Broncos Are Riding High Once Again

The Denver Broncos got their groove back. Terrell Davis and John Elway got more than that.

Davis ran for 178 yards to become the fourth back in NFL history to gain 2,000 yards in a season, and Elway threw four touchdown passes to become the third passer in league history with 300 for his career.

Together, they led Denver to a 28-21 victory over the Seattle Seahawks Sunday, sending the Broncos (14-2) into the playoffs on a high note after suffering their only two defeats the previous two games.

“For John to throw his 300th touchdown pass and for Terrell to get over 2,000, it’s really exciting,” Bronco Coach Mike Shanahan said. “It’s always nice to end a season on a positive note. But the real season [the postseason] begins in two weeks.”

When Davis was held to 29 yards in 16 carries in last week’s 31-21 loss to Miami, it left him 170 yards shy of 2,000--a deficit even he acknowledged would be tough to make up.

Nursing a sore back, Davis managed 54 yards in only six carries in the first quarter, had 82 at halftime and 133 through three quarters. With a 15-yard run on his 29th carry midway through the fourth quarter, he raised his season total to 2,008--the third highest in NFL history.

Elway threw two touchdown passes to tight end Shannon Sharpe, one to Rod Smith and one to Davis. It gave him an even 300 in what could be the final regular-season game of his 16-year career, joining Dan Marino (408) and Fran Tarkenton (342) in the 300 club.

“It was crucial for us to get back and get the feeling of winning again and really get over that hump of 13 wins,” Elway said. “Thirteen scared me. You don’t want to go into the playoffs with three losses in a row, so it was huge.”

Asked about his 300th career touchdown pass, Elway said, “Hitting that was great, because I had no real expectation that I’d get it.”

Elway completed 26 of 36 passes for 338 yards, and Seattle quarterback Jon Kitna was 22 to 37 for 242 yards.

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Target: 2,000

A look at Terrell Davis’ rushing totals for his four seasons in the NFL:

Year: Yards

1995: 1,117

1996: 1,538

1997: 1,750

1998: 2,008