Broncos in the AFC Divisional Playoffs

Good morning, Broncos Country!

The best weekend in sports.

Two days. Four games. Eight teams.

There is nothing better than the NFL Divisional Playoffs. Well, it’s a hell of a lot better when the Denver Broncos are involved, but it’s still a great weekend.

When it comes to the Broncos, some of the best moments in franchise history came on this weekend.

The 14-10 win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Jan. 4, 1998, who play today, is at or near the top of the list. That win at Arrowhead Stadium spurred the Broncos to their first Super Bowl win.

I wasn’t alive for the first one, but I know how much that 34-21 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Christmas Eve 1977 meant to the franchise and a fanbase who had never experienced that type of success before.

There was the Champ Bailey pick of Tom Brady that helped Denver beat the New England Patriots 27-13.

All that needs to be said for this next one: The Drive II. A 26-24 win over the Houston Oilers. Some say the second version is better than the first given the time on the clock and this drive ended the game.

There’s the 23-16 win over the Steelers that ignited the Super Bowl 50 run when Bradley Roby forced a key fumble recovered by DeMarcus Ware. Peyton Manning took that turnover and led the Broncos on a touchdown drive to send them to the AFC Championship.

Obviously the blowout of the Miami Dolphins that brought the second of back-to-back Super Bowl wins deserves mention.

But the one that gets lost in the shuffle is the 24-23 win over the Steelers in 1990. It was yet another example of John Elway late-game magic and Denver’s defense forcing huge turnovers, one of which sealed the win.

What’s amazing about all of this, aside from the memories, is three of the wins came against the Steelers. Add the win in Pittsburgh in the AFC Championship Game after that win over the Chiefs, and as Adam Malnati and I have said on the MHR Radio Podcast, Denver’s biggest non-division rival is the Steelers.

The Broncos may not be playing, and it sucks, but we’ve been graced with some incredible moments in games played on this weekend. And for the first time in four years, there’s a quarterback and path in place to hopefully get the franchise back to the best two days in sports sooner rather than later.

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