Dolphins’ Griese Tames Broncos After Stofa Breaks Ankle, 35-21
Monday September 18, 1967
By Bill Braucher
John Stofa breaks his ankle after one drive, allowing Bob Griese (12) the opportunity to step into the starting position in his very first professional game
The Dolphins won a wild battle of survival Sunday
and climbed atop the American Football League Eastern Division.
They
survived a broken ankle that finished their No. 1 quarterback. They survived
a fumble, interception and Floyd Little's kickoff returns that enabled the
Denver Broncos to come from 14 points behind and tie the game in the fourth
quarter.
And they survived a defensive breakdown that
had them on the ropes until their much-abased offense saved the day in a 35-21
opening-game victory that 29,381 Orange Bowl witnesses will not soon forget.
The see-saw issue was not settled until less
than two minutes of action remained. Li'l Abner Haynes took off around his
right end, spotted a shaft of daylight, and squirmed and scampered 65 yards
to score with 1:45 on the clock.
Gene Mingo's fifth straight conversion ended
a scoring binge in which the Dolphins twice blew 14-point leads and left their
partisans on the raw edge of a traumatic experience.
Bob Griese, sent in
when John Stofa broke his ankle and twisted his knee after just four minutes
of the first quarter; halfback Joe Auer, fullback Sam Price and the redoubtable
Haynes all had big hands in a victory that, coupled with Buffalo's upset by
Houston, put Coach George Wilson's sophomore outfit at the top of the AFL's
Eastern Division with a clean 1-0 record.
Stofa also contributed
before leaving on a stretcher for Mercy Hospital and an operation today. The
6-3 quarterback is expected to be out six to eight weeks, according to Dr.
Herbert Virgin, the Dolphins' physician.
Big
John cut loose with a 45-yard pass to Auer on the first play from scrimmage
after Auer had returned Gary Kroner's kickoff 32 yards to his 41. Stofa then
hit Howard Twilley for six and loped the other eight yards himself to put
the Dolphins in front in a minute and 41 seconds.
Two minutes later Stofa was carted off and Griese placed
squarely on the spot. The blond Hoosier came through
Griese hit six for
seven as the Dolphins drove 80 yards to a second-quarter score. The sixth
was a 27-yarder to Price, who slipped past a Denver linebacker with 5:58 left
of the first half to give the Dolphins a 14-0 half time lead.
Griese connected with Auer on a 68-yard touchdown play in the third quarter, the identical pattern Auer used with Stofa in the first period.
Haynes
got the last two big ones after the Broncos stormed back to tie. Abner capped
a 71-yard five-play sweep by blasting over his right tackle from the three.
This one gave the Miamians a 28-21 margin with 0:31 left.
Seven
minutes and three punts later, Haynes escaped for the clincher.
Apparently it was supposed to happen. On
the preceding play Abner had fumbled around the Miami 30 and teammate Karl
Noonan recovered at the 35.
All the heroics wouldn't have been necessary
but for a second-half lapse that cost the Dolphins three touchdowns.
With the score 14-0, Denver safety Lonnie Wright
intercepted a Griese pass when the quarterback's arm was struck as he threw.
From the Miami 32, the Broncos struggled to a touchdown, but needed a defensive-holding
penalty to do it. The holding call came after a third down pass by Steve Tensi
fell incomplete and gave the Broncos a first-down on the Miami five. They
needed four downs to score, with fullback Wendell Hayes going over from the
one.
After Auer responded with his 68-yard TD romp
with Griese's pass, Little took Mingo's kickoff and scooted 59 yards to the
Miami 34. Using power plays with the ends in tight, the Broncos smashed to
a score, with rookie fullback Bo Hickey slamming over from two yards out.
Hayes, halfback Charlie Mitchell and Hickey slashed the 34 yards in eight
plays through the Dolphin defense.
Two plays later tackle
Dave Costa recovered Griese's fumble, the only one of four losing possession
for the Dolphins, and the Broncos were knocking again at Miami's 27.
A
pass from Tensi to split-end Eric Crabtree gained 23 before Hickey barreled
over from the five and Kroner's third successive conversion tied the score
with 15:01 left to play.
But
the offense came to the rescue here, aided by a big break. After Auer returned
Kroner's kickoff 21 yards to his 29 and Haynes swept left end to midfield,
Griese shot a pass intended for Price over the middle.
Price and a defender
got a hand on the ball, it caromed upward and landed in the arms of the ubiquitous
Noonan at the 38. The weirdy gained 32 yards and gave the Dolphins a break
they quickly cashed in.
Haynes
slashed to the 10 behind tackle Norm Evans, a solid performer throughout Price
made seven more on a draw to the three-yard line and Haynes bounded over Evans
again to regain the lead, 28-21.
Back
came Little, however, as the former Syracuse All-America sprinted from five
yards deep in his end zone 59 yards to the Miami 46.
Miami's defense, porous
before the Broncos' power-running in the third and early fourth quarters,
pulled together again and tied up Tensi.
The former Florida Stater didn't complete another pass until after Haynes got loose on his final romp.
The
run gave Haynes 151 yards in 12 carries, a record for the Dolphins, who also
scored the most points and gained the most yards rushing (202) in their brief
pro history.
Tensi,
harassed constantly by the defense, settled for six completions in 20 tries
for 55 yards besides having two intercepted. Tom Beier grabbed one in the
second quarter, Frank Emanuel the other on the next-to-last play of the game.
Emanuel bruised his side while returning 24 yards to the Denver 18.
The
Broncos penetrated no deeper than Miami's 30 in the first half, where on third
down Wahoo McDaniel saved a possible field-goal try by blitzing up the middle
to drop Tensi for a 14-yard loss.
On
the ensuing first-quarter series Griese took the offense 41 yards, completing
a pair of passes worth 20 yards to Dong Moreau in the process, but the Dolphins
were baited at the 89 and Mlngo's field-goal try went awry when holder Rick
Norton fumbled the snap from center.
Denver's
deepest impression in the second quarter was to Miami's 41, where Bob Scarpitto
punted Into the end zone and the remarkable Griese marched the Dolphins 80
yards.
The
rookie from Purdue hit six different receivers with his quick pegs and got
a break when a pass intended for Karl Noonan bounded off the end and a Denver
defender and was clutched by Howard Twilley at the Denver 2:5. The play covered
33 yards.
Two play later Griese
faked Haynes off tackle, faded back and threw Price a strike for 27 yards
and the TD. Mingo’s conversion made it 14-0, where the score stood at halftime.
Griese completed nine
of 14 first-half passes for 88 yards. The Dolphins piled up 11 first downs
to Denver's two and totaled 218 net yards to 63 for the Broncos. Tensi was
held to three completions in eight attempts including Beier’s interception
at the Miami 22 late in the second quarter.
Click here for statistics of the game
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