The Denver Broncos were at 7-3 and on top of the AFC West
as they hosted the San Diego Chargers on November 17, 1985 – a team they had
lost badly to two weeks before. Coached by Dan Reeves, the Broncos featured
third-year QB John Elway with a talented group of receivers led by Steve Watson
while the ground game consisted of a running-backs-by-committee approach. The
bend-but-don’t-break defense included SS Dennis Smith and CB Louis Wright (pictured above) –
although their most notable accomplishments in this game would come on special
teams.
The Chargers, coached by Don Coryell, featured a
pass-oriented offense with QB Dan Fouts throwing to wide receivers Wes Chandler
and Charlie Joiner. Star TE Kellen Winslow was returning from a major knee
injury suffered during the previous season and RB Gary Anderson was now fully
integrated into the offense after coming over from the USFL.
It was a sunny afternoon at Mile High Stadium with 74,376
fans in attendance. The Chargers started
off with a bang as Gary Anderson returned the opening kickoff 98 yards for a
touchdown. Bob Thomas added the extra point for the early 7-0 lead.
The Broncos went three-and-out on their first series and,
following the punt, San Diego accumulated three first downs on the way to the
Denver 30. Dan Fouts completed three passes for 24 yards but the possession
came to naught when Ralf Mojsiejenko’s 47-yard field goal attempt was blocked.
Following another short Denver series, Fouts again was
moving the Chargers until a pass was intercepted by Louis Wright, who returned
it 16 yards to give the Broncos good field position at the San Diego 44. The
six-play drive, highlighted by John Elway throwing to RB Gene Lang for 24
yards, was capped by another Elway pass of four yards to WR Steve Watson for a
TD. Rich Karlis tied the game with the extra point.
The next San Diego series featured Fouts throwing to TE
Kellen Winslow for 26 yards and reached the Denver 31 before the veteran
quarterback was again picked off, this time by DB Randy Robbins. However, two
plays into the second quarter, it was Elway suffering an interception as FS
Miles McPherson grabbed the long pass and returned it 30 yards to the Denver
12. Three plays later, Fouts threw to RB Lionel James for a 12-yard touchdown.
The extra point was successfully added to again make it a seven-point contest.
The teams traded punts until, with just over two minutes
remaining in the first half, the Chargers drove to the Denver 24, but a 41-yard
field goal try by Thomas hit the right upright and was unsuccessful. The score
remained 14-7 in favor of San Diego at the half.
After the teams exchanged punts to start the third
quarter, the Broncos gained possession at their 13 and proceeded to
methodically advance to the San Diego 10. Elway (pictured below) completed five passes, but they
came up empty when Karlis was wide on a 28-yard field goal attempt. Two plays
later, Denver got the ball back when Anderson fumbled. As the game moved into
the fourth quarter, the home team concluded a four-play, 14-yard series with
Lang running two yards up the middle for a TD. Karlis added the PAT and the
game was tied once again.
Things went from bad to worse for the Chargers who no
sooner got the ball back on offense when Fouts fumbled the snap and DE Andre
Townsend recovered for Denver at the San Diego 19. Three plays later, it was
Lang scoring again, this time from four yards out. Karlis converted and the
Broncos had the lead for the first time.
Fouts went to the air five times on San Diego’s next
series, hitting James three times for 32 yards. The drive finally stalled at
the Denver 19 and Thomas kicked a 36-yard field goal to narrow the home team’s
margin to four points.
Elway passed the Broncos down the field but was
intercepted by LB Woodrow Lowe. The Chargers had to punt and, following the
next Denver series, the Broncos lined up to do the same. However, Chris
Norman’s kick was blocked by CB Wayne Davis. Starting at the Denver 24, the
Chargers proceeded to score a touchdown in four plays, with RB Tim Spencer
running the ball in from two yards out. Thomas made it a three-point lead game
with the Chargers now back in front at 24-21.
There was just 1:09 remaining in regulation as the
Broncos started their next series. Elway threw twice for 11 yards and then ran
for five before tossing completions to RB Steve Sewell for six yards and WR
Vance Johnson for 17 yards. A shovel pass by Elway to RB Sammy Winder was good
for nine more yards and, with nine seconds left on the clock, Karlis booted a
34-yard field goal. The game went into overtime at 24-24.
The Chargers won the toss to receive the kickoff for the
extra period and methodically moved down the field. James had a 16-yard run and
Spencer converted on fourth-and-inches with a one-yard gain up the middle. Fouts threw to Wes Chandler for 13 yards and
Anderson gained six on the ground to reach the Denver 23. The drive stalled
there but Thomas came on to attempt a 40-yard field goal to win the game. It
appeared that the Chargers got a seemingly huge reprieve when the field goal
try was blocked but they got the play back due to a timeout called by Denver
right before the snap. However, on the re-try, Dennis Smith again blocked the
kick and Wright picked up the loose ball, returning it 60 yards for a
touchdown. There was no reprieve for the Chargers this time. In stunning
fashion, the Broncos came away with a 30-24 win at 4:45 of overtime.
In a game in which plays by the special teams were so
significant, San Diego held a slight edge in total yards (340 to 331) and first
downs (22 to 21). The Chargers turned the ball over four times, to two suffered
by Denver.
John Elway completed 28 of 50 passes for 261 yards and a
touchdown while giving up two interceptions. Gene Lang rushed for 51 yards on
15 carries that included two TDs and also led the Broncos with 5 pass
receptions, for 45 yards. Vance Johnson
compiled 48 yards on his four pass receptions.
For the Chargers, Dan Fouts was successful on 23 of 45
throws for 245 yards, with a TD and two interceptions. The versatile Lionel
James (pictured at left) gained 64 yards on the ground in 15 carries and also caught 11 passes 93
more yards and a TD.
Don Coryell couldn’t believe how events transpired at the
end: “The snap was a little high on the last field goal, but we got it down.
It’s kind of ironic the way things turned out. We got the big break when they
called the timeout, and it ends up working in their favor.”
The Broncos lost two of their next three games, both to
the Raiders, and as a result finished second to that club in the AFC West with
an 11-5 record and barely missed the postseason. San Diego came in fourth in
the division at 8-8.
John Elway led the NFL with 605 pass attempts and ranked
second in completions (327) and yards (3891), but also interceptions (23). Dan
Fouts, heading in the opposite direction of Elway at age 34, led the league in
yards per attempt (8.5) and was tied for second in touchdown passes (27). He
was selected to the Pro Bowl for the sixth (and last) time.
Lionel James was a productive all-purpose performer throughout
the season. Undersized at 5’6” and 170 pounds, he was nicknamed “Little Train”
and set a new NFL record with 2535 total yards. That figure consisted of 515 on
105 rushing attempts, 1027 on 86 pass receptions, 213 on 25 punt returns, and
779 on 36 kickoff returns. It broke the previous record of 2462 set by Terry
Metcalf of the Cardinals in 1974 and remained the standard until 2000, when
Tennessee’s Derrick Mason accumulated 2690 yards.
