Tag Archives: New England Patriots

1997 Game 245 – AFC Divisional – Denver at New England

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Defense takes Broncos to AFC Title game!

Strong Safety Steve Atwater made the play of the season so far for the Denver Broncos. His second quarter interception and 94-yard return for a touchdown lifted the Broncos to the AFC Championship game next weekend.

The Bronco defense was dominant. They forced the Patriots into a one-dimensional team. The Patriots were without All-Pro running back Curtis Martin and could not run the ball. The Patriots rushed for 30 yards on the day and that forced Bledsoe to make plays in the passing game; however, the Broncos were relentless. They sacked Bledsoe six times on the day (Alfred Williams had 3 of them) and forced him to throw two interceptions.

With the defense dominating, the Bronco offense focused on the running game. RB Terrell Davis had 137 yards on the ground on 25 carries. QB John Elway didn’t make any mistakes. He was 13 of 23 passing with 135 yards and no interceptions but could not get the Broncos in the end zone.

Because the Bronco offense was forced to kick two field goals, the Patriots still had an opportunity to win the game. Bledsoe led a drive for a field goal early in the 4th quarter and then hooked up with WR Shawn Jefferson on a 13-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 13-10 with 1:30 left in the game. The Broncos shut the door on the game when they recovered the ensuing onside kick.

The Broncos will now go to the AFC Championship game. They will have to wait to find out who and where that will take place. The Chiefs host the Seahawks in the other Division Round game. If KC wins, the game will take place at Arrowhead, but if the Seahawks spring the upset, the title game will be played in Mile High in Denver.

1997 Game 245 Stats

1997 Game 240 (Week 17) New England at Miami

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Block Punt energizes Dolphins; Marino completes comeback!

The New England Patriots seemed in control of the final game of the 1997 regular season as they had the Miami Dolphins down 13-3 at the start of the 4th quarter of Monday Night’s game at Pro Player Stadium. Then the Dolphins got a huge blocked punt that spurred their comeback to win 17-13.

The Dolphins blocked Tom Tupa’s punt and recovered the ball at the Patriot 5-yd line. A few plays later, newly acquired running back Lawrence Phillips plunged in for a 1-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 13-10.

The Dolphins then took over with six minutes to go and Dan Marino gave us another magical moment in his brilliant career. Marino, on a 3rd and 15, zipped a pass to WR OJ McDuffie, who raced down to the Patriot 9-yard line on a 36-yd connection. The referees tacked on five more yards for a roughing the passer on the play and the Dolphins had the ball at the Patriot 4-yard line.

On a 4th and 1 from the 1-yd line, head coach Jimmie Johnson decided to go-for-it, instead of kicking the field goal to tie the game. The Dolphins tried two plays from the 1, but couldn’t get the ball in, so Johnson called Marino’s number on 4th down. Marino took a short sprint to his right and fired a pass to WR Bret Perriman, who secured the catch and the touchdown! The Dolphins took the lead 17-13.

With 1:15 left to play, Patriot QB Drew Bledsoe had one more opportunity and zipped passes all the way down the field. He hit TE Ben Coates on three consecutive passes and took the Patriots to the Dolphins 24-yard line. On the final play, Bledsoe zipped a short pass to WR Terry Glenn, but the Dolphins made the tackle to secure the 17-13 victory!

Despite the loss, the Patriots (12-4) are still the #2 seed in the AFC. They will have a first round bye and wait for the results of Wildcard weekend to determine who they will play in the divisional round at Foxboro. As for the Dolphins, they finished their season with a disappointing 7-9 record and missed the playoffs.

1997 Game 240 Stats