On This Date in Sports January 31, 1988
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
Doug Williams becomes the first black quarterback to start a Super Bowl and win a Super Bowl, as the Washington Redskins beat the Denver Broncos 42-10 in Super Bowl XXII at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. The Redskins also become the first team to trail by ten points to win the big game, as they erupted for 35 points in the second quarter after spotting Denver ten points in the first quarter.
The Denver Broncos coached by Dan Reeves were playing in the Super Bowl for the second straight season, posting a record of 10-4-1 in a season, interrupted by a four-week strike, as replacement players were used during three games as quarterback John Elway was named NFL MVP. After losing the New York Giants 39-21 in Super Bowl XXI, the Broncos were seeking to finish the mission to bring the Lombardi Trophy to the Mile High City and looked to be well on their way after beating the Houston Oilers 34-10 and the Cleveland Browns 38-33 on the way to San Diego.
The Washington Redskins, were a surprise entrant in the Super Bowl, posting a record of 11-4. During the replacement games, the Redskins went 3-0, winning a memorable game against the Dallas Cowboys, who had a majority of their players cross the picket line. The Redskins overcame a quarterback controversy to reach the Super Bowl, as Doug Williams was named the starter for Jay Schroeder who played most of the season. The move paid off as Williams led the Redskins to a 21-17 win over the Chicago Bears and a 17-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings to reach the big game.
Doug Williams was the big story leading up to the Super Bowl, as the first African American Quarterback to start in football’s grandest game. Doug Williams had come out of nowhere to resurrect his career during the 1987 postseason. Once the starting quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Williams left to play in the USFL. After the rival league folded he signed with the Redskins as a backup to Jay Schroeder before taking over in the playoffs. This meant Williams had to answer a bevy of questions during media day which included some of the dumbest ever asked. Doug Williams dealt with this pressure along with a tooth abscess, that led to him having a root canal the day before the big game, lasting six hours.
The Broncos were a three-point favorite, as trumpeter Herb Alpert performed the National Anthem. The coin toss was performed by NFL Hall of Famer Don Hutson, who was celebrating his 75th birthday. The Redskins got the ball first and went three and out. The Broncos meanwhile did not need much time to open the scoring for Super Bowl XXII, as John Elway completed a 56-yard pass to Ricky Nattiel on his first snap from scrimmage. The Redskins also failed to move the ball on their second possession, as the Broncos quickly marched down the field again with Elway completing a 32-yard pass to Mark Jackson and Elway catching a 23-yard pass from Steve Sewell. The Broncos would settle for a 24-yard field goal by Rich Karlis to make it 10-0 just over five minutes into the game. The Redskins possessions continued to end quickly, while the Broncos continued to dominate, as they appeared on the verge of adding to their lead. However, things began to chance when John Elway was sacked for an 18-yard loss by Alvin Watson knocking the Broncos out of field goal range. The Redskins, though could not get anything going as Dough Williams left the game with after getting his knee twisted on a ten-yard loss. Jay Schroeder was also sacked on his first snap as the Redskins once again punted the ball away, and trailed 10-0 after the first quarter.
The Redskins looked down and out as the Broncos dominated the first quarter and were again on the other side of the 50 early in the second quarter. In no man’s land with 4th and five, Dan Reeves had them punt from the Redskins 36 hoping to pin the Redskins deep, but Mike Horan’s kicked went into the end zone for a touchback. Doug Williams returned after missing the last few snaps in the first quarter and like a flash the game was turned on its ear, as he connected with Ricky Sanders on an 80-yard touchdown pass to bring new life to the Redskins. In a complete reversal of the first quarter, the Broncos offense all of a sudden could not move as they went three and out, giving the ball back to Washington. It took just five plays for Williams to take the Redskins 64 yards to take a 14-10 lead, connecting with Gary Clark on a 27-yard pass. The Broncos looking to answer drove down to the Redskins 26-yard line, but Rich Karlis missed a 43-yard field goal attempt, keeping momentum on the side of the Redskins. Two plays were all that was needed for the Redskins third touchdown as Doug Williams completed a 16-yard pass to Clark before Timmy Smith galloped 58 yards to make it 21-10 in favor of Washington. After the Redskins defense forced another three and out, the Redskins offense had another big play, with Williams and Sanders connected on a 50-yard score to make it 28-10 as all of America had learned all the words to “Hail to the Redskins”. The stunned Broncos hoped to get back in the game behind the arm of Elway, but the downward spiral could not be stopped as he a deep pass was picked off by Barry Wilburn. Just after the two-minute warning, Timmy Smith broke a run for 43 yards to get the ball down to the Denver 35. From there Williams chipped at the Broncos defense, connecting with Clint Didier on an eight-yard scorer to make it 35-10. Elway in a two-minute drive crossed midfield but was intercepted by Brian Davis as the first half came to an end.
Chubby Checker and The Rockettes headlined the halftime show, as everyone watching had their head still spinning after the Redskins 35-point second quarter explosion. The Redskins had 356 in the quarter, as Doug Williams on the way to winning Super Bowl MVP completed 9-of-11 passes for 228 yards and four touchdowns. Accounting for most of the passing plays was Ricky Sanders who caught four passes for 168 yards with two touchdowns, while Timmy Smith had five carries for 122 yards with one touchdown. Smith would add a second score in the fourth quarter, becoming the first running back in Super Bowl history to rush for over 200 yards, finishing the game with a record 204 yards. Timmy Smith’s fourth-quarter touchdown was the only scoring in the second half, with Ali Haji-Sheikh missing a field goal attempt in the third quarter being the Redskins only blemish the rest of the way.
Doug Williams would play two more seasons with the Redskins before retiring after the 1989 season. He later went into coaching, succeeding legendary coach Eddie Robinson at his alma mater Grambling after he retired after 57 years in 1997. Doug Williams standout performance in Super Bowl XXII would go on to be regarded as one of the NFL’s seminal moments in player equality.