2011: Chiefs Dominate on Defense to Beat 13-0 Packers

The Green Bay Packers were sporting a 13-0 record as they faced the Kansas City Chiefs on December 18, 2011. While they were the defending champions as well as being undefeated thus far, Head Coach Mike McCarthy’s team was not particularly impressive on defense. LB Clay Matthews and 35-year-old CB Charles Woodson were stellar performers, but the Packers tended to give up passing yards at a prodigious rate. However, the high-scoring offense more than made up for it. QB Aaron Rodgers was an excellent passer who rarely made mistakes and had a fine group of receivers. However, they had just lost their top receiver, WR Greg Jennings, plus their leading rusher, RB James Starks, due to injuries.

Kansas City, meanwhile, had just fired Head CoachTodd Haley the previous Monday. Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel was the interim coach of a team that had lost many key players to injuries early in the season, including QB Matt Cassel, RB Jamaal Charles, TE Tony Moeaki, and SS Eric Berry. QB Tyler Palko failed as the replacement for Cassel and sixth-year veteran Kyle Orton (pictured above), who had begun the season with Denver, was taking over the starting duties.

There were 74,093 fans in attendance at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs had first possession and drove 79 yards in 14 plays. QB Kyle Orton completed four passes, two of which converted third downs, but after being stopped at the Green Bay one yard line, they ended up with a 19-yard field goal by Ryan Succop.

The Packers were on the verge of going three-and-out on their first possession, but punter Tim Masthay was roughed and the series continued. They reached the KC 41, from where Mason Crosby missed on a 59-yard field goal attempt, but got a second shot from 54 yards when the Chiefs were penalized for too many players on the field. Like the first kick, the second sailed wide to the right.

Kansas City responded with a nine-play, 42-yard drive. Orton hit on three pass attempts and Succup came through with another field goal, this time from 32 yards. The first quarter ended with the Chiefs ahead by 6-0.

The Packers had the ball as the game entered the second quarter and had to punt after reaching midfield. Starting at their 15, the Chiefs again drove into Green Bay territory. Orton continued to complete short to medium passes, a total of six along the way, and running backs Thomas Jones and Jackie Battle (pictured at left) pounded away with short gains. A nine-yard carry by Jones reached the Green Bay three, but the Packers stopped Kansas City’s attempts to score on the ground, including a fourth-and-one run by Battle, and the Chiefs came up empty. The teams traded punts for the remainder of the period, with neither able to mount any threats. After a half of play, Green Bay had gained just five first downs and Aaron Rodgers was successful on only 6 of 17 passes for 59 yards.

The teams exchanged punts to start the third quarter before the Packers, taking over at their 46, went 54 yards in six plays. The big one was a Rodgers completion to TE Jermichael Finley that gained 41 yards to the KC seven. Three plays later, Rodgers threw to WR Donald Driver for a two-yard touchdown and, with Crosby’s extra point, Green Bay was ahead by 7-6.

The Chiefs responded with a scoring drive of their own, advancing 69 yards in seven plays. Orton went deep right away and connected with TE Leonard Pope for 39 yards to midfield. Another pass, to WR Jonathan Baldwin, picked up 17 yards and, after a third-and-14 throw to FB Le’Ron McClain gained nine yards, Succup kicked a 46-yard field goal to put the home team back on top by 9-7.

As the period came to a close, Green Bay was driving. Rodgers scrambled for 19 yards and completed two passes to get to the Kansas City 39. However, the Packers, passing up a long field goal attempt, came up empty when a fourth-and-eight pass fell incomplete.

Orton threw to WR Steve Breaston for 16 yards, McClain ran for nine, and then a pass to Pope picked up 33 yards to the Green Bay three. However, the Packers held on defense and Kansas City settled for another Succup field goal, this time from 20 yards. Still, it gave the Chiefs a five-point lead with 11:28 to play.

The Packers had to punt following their next series and the Chiefs drove 66 yards in eight plays. Breaston started things off with a 25-yard run on an end-around. Orton completed passes of 13 yards to WR Dwayne Bowe and 16 yards to TE Anthony Becht to reach the Green Bay five. Battle finished off the series with a one-yard touchdown carry and, with Succup adding the extra point, Kansas City’s lead was up to 19-7.

Green Bay got the ball back with less than five minutes left on the clock. Rodgers completed five passes, with the biggest gainers to WR Randall Cobb for 16 yards, Nelson for 22 yards in a second-and-20 situation, and 31 yards to Finley to get to the KC 15. The nine-play, 85-yard series ended with Rodgers running for the last eight yards and a TD. Crosby added the PAT, but the Chiefs still led by five with just over two minutes now remaining. The Packers attempted an onside kick that went out of bounds and that was it as Kansas City was able to run out the clock. The Chiefs handed Green Bay its first defeat of the season by a score of 19-14.

