FLASH RECAP:
Quarterback Jake Plummer throws for two touchdowns and runs for another as Denver (3-0) manhandles Oakland (1-2) before a revved-up crowd of 75,100 at Invesco Field at Mile High on Sept. 22, 2003.
The game's first two plays set the tone for Denver's dominance. On the opening kickoff, the Raiders' Napoleon Harris commits a 15-yard holding penalty. On the next play, Oakland QB Rich Gannon is sacked by Broncos DE Bertrand Berry.
When the first quarter mercifully ends, the Raiders trail 21-0. And it only gets worse for struggling Oakland.
Plummer is John Elway-esque in the first quarter as he completes six of seven passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns. He throws scoring passes to Shannon Sharpe (18 yards) and Ashley Lelie (44 yards) and also has a 6-yard TD run. Jason Elam's second-quarter 20-yard field goal, set up by a 40-yard Plummer run, gives the Broncos a 24-0 halftime advantage.
For the fourth straight game (counting last January's Super Bowl), the Raiders offense flounders. Gannon, who is sacked five times by the punishing Denver defense, completes 14 of 29 passes for 149 yards with no touchdowns and interceptions. Through the first quarter, the Raiders have no first downs and only seven yards of offense.
Denver outgains Oakland in total offense 383 yards to 195. The Broncos rush for 190 yards, while limiting the Raiders to only 39 rushing yards.
Oakland avoids its first offensive shutout since 1997 when Zack Crockett scores on a 4-yard run late in the third quarter.
"They beat us in every phase of the game," former Bronco and current RaiderS linebacker Bill Romanowski tells the media after the game. "They deserved it. They kicked our butts."
Gannon, the 2002 NFL MVP, reaches his boling point after Oakland's touchdown when he yells at offensive coordinator Marc Trestman on the Raiders sideline. In the same stadium the previous season, Gannon throws for 352 yards and three TDs as Oakland ends a seven-game road losing streak against Denver.
"We have to stop the bleeding," Raiders guard Frank Middleton tells reporters. "We need stitches. About 20 of them across the chest."
PRIME-TIME PLAYERS:
Coach Mike Shanahan - Improves to 13-4 in regular-season games against his former team. Shanahan has masterful game plan, and his Broncos team dominates a hated arch rival.
QB Jake Plummer - Completes 14 of 21 passes for 197 yards and two TDS in his Broncos' regular-season home debut. Plummer also has a 40-yard run in the second quarter, the longest quarterback run in franchise history.
DE Bertrand Berry - Has 2.5 sacks of Denver's five sacks. remaining.
WR Ashley Lelie - Contributes three catches for 108 receiving yards and a touchdown. He has two catches of 44 yards - the first for a touchdown and the second to set up Jake Plummer's 6-yard scoring run.
FB Mike Anderson - Fills in for an ailing Clinton Portis (bruised sternum) and rushes for a game-high 70 yards on 14 carries. His 44-yard run sets up his 1-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter.
CB Phillip Buchanon - Sets up a Sebastian Janikowski 41-yard field goal with a 56-yard punt return.
FS Rod Woodson - Contributes a game-high nine tackles (8 solo) in his return to the lineup 13 days after undergoing knee surgery.
RB Zack Crockett - Scores on a 4-yard in the third quarter.
TE O.J. Santiago - Blocks a Micah Knoor punt early in the fourth quarter, giving Oakland possession at the Denver 10-yard. After four incompletions, the Raiders squander an opportunity to narrow a 31-10 deficit.
K Sebastian Janikowski - Hits his sixth straight field goal of the season two days after being arrested following an altercation at a Walnut Creek, Calif. restaurant.
KEY STAT:
Jake Plummer hits six of seven passes for 119 yards and two TDs in the first quarter as the Broncos build a 21-0 advantage.
TURNING POINT:
The Broncos score touchdowns on their first three possessions for a 21-0 lead. Through the first quarter, the Raiders have no first downs and only 7 yards of offense compared to 170 yards of offense for Denver.
CHEAP SHOT:
Broncos WR Rod Smith is ejected in the second quarter after throwing an off-target punch that strikes Umpire Undrey Wash. The television replay shows that Smith's punch was intended for Raiders defensive lineman Chris Cooper.
BY THE NUMBERS:
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0: Catches for Raiders WR Tim Brown through the first three quarters. Brown's 11-yard reception in the fourth quarter extends his streak to 160 straight games of catching at least one pass.
4: Oakland third-down conversions in 15 attempts. The 27 percent rate is twice as good as the previous two games (3 of 22 third-down conversions for a league-worst 13.7 percent).
98: Oakland penalty yards on 13 infractions.
158.3 Jake Plummer's quarterback rating after the first quarter on 6-of-7 passing for 119 yards and two TDs.
THEY SAID IT:
Broncos LB John Mobley
"We just hate the Raiders in general. This is a game we wanted to win in a big way."
"I think teams have caught up to us. I would freely admit that now. We're just not getting it done. We're going to have to rethink this thing."
Raiders coach Bill Callahan
"We're not able to move the ball consistently, and we're not able to generate any big plays, and we're not able to convert any third downs. Other than that, we're in pretty good shape."
Raiders QB Rich Gannon
DID YOU KNOW?:
First-year Broncos QB Jake Plummer throws for two first-quarter touchdowns against Oakland, something he never did in six seasons with the Arizona Cardinals.
Raiders QB Rich Gannon, right, is sacked by Broncos DE Bertrand Berry.
By The Associated Press
