John Elway Leads "The Drive".

« touchdown against a strong defense.

Bedlam reigned inside the stadium. In their two previous possessions the Broncos mustered a total of 15 yards.

When Elway entered the huddle, however, he cracked a smile.

“I couldn't believe it,”Denver receiver Steve Watson told Sports Illustrated.

”He said, ‘If you work hard, good things are going to happen.’ And then he smiled again.” Elway hit running back Sammy Winder for a short gain.

After two more short-yardage plays, Elway shifted into high gear.

He scrambled for 11 yards and completed two consecutivepasses to advance the ball to Cleveland's 40-yard line with 1 minute 59 seconds to go. On the next two plays Elway missed on a pass attempt and was sacked for an eight-yard loss.

On 3rd-and-18 with 1 minute 47 seconds remaining, a deep snap fromcenter nicked receiver Watson, who was in motion in the backfield.

Elway managed to retrieve the loose ball and fire a 20-yard strike to Mark Jackson. The Broncos now rested at the Cleveland 28-yard line.

The home fans, always loyal to their Dawgs, pelted the field with dog biscuits, but Elway kept chewing upreal estate.

Another pass completion and a nine-yard Elway scamper put the Broncos inside the Browns' 10-yard line.

On third down from the five-yard line with 39seconds left, Elway, through a slight crease in the Browns' zone, gunned a bullet to Jackson for the score.

The point after tied the game at 20-20. In the overtime, after the Browns failed to advance, Elway moved the Broncos to the Cleveland 15-yard line, where barefooted kicker Rich Karlis sealed the dealwith a field goal.

“Elway didn't just pull victory from the Browns' mouth,” Rick Telander wrote in Sports Illustrated.

”He ripped the thing from halfway down their throat.” Although the Broncos lost the Super Bowl to the New York Giants, 39-20, Elway's performance in the fourth-quarter score against Cleveland cemented hisreputation.

“There is no question John can be the greatest two-minute quarterback ever,” Dan Reeves, the Denver coach, told Sports Illustrated a few days after The Drive.

“He's got that arm, and the point of a two-minute attack is that everybody in the world knows you're going to throw, and your arm is strong enough to do itanyway.” Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation.

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