Remsberg remembers good and bad of two Super Bowls
2/3/2007 5:00:00 AM | Football
By LANCE FLEMING
ACU Sports Information Director
Losers on four Super Bowl Sundays, the Broncos were the team no one wanted to see in the biggest game of the season. In four Super Bowl losses, they were outscored 163-50 as they lost to Dallas (Super Bowl XII),
The Broncos' four losses overshadowed their wins in two of the league's greatest AFC Championship Game victories: their comeback win at
Those losses also overshadowed the greatness of then-young quarterback John Elway, who used all his miracle finishes each season just getting his team in position to make a run at a Super Bowl berth. By the time the Broncos reached the big game ? each time against superior opponents ? Elway was spent, and
Playing on those two teams in 1987 and 1988 that lost to the Giants and Redskins, respectively, was former ACU offensive lineman Dan Remsberg, who was a reserve for the Broncos. He saw playing time in the game against the Giants, but did not play in the loss to the Redskins. And even though it's been 20 years since those two losses, Remsberg still remembers the sting of the losses.
“I still remember both of those games, although it seems like a long time ago since we lost both of them,” he said. “I'm sure if we had won it would seem like just yesterday that we played the Giants and Redskins. But you don't ever lose the feeling you had when you've had a chance to play in the biggest game of them all. I got to play with John Elway, which was quite a treat because he was such a great player.”
But not great enough to overcome one of the great teams of all time (1986 Giants) and one of the most historic quarters in NFL history (Washington's 35-point second quarter).
In Super Bowl XXI, the Broncos actually led 10-9 on the strength of a Rich Karlis field goal and a short Elway touchdown run. But the Giants ? behind one of the greatest passing days in Super Bowl history by Phil Simms (22 of 25 for 268 yards and three scores) ? scored 17 points in the third quarter to take a 26-10 lead on their way to a 39-20 victory.
“We went into the second half with the lead and a lot of momentum,” Remsberg said of Super Bowl XXI. “We had everything going for us, but they just had our number. The guy (Simms) finishes the game 22 of 25. Just stop and think about that. He was on, and there was nothing we could do to stop him.”
The next year against the Redskins, the Broncos again jumped out to a lead, grabbing a 10-0 lead, thanks in part to a 56-yard touchdown pass from Elway to Ricky Nattiel on their first play from scrimmage. The Broncos also appeared to have gained an advantage when
“We score on the first play and then Williams goes down and we get a field goal, and we're all thinking we had it won,” Remsberg said. “Then all of a sudden, it was over.”
Williams returned in the second quarter, and in one of the greatest quarters of football in NFL history, led the Redskins to 35 second-quarter points as they rolled to a 42-10 victory.
The Broncos endured one more Super Bowl loss before they finally broke through in 1997 with an upset win over
