The Denver Broncos survived a furious second-half comeback at Pittsburgh last night before winning the AFC Championship 24-21 to claim their place in the Super Bowl against the Green Bay Packers in San Diego on January 25th.
The Broncos, led by running back Terrell Davis' 139 yards rushing and a touchdown, stunned Three Rivers Stadium by scoring the game's first 21 points.
John Elway also proved to be a key factor for the Broncos, throwing two touchdown passes in the final two minutes of the first half.
Pittsburgh, hosting their third AFC Championship in the last four years, fought back in the second half with Kordell Stewart throwing a touchdown pass and running for another score.
But the quarterback's biggest statistics were turnovers. He finished with three interceptions and lost a fumble as the Steelers ended their season on a losing note.
Denver kicker Jason Elam accounted for the Broncos' only points after the break, his field goal proving to be the gamewinner.
Pittsburgh were defeated by Dallas in the NFL Championship game two years ago.
"The key play was probably that third down play we converted," said Broncos coach Mike Shanahan. "They were probably going to get the ball back in good field position and had enough time to kick a field goal."
"When I saw the linebacker (Jason Gildon) line up over me, I knew John was coming to me," said Sharpe. "I knew if I held onto the ball, it was the ballgame."
The victory puts John Elway and the Broncos, a wild-card team this season, back in the Super Bowl for the first time since 1990 when they lost to the San Francisco 49ers.
Elway was also on the losing side in his other two Super Bowl appearances, against Washington and the New York Giants.
The Green Bay Packers claimed their second straight NFC championship last night by defeating the San Francisco 49ers 23-10 at Com Park.
Green Bay, despite playing away from the friendly confines of Lambeau Field where they had won 27 consecutive games and never lost in the play-offs, were never threatened.
Ryan Longwell kicked three field goals and Brett Favre connected with Antonio Freeman for a 27 yard touchdown pass.
Dorsey Levens also added a late touchdown run to seal the victory.
The Green Bay defence dominated, limiting the Niners to a single field goal and never allowed San Francisco to establish any type of running attack.
Green Bay has been a nemesis for the 49ers. Last night's win was the third consecutive year the Packers have knocked them out of the play-offs.
Mike Holmgroen's Pack will be heavy favourites to win the Super Bowl title. An AFC team has not won the Super Bowl since 1984, when the Los Angeles Raiders defeated the Washington Redskins.
