Today in 1989 - San Diego Chargers vs Denver Broncos

October 8, 1989 – Today in 1989, the San Diego Chargers visited Mile High Stadium to take on the Denver Broncos in a Week 5 matchup.

The game started off as a battle of the field goals.  The Chargers scored first on a 39 yard field goal by Chris Bahr and San Diego led 3-0 at the end of the first quarter.

Denver answered in the second quarter with a 46 yard field goal and an 18 yard field goal by David Treadwell.  Denver took the lead at halftime 6-3.

The only scoring in the third quarter came on a 2 yard touchdown run by Marion Butts.  San Diego led at the end of the third quarter 10-6.

But Denver would not be denied.  In the fourth quarter, Treadwell kicked a 27 yard field goal to close the gap and Bobby Humphrey had a 17 yard touchdown run to put the game away.  The Denver Broncos beat the San Diego Chargers 16-10.

For the Chargers, Jim McMahon passed 10-19 for 116 yards and an interception.  Tim Spencer had 15 rushes for 78 yards.  For the Broncos, John Elway passed 19-35 for 199 yards and an interception.  Bobby Humphrey rushed 12-102 yards and a touchdown.

San Diego fell to 2-3 with the loss.  They finished the season at 6-10.  Denver went to 4-1.  They finished the season at 11-5 and were given an offensive clinic in Super Bowl XXIV by the Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers 55-10.

Notables

• There was 1 Hall of Famer present in this game, Denver’s John Elway.
  
• This was Dan Henning’s first season coaching the Chargers.  He coached the team from 1989-91.
  
• This was Dan Reeves’ ninth season coaching the Broncos.  He coached the team from 1981-92.  He led the team to three Super Bowl appearances, losing all of them.
  
• Both Reeves and Henning were head coaches of the Atlanta Falcons.  Henning coached them from 1983-86 and Reeves coached them from 1998-2003.  He led them to a Super Bowl appearance in 1998, losing to his old team, the Denver Broncos.
  
• Rick Dennison became the offensive coordinator for the Broncos from 2006-08. 
  
• Two players and a coach from Denver are now coaches with the Houston Texans: backup quarterback Gary Kubiak (head coach), linebacker Rick Dennison (offensive coordinator), and defensive coordinator Wade Phillips (defensive coordinator).
  
• Phillips was the head coach for the Broncos from 1993-94.
• Reeves and Henning both played in 1966, but never against each other.  Reeves was a running back for the Dallas Cowboys from 1965-72. Henning was a quarterback for the Chargers in 1966.
  
• There were three future head coaches on Reeves’ staff.  Chan Gailey became the coach of the Dallas Cowboys (1998-88) and the Buffalo Bills (2010-present).  Phillips became head coach of the New Orleans Saints (interim 1985), Broncos, Buffalo Bills (1998-2000), Atlanta Falcons (interim 2003), and the Dallas Cowboys (2007-10).  Mike Nolan became the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers from 2005-08.
  
• There was one future head coach on Henning’s staff, Jim L. Mora.  He became the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons (2004-06) and the Seattle Seahawks in 2008.

Here are some historical scores on this day for teams facing each other this week, on October 6,

1961 – Chicago 31 – Detroit 17

1967 – St. Louis Cardinals 34 – Minnesota 24

1972 – St. Louis Cardinals 19 – Minnesota 17

1978 – San Diego 23 – Denver 0

2000 – Denver 21 – San Diego 7

Game stats can be found on Pro-Football-Reference.com at San Diego Chargers vs Denver Broncos - October 8, 1989.

Today in 1978 - Cincinnati Bengals vs Cleveland Browns

September 10, 1978 – Today in 1978, the Cincinnati Bengals took on the Cleveland Browns in a Week 2 game at the Dawg Pound in Cleveland Municipal Stadium.

The Bengals got on the board first with a 51 yard touchdown pass from John Reaves to Don Bass.  At the end of the first quarter, Cincinnati led 7-0.

Chris Bahr kicked a 37 yard field goal in the second quarter to increase the Bengal lead.  Cincinnati led 10-0 at halftime.

In the third quarter, Cleveland got on the board with a 32 yard field goal by Don Cockroft.  At the end of the quarter, Cincinnati led 10-3.

Cleveland tied the game in the fourth quarter on a 13 yard touchdown pass from Brian Sipe to Reggie Rucker.  The game was tied 10-10 after regulation and went to overtime.

