NFL Recap (Philadelphia-Denver)
Posted: Sun October 4, 1998 at 10:59 p.m. EDT
DENVER 41, PHILADELPHIA 16
DENVER (Ticker) -- The mismatch lived up to its billing, even without
John Elway.
Bubby Brister again
started for Elway and matched a career-high with four touchdown passes and
Terrell Davis rushed
for 168 yards and two scores as the unbeaten Denver Broncos (5-0)
rolled to a 41-16 rout of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Brister left after three quarters while Davis did not play in the second
half.
The defending Super Bowl champions methodically dissected a hapless
Eagles team that was no competition for a team that has now slaughtered
three teams from the NFC East. The Broncos built a 28-0 lead in the first
quarter, increased it to 35-2 at halftime and took a 41-2 cushion into the
fourth quarter.
"I was real pleased with our football team," said Broncos coach Mike
Shanahan. "We came out and played well in all three phases."
Davis scored on runs of 20 and one yard and Brister hit Rod Smith with an
eight-yard touchdown and connected with tight end Shannon Sharpe on a
nine-yard scoring play in a 28-point first-quarter explosion for the
Broncos.
"That was the most unbelievable quarter (first) that I've ever been a
part of," said Brister. "There is so much talent here. I'm having a ball.
It's a quarterback's dream."
Brister, who completed 16-of-29 passes for 203 yards and an
interception, threw a 12-yard touchdown to Ed McCaffrey in the second
quarter and hit Smith with a 31-yard score in the third quarter. Smith
finished with seven catches for 95 yards.
"He (Brister) played great," said Shanahan. "He got a lot of
repetitions this week. I thought everybody really rallied behind him. I
thought his execution was very, very good."
The Denver defense made life miserable for Eagles quarterback Bobby Hoying with six
sacks and an interception. Hoying was 11-of-24 for 96 yards before leaving
in the second half.
Denver has averaged 36.4 points in its first five games, and outscored
Dallas, Washington and Philadelphia of the NFC East by a combined 121-55
margin.
The Broncos increased their regular-season home winning streak to 19
games. Counting last year's playoff run, Denver has won 10 straight
overall.
The Eagles are off to an 0-5 start for the first time since 1972, when
they finished 2-11-1. Charlie Garner scored on a
pair of three-yard runs in the fourth quarter for Philadelphia to make the
final score semi-respectable.
"This isn't rock bottom, we're going to get ready to play next week,"
said Eagles coach Ray Rhodes. "Terrell is an explosive running back and he
exploded on us today. He had a couple of long runs and his offensive line
played a great game."
Elway sat out last Sunday's contest at Washington after feeling
soreness in his right hamstring during warmups. He was expected to return
today, but suffered a lower back injury in practice this week and the
Broncos elected to sit him out again.
"The decision was made during pre-game warmups," said Shanahan. "The
lower back was really giving him problems. He really could not move the way
that he would have to move in order to protect himself. It tightened up on
him and he just couldn't get loose."
The offense did not skip a beat with Brister, who passed for four
touchdowns in a game for the fourth time in his NFL career. Davis produced
168 yards on 20 carries for his fourth straight 100-yard game.
"That's a lot of yards," said Davis. "Right now I'm enjoying being a
part of this offense and I'm really enjoying winning."
The Broncos scored on all four of their possessions in the first
quarter. They opened with a six-play, 87-yard drive which was capped by
Davis' 20-yard run. The biggest play in the drive was a 48-yard pass from
Brister to McCaffrey.
Following an Eagles punt, Denver embarked on a nine-play, 52-yard
drive which resulted in an eight-yard scoring pass from Brister to Smith.
The Broncos then made it look too easy with a six-play, 71-yard
scoring drive, capped by Brister's nine-yard touchdown to Sharpe. Davis
broke off a 57-yard run to key the drive.
"A couple of times last year, we came close (to having a quarter like
that)," said Sharpe. "In the red zone we're getting seven and not just
three. Bubby Brister is doing a great job. Years ago if Elway went out,
we wouldn't have had a chance as we do now with Bubby."
Philadelphia rookie Allen Rossum fumbled the
ensuing kickoff after being hit by Derek Loville and Tory James recovered for
Denver at the Eagles' 22. Six plays later, Davis scored on a one-yard run
to increase the lead to 28-0.
The Eagles scored their first points when a punt by Denver's Tom Rouen was blocked out
of the end zone by William
Thomas for a safety with 1:34 left in the second quarter.
But on Philadelphia's first play after the free kick, Hoying was
intercepted by Darrius
Johnson, who returned it 45 yards to the Philadelphia 12. Two plays
later, Brister hit McCaffrey with a 12-yard touchdown to give Denver a 41-2
halftime lead.
"We didn't execute once again," said Eagles running back Duce Staley, who had
minus-4 yards on six carries. "We've got to come out and make plays and we
didn't. I thought we came out slow. We didn't have game speed and it
showed."
© 1998 Sportsticker Enterprises, LP
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