The Divisional Round matchup pairs the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Denver Broncos on 1984-12-30 at Mile High Stadium. The conference bracket's postseason slate includes this matchup as one of the calendar's most-anticipated games.
The starting quarterbacks, the lead-back rotations, and the receiver rooms project the kind of game-script the wire copy has been writing into.[1][2]
The Divisional Round game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Denver Broncos is the kind of postseason matchup where the conference's projected leaders carry their regular-season pacing into the bracket. The week of preparation produced the kind of game-plan continuity both staffs have been pointing toward.
The Sunday's biggest unknown is the front rotation against the home team's offensive line. The bracket continues for the winner.
Around the conference the Divisional Round bracket produces the kind of matchups the wire copy has been writing into across the postseason slate. The Pittsburgh Steelers versus Denver Broncos game is one of the calendar's most-anticipated postseason windows.
The opposite-conference bracket carries through to its own conference matchup. The Sunday-night game is the most-anticipated matchup of the slate's closing window.
Across the regular season both the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Denver Broncos tracked the kind of pace that anchored their conference seeding into the Divisional Round. The starting quarterbacks' passing lines came through. The lead backs' rushing workloads were the staffs' projected calls. Vegas opens the lines accordingly. A figure to follow: the front rotations' pass-rush production.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 9-7 | W2 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 8-8 | W4 |
| Cleveland Browns | 5-11 | W1 |
| Houston Oilers | 3-13 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | 14-2 | W2 |
| New England Patriots | 9-7 | W1 |
| New York Jets | 7-9 | L1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 4-12 | L5 |
| Buffalo Bills | 2-14 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | 13-3 | W2 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 12-4 | L2 |
| Los Angeles Raiders | 11-5 | L1 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 8-8 | W3 |
| San Diego Chargers | 7-9 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 15-1 | W9 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 10-6 | L1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 7-9 | W1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 4-12 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bears | 10-6 | W1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 8-8 | W3 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 6-10 | W2 |
| Detroit Lions | 4-11-1 | L3 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 3-13 | L6 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Washington Redskins | 11-5 | W4 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 9-7 | L2 |
| New York Giants | 9-7 | L2 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 9-7 | L1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 6-9-1 | L1 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Broncos | James Wright 9 yard pass from John Elway (Rich Karlis kick) | 0-7 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Gary Anderson 28 yard field goal | 3-7 |
| Steelers | Frank Pollard 1 yard rush (Gary Anderson kick) | 10-7 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Broncos | Rich Karlis 21 yard field goal | 10-10 |
| Broncos | Steve Watson 20 yard pass from John Elway (Rich Karlis kick) | 10-17 |
| Steelers | Louis Lipps 10 yard pass from Mark Malone (Gary Anderson kick) | 17-17 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Frank Pollard 2 yard rush (Gary Anderson kick) | 24-17 |
The Pittsburgh Steelers won the Divisional Round game on 1984-12-30 against the Denver Broncos 0-0. . . . For the other side Mark Malone went 17 of 28 for 224 yards with 1 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. Frank Pollard ran for 99 on 16 carries with 2 touchdowns. The Sunday's outcome maps to the kind of game-script the staff was projecting Friday.[1][2]
The Pittsburgh Steelers took the Divisional Round game over the Denver Broncos on 1984-12-30. . . .
The afternoon's outcome maps to the kind of postseason game-script both staffs have been projecting since the regular season closed. The offensive line's pocket time on the dropbacks produced the kind of pass-protection the winning playbook called. The defensive unit's pressure produced the kind of takeaway that defined the closing two quarters. The Divisional Round's afternoon ends with the projected outcome.
The week of preparation produced the kind of game-plan continuity the wire copy has been writing into. The closing-drive coverage was the kind of stop the winning unit has been generating.
Pittsburgh Steelers 0, Denver Broncos 0. The Divisional Round's box score reads: . . . On the other side: Mark Malone went 17 of 28 for 224 yards with 1 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. Frank Pollard ran for 99 on 16 carries with 2 touchdowns.
The Pittsburgh Steelers's Divisional Round game against the Denver Broncos on 1984-12-30 ended with the kind of game-script the wire copy has been writing into. The conference bracket continues to shape across the calendar's projected postseason pacing.
How it unfolded
. . . The Sunday's offensive output produced the kind of full-sixty pace both playbooks have been working through across the bye-week preparation. On the defensive side Mark Malone went 17 of 28 for 224 yards with 1 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, and Frank Pollard ran for 99 on 16 carries with 2 touchdowns.
The turning point
The in-game adjustment that, in postseason play, decided the closing two quarters. The winning front's pressure on the third-down dropbacks produced the kind of pass-rush volume the unit has been generating across the calendar's back half.
By the numbers
. The lead-back rotation: . Receiver room: .
Personnel watch
The rotation produced the kind of full-sixty effort both staffs have been projecting. The offensive line's pocket time was the kind that, in postseason play, anchors the bye-week preparation. The receiver room's distribution carried the offensive production.
What it means
The Divisional Round's outcome maps to the projected postseason pacing. The next-round bracket continues. The film room note is the in-game adjustment that decided the closing two quarters.
| Steelers | Broncos | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 25 | 15 |
| Total Yards | 381 | 250 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 2 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 17/28 | 20/38 |
| Pass yards | 224 | 236 |
| Pass TD | 1 | 2 |
| Interceptions | 0 | 2 |
| Sacks taken | 2 | 4 |
| Sack yards lost | 12 | 37 |
| Net pass yards | 212 | 199 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 40 | 22 |
| Rush yards | 169 | 51 |
| Rush TD | 2 | 0 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 3 | 2 |
| Fumbles lost | 2 | 0 |
| Penalties | 4 | 1 |
| Penalty yards | 30 | 5 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIT | |||||
| Mark Malone | 17/28 | 224 | 1 | 0 | 97.9 |
| DEN | |||||
| John Elway | 19/37 | 184 | 2 | 2 | 61.1 |
| Gerald Willhite | 1/1 | 52 | 0 | 0 | 118.7 |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIT | ||||
| Frank Pollard | 16 | 99 | 2 | 23 |
| Walter Abercrombie | 17 | 75 | 0 | 18 |
| Elton Veals | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Louis Lipps | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mark Malone | 5 | -6 | 0 | 0 |
| DEN | ||||
| Sammy Winder | 15 | 37 | 0 | 9 |
| John Elway | 4 | 16 | 0 | 13 |
| Gerald Willhite | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Rick Parros | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steve Watson | 1 | -3 | 0 | -3 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIT | ||||
| Louis Lipps | 5 | 86 | 1 | 25 |
| Frank Pollard | 4 | 48 | 0 | 17 |
| John Stallworth | 3 | 38 | 0 | 14 |
| Bennie Cunningham | 1 | 19 | 0 | 19 |
| Walter Abercrombie | 3 | 18 | 0 | 6 |
| Weegie Thompson | 1 | 15 | 0 | 15 |
| DEN | ||||
| Steve Watson | 11 | 177 | 1 | 52 |
| Sammy Winder | 4 | 22 | 0 | 8 |
| James Wright | 2 | 16 | 1 | 9 |
| Gerald Willhite | 2 | 12 | 0 | 8 |
| Ray Alexander | 1 | 9 | 0 | 9 |
Find or start the canonical thread for this game on r/49ers. The thread title is deterministic so anyone running this Rewatch lands on the same place.
Find the thread Start the threadCanonical title: [Rewatch Party] 1984 Divisional Round - Pittsburgh Steelers at Denver Broncos - Game Thread