Kansas City dominated time of possession (36:11 to 23:49) and led in total yards (438 to 315) and first downs (23 to 16). There were no turnovers, but the Chiefs recorded the only four sacks of the game. The point total was Green Bay’s lowest of the year.

Kyle Orton completed 23 of 31 passes for 299 yards with no touchdowns but also no interceptions. Thomas Jones led the ground attack with 48 yards on 15 carries and Jackie Battle had 37 yards on 10 attempts that included a TD. Steve Breaston caught four passes for 50 yards and, in addition, had a 25 yard run. Dwayne Bowe was right behind with 49 yards on his four pass receptions and Le’Ron McClain also caught four, for 26 yards, to go alone with his four rushing attempts for 20 yards. LB Tamba Hali (pictured below) accounted for three of the team’s sacks on defense.

For the Packers, Aaron Rodgers ended up with 17 completions in 35 attempts for 235 yards and a TD and had another 32 yards on three runs that included a score. Ryan Grant ran for 66 yards on 12 carries and added another 35 yards on three pass receptions. Randall Cobb had four catches for 53 yards and Jermichael Finley gained 83 yards on his three receptions.

“Everybody had it marked off as a win for the Packers, but those guys in the locker room, they’re football players,” said Romeo Crennel, a winner in his inaugural contest as interim head coach. “They decided they were not going to lay down, they were not going to give up, so they went out and played a tremendous game.”

“I personally always viewed the undefeated season as, really, just gravy,” said Coach Mike McCarthy from the Green Bay perspective. “The goal was to get home-field advantage and win the Super Bowl. That’s what we discussed.”

Kansas City split the last two games of the season to finish at 7-9 and last in the mediocre AFC West (the other three teams were all 8-8). It was enough to make Romeo Crennel the head coach for 2012, but with disappointing results as the club dropped to 2-14. As for the Packers, they won their last two games to end up atop the NFC Nortth with a league-best 15-1 record, but were upended in the Divisional playoff round by the Giants.     

2007: Odd Field Goal Ties Game, Sends Browns to Overtime Win Over Ravens

The Cleveland Browns were seeking to build upon a 5-4 record as they faced the division-rival Baltimore Ravens at M & T Bank Stadium on November 18, 2007. Head Coach Romeo Crennel’s team had won three straight contests before losing at Pittsburgh the previous week. Tall (6’6”) and strong-armed QB Derek Anderson was proving to be a pleasant surprise and ex-Ravens RB Jamal Lewis was beginning to come on as a dependable runner. However, the defense was prone to giving up far too many yards.

The Ravens, coached by Brian Billick, were long known for tough defense but were having trouble on offense. Coming off a 13-3 record in 2006, Baltimore started off the ’07 season at 4-2 but had lost three consecutive games and desperately needed a win. Hobbled 34-year-old veteran QB Steve McNair was benched in favor of fifth-year QB Kyle Boller.

Things started off slowly in the first quarter with neither team moving the ball effectively. Cleveland got a break when Ravens RB Cory Ross fumbled a punt that DB Mike Adams recovered at the Baltimore 28. But after advancing nine yards, Phil Dawson’s 35-yard field goal attempt was wide.

Later in the period QB Kyle Boller fumbled while being sacked and LB Willie McGinest recovered for the Browns at the Baltimore 23. This time the Browns capitalized, with Dawson (pictured above) successful on a 28-yard field goal try.

The Browns added to their lead on the first possession of the second quarter. An 80-yard drive in eight plays was highlighted by Derek Anderson (pictured below) completing a pass to TE Kellen Winslow for 18 yards to the Baltimore one yard line, from where Jamal Lewis scored a touchdown.

Down 10-0, the Ravens could still get nothing going offensively on their next series, but on the second play following their punt LB Ray Lewis intercepted an Anderson pass and returned it 35 yards for a TD. With the successful extra point, Cleveland’s lead was cut to 10-7.

The Browns responded with a 13-play, 42-yard possession that included a 21-yard carry by Jamal Lewis. Dawson again successfully kicked a field goal, this time from 39 yards, and it was a 13-7 tally at the half.

The Ravens had been dismal on offense in the first half, but they drove to a score in their first series of the third quarter. Boller had completions of 16 and 21 yards to WR Derrick Mason and RB Willis McGahee had a 24-yard run that set up his two-yard scoring carry to complete the 75-yard drive in eight plays. With Matt Stover’s successful extra point, it was a 14-13 tally in favor of Baltimore.

Following a short Cleveland series, the Ravens had to punt in turn from deep inside their own territory. Sam Koch’s short kick was returned 26 yards by WR Josh Cribbs to the Baltimore 11 and from there the Browns scored in three plays to regain the lead with Anderson getting the last yard for a touchdown on a quarterback sneak.

