FLASH RECAP:
Brian Griese throws for a touchdown and runs for another to help Denver (8-7) beat Oakland before a howling crowd of 75,582 at Invesco Field at Mile High on Dec. 30, 2001.
Safety Kenoy Kennedy preserves Denver's victory when he intercepts a Rich Gannon pass in the end zone as time expires.
Griese throws a 12-yard touchdown pass to Rod Smith with 9:59 left as the Broncos erase a 17-13 deficit. After Jason Elam's 42-yard field goal gives the Broncos a 23-17 lead, the Raiders take the ensuing kickoff and drive to Denver's 17-yard line with 16 seconds remaining. Gannon then passes incomplete in the end zone to Tim Brown and Roland Williams.
With seven seconds remaining and Oakland out of timeouts, Gannon's fourth-and-one pass intended for Jerry Rice is picked off by Kennedy, the Broncos' second interception of the fourth quarter.
A questionable tripping penalty on Raiders guard Frank Middleton nullifies a 70-yard touchdown pass from Gannon to Rice with 5:12 remaining. Griese scores on a 5-yard run and Elam kicks field goals of 27 and 25 yards in the first half as Denver builds a 13-10 advantage. The Raiders, who have three turnovers and eight penalties, suffer their seventh straight road loss to the Broncos. Gannon, who throws touchdown passes to Charlie Garner and Jeremy Brigham, falls to 1-5 in his Oakland starts against Denver. Broncos coach Mike Shanahan improves to 12-2 against the Raiders.
PRIME-TIME PLAYERS:
WR Rod Smith -- Burns Oakland CB Eric Allen on a crossing pattern to score the game-winning touchdown on a 12-yard reception early in the fourth quarter. Smith finishes with eight catches for 56 yards.
With 106 catches this season, Smith breaks the franchise record of 101 receptions set by Ed McCaffrey in 2000.
QB Brian Griese -- Completes 19 of
26 passes for 142 yards and one touchdown. His 5-yard scoring run gives Denver a 12-10 lead with 1:52 left in the second quarter. Griese has a 5-1 record against Oakland.
K Jason Elam -- Hits field goals of 27, 25 and 42 yards.
SS Kenoy Kennedy -- Intercepts a Rich Gannon pass intended for Jerry Rice in the end zone as time expires.
RB Terrell Davis -- Rushes for 89 yards on 18 attempts. His 21-yard run to the Oakland 43-yard line helps set up Denver's first touchdown.
With a 34-yard run early in the second quarter, Davis passes Floyd Little to become the Broncos' career leader in yards from scrimmage.
Little, who played from 1967-75, gained 8,741 yards. In seven seasons - two fewer than Little - Davis has 8,805 yards.
QB Rich Gannon -- Completes a club-record 35 passes in 49 attempts for 313 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions. Gannon hits 26 of his first 28 attempts, including 16 straight.
WR Jerry Rice -- Makes nine catches for 108 yards. With a 29-yard reception in the first quarter, Rice surpasses 1,000 yards receiving for the 13th time in his NFL career.
RB Charlie Garner -- Contributes nine catches for 59 yards, including a 6-yard touchdown reception.
DT Grady Jackson -- Has two of Oakland's four sacks.
WR Tim Brown -- Has seven catches for 72 yards.
CHEAP SHOT OF THE WEEK:
Oakland FS Anthony Dorsett hits Denver QB Brian Griese out of bounds after Griese rushes for 22 yards on the first play of the fourth quarter. Dorsett's personal foul penalty negates a holding penalty on Broncos OG Lennie Friedman on the same play. Dorsett tells reporters after the game: "(Griese) put on a good acting job when he got to the sideline, and they just pulled the flag out."
GOAT OF THE GAME:
Raiders coach Jon Gruden. Questionable play-calling by Gruden is a key element in Oakland's downfall. With 2:04 remaining, Gruden opts for a pass play (Rich Gannon throws incomplete to Jerry Porter) instead of punting on fourth-and-six from the Oakland 24-yard line. At the time, the Raiders have three timeouts remaining. Four plays later, Jason Elam kicks a 42-yard field goal to stretch Denver's lead to 23-17 with 1:32 left.
After the Raiders drive to the Broncos' 17-yard line with 16 seconds left, Gannon throws two incompletions before being intercepted on the game's final play. With the outcome at stake in the waning seconds, Gruden fails to devise a play to get the Raiders into the end zone for a game-tying touchdown.
TURNING POINT:
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Oakland FS Anthony Dorsett commits a 15-yard unnecessary roughing penalty on Denver's Brian Griese at the end of Griese's 22-yard run. Dorsett's penalty negates a holding penalty on Denver OG Lennie Friedman. The Broncos then drive 76 yards for the game-winning touchdown.
KEY DRIVE:
The Broncos move 76 yards in 10 plays for the game-winning touchdown. On third-and-eight, Brian Griese passes 13 yards to WR Scottie Montgomery to the Oakland 12-yard line. On the next play, Griese throws a touchdown pass over the middle to WR Rod Smith as Denver takes a 19-17 advantage with 9:59 remaining.
BY THE NUMBERS:
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2: Consecutive losses by Oakland for the first time since Nov. 22 & 28, 1999.
8: Penalties on the Raiders for 62 yards. Four of Oakland's infractions are defensive offside. The Broncos have two penalties for 11 yards.
12: Victories for Broncos coach Mike Shanahan in 14 career games against the Raiders.
35: Passes completed by Oakland's Rich Gannon, who breaks Jim Plunkett's team record of 34 completions against Kansas City in 1985.
THEY SAID IT:
Raiders QB Rich Gannon
"Discipline is our problem. That is a reference to the way we played today ... and the way we played last week and the way we played the week before and the way we played the week before. I'll get scolded for saying it, but that's fine. That's how I feel, and I'm going to say how I feel."
"The season's a failure because we're not in the playoffs. Beating the Raiders is good, but it would have been better to beat them to get into the playoffs."
Broncos WR Rod Smith
DID YOU KNOW?:
With two interceptions and a lost fumble against the Broncos, Rich Gannon has committed seven turnovers (five interceptions and two lost fumbles) in his three Oakland career starts at Denver.
Denver's Terrell Davis (30) rushes against Oakland.
By Associated Press
