Super Bowl XXXIII (Broncos vs. Falcons): An Ultimate Recount of the Game

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Today we have Super Bowl XXXIII, which was held on January 31, 1999, at Pro Player Stadium in Miami, between the six-time AFC champion and defending Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos and the Dirty Birds of Atlanta, the first-time NFC champion Falcons. If you’re looking for the full story of this 1998 season, pick up my Nifty Nineties book and you’ll learn more than you ever wanted to know about that year and the rest of the nineties.

As always, we have a pop quiz, and then homework at the end of the episode. The pop quiz question for today is: what Super Bowl record did Denver defensive back Darrien Gordon set in this game? The answer will come at the end of the podcast.

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Prelude to Super Bowl XXXIII

The Denver Broncos, helmed by head coach Mike Shanahan, weren’t just the defending world champions; they had all the players back from the previous year and all the pieces in place to make another run.

Quarterback John Elway was no longer required to put the team on his back; instead, he just handed off to running back Terrell Davis and made him do all the work. Davis rushed for over 2,000 yards in 1998, as the Broncos won their first 13 games of the season. The New York Giants stunned them in Week 15, but they finished 14-2 and with the #1 seed in the AFC.

Davis was named league MVP with his 2,008 yards rushing and 21 rushing touchdowns, along with 25 catches for 217 more yards and two receiving touchdowns. Not only all of that, but his running opened things up for Elway and the receivers.

Elway threw for over 2,800 yards and 22 touchdowns, even while missing part of the year with an injury. Bubby Brister filled in admirably in Elway’s absence. The Broncos had two 1,000-yard receivers in Rod Smith and Ed McCaffrey, and tight end Shannon Sharpe had over 750 yards. Those three combined for 26 touchdown catches.

This team was absolutely stacked, with defensive back Darrien Gordon leading in interceptions with four, and five players with at least four sacks. After 38-3 and 23-10 playoff wins over the Dolphins and Jets, respectively, it was easy to see why the Broncs were 7.5-point favorites for Super Bowl XXXIII.

The Atlanta Falcons also finished 14-2, but they were viewed entirely differently from the Broncos. Why? Because of a soft schedule and a smoke-and-mirrors run to the Super Bowl. Journeyman starting quarterback in Chris Chandler, who had been playing in the league since 1988, was on his sixth career team.

He had played for Indianapolis, Tampa Bay, Phoenix, the Rams, and Houston. None of those teams were any good in the years he led them. Sure, he threw for over 3,100 yards and 25 touchdowns. But could he be trusted to win a Super Bowl?

The Falcons ran through running back Jamal Anderson. He rushed for over 1,800 yards and 14 touchdowns, and he popularized the “Dirty Bird” dance that he and his teammates did after touchdowns. Even head coach Dan Reeves did the dance after the team’s 30-27 win over the Vikings in the NFC Championship Game in Minnesota.

The Falcons barely survived San Francisco 20-18 in the divisional round, before nearly losing to the Vikings. The Vikes had a field goal attempt to push their 27-20 lead to ten late in the fourth quarter. Kicker Gary Anderson, who hadn’t missed all season, missed this one, and Atlanta came back and tied it, then won it in overtime.

The Falcons had gotten lucky on their way to the Super Bowl, and it was highly unlikely that they could beat Denver – even with a pair of 1,000-yard receivers in Tony Martin and Terance Mathis.

A big story was what happened the night before the Super Bowl. Falcons defensive back Eugene Robinson was arrested for soliciting a prostitute. This giant distraction to the game would really come back to haunt Atlanta.

Super Bowl XXXIII: First Quarter

The Falcons won the toss and chose to receive. Receiver Tim Dwight returned the opening kickoff to the 37. On his first carry, Anderson ran for a first down to the midfield stripe. Three plays later, Denver defensive back Ray Crockett was called for a 25-yard penalty.

Actually, referee Bernie Kukar gave the wrong number, saying it was Steve Atwater, but John Madden and Pat Summerall could clearly see that it was Crockett. Anderson ran twice for nine more yards, then Chandler used a sneak for the first down. The Atlanta drive came to an end when linebacker Bill Romanowski made a third-down sack of Chandler on a big blitz. The Falcons settled for a 32-yard Morten Andersen field goal to go up 3-0.

The Broncos responded in kind. Elway threw a second-down pass to Sharpe for a first down right over the middle. A few plays later, he found Smith, who broke a tackle and made it 41 yards. Two plays later, Elway hit Sharpe again down at the goal line, but Sharpe was injured on the play. Fullback Howard Griffith pounded it in for a touchdown and a 7-3 Denver lead.

The Falcons went three-and-out and punted. Elway then threw a third-down interception, after the ball went out of Sharpe’s hands and into the arms of defensive back Ronnie Bradford. Sharpe was clearly ailing at the time, so the decision was made to sit him the rest of the way.

