Miles
Well-known member
- Mar 18, 2019
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The AFL lasted for a full decade and became the first expansion league ever to see all its member clubs taken into the more significant league when the merger took place.
As for the Houston Oilers, they made a huge splash with the signing of Heisman Trophy winner Billy Cannon, monumental news at the time. With his help, the Oilers won the first two championships in AFL history, defeating the Chargers in both title games.
And of course, the Oilers treated Denver just about like every other strong AFL team did at the time, winning nine of the first 10 games played against the Broncos, scoring 45, 55 and 45 in three of the first four wins over Denver.
Old Chicago Bears retread George Blanda was Houston's first quarterback, and no one would have guessed that he would extend his career from 1949 with the Bears through seven seasons with the Oilers (1960-66) and then continue to play for nine more seasons with the Oakland Raiders, ending his 26-year career on the steps of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton.
Two of the most notable early Bronco games were against Houston in 1966, with Denver failing to record a single first down on opening night in a debacle of a loss to the Oilers.
Then, just four weeks later the Broncos rebounded with a stirring 40-38 win over Houston in the Mile High City, with Blanda accounting for all 38 Oilers points. He threw five touchdown passes, kicked five extra points and added a field goal for good measure.
In one of those odd-but-true moments, Denver defensive back Goldie Sellers returned a kickoff for a touchdown in each game.
Once the Broncos got good, they reversed the losing trend against Houston.
Denver was 9-7 against the Oilers after that initial horrific decade, and the Broncos come into this week's game with a 4-3 regular-season record against the Houston Texans.
And this game features the only two opponents who have never had a non-sellout during their time in the National Football League.
Of course, the Texans were an expansion team and began play within America's long-developed passion for pro football.
Even though the Broncos began play in 1960, they (and the rest of the AFL) officially became members of the NFL in 1970, and that was the year in which our fabled sellout streak began, so Denver has not had a non-sellout game as members of the NFL.
And it will be sold out again this week in Houston, with the two cities sharing 60 years of history when the Broncos and Texans take the field.