Broncos Dominate Patriots Denver Downs New England Again, Reigns As Nfl’s Last Unbeaten Team

Thanks to Terrell Davis and John Mobley, the Denver Broncos passed their first big test Monday night.

Now they have to wait three months to find out if it means anything.

Davis ran for 171 yards on 32 carries and Mobley returned an interception for a score and forced a key fumble as the Broncos scored 17 points in the third quarter and beat New England 34-13 in the ballyhooed battle of the NFL’s last unbeaten teams.

Rod Smith added five catches for 130 yards as the Broncos (6-0) beat the Patriots for the 10th straight time dating to 1979.

“I guess we just match up with them well,” Mobley said. “We know they’re one of the upper echelon teams in the league, so we get up to play them.”

But based on last season, getting up now doesn’t mean much.

Denver started 12-1, including a 34-8 victory over the Patriots, clinched home field with five games left in the regular season, then lost its first playoff game to Jacksonville, and New England went on to the Super Bowl.

“Let’s keep this in perspective,” coach Mike Shanahan said. “It’s a long season. This was just the sixth round. Last year there was a team that was 7-1 (Washington) that didn’t make the playoffs.”

The Broncos jumped to a 14-0 lead on a 1-yard run by Davis and a 13-yard interception return by Mobley.

But the Patriots (4-1) cut it to 14-13 at halftime thanks to two interceptions by Willie Clay that set up a 44-yard TD pass from Drew Bledsoe to Keith Byars and one of Adam Vinatieri’s two field goals..

The second half was no contest as Davis rushed for 114 of his 171 after intermission. “That’s a lot of work,” he said..

The defense held New England to three plays and out on its first two series of the half and the Patriots self-destructed. They had six penalties for 74 yards in the third quarter and 117 yards in penalties, 74 of them on cornerback Jimmy Hitchcock.