The Ravens moved into Cleveland territory on their next series as Boller completed a pass to WR Devard Darling for 26 yards and McGahee had an 18-yard run up the middle to the 20. But Boller, firing for the end zone on his next throw, was intercepted by DB Brodney Pool who returned it 100 yards for a Browns TD. With the successful PAT, Cleveland was up by 13 points at 27-14.

The Ravens responded with a 14-play, 62-yard drive that stretched into the fourth quarter and was helped along by defensive penalties. Matt Stover successfully booted a 34-yard field goal to make it a ten-point game with plenty of time left on the clock.

On their next possession, the Ravens again moved methodically down the field in nine plays that covered 43 yards and ended with another Stover field goal, this time from 41 yards. A short Cleveland series ended with a punt that had the Ravens taking over at their 17 yard line with 5:12 remaining in regulation. Boller immediately threw to Darling for a 42-yard gain and, three plays later, to Darling again for a 27-yard TD. Stover’s extra point was successful and the game was tied up at 27-27.

Upon getting the ball back, Baltimore again drove to a score. Boller completed four passes and ran four yards for a first down in a third-and-two situation. With 31 seconds left on the clock, Stover kicked a 47-yard field goal and it seemed as though the Ravens, up by 30-27 after scoring 16 unanswered points, had the game won.

The Browns got a 39-yard kickoff return from Cribbs and followed up with two passes by Anderson that gained 24 yards. With the remaining time now down to three seconds, Dawson came in to attempt a 51-yard field goal. Dawson’s kick struck the left upright and seemed to strike the crossbar before bouncing back onto the field. The initial call by the officials was that it was no good, and the Ravens began to celebrate and head for the locker room, along with disappointed Cleveland players.

However, some players insisted that the ball had passed through the uprights and hit the center support before bouncing back. Referee Pete Morelli attempted to review the play but was told by the replay official that field goals were not reviewable. Conferencing with the other officials, one of the back judges felt strongly that the ball had passed through the goal posts and Morelli agreed to reverse the initial call and declare it a successful kick (subsequent review of the film proved the reversal to be correct). With the score now tied, the teams were ordered back onto the field and the game went into overtime.

The Browns got the ball first for the extra period and never gave it up. Anderson completed four passes, the most crucial to Winslow for 18 yards to the Baltimore 30. Cleveland picked up an extra 14 yards in four running plays and Dawson came in and successfully kicked a 33-yard field goal of which there was no doubt (pictured below). The Browns came away winners by a final score of 33-30.

Cleveland had the edge in total yards (380 to 368) although the Ravens had more first downs (23 to 22). Baltimore turned the ball over four times, to two by the Browns, and Boller was sacked six times. However, the Browns hurt themselves by being penalized 12 times at a cost of 104 yards (as opposed to two flags for 15 yards on the Ravens).

Derek Anderson completed 24 of 38 passes for 274 yards with no touchdowns and one intercepted. Jamal Lewis was effective, rushing for 92 yards on 22 carries that included a TD. Braylon Edwards caught 8 passes for 85 yards and WR Joe Jurevicius accumulated 82 yards on his four receptions. Josh Cribbs had a big day returning kicks, averaging 35.0 yards on seven kickoff returns and 15.3 returning four punts.

For the Ravens, Kyle Boller overcame a slow start to complete 22 of 41 throws for 279 yards with a TD and two interceptions. Willis McGahee gained 102 yards and scored a touchdown on 21 rushing attempts. Devard Darling gained 107 yards on four pass receptions that included a touchdown while Derrick Mason had 6 catches for 83 yards and TE Quinn Sypniewski also pulled in 6 passes, gaining 53 yards.

Phil Dawson, in talking about the uncertainty over the game-tying field goal at the end of regulation, said “I could tell by the way it glanced off the upright, it looked like it went forward. But we had people down near the goal post who were screaming at the top of their lungs that it had hit whatever that bar you call it.”

“This team, for whatever reason, thrives on adversity,” added Dawson. “The tougher the situation, the better we do. We all had a feeling when we got the call and went into overtime, what a shame it would have been not to capitalize on it.”

Cleveland went on to finish out the season at 4-2 for an overall record of 10-6, good enough for second place in the AFC North while just missing out on a playoff spot. It was the club’s first winning record in five years. The defeat seemed back-breaking for the Ravens, who failed to win again until the season finale. The resulting 5-11 record was the worst since 1996 and marked the end of Brian Billick’s tenure as head coach. Fortunes would subsequently reverse for both clubs.

In his ninth year with the Browns, Phil Dawson was successful on 26 of 30 field goal attempts (86.7 %) – with likely no others as memorable as the barely-successful game-tying kick at Baltimore.