| 1989 Denver Broncos season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Pat Bowlen |
| General manager | John Beake |
| Head coach | Dan Reeves |
| Offensive coordinator | Chan Gailey |
| Defensive coordinator | Wade Phillips |
| Home stadium | Mile High Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 11–5 |
| Division place | 1stAFC West |
| Playoffs | WonDivisional Playoffs (vs.Steelers) 24–23 WonAFC Championship (vs.Browns) 37–21 LostSuper Bowl XXIV (vs.49ers) 10–55 |
| Pro Bowlers | QBJohn Elway DTGreg Kragen LBKarl Mecklenburg SDennis Smith KDavid Treadwell |
| Uniform | |
 | |
The1989Denver Broncosseason was the team's 30th year in professional football and its 20th with theNational Football League (NFL). The head coach wasDan Reeves whileChan Gailey was the offensive coordinator andWade Phillips was the defensive coordinator. In the postseason Denver won a nail biter over the Pittsburgh Steelers 24–23 then cruised over the Cleveland Browns 37–21 in the AFC Championship Game.
The season ended with the Broncos being blown out 55–10 inSuper Bowl XXIV by theSan Francisco 49ers.
| 1989 Denver Broncos draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Steve Atwater * † | S | Arkansas | |
| 1 | Supp | Bobby Humphrey | RB | Alabama | |
| 2 | 41 | Doug Widell | G | Boston College | |
| 2 | 47 | Warren Powers | DE | Maryland | |
| 3 | 69 | Darrell Hamilton | T | North Carolina | |
| 4 | 97 | Jake McCullough | DE | Clemson | |
| 5 | 134 | Darren Carrington | S | Northern Arizona | |
| 6 | 152 | Anthony Stafford | WR | Oklahoma | |
| 7 | 180 | Melvin Bratton | RB | Miami (FL) | |
| 8 | 208 | Paul Green | TE | USC | |
| 9 | 236 | Monte Smith | G | North Dakota State | |
| 9 | 241 | Wayne Williams | RB | Florida | |
| 10 | 264 | Anthony Butts | DE | Mississippi State | |
| 11 | 292 | Richard Shelton | DB | Liberty | |
| 12 | 320 | John Javis | WR | Howard | |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least onePro Bowl during career | |||||
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Pat Hegarty | Quarterback | UTEP |
| Chris Rule | Quarterback | Colorado State |
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL) | Linebackers(LB)
Defensive backs(DB)
Special teams(ST) | Practice squad 47 active, 4 inactive, 5 practice squadReserve
|
One of Denver's new major additions was rookie running backBobby Humphrey, who rushed for 1,151 yards, caught 22 passes for 156 yards, and scored 8 touchdowns. Humphrey gave the Broncos a powerful running attack that they lacked in their previous Super Bowl seasons. The defense had a new weapon as well: rookie free safetySteve Atwater. Together with veteran defensive backsDennis Smith,Wymon Henderson andTyrone Braxton, the Broncos secondary combined for 14 interceptions. Braxton lead the team with 6, which he returned for 103 yards and a touchdown, while also recovering 2 fumbles. Another new addition was defensive endRon Holmes, who recorded 9 sacks. Holmes, along with veteran linebackersKarl Mecklenburg (7.5 sacks and 4 fumble recoveries) andSimon Fletcher (12 sacks) gave Denver one of the top defensive lines in the AFC.
Veteran receiverVance Johnson had the best season of his career, catching 76 passes for 1,095 yards and 7 touchdowns, while also returning 12 punts for 118 yards. However, quarterbackJohn Elway played inconsistently during the regular season, throwing just as many interceptions as touchdowns (18) and recording only a 73.7 passer rating.
Note: Intra-division opponents are inbold text.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Broncos | 5 | 13 | 3 | 7 | 28 |
| Bills | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| Q1 | DEN | Mueller tackled by Brooks in end zone | DEN 2–0 | |
| Q1 | DEN | Treadwell 22 yard field goal | DEN 5–0 | |
| Q2 | DEN | Treadwell 33 yard field goal | DEN 8–0 | |
| Q2 | DEN | Johnson 19 yard pass fromElway (Treadwell kick) | DEN 15–0 | |
| Q2 | DEN | Treadwell 46 yard field goal | DEN 18–0 | |
| Q3 | DEN | Treadwell 24 yard field goal | DEN 21–0 | |
| Q3 | BUF | Kinnebrew 1 yard run (Norwood kick) | DEN 21–7 | |
| Q4 | BUF | Harmon 20 yard pass fromKelly (Norwood kick) | DEN 21–14 | |
| Q4 | DEN | Humphrey 5 yard run (Treadwell kick) | DEN 28–14 | |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raiders | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 21 |
| • Broncos | 21 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 31 |
| 1 | DEN | John Elway 29 yard run (David Treadwell kick) | Broncos 7–0 | |
| 1 | DEN | Jeff Alexander 1 yard run (David Treadwell kick) | Broncos 14–0 | |
| 1 | DEN | Mark Jackson 46 yard pass from John Elway (David Treadwell kick) | Broncos 21–0 | |
| 2 | DEN | Mark Jackson 11 yard pass from John Elway (David Treadwell kick) | Broncos 28–0 | |
| 3 | LA | Lionel Washington 22 yard interception return (Jeff Jaeger kick) | Broncos 28–7 | |
| 4 | LA | Mervyn Fernandez 75 yard pass fromJay Schroeder (Jeff Jaeger kick) | Broncos 28–14 | |
| 4 | LA | Linden King 15 yard fumble return (Jeff Jaeger kick) | Broncos 28–21 | |
| 4 | DEN | David Treadwell 38 yard field goal | Broncos 31–21 | |
| Round | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisional | January 7, 1990 | Pittsburgh Steelers (5) | W 24–23 | 1–0 | Mile High Stadium | 75,868 | Recap |
| AFC Championship | January 14, 1990 | Cleveland Browns (2) | W 37–21 | 2–0 | Mile High Stadium | 76,005 | Recap |
| Super Bowl XXIV | January 28, 1990 | San Francisco 49ers (N1) | L 10–55 | 2–1 | Louisiana Superdome | 72,919 | Recap |
| AFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Denver Broncos(1) | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 6–2 | 9–3 | 362 | 226 | L1 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 8 | 7 | 1 | .531 | 3–5 | 6–7–1 | 307 | 286 | W1 |
| Los Angeles Raiders | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 3–5 | 6–6 | 315 | 297 | L2 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 4–4 | 7–5 | 241 | 327 | L1 |
| San Diego Chargers | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 4–4 | 4–8 | 266 | 290 | W2 |