Meanwhile, the Falcons couldn’t get a first down, and on fourth-and-one they eschewed the field goal attempt, much to Madden’s chagrin. Anderson was stuffed on fourth-and-one by defensive tackle Keith Traylor, and the Broncos kept their 7-3 lead as the second quarter got underway.

Super Bowl XXXIII: Second Quarter

Elway started the new drive with a pass to receiver Byron Chamberlain for a first down. Davis took a pitch past the midfield stripe, then Elway completed to Smith for another first down. Davis took a carry and hurdled a defender on his way down to the 14 for another first down. The Broncos settled for a 26-yard Jason Elam field goal to go up 10-3.

The Falcons went back downfield, starting with a Chandler pass to Mathis for 17 yards. Chandler went right back to Mathis and found him for another first down at the Denver 26, a gain of about 33 yards. Anderson caught one for nine yards, then ran for the first down. He ran for another eight yards, but then the Falcons couldn’t get the first down. This time, Reeves decided to kick it, so the incredibly reliable Morten Andersen came in and made the 26-yard field goal to make it 10 to…

Wait, what? He didn’t make it. He pushed it wide to the right. And that was the moment the game was over for Atlanta. Because the Broncos would put it way on the very next play, Elway launched one downfield for Smith, who was being followed by Robinson.

Smith went 80 yards to the end zone easily, and the Broncos took a 17-3 lead. Also, Fox (who was broadcasting this Super Bowl) came out of the commercial late, and the play had already started by the time Fox got back to the broadcast. “We almost didn’t get back in time,” Summerall said. “Atlanta didn’t get back in time.”

To credit the Falcons, they hung on until halftime. Dwight returned the kickoff into Denver territory. Chandler found Martin for a first down on the right sideline, then he scrambled for another first down at the 16.

It was a costly first down, though; center Robbie Tobeck was injured and had to leave the game. The Falcons settled for a 28-yard Andersen field goal, which this time he did make to cut the deficit to 11.

The Broncos had one last chance to score before the half. Davis ran for 15 yards, and Elway threw passes to Chamberlain and Smith with timeouts after each catch. Elway then went long down the left sideline to Griffith, who almost caught the pass in the end zone, but it wouldn’t have mattered.

A holding call pushed on the play pushed Denver out of field goal range, and they punted. After nearly getting sacked for a safety, Chandler and the Falcons ran out the clock and went to the half down 17-6.

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    Super Bowl XXXIII: Third Quarter

    The Broncos started out the second half with the ball. Elway threw to McCaffrey for a first down, then he went to Davis on another pass. He’d find Griffith on a pass before Griffith pounded for a first down on third-and-one.

    Next, Elway hit McCaffrey again for a first down at the 18. The game might have gotten away if linebacker Cornelius Bennett had not sacked Elway on a bootleg. That forced the Broncos to try a 38-yard field goal, and Elam pushed it wide to the right.

    Linebacker John Mobley sacked Chandler, and then Chandler threw a pick to defensive back Darrius Johnson. He returned it to the Atlanta 41. Davis ran for about ten yards, but the Broncos couldn’t get a first down. Elway’s incompletion intended for McCaffrey on third down marked his 146th pass attempt of his career, most in Super Bowl history. Elam then missed another field goal, this one from 48 yards away, wide to the left.

    The Falcons moved the ball quickly into field goal range. Anderson ran off left tackle past midfield for a first down. Chandler hit Mathis for a first down on the right side. Anderson then ran it down to the 21. It looked like the Falcons may be able to make a comeback, but that all ended on the next play.

    Chandler had his pass deflected and intercepted by Darrien Gordon, who returned it all the way to the Atlanta 25. Five plays later, the Broncos would end any Atlanta hopes. Elway found McCaffrey for a first down at the 5, and Griffith pounded in for his second touchdown of the game from one yard out. The Broncos led 24-6, as the fourth quarter had just gotten underway.

    Super Bowl XXXIII: Fourth Quarter

    Chandler desperately tried moving the Falcons downfield, and he completed a pass to tight end O.J. Santiago for a first down, followed by a run by Anderson for a first down at the Denver 43, and another pass to Martin for a first down.

    But on the next play, Gordon struck again. He picked off another Atlanta pass and returned it to the Falcons 48. Elway put the cherry on top on this drive, throwing a short pass to Davis, who ran down the left sideline all the way down to the 10. Shortly afterward, Elway scored on a quarterback draw, and the Broncos now led 31-6.

    The game wasn’t over yet, though. Tim Dwight returned the ensuing kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown, making it 31-12. Summerall mentioned that the Falcons should go for two in this situation; it would have made sense, as it could have made it a 17-point game. Instead, Andersen kicked the extra point, and the Falcons now trailed 31-13.