In the overtime period, Don Cockroft kicked a 27 yard field goal and the Cleveland Browns beat the Cincinnati Bengals 13-10.  The Browns went to 2-0 and the Bengals fell to 0-2.

John Reaves passed 15-26 169 yards 1TD 1 Int for the Bengals.  Brian Sipe passed 16-32 219 1TD 1 Int and Greg Pruitt rushed 22-120 yards for the Browns.  

Notables

• One Hall of Famer played in this game, Cleveland tight end Ozzie Newsome.
• Long time players Ozzie Newsome and Clay Matthews were rookies in 1978.  Newsome was a starter at the time, but Matthews wasn’t.
• Matthews is the father of Green Bay Packer linebacker Clay Matthews.
• This was Bill Johnson’s third and last season coaching the Bengals.  He would be replaced after five games by Homer Rice.
• Johnson played for the San Francisco 49ers from 1950-56.

• This was Sam Rutigliano’s first season coaching the Browns.  He would coach the team from 1978-84.  He would be replaced in 1984 by defensive coordinator Marty Schottenheimer.
• This was future NFL head coach Dick Jauron’s first season with the Bengals.  He was previously with the Detroit Lions for five seasons.  He spent his last three seasons with Cincinnati.

Game stats and other data can be found on Pro-Football-Reference.com at Cincinnati Bengals vs Cleveland Browns - September 10, 1978.

Today in 1986 - Los Angeles Raiders vs Denver Broncos

September 7, 1986 – Today in 1986, the Denver Broncos took on the Los Angeles Raiders in Week 1 at Mile High Stadium in Denver.

In the first quarter, Denver got on the board with a 35 yard touchdown pass from John Elway to Steve Watson.  Los Angeles responded with a 24 yard touchdown pass from Marc Wilson to Marcus Allen.  The score was tied 7-7.

The Raiders scored again on a 16 yard touchdown pass from Wilson to Todd Christensen and Greg Townsend sacked Elway in the end zone for a safety.  The score was now 16-7.

In the second quarter, Chris Bahr added to the Raiders’ lead by kicking a 43 yard field goal.  The score was 19-7.  The Broncos helped their cause on a 23 yard touchdown pass from Elway to Steve Sewell and brought the score to 19-14.  Bahr kicked a 42 yard field goal and it was a two score game once again, 22-14.  But Denver made it a one point game on a 1 yard touchdown run by Gene Lang.  Los Angeles led 22-21 at halftime.

The Raiders made it an 8 point game again in the third quarter on a 2 yard touchdown run by Allen.  Ken Woodard had a fumble recovery for a touchdown and the game close again at 29-28.  Los Angeles responded on a 57 yard touchdown pass from Wilson to Rod Barksdale.  The score was 36-28.

In the fourth quarter, Rich Karlis kicked a 51 yard field goal, making the score 36-21.  John Elway sealed the deal with a 7 yard touchdown pass to Lang.  Denver won 38-36.

Wilson passed 20-33 346 yards and 3 TDs.  Marcus Allen rushed 24-102 TD and caught 6 passes for 102 yards and a TD.  Elway passed 21-35 239 yards and 2 TDs.

Notables

• There were 4 Hall of Famers playing in this game: Howie Long, Michael Haynes, and Marcus Allen for the Raiders, and John Elway for the Broncos
• ESPN’s Tom Jackson was playing in his last season for Denver.  He played for the Broncos from 1973-86.
• This was Dan Reeves’ sixth season coaching the Broncos.  He coached the team from 1981-92 and led them to three Super Bowl appearances.  He led the Atlanta Falcons to the Super Bowl in 1998 and lost to his old team, the Denver Broncos.
• Future Bronco head coach Mike Shanahan was the offensive coordinator that year.  He was Denver’s head coach for both of their Super Bowl wins.
• This was Tom Flores’ eighth season coaching the Raiders.  He coached the team from 1979-87 and led them to two Super Bowl championships. 
• Flores was a quarterback for the Raiders from 1960-66.
• Reeves was a running back for the Dallas Cowboys from 1965-72.  He never faced Flores as a player.

The Denver Broncos will once again host the Oakland Raiders in a Week 1 game.  Unlike the 1986 game, this one is on Monday night.

Game stats and other data can be found on Pro-Football-Reference.com at Los Angeles Raiders vs Denver Broncos - September 7, 1986.