It’s Short and Sweet for Elway

Denver Bronco quarterback John Elway did what he has done so many times before, moving his team quickly down the field and into the end zone. And then he was done for the day.

Welcomed with a roar by the Aloha Stadium crowd for Sunday’s Pro Bowl, Elway played only the first series but threw a touchdown pass to start the AFC toward a 23-10 victory over the NFC.

“I had fun,” said Elway, the most valuable player of Super Bowl XXXIII last Sunday in which Denver defeated Atlanta, 34-19. “We had a good drive and got the job done and that’s what it’s all about.”

Elway, 38, said before the Pro Bowl that he planned to play only a series or two, but that he wanted to do something good while he was in--which he did.

Elway completed four of five passes for 55 yards in the AFC’s opening 61-yard drive, which he capped by nimbly sidestepping two defenders and throwing a three-yard touchdown pass to Buffalo’s Sam Gash.

Elway plans to announce in the next couple of months if he’ll return to the Broncos for another season--and a shot at three consecutive Super Bowl victories.

Denver’s Jason Elam had field goals of 23, 46 and 26 yards, while New England’s Ty Law returned an interception 67 yards for the other AFC touchdown.

Law and the Jets’ Keyshawn Johnson were the game’s co-most valuable players. Law made five tackles and broke up three passes, and Johnson had seven receptions for 87 yards.

Minnesota’s Randy Moss the most productive player for the NFC with seven catches for 108 yards.

The most-exciting play of the game came just before halftime when Dallas’ Deion Sanders intercepted a pass by Vinny Testaverde of the New York Jets and returned it 87 yards before Denver wide receiver Ed McCaffrey caught him at the AFC four-yard line.

McCaffrey, on the winning Super Bowl team three times with Denver and San Francisco, said catching Sanders from behind “was one of the biggest thrills of my career.”