Last Season’s Super Bowl Teams Not So Super

A Super Bowl rematch? Don’t count on it.

The Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos, who met last January for the NFL title, will be lucky to make the playoffs, let alone face off in Joe Robbie Stadium Jan. 22.

Last weekend’s demolitions provided stark evidence of the problems those two clubs are experiencing. The Redskins and Broncos have been plagued by turnovers and poor execution on their trademark plays--Washington’s power runs and Denver’s long passes. Inconsistent blocking and injuries have been major factors in the offensive woes.

Defensively, the Skins’ secondary has been burned often enough--Drew Hill had nine receptions for 148 yards last Sunday as Houston routed Washington, 41-17--to offset a decent pass rush. Often, particularly against the Oilers, Washington’s lack of speed on defense has been clear.

The Broncos can’t stop anyone from running the ball down their throats, andd their secondary is shaky.

With the ball, the Skins’ bread and butter has gone stale and rancid. From Larry Brown to John Riggins to George Rogers, the Redskins have overrun all kinds of defenses. But Timmy Smith, who set a Super Bowl record with 204 yards rushing, has averaged just 3.4 yards a carry and hasn’t filled the void created when Rogers was released. Kelvin Bryant has done better (473 yards, 4.6 average) but is brittle and hardly the workhorse back Gibbs is used to.

Washington ranks 21st in NFL rushing stats, about 15-20 spots lower than usual.

Some of the blame has been laid on the Hogs, the once-overpowering offensive line that has shown cracks this year. Not even the addition of Pro Bowl tackle Jim Lachey in the trade for Jay Schroeder has helped the running game much.

Lachey knows what it’s like to not qualify for the playoffs, something the Redskins have experienced just once in the last seven seasons.

“These guys don’t know what it’s like to be home at Christmas. It’s terrible,” said Lachey, a San Diego Charger the last three years. “I mean, you can watch the playoff games on TV, but it’s disheartening. You can’t wait until the Super Bowl is over so that everyone is 0-0 again.”

Gibbs is worried that the Skins are resting on their laurels.

“That’s one of the things you have to answer as a coach and a player,” he said. “You have to search yourself. Is two Super Bowls (Washington also won in 1983) enough? I’ve got to ask myself that and I think I know what the answer is: I want it.”

But the teams 5-4 record and upcoming schedule -- New Orleans, Chicago, San Francisco and Cleveland the next four weeks and a finale at Cincinnati -- says he won’t get it.

Denver’s problems are even more profound, and the Indianapolis Colts exposed them in embarrassing the Broncos 55-23 Monday night.

“This is the lowest I’ve been since coming to Denver,” Coach Dan Reeves said.

He has good reason to be dragging. His defense can’t stop anyone on the ground, ranking 28th. The offensive line isn’t giving John Elway much time and Elway’s sore ankle has limited his mobility. Tony Dorsett hasn’t added enough to the rushing attack and Denver’s undersized lines tend to get bowled over by bigger, more physical teams. It was worse than normal in Indianapolis, of course, but Reeves hasn’t gotten a hold on the problem.

Elway seems to miss Mike Shanahan, who left as the Broncos’ offensive coordinator to become the Raiders’ coach.

“We’ve all just got to look inside ourselves and find the problems and then solve them,” Elway said. “We’re too good a team to be playing bad football. Each guy has to get better at his job, then we’ll improve as a team.”

Perhaps. But the Broncos, who have made the playoffs in four of the last five years--and had an 11-5 record the year they missed--have games with Cleveland, New Orleans, and the Rams remaining. Plus visits to Seattle, where they almost never beat the Seahawks, and Los Angeles for the Raiders, who also are 4-5 and a game behind Seattle in the suddenly mediocre AFC West.

Considering the strength of the AFC Central this year, a wild-card slot seems beyond Denver’s reach. Unless the Broncos turn around right away, so does a winning record.