1937: Hugo Bezdek Becomes Only MLB Manager to Coach NFL Team

The Cleveland Rams franchise that joined the National Football League in 1937 had been significantly transformed from the team that played in the second American Football League in 1936. Only four players were retained from the ’36 club, and the ownership and management had been completely overhauled. Homer Marshman headed the new ownership group, and as the new head coach they signed Hugo Bezdek to a three-year contract. When the Rams hosted the Detroit Lions at League Park in their season-opening game on September 10, Bezdek became the only person to have both managed a major league baseball club and coached a team in the NFL.

The 53-year-old Bezdek, who had been born in Prague of what was then part of Austria-Hungary, had played football at the University of Chicago before beginning his college coaching career at the University of Oregon. After a year, he moved on to the University of Arkansas where he was head coach for five seasons and inspired the nickname that the school’s athletic teams use to this day when, at a rally following an undefeated season, he referred to the team as “a wild band of razorback hogs”.

From Arkansas it was back to Oregon for Bezdek, and while there he also worked as a scout for the Pittsburgh Pirates of major league baseball’s National League. When Nixey Callahan was dismissed as the team’s manager during the 1917 season, Pittsburgh owner Barney Dreyfuss hired Bezdek. The new manager worked no miracles during the remainder of the ’17 season, as the Pirates finished at the bottom of the NL with a 51-103 record (30-59 under Bezdek). The results were better in 1918 (65-60) and ’19 (71-68), for an overall major league managing record of 166-187.

In the meantime, Bezdek had continued to coach football at Oregon before moving on to Penn State, where he was head coach and athletic director. Bezdek quit the Pirates when Penn State expanded his duties (he also coached the baseball team) and he stayed there as head football coach through 1929 and AD until 1937.

Bezdek had been a successful college coach, putting together winning records at every school – his tally as football coach at Penn State had been 65-30-11. Unfortunately for him, the move to the NFL did not work out so well.

Before a crowd of 24,800 on a drizzly Friday night, the Rams lost badly in the opener to the Lions by a score of 28-0. The Rams committed five turnovers, including a pass interception that was returned 45 yards for a touchdown by Detroit lineman Tom Hupke.

It was the beginning of a season in which Cleveland ended up at the bottom of the Western Division with an NFL-worst 1-11 record. After defeating the Eagles in their second game at Philadelphia by a score of 21-3, the Rams not only lost their remaining games but only scored in double figures one more time during the season (in a 35-10 loss to Green Bay).

The offense was conservative, to the annoyance of the team owners who wanted a more wide-open attack that would appeal to the fans, but Bezdek insisted that the team had to establish a consistent running game before it could pass effectively. The Rams ranked next-to-last in both rushing (930 yards) and passing (839), and were at the bottom in overall offense (1769). They also scored the fewest points, with a grand total of 75 for the year.

The owners pressured Bezdek to resign following the disappointing season, but he refused (the three-year contract was no doubt a consideration on both sides). As a result, life was made miserable for him in his second year, with the ownership interfering in personnel decisions and undermining his authority. After the club started off 0-3 in 1938, Bezdek was fired. His overall NFL coaching record was 1-13.

The pro stint effectively marked the end of Bezdek’s coaching career, although he did lead Delaware Valley College to a 2-5 record in 1949. Although an unsuccessful head coach in the pro ranks, his 127-58-16 tally as a college coach gained him election to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1954, two years after his death.

As for the Rams, Art Lewis took over as head coach for the remainder of the ’38 season and went 4-4 for an overall 4-7 record. Dutch Clark, Hall of Fame tailback for the Lions who had played against Bezdek and the Rams in that first contest in 1937, became the head coach in 1939 and the team broke even at .500 (5-5-1).

1960: Broncos Defeat Patriots as AFL Debuts

The fourth, and ultimately most successful, organization to be known as the American Football League (AFL) had its regular season debut on September 9, 1960 as the Boston Patriots played host to the Denver Broncos. There were 21,597 fans in attendance at Boston University’s Nickerson Field (on the site of the former Braves Field) on a muggy Friday night as Patriots tackle Tony Discenzo booted the opening kickoff to the Broncos.

The Patriots, coached by Lou Saban and having badly beaten the Broncos in a preseason game a few weeks earlier, were considered to be heavy favorites coming into the opening game. Their biggest problem had been securing a home field (a chronic issue that would not be fully resolved until 1971, when the club moved to Foxboro, Massachusetts), having been turned down by Boston College, Harvard University, and baseball’s Red Sox, who owned Fenway Park. With help from the mayor, Boston University was prevailed upon to make its stadium available.


As for Denver, Head Coach Frank Filchock, a former NFL quarterback who went to the CFL, had been coaching with Saskatchewan and followed his general manager, Dean Griffing, to Colorado. Filchock recruited Frank Tripucka, a product of Notre Dame who had also played in the NFL and CFL, as an assistant coach but by the time the season rolled around Tripucka was the starting quarterback. As was the case with several of the AFL teams, money was tight and the Broncos wore uniforms that had been discarded by a defunct college all-star contest known as the Copper Bowl and became the joke of the league: mustard yellow (charitably called gold) jerseys with brown pants and helmets and vertically-striped brown and yellow socks.

