ANNUAL SUPER BOWL

RETROSPECTIVE ROLLS ON:

Super Bowl XXII, 1988

 

Redskins' Doug Williams leads rout of Broncos in historic victory

BY Joe Belock

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS. Published: Tuesday, January 7, 2014, 11:03 PM

Stephen Dunn/Getty ImagesDoug Williams sinks his teeth into Broncos, leading Redskins to 35-point second quarter and rout of John Elway and Co.

The biggest pain during Super Bowl week for Doug Williams was not the slew of questions about being the first African-American quarterback in the big game. The veteran signal-caller was ready for that.

WHERE WAS I?
Freshman at NMU.  Watched the game in West Hall on the day
Bob "Skull Fracture" Arend moved as a transfer from
College of DuPage

Super Bowl XXII
	Jan. 31, 1988 Jack Murphy Stadium San Diego, California
MVP: Doug Williams, QB, Washington

	Washington Redskins	42
	Denver Broncos	10

The honor went to the emergency root canal Williams had to have the day before his historic triumph. But much like the week-long grilling and the Denver Broncos defense, the dental work proved to be a mere inconvenience as Williams did the drilling on Super Sunday. Williams dominated on his historic day, throwing for a Super Bowl-record 340 yards and four touchdowns, all in the second quarter, as the Redskins buried Denver, 42-10, in Super Bowl XXII. 

Program features an artistic rendering of the Lombardi Trophy along with the mission architecture of San Diego where the game was played.

After what Williams had to go through to get to the Super Bowl, a little dental work wasn’t going to stop him.



Game at Jack Murphy in San Diego. 6pm EST Kick.  Lighter blue background on ticket vs. program.  Ticket continues teh tradition of referring to "AFC-NFC World Championship while the program refers to AFC vs NFC for the NFL Championship and the Vince Lombardi Trophy." Average ticket price $100.

After five mostly successful years in Tampa Bay , Williams sat out 1983 in a contract dispute and to recover emotionally from the death of his wife due to a brain tumor. He then played two years in the USFL before Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, who had been Williams’ offensive coordinator for a season in Tampa, talked him into returning to the NFL to back up Jay Schroeder. 

Williams with the Arizona/Oklahoma Outlaws of the USFL

In 1987, Williams won four games in relief of Schroeder and started two games when Schroeder was injured. Gibbs decided to change QBs for the playoffs. Williams was solid but unspectacular, and wasn’t so hot in the first quarter of the Super Bowl, going 3-for-9 as the Skins fell into a 10-0 hole against John Elway. The quarter ended with injury to insult as Williams twisted his knee on a sack and had to leave the game. Schroeder came on and got sacked and threw an incompletion. 

Williams returned for the start of the second quarter, and turned around the Super Bowl on one play — an 80-yard bomb to Ricky Sanders. Williams audibled out of a short pass when he saw cornerback Mark Haynes playing tight on Sanders, who then blew past the ex-Giant, caught Williams’ pass around midfield and ran untouched the rest of the way. After the Broncos went three and out, Williams hit Gary Clark, who made a diving catch for a 27-yard TD on third-and-1 to cap a five-play, 64-yard drive. 

The Broncos missed a field goal and the Skins were back in the end zone two plays later on Timmy Smith’s 58-yard TD run. Another Bronco three-and-out was followed by a Skins three-and-in as Williams hit Sanders for a 50-yard TD to cap a three-play drive. The Skins took their time getting back into the end zone following an Elway interception, needing seven plays for an eight-yard Williams pass to tight end Clint Didier. The clock showed 1:11 before halftime, but Super Bowl XXII was over. 

Williams went on to be the head coach at Grambling, yeah, yeah, Grambling (his alma mater), and is currently with the Redskins organization.

Williams led the Skins to five touchdowns on five straight possessions and had the ball for less than six minutes. For the quarter, Williams went 9-for-11 for 228 yards and four touchdowns, Smith had 122 yards on five carries and Clark caught four passes for 168 yards. 

Media Pass

Smith rushed for a Super Bowl-record 204 yards. The rookie fifth-round pick had rushed for just 126 during the season playing behind George Rogers but was the team’s leading rusher with 138 yards in the two playoff games. 



Elway running for his life in his second straight blow-out loss in the Super Bowl.  Third loss overall for the Broncs.

Gibbs decided Smith would make his first NFL start in the Super Bowl, and didn’t tell him until the morning of the game. Gibbs had filled in Williams, the fill-in QB with the filled-in tooth who was about to fill up the record books.