Rich Gannon broke nearly every major single-game Raiders passing record, even those from the early days of the AFL, by throwing 64 times and Oakland’s defense forced five turnovers as the Raiders romped.
Gannon went 43-of-64 for 403 yards and a touchdown. The 43 completions were only two short of Drew Bledsoe‘s 1995 NFL record – that in an overtime game – and all but the yardage were Oakland records. The Raiders rushed only 14 times.
Coach Bill Callahan insisted all week the Raiders (2-0) wouldn’t do as the Patriots did Monday by using a no-huddle offense, emptying the backfield, and throwing on nearly every down.
They passed a remarkable 41 times just in the first half, including 30 of their first 32 offensive plays.
— Record “Raiders 30 – Steelers 17″
With a defense that’s too much for the NFL’s most potent offenses, the Denver Broncos have knocked off two Super Bowl hopefuls – though the San Francisco 49ers certainly didn’t look like contenders for anything.
Mike Anderson rushed for 95 yards and caught a touchdown pass, and Brian Griese threw two TD passes as the Broncos rolled. Olandis Gary rushed for 61 yards and a TD as Denver (2-0) turned in a dominant defensive performance against San Francisco (1-1).
Griese, almost benched for Steve Beuerlein last week, was unimaginative but efficient in completing 14 of 19 passes for 119 yards. He threw a 1-yard scoring pass to Anderson in the third quarter as Denver overcame a slow start on offense with 24 straight points over the final three quarters.
— Record “Broncos 24 – 49ers 14″
