The Buffalo Bills were off to a slow 1-3 start as they faced the Indianapolis Colts on October 11, 1998. The Bills were in transition as key players in conference-topping seasons such as QB Jim Kelly, RB Thurman Thomas, and WR Andre Reed were either gone or in the twilight of great careers. Marv Levy had retired as head coach and was replaced by Wade Phillips, and the team invested heavily in QB Rob Johnson, who was obtained from Jacksonville and viewed as a young passer with great potential. The Bills also picked up 35-year-old QB Doug Flutie (pictured at right), the diminutive former Heisman Trophy winner who came from the CFL following eight outstanding seasons after faltering in the NFL. Johnson had the starting job and initially struggled, but performed well in an upset of the 49ers the previous week.
The Colts were at 1-4 and also won for the first time the
week before. Head Coach Jim Mora’s team had a young quarterback of its own in
Peyton Manning, the first overall pick in the NFL draft. He had been put
directly into the starting lineup and, as to be expected, was struggling in the
early going. RB Marshall Faulk was highly productive as a runner and receiver
out of the backfield, but Indianapolis was a young team and very much a work in
progress.
There were 52,938 fans in attendance at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis.
Following a short series by the Bills that ended with a punt, and with Rob
Johnson having to exit due to bruised ribs suffered when he was sacked on third
down, the Colts started with good field position at their 48. Marshall Faulk
took off around left end for a 40-yard gain to the Buffalo 12, and after three
more Faulk carries picked up seven yards, Mike Vanderjagt kicked a 22-yard
field goal to give the home team an early 3-0 lead.
Doug Flutie was at quarterback for the Bills in place of
Johnson on the next series and he completed four passes, the longest to WR Eric
Moulds for 16 yards. The drive stalled at the Indianapolis 35 and the visitors
came up empty when Steve Christie missed on a 53-yard field goal attempt.
The Colts went 42 yards in seven plays on their next
possession. Peyton Manning completed a pass to TE Ken Dilger for 21 yards on
first down to move the ball back into Buffalo territory and a pass interference
penalty on a third down play advanced the ball to the Buffalo 18. Once again
the Colts couldn’t reach the end zone but Vanderjagt added another field goal,
from 33 yards, to put them ahead by 6-0.
Following a punt by the Bills early in the second
quarter, the Colts put together a nine-play, 54-yard drive that was helped
along by a roughing-the-passer penalty on DE Bruce Smith. Manning converted a
third-and-nine situation with a completion to WR Marvin Harrison and Vanderjagt
kicked a 43-yard field goal, his third, to put Indianapolis up by 9-0.
Taking possession with 8:17 remaining in the first half,
the Bills advanced 71 yards in nine plays. Five of them were pass completions
by Flutie, with three to WR Andre Reed. The third was for 24 yards to reach the
Indianapolis six and, two plays later, a scrambling Flutie connected with TE
Jay Riemersma for a seven-yard TD. Christie added the extra point to make it a
two-point contest. The Colts responded with a scoring drive that included Manning
passes to Faulk that covered 26, 11, and five yards and once again ended with a
field goal by Vanderjagt, this time covering 41 yards. Indianapolis took a 12-7
lead into halftime, but after dominating play in the first half, the Colts led
by only five points.
In their second possession of the third quarter, the
Bills moved 59 yards in 11 plays. Flutie converted three third downs along the
way, with a 20-yard completion to FB Sam Gash while facing third-and-three, a
four-yard toss to WR Kevin Williams when again in a third-and-three situation,
and the last was again to Williams on third-and-goal for a six-yard TD.
Christie added the point after and Buffalo was in front for the first time by
14-12.
A three-and-out possession by the Colts gave the Bills the
ball at their 43 and resulted in a seven-play, 57-yard drive that stretched
into the fourth quarter. The big plays along the way were passes to Reed for 20
and 15 yards, and Flutie had a 12-yard run as well. RB Antowain Smith gained
the last four yards for a touchdown and Christie converted.
It quickly got worse for the Colts when, on their second
play of the ensuing series, Manning was intercepted by NT Ted Washington, who
batted the ball into the air at the line and gathered it in to give Buffalo the
ball at the Indianapolis 25. Four plays later, it was Smith scoring another
touchdown from a yard out and, with Christie’s kick, the Bills had a commanding
28-12 lead with eleven minutes to play.
The Colts were unable to get out of their end of the field
on the next series, resulting in a punt, and with Smith running the ball five
straight times, the big one for a gain of 30 yards, Buffalo was able to add a
39-yard Christie field goal.
In a deep 31-12 hole, the Colts fought back as Manning filled
the air with passes. A 14-play drive covered 83 yards and resulted in a
touchdown pass to WR Torrance Small from three yards out. The try for a
two-point conversion failed and Indianapolis remained behind by 31-18. The home
team got their next shot with 55 seconds left on the clock and Manning tossed to
Harrison for a 25-yard TD. Again the try for a two-point conversion failed, but
the outcome was already decided. Buffalo won by a final score of 31-24.
The Bills led in total yards (381 to 341), first downs (24
to 21), and time of possession (36:41 to 23:19). However, during Buffalo’s
24-point surge in the second half, the visitors outgained Indianapolis by 150
yards to 28. The Colts also turned the ball over twice, to none by the Bills. Buffalo
led in penalties with 9 at a cost of 77 yards to four for 18 yards on the
Colts.
Doug Flutie was highly efficient, especially in the
second half, as he completed 23 of 28 passes for 213 yards and two touchdowns
with none intercepted. Antowain Smith rushed for 130 yards on 31 carries that
included two TDs. Thurman Thomas gained 23 yards on six rushing attempts and 5
catches for 32 yards while Sam Gash contributed 45 yards on his 5 receptions.
Andre Reed also pulled in 5 passes and led the Bills with 76 yards.
For the Colts, Peyton Manning was successful on 20 of 41
throws for 235 yards and two TDs while being intercepted twice. Marshall Faulk
gained 93 rushing yards on 18 carries and also led the club with 6 pass
receptions for 80 yards. Mike Vanderjagt was a perfect four-for-four on field
goal attempts.
“We had opportunities to score touchdowns and weren’t
able to do that, and that hurt us,” summed up Coach Jim Mora in defeat. “We
were playing well and had good field position and couldn’t get it in the end
zone. In the second half, they took over offensively and defensively, and we
couldn’t get anything going.”
The win for Buffalo marked the second of five straight on
the way to a 10-6 record and third place finish in the AFC East. That was
enough to secure a Wild Card playoff spot, but the Bills lost to the club that
came in second, Miami, in the first round. The Colts were at 1-8 before they
won again and ended up at 3-13 for the second consecutive year. However, the
groundwork was laid for significant improvement.
Doug Flutie ended up having a Pro Bowl year as he passed
for 2711 yards and 20 touchdowns, and provided a spark to the offense, although
the competition with Rob Johnson proved to be rancorous. Antowain Smith also
continued to perform well, rushing for 1124 yards on 300 carries (3.7 avg.)
with eight TDs.
Peyton Manning played every down at quarterback for the
Colts and while he led the NFL by tossing 28 interceptions, he also threw 26 TD
passes and accumulated 3739 passing yards, foreshadowing much bigger seasons to
come.
