings

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AFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Denver Broncos(2) 11 5 0 .688 5–3 8–4 378 327 L1
Kansas City Chiefs(5) 10 6 0 .625 5–3 9–5 358 326 W3
Seattle Seahawks 10 6 0 .625 5–3 7–5 366 293 W5
Los Angeles Raiders 8 8 0 .500 4–4 7–5 323 346 L4
San Diego Chargers 4 12 0 .250 1–7 4–8 335 396 L2

Playoffs

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Main article: 1986–87 NFL playoffs
Round Date Opponent (seed) Result Record Venue Attendance
Divisional January 4, 1987 New England Patriots (3) W 22–17 1–0 Mile High Stadium 76,105
AFC Championship January 11, 1987 at Cleveland Browns (1) W 23–20 (OT) 2–0 Cleveland Stadium 79,915
Super Bowl XXI January 25, 1987 New York Giants (N1) L 20–39 2–1 Rose Bowl 101,063

They won their divisional playoff game against the Patriots at home 22–17. They then played the Cleveland Browns in Cleveland for the AFC Championship. The game culminated in the famous "Drive", where John Elway led a 98-yard drive for a touchdown pass to Mark Jackson to tie the game and send it to overtime, where they won by a field goal, 23–20.

AFC Divisional Playoff

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AFC: Denver Broncos 22, New England Patriots 17

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Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Patriots 0 10 7017
Broncos 3 7 10222

at Mile High Stadium, Denver

Game information
  • Scoring
    • DEN – FG R. Karlis 27 DEN 3–0
    • NE – S. Morgan 19 pass from Eason (Franklin kick) NE 7–3
    • DEN – J. Elway 22 run (Karlis kick) DEN 10–7
    • NE – FG A. Franklin 38 10–10
    • DEN – field goal Karlis 22 DEN 13–10
    • NE – S. Morgan 45 pass from Eason (Franklin kick) NE 17–13
    • DEN – V. Johnson 48 pass from Elway (Karlis kick) DEN 20–17
    • DEN – Safety, Eason sacked by R. Jones in end zone DEN 22–17

AFC Championship game

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Quarter 1 2 34OTTotal
Broncos 0 10 37323
Browns 7 3 010020

at Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland

This game is best remembered for The Drive when the Broncos drove 98 yards to tie the game with 37 seconds left in regulation, and Denver kicker Rich Karlis made the game-winning 33-yard field goal 5:38 into overtime.

The Browns scored first when quarterback Bernie Kosar threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to running back Herman Fontenot at the end of an 86-yard drive. But the Broncos then scored 10 unanswered points: Karlis' 19-yard field goal and running back Gerald Willhite's 1-yard rushing touchdown. Cleveland kicker Mark Moseley's 29-yard field goal before halftime tied the score, 10–10. The teams exchanged punts before Kosar completed a 48-yard touchdown pass to Brian Brennan with 5:43 remaining in regulation. Elway then led his team from their own 2-yard line to tie the game on wide receiver Mark Jackson's 5-yard touchdown reception with 37 seconds left in regulation. Karlis' game-winning field goal in overtime capped a 60-yard drive after the Browns were forced to punt.

The Drive play-by-play

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The Browns had jumped to a 20–13 lead and the Broncos had muffed the ensuing kickoff when Elway took over, first-and-10 on their own 2-yard line, with 5:32 to play in the game.

1. – First down and 10, Denver 2-yard line. Sammy Winder 5-yard pass from Elway.

2. – Second down and 5, Denver 7-yard line. Winder 3-yard run.

3. – Third down and 2, Denver 10-yard line. Winder 2-yard run.

4. – First down and 10, Denver 12-yard line. Winder 3-yard run.

5. – Second down and 7, Denver 15-yard line. Elway 11-yard run.

6. – First down and 10, Denver 26-yard line. Steve Sewell 22-yard pass from Elway.

7. – First down and 10, Denver 48-yard line. S. Watson 12-yard pass from Elway.

Two-minute warning

8. – First down and 10, Cleveland 40-yard line (1:59 remaining). Incomplete pass by Elway, intended for Vance Johnson.

9. – Second down and 10, Cleveland 40-yard line (1:52 remaining). Dave Puzzilli sack of Elway, 8-yard loss.

10. – Third down and 18, Cleveland 48-yard line (1:47 remaining). Mark Jackson 20-yard pass from Elway.

11. – First down and 10, Cleveland 28-yard line (1:19 remaining). Incomplete pass by Elway, intended for Watson.

12. – Second down and 10, Cleveland 28-yard line (1:10 remaining). Steve Sewell 14-yard pass from Elway.

13. – First down and 10, Cleveland 14-yard line (:57 remaining). Incomplete pass by Elway, intended for Watson.

14. – Second down and 10, Cleveland 14-yard line (:42 remaining). John Elway 9-yard run (scramble).

15. – Third down and 1, Cleveland 5-yard line (:39 remaining). Mark Jackson 5-yard pass from Elway for the touchdown. Rich Karlis then adds the extra point to tie the game.

Super Bowl XXI

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They played the Giants in Super Bowl XXI, losing 20–39, the first of Elway's five Super Bowls and the first of his three losses. Despite leading 10–9 at halftime, the Broncos collapsed in the second half as the Giants scored 30 points to Denver's ten.

Super Bowl XXI: New York Giants 39, Denver Broncos 20

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Further information: Super Bowl XXI
Super Bowl XXI: Denver Broncos vs. New York Giants
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Broncos (13–6) 10 0 01020
Giants (17–2) 7 2 171339

at Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California

Statistics

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Team stats

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Denver scored 378 points during the year, sixth in the NFL. They gave up 327 points, 15th in the league.

The Broncos were 17th in the league in total offense, with 5,489 yards. They had 3,811 passing yards and 1,678 rushing yards. They had 22 passing touchdowns and 17 rushing touchdowns.

They were 17th in the league with 3,755 passing yards given up and 15th with 1,891 rushing yards given up. They were 21st in overall defense with 5,646 yards given up.

The team's 11–5 record is their sixth-best 16-game season in franchise history.

Player stats

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  • John Elway had 280 completions for 3,485 yards, 19 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He also had 52 rushes for 257 yards, third highest on the team, and one rushing touchdown. He was fifth in the league in completions, ninth in total yards, and tenth in touchdowns.
  • Mark Jackson had 38 receptions for 738 yards and one touchdown. Steve Watson had 45 receptions for 699 yards and three touchdowns. Vance Johnson had 31 receptions for 363 yards and two touchdowns. Clint Sampson had 21 receptions for 259 yards. Orson Mobley had 22 reception for 332 yards and one touchdown.
  • The primary running back Sammy Winder had 240 rushes for 789 yards and 9 touchdowns, seventh highest in the league. He also had five touchdown receptions, giving him 14 total touchdowns for the season, fourth in the league. Gerald Willhite had 85 rushes for 365 yards and five rushing touchdowns and 64 receptions for 529 yards and 3 receiving touchdowns.
  • Rich Karlis kicked 20 field goals out of 28 attempted, including the game-winning field goal in the AFC Championship Game. He kicked 44 out of 45 extra points.

Awards and honors

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References

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  1. ^ "1986 Denver Broncos starters and roster". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  2. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
  3. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Sep-06.
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