Super Bowl XXI|Super Bowl XXIII
January 31, 1988
For the second year in a row, the Broncos obtained an early lead in the Super Bowl, only to have it erased by an explosive offense from the opposing team. Washington scored 35 points in the second quarter in just 5 minutes and 47 seconds, setting a record for most points scored in a single period in NFL postseason history.
Once again, a quarterback was named the game's MVP, and Redskins QB Doug Williams definitely earned it.
Attendance at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego was 73,302. Washington coach Joe Gibbs won his second Super Bowl of the 80s, while Dan Reeves led the Broncs.
Statistics (from www.superbowl.com):
SCORING
Washington 0 35 0 7 -- 42
Denver 10 0 0 0 -- 10
DEN- Nattiel 56 pass from Elway (Karlis kick),
1:57 1st
DEN- FG Karlis 24, 5:51 1st
WAS- Sanders 80 pass from D. Williams (Haji-Sheikh
kick), 0:53 2nd
WAS- Clark 27 pass from D. Williams (Haji-Sheikh kick),
4:45 2nd
WAS- Smith 58 run (Haji-Sheikh kick), 8:33 2nd
WAS- Sanders 50 pass from D. Williams (Haji-Sheikh
kick), 11:18 2nd
WAS- Didier 8 pass from D. Williams (Haji-Sheikh
kick),
13:56 2nd
WAS- Smith 4 run (Haji-Sheikh kick), 1:51 4th
TEAM STATISTICS Wash. Denv.
Total First Downs 25 18
Rushing 13 6
Passing 11 10
Penalty 1 2
Total Net Yardage 602 327
Total Offensive Plays 72 61
Avg. Gain per Offensive Play 8.4 5.4
Rushes 40 17
Yards Gained Rushing (Net) 280 97
Average Yards per Rush 7.0 5.7
Passes Attempted 30 39
Passes Completed 18 15
Had Intercepted 1 3
Tackled Attempting to Pass 2 5
Yards Lost Attempting to Pass 18 50
Yards Gained Passing (Net) 322 230
Punts 4 7
Average Distance 37.5 36.1
Punt Returns 1 2
Punt Return Yardage 0 18
Kickoff Returns 3 5
Kickoff Return Yardage 46 88
Interception Return Yardage 11 0
Fumbles 1 0
Own Fumbles Recovered 1 0
Opponent Fumbles Recovered 0 0
Penalties 6 5
Yards Penalized 65 26
Total Points Scored 42 10
Touchdowns 6 1
Rushing 2 0
Passing 4 1
Returns 0 0
Extra Points 6 1
Field Goals 0 1
Field Goals Attempted 1 2
Safeties 0 0
Third-Down Efficiency 9/15 2/12
Fourth-Down Efficiency 0/0 0/0
Time of Possession 35:15 24:45
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
Washington No. Yds. LG TD
Smith 22 204 58t 2
Bryant 8 38 15 0
Clark 1 25 25 0
Rogers 5 17 5 0
Griffin 1 2 2 0
D. Williams 2 -2 1 0
Sanders 1 -4 4 0
Denver No. Yds. LG TD
Lang 5 38 13 0
Elway 3 32 21 0
Winder 8 30 13 0
Sewell 1 -3 3 0
Passing
Washington Att. Comp. Yds. TD Int.
D. Williams 29 18 340 4 1
Schroeder 1 0 0 0 0
Denver Att. Comp. Yds. TD Int.
Elway 38 14 257 1 3
Sewell 1 1 23 0 0
Receiving
Washington No. Yds. LG TD
Sanders 9 193 80t 2
Clark 3 55 27t 1
Warren 2 15 9 0
Monk 1 40 40 0
Bryant 1 20 20 0
Smith 1 9 9 0
Didier 1 8 8t 1
Denver No. Yds. LG TD
M. Jackson 4 76 32 0
Sewell 4 41 18 0
Nattiel 2 69 56t 1
Kay 2 38 27 0
Winder 1 26 26 0
Elway 1 23 23 0
Lang 1 7 7 0
Interceptions
Washington No. Yds. LG TD
Wilburn 2 11 11 0
Davis 1 0 0 0
Denver No. Yds. LG TD
Castille 1 0 0 0
Punting
Washington No. Avg. LG Blk.
Cox 4 37.5 42 0
Denver No. Avg. LG Blk.
Horan 7 36.1 43 0
Punt Returns
Washington No. FC Yds. LG TD
Green 1 1 0 0 0
Yarber 0 1 0 ** 0
Denver No. FC Yds. LG TD
Clark 2 0 18 9 0
Kickoff Returns
Washington No. Yds. LG TD
Sanders 3 46 16 0
Denver No. Yds. LG TD
Bell 5 88 21 0
Washington Redskins Denver Broncos
== Offense ==
Bostic, Jeff C Freeman, Mike C
McKenzie, Raleigh G Bishop, Keith G
Thielemann, Ray G Humphries, Stefan G
Jacoby, Joe T Lanier, Ken T
May, Mark T Studdard, David T
Didier, Clint TE Kay, Clarence TE
Warren, Don TE Jackson, Mark WR
Clark, Gary WR Nattiel, Ricky WR
Sanders, Ricky WR Lang, Gene RB
Smith, Timmy RB Winder, Sammy RB
Williams, Doug QB Elway, John QB
== Defense ==
Butz, Dave DT Kragen, Greg NT
Grant, Darryl DT Jones, Rulon DE
Manley, Dexter DE Townsend, Andre DE
Mann, Charles DE Fletcher, Simon OLB
Coleman, Monte OLB Ryan, Jim OLB
Kaufman, Mel OLB Hunley, Ricky ILB
Olkewicz, Neal MLB Mecklenburg, Karl ILB
Bowles, Todd CB Haynes, Mark CB
Green, Darrell CB Wilson, Steve CB
Walton, Alvin FS Lilly, Tony FS
Wilburn, Barry SS Smith, Dennis SS
== Substitute ==
Branch, Reggie Bell, Kenny
Bryant, Kelvin Boddie, Tony
Caldwell, Ravin Bowyer, Walt
Cox, Steve Braxton, Tyrone
Davis, Brian Brooks, Michael
Dean, Vernon Castille, Jeremiah
Gouveia, Kurt Clark, Kevin
Griffin, Keith Dennison, Rick
Grimm, Russ Gilbert, Freddie
Haji-Sheikh, Ali Horan, Mike
Hamel, Dean Johnson, Vance
Hamilton, Steve Karlis, Rich
Jones, Anthony Kartz, Keith
Kehr, Rick Klosterman, Bruce
Koch, Markus Kubiak, Gary
Milot, Rich Lucas, Tim
Monk, Art Micho, Bobby
Orr, Terry Mobley, Orson
Rogers, George Plummer, Bruce
Schroeder, Jay Robbins, Randy
Vaughn, Clarence Sewell, Steven
Woodberry, Dennis Watson, Steve
Yarber, Eric
== Did Not Play ==
Lee, Larry