NFL game summary for 01/01/1978:

Denver quarterback Craig Morton threw two touchdown passes to Haven Moses as the Broncos defeated the defending NFL champion Oakland Raiders, 20-17, and moved into their first Super Bowl. Morton, who was drafted and spent nine-and-a-half years with the Cowboys, would face his former Dallas teammates after completing 10 of 20 passes for 224 yards. It would be the second meeting in five weeks for the two teams -- Dallas won 14-6 in the regular season finale as Morton played only the opening series due to a bruised hip.

On a sunny, 18-degree day before 74,982 Denver partisans, the Raiders scored on their initial possession as Errol Mann kicked a 20-yard field goal to climax an 18-play drive. Morton hit Moses on their first scoring hookup two plays later on a 74-yard touchdown bomb, and the Broncos were on top to stay. Denver took advantage of two Oakland turnovers in the second half to win its second game in three meetings with the Raiders during the 1977 season. Defensive end Brison Manor recovered running back Clarence Davis' fumble at the Oakland 17 and running back Jon Keyworth scored from the 1 yard line to increase the margin to 14-3 in the third quarter.

Oakland quarterback Ken Stabler hit tight end Dave Casper on the first of two scoring passes to narrow the lead to 14-10 with 39 seconds elapsed in the final period. But on Oakland's next possession, linebacker Bob Swenson intercepted a Stabler pass and ran to the Raiders' 14. Morton then threw 12 yards to Moses for the Broncos' final touchdown. Oakland finished the scoring on the next series as Stabler threw 17 yards to Casper for the game's last touchdown. Denver controlled the ball for the final 3:08 and gave Red Miller the AFC title in his first year as a head coach. Moses, a 10-year veteran, had five receptions for 168 yards. The Denver defense, which was number one against the rush in the NFL during the regular season, held the Raiders to 94 yards on the ground.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

	Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
OFFENSE	187.6 (2)	150.6 (11)	338.3 (2)	40
DEFENSE	125.3 (7)	158.7 (22)	284.0 (15)	47
OFFENSE	145.9 (11)	133.1 (18)	279.0 (17)	27
DEFENSE	109.4 (1)	160.3 (25)	269.6 (9)	39

Line: n/a

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Oakland Raiders (12-4-0)	3	0	0	14	17
Denver Broncos (14-2-0)	7	0	7	6	20

( 3- 0) OAK Errol Mann 20 yard field goal ( 3- 7) DEN Haven Moses 74 yard pass from Craig Morton (Jim Turner kick) ( 3-14) DEN Jon Keyworth 1 yard rush (Jim Turner kick) (10-14) OAK Dave Casper 7 yard pass from Ken Stabler (Errol Mann kick) (10-20) DEN Haven Moses 12 yard pass from Craig Morton (kick failed) (17-20) OAK Dave Casper 17 yard pass from Ken Stabler (Errol Mann kick)

                     OAK             DEN
First Downs:         20              16
Rushes-yards:        36-94           37-91
Yards/rush:          2.6             2.5
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     17-35-215-1     10-20-224-1
Sacked-yards:        1-11            1-7
Net pass yards:      204             217
Net yards/pass:      5.7             10.3
Total net yards:     298             308
Total plays:         72 (50% run)    58 (63% run)  
Yards/play:          4.1             5.3
Fumbles-lost:        0-0             2-0
Turnovers:           1               1
Penalties-yards:     2-6             8-46

Attendance: 74,982

Passing:
OAK: Ken Stabler, 17 of 35 for 215 yards and 2 TDs (1 int) DEN: Craig Morton, 10 of 20 for 224 yards and 2 TDs (1 int)
Rushing:
OAK: Mark van Eeghen, 20 for 71 yards; Clarence Davis, 9 for 1 yard; Pete Banaszak, 7 for 22 yards DEN: Lonnie Perrin, 11 for 42 yards; Jon Keyworth, 8 for 19 yards and 1 TD; Rob Lytle, 7 for 26 yards; Otis Armstrong, 7 for 16 yards; Craig Morton, 2 for -4 yards; Jim Jensen, 1 for 2 yards; Haven Moses, 1 for -10 yards
Receiving:
OAK: Dave Casper, 5 for 71 yards and 2 TDs; Fred Biletnikoff, 4 for 38 yards; Cliff Branch, 3 for 59 yards; Mark van Eeghen, 2 for 8 yards; Morris Bradshaw, 1 for 25 yards; Mike Siani, 1 for 12 yards; Pete Banaszak, 1 for 2 yards DEN: Haven Moses, 5 for 168 yards and 2 TDs; Lonnie Perrin, 2 for 20 yards; Jim Jensen, 1 for 20 yards; Riley Odoms, 1 for 13 yards; Jon Keyworth, 1 for 3 yards
Kick returns:
OAK: Carl Garrett, 3 for 111 yards; Clarence Davis, 1 for 25 yards DEN: Rick Upchurch, 2 for 33 yards; John Schultz, 1 for 20 yards; Rob Lytle, 1 for 14 yards
Punt returns:
OAK: Carl Garrett, 2 for 5 yards DEN: Rick Upchurch, 2 for 12 yards
Interceptions:
OAK: Floyd Rice, 1 for 11 yards DEN: Bob Swenson, 1 for 14 yards
Punting:
OAK: Ray Guy, 5 for 180 yards DEN: Bucky Dilts, 4 for 163 yards
Field Goals:
OAK: Errol Mann, 1/2 DEN: Jim Turner, 0/3