Videos: Five Broncos playoffs defeats more vomit-inducing than loss to Ravens

By Michael Roberts Mon., Jan. 14 2013 at 7:12 AM

Videos below.

The Broncos' loss to the Ravens on Saturday was agonizing, and not just because we (like pretty much everyone else) inaccurately predicted an easy Denver win. But let's put things in perspective, shall we? In our opinion, there have been five Broncos playoff defeats that were even worse. Make yourself feel at least a little better by counting down our picks, complete with videos that will bring it all back -- hopefully not including your breakfast.

Number 5: Super Bowl XII -- Dallas Cowboys 27, Broncos 10
In 1977, the perennially underachieving Broncos suddenly became the year's most unlikely success story under first-year head coach Red Miller. The team notched a 12-2 record (this was back in the days when the regular season was fourteen games long) thanks largely to a stout defense nicknamed the "Orange Crush" and steady quarterback play by Craig Morton, a former member of the Cowboys nearing the end of his career.

But against Dallas, the miracle turned mediocre. The Broncos committed a staggering eight turnovers en route to a 27-10 clobbering that wasn't as close as the score indicated.

Watching Cinderella get mugged -- and knowing that the entire country was doing likewise -- hurt like hell. Yet because of the shockingly great campaign that preceded the game, the pain was less severe than after the contests that followed.

Continue counting down the five Broncos playoffs defeats more vomit-inducing than the loss to the Ravens.

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Emily Rose Adams

I was at this game and it was by far the worst! Next would be AFC Championship when Plummet threw 4 interceptions in ONE game against the Stealers at HOME! Grrrr! This game was sabotaged entirely by terrible officiating! Hands down the worst!!!!

Juan_Leg topcommenter

Didn't a reader mention something about Manning's inability to play in the cold ? We should've listened to that sporting genius ! He KNEW what he was writing about & gave WW readers FREE, valuable, gambling information . Did ANYONE listen ?....

teknoscribe

Ah, those Bronco games in the late 80s ... some of us can remember the snow reports, and the powder days that happened to coincide with the Donkeys tanking' it. One year, I think it must been the '88 game, Breck had more than two feet that day, and everybody stayed in to watch a game that started at 5 PM. I hit the sickest tree lines on the north face of Peak 9 that day. Stuff you can only do if there's a ton of snow. A quick cross-reference of the snow reports from those three days tells a fun story ... and explains why we used to pray for the Broncos to win, then lose.

michael.roberts moderator editortopcommenter

@teknoscribe Your post brought back a lot of memories, teknoscribe. Thanks.

Grambling

Hahahaha, right, the Broncos "laid down" for the Redskins. Sanders and Clark burned your DBs in that record-setting quarter because they were better, faster, more talented, and smarter. And the counter trey was only the most well known and publicized running play since Lombardi's sweep. You knew it was coming, but just couldn't stop it, making rookie Timmy Smith a Super Bowl record-setter. Laid down, hahahaha, good one! Outplayed, plain and simple.

Cognitive_Dissident topcommenter

SCOREBOARD. I called it.

Richard Sebastian

Being a hard core Broncos fan of age 28, ravens loss!

John Tenorio

Has to be this one... even worse than the Jacksonville loss..

Bernadette Trujillo

Ot this last game

Juan_Leg topcommenter

That was the 2nd worst, ( non-Super Bowl ), postseason loss in franchise history PERIOD, behind ONLY Michael Dean Perry NOT getting his ASS off the field against the Jags !

I will NOT argue the NFL w/ ANYONE from a 'Cultural' publication ! It's absolutely pointless !