    The Broncos got called for a penalty for an altercation on the extra point, allowing Atlanta to kick off from the 45. They chose to onside kick, but Chamberlain recovered it easily for Denver. After a couple of Davis runs, Elway found McCaffrey open over the middle, and he got a first down at the 22. Later, Elam got a small amount of redemption by making a 37-yard field goal with seven minutes to go to give Denver a 21-point lead.

    Now the Falcons came downfield in garbage time. Chandler found Mathis for a pair of first downs, including one on fourth down. Eventually, Chandler hit Mathis for a touchdown, making it a 15-point game with just over two minutes to play. Surprisingly, Reeves went for two after this touchdown rather than the last one. Chandler threw the ball over Martin’s head, and the incompletion kept the score at 34-19.

    Chamberlain recovered another onside kick, and now the Broncos tried to run out the clock. On fourth-and-three, Elway was given the green light to throw one final pass in the NFL. It fell incomplete, but it didn’t matter. Broncos defensive back Tyrone Braxton helped get a fumble from Anderson, and that was it; the Broncos had won their second Super Bowl, 34-19!

    A funny story about this Super Bowl. I went to a Super Bowl party at church, and they were holding a laser tag event while the game was going on. Because the game was so out of reach and because there were so many other things for people to do, by the fourth quarter, I was the only person still watching the game, sitting on a metal folding chair in the midst of 100 empty ones.

    I was all-out cheering for the Falcons because at the time I hated Elway (now I love him). People had to come over and comfort me about the game. I was so devoted to football that I was the only person who watched the game from start to finish. At the time, it made me look weird, but now I wear that as a badge of honor as the most diehard NFL fan around.

    Super Bowl XXXIII Aftermath and Awards

    This was John Elway’s final game in the NFL, and he went out on top – back-to-back Super Bowl wins, and this time, a Super Bowl MVP for his 336 yards and one passing touchdown to go with one rushing touchdown.

    I don’t really need to argue about this one; that was the right pick. The 2nd best player was Gordon, who returned two interceptions for 108 yards. That is the pop quiz question for today: Gordon’s 108 interception return yards were the most in Super Bowl history in a single game, as well as in a career at the time of this game.

    The Broncos and Falcons were either scoring, turning the ball over, or missing field goals so often that each team only punted once. The two combined punts were the least in Super Bowl history. Likewise, the seven combined field goal attempts tied a Super Bowl record.

    The MVP of the losing Falcons was Tim Dwight. He had three big kickoff returns, including one for a touchdown. If not for him, the Falcons may not have scored more than three or six points in this game. The Falcons really played poorly, but none worse than Robinson.

    He is the LVP of this game for giving up an 80-yard touchdown pass after all the distractions from his arrest the previous night. He was a Packer, and I support my Packers, but this was a dreadful weekend by him on all accounts.
    The player not remembered is fullback Howard Griffith. He was a great bruising fullback who opened up holes for Davis.

    Griffith finally got to score a touchdown in this Super Bowl, and then he got a second one for good measure. Griffith’s role doesn’t really exist for many teams in today’s NFL. He deserved to get some time in the spotlight.

    The biggest play was Elway’s 80-yard touchdown pass to Smith coming right after Andersen’s chip-shot miss. That was a ten-point swing right there, and who knows what happens if it goes the other way? As for the biggest play not remembered, I have to go with the Falcons’ failed fourth-and-one deep in Denver territory at the beginning of the second quarter.

    If they get that, perhaps they go up 10-7 or at least decrease their deficit to one point. But by getting stopped by Traylor, the Falcons never have that chance, and they never are closer than that to taking the lead ever again.

    Homework

    For this week, homework is simple. Go with Elway: A Relentless Life by Jason Cole. It was just released back in September of 2020, so it’s a relatively new book. It’s gotten great ratings from a lot of people, so you can’t go wrong with this book about this NFL legend.

    Next week, we will see the American Underdog Kurt Warner and his Greatest Show on Turf, the St. Louis Rams, take on the wild card Tennessee Titans in Super Bowl XXXIV after the most bizarre season in NFL history. 1999 was about as crazy as those fears were that the world would come to an end thanks to Y2K. This one was a doozy.

    I have a bunch of books over at my website tommyaphillips.com that I’d love for you to check out! Read about the eighties or nineties in the NFL, or find out about all of Penn State’s bowl games. You can even read up on golf or anime conventions. My newest book is An Introvert’s Guide to Anime Conventions. Again, that’s tommyaphillips.com. Until next time, this is Tommy A. Phillips, signing off. So long!

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    Lombardi Memories is a show that takes you back in time, into January or February, to the greatest one-day spectacle in all of sports. This is the every-other-Tuesday podcast that looks back at each and every one of the 50-plus Super Bowls and tells the story of who won and why.  Tommy A. Phillips is your host on this Super Journey.  He’s an author of multiple NFL books.  You can purchase below.

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