1990 Broncos- What Happened?

[CSKreager]

1990 marked the only time in the John Elway era the Broncos lost double-digit games (their next worst season was 7-9 in 1994). This was virtually the same team that made a SB the prior year and almost got their the following year.

I know they had three bad losses that hurt them- opening week when the Raiders beat them on 2 defensive touchdowns, then the double-whammy of these back-to-back gutpunches (Buffalo's 3 TD's in 77 seconds, a last-second FG against Cleveland at home on MNF) and they went from 2-1 to 5-11 just like that. I know people who were tired of seeing Denverget to and lose badly in the SB were thrilled to see them out of the picture (Of course, at the time, everyone loved the Bills as they were new and fresh before down the line, but that's another story)

But how did it get this bad considering they weren't exactly getting blown out week after week (Their point differential was a not-that-horrifying minus 43), yet couldn't win the games they usually did under Elway?

[7DnBrnc53]

1990 marked the only time in the John Elway era the Broncos lost double-digit games (their next worst season was 7-9 in 1994). This was virtually the same team that made a SB the prior year and almost got their the following year.

I know they had three bad losses that hurt them- opening week when the Raiders beat them on 2 defensive touchdowns, then the double-whammy of these back-to-back gut punches (Buffalo's 3 TD's in 77 seconds, a last-second FG against Cleveland at home on MNF) and they went from 2-1 to 5-11 just like that. I know people who were tired of seeing Denver get to and lose badly in the SB were thrilled to see them out of the picture (Of course, at the time, everyone loved the Bills as they were new and fresh before down the line, but that's another story)

But how did it get this bad considering they weren't exactly getting blown out week after week (Their point differential was a not-that-horrifying minus 43), yet couldn't win the games they usually did under Elway?

I think they went into that season with a lot of negative vibes after getting rolled by the 49ers the way they did. Going into that one, there were fans in Denver that didn't want to see the team go to the Super Bowl again.

[conace21]

The Bills game was marked by bad breaks. Two plays after the blocked FG, Elway's pass was tipped by Jeff Wright and intercepted by Leonard Smith, who weaved 39 yards for a score to give Buffalo the lead.
But Elway didn't exactly step up. The Buffalo fans had exploded after the back to back touchdowns, and Elway had to plead with the ref for help. I believe it was Bob McElwain who announced to the crowd that Buffalo would lose a timeout if the noise didn't subside. And as Vic Carucci wrote, "Elway was so shook he dropped the snap" and Cornelius Bennett fell on it at the 2. Buffalo scored again for breathing room.

[Reaser]

The Bills game was marked by bad breaks. Two plays after the blocked FG, Elway's pass was tipped by Jeff Wright and intercepted by Leonard Smith, who weaved 39 yards for a score to give Buffalo the lead.
But Elway didn't exactly step up. The Buffalo fans had exploded after the back to back touchdowns, and Elway had to plead with the ref for help. I believe it was Bob McElwain who announced to the crowd that Buffalo would lose a timeout if the noise didn't subside. And as Vic Carucci wrote, "Elway was so shook he dropped the snap" and Cornelius Bennett fell on it at the 2. Buffalo scored again for breathing room.

Elway complaining to the refs about noise was a year after year occurrence at the Kingdome, and everytime they announced that Seattle would be penalized the crowd just got louder. Always annoyed me that he did that, for me it kind of goes in the same category of QB's today who have that whiny look on their face when they're looking back at the ref begging for a flag after they were merely grazed. For how great he was - and made a lot of great plays in the Kingdome - I've always docked him a point in my respect for him for the multiple times he looked like he was almost to tears while whining about the crowd.

[7DnBrnc53]

Earlier, I talked about the bad vibes going into the season after getting blown out three times. It wasn't surprising that the team crashed to a poor record as a result.

Also, I now believe that 1990 should have been Dan Reeves' final season as HC of the Denver Broncos. Say what you want about how he acted with the crowd noise, but Elway was the driving force behind three SB appearances. Reeves seemed to believe in coaching players on offense that weren't much different than he was talentwise as a player (outside of Elway), but that wasn't working.

Say what you want to about Wade Phillips, but at least he started to upgrade the talent level around Elway, and built a foundation for Shanahan to expand upon. It resulted in two SB's at the end of Elway's career.

One last point: That wouldn't have happened if Elway didn't get hurt against the Giants in 1992. At the time, the Broncos were on their way to beating Big Blue and upping their mark to 7-3. The playoffs seemed in sight. However, Elway only played in two games the rest of the year, and the Broncos finished 8-8, leading to the departure of Reeves. Best thing that happened to the franchise. If they make the playoffs, Reeves stays, and Elway probably leaves. No SB wins for Denver.

[Sonny9]

1991 the pass rush picked up. They went from 33 sacks to 52. Mike Croel, the AP Rookie of the Year had 10 sacks. Probably the reason the defense intercepted 23 passes vs 10 the year before. Atwater, with 2 seasons under his belt, made All Pro

1991 8-3 in one score games
1990 2-7 in one score games

And what was mentioned about defensive returns against them being the difference in the Bills, Vikings, and Raiders games

[7DnBrnc53]

1991 8-3 in one score games
1990 2-7 in one score games

That was the result of an easier schedule. In 1990, they played nine games against teams that finished above .500. In 1991, they only played five such games, and their last five games were against below .500 teams.