The Broncos wasted no time in showing off some razzle-dazzle in returning the Patriots’ opening kickoff as HB Bob McNamara handed off to HB Al Carmichael, who had once returned a kickoff 106 yards for the Packers, on a reverse; Carmichael made it to his 17 yard line. Denver kept the ball on the ground, with Carmichael running five yards on the first play from scrimmage, and had to punt.

36-year-old QB Ed “Butch” Songin, a local product from Boston College who had also played briefly in Canada, completed the AFL’s first pass, to end Jim Colclough. There was no scoring until late in the period when Gino Cappelletti, who had played collegiately at the University of Minnesota and briefly in the CFL after going undrafted by the NFL, kicked a 35-yard field goal that put the Patriots up by 3-0.

Denver got on the board in the second quarter when Tripucka threw a swing pass to Carmichael who dashed 59 yards for a touchdown and the score stood at 7-3 at halftime.

The Broncos scored on another big play in the third quarter as HB Gene Mingo returned a punt 76 yards for a TD; however the exhausted Mingo, who also was the team’s placekicker, missed the ensuing extra point attempt.

Both defenses played well, and the Patriots made a big play defensively in the fourth quarter when DB Chuck Shonta intercepted a pass and returned it 52 yards to set up a 10-yard touchdown pass from Songin to Colclough. The Broncos held on, however, and won by a final score of 13-10.


Denver outgained the Patriots with 323 total yards to 219, and especially held an edge in rushing yards with 149 to 79. Gene Mingo was the top rusher, gaining 66 yards on 8 attempts. Al Carmichael was the all-around star, leading the Broncos with 130 yards on 6 pass receptions, including the one TD, while adding 24 yards on 9 carries and returning two kickoffs for a total of 54 yards. Frank Tripucka completed 10 of 15 passes for 180 yards with a TD and an interception.

Butch Songin went to the air 24 times and had 12 completions for 145 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions (both by Denver safety Goose Gonsoulin, on his way to leading the AFL with 11). FB Jim Crawford led the team in rushing with 29 yards on 8 carries; HB Larry Garron was right behind at 26 yards on 7 attempts. Jim Colclough caught 4 passes for 42 yards and a TD; Crawford also had 42 receiving yards on his two receptions.

Ultimately, both teams completed the season at the bottom of their respective divisions. The Patriots had a 5-9 record, while Denver was 4-9-1.

Gene Mingo led the AFL in scoring (123 points) and field goals (18) while contributing 33 extra points and six touchdowns; his 76-yard punt return was the longest in the league’s first season. Denver ranked at the bottom in team rushing and Frank Tripucka went to the air often, leading the league in passing attempts (478), completions (248), and yards (3038) - he also led the circuit by throwing 34 interceptions.


By the passer rating system then in use in the AFL, Butch Songin ranked fourth and behind Tripucka in third. However, by the modern system he ranked second (70.9) and his Denver counterpart seventh, and had a far better touchdown-to-interception ratio (22 TDs and 15 INTs to Tripucka’s 24 touchdowns and 34 interceptions). Gino Cappelletti scored just 60 points in ’60, but he would be shifted from the defensive backfield to offensive end and become the all-time scoring leader in the AFL’s ten-year history.

2002: Texans Defeat Cowboys in Franchise’s Debut

For the first time since the Oilers departed for Tennessee following the 1996 season, NFL football returned to Houston on September 8, 2002. The Houston Texans hosted the Dallas Cowboys in their regular season debut at the equally new Reliant Stadium. There were 69,604 fans on hand on a Sunday night to watch the new team take on their intrastate rival in what Commissioner Paul Tagliabue dubbed “the Texas Super Bowl.”

The Houston franchise had been awarded to Bob McNair for $700 million in 1999. Charley Casserly was hired as general manager and began building a scouting organization two years prior to the team’s taking the field. Dom Capers was hired as head coach, who had the experience of coaching an expansion team previously in Carolina.

The club looked to sign younger veterans in the expansion draft, and picked up several notable players including OT Tony Boselli and DT Gary Walker from Jacksonville, CB Aaron Glenn of the Jets, and WR Jermaine Lewis and LB Jamie Sharper from Baltimore. With the first choice in the college draft, the Texans picked QB David Carr from Fresno State (pictured above).

The stadium’s retractable roof was closed and the decibel level high as the Texans came out throwing in their first series. Carr threw a deep pass intended for WR Corey Bradford, who drew an interference call that resulted in a 43-yard gain. Three plays later, Carr passed to TE Billy Miller for a 19-yard touchdown and the Texans were up 7-0.

The contest settled into a defensive struggle, with Houston scoring again early in the second quarter on a 42-yard field goal by Kris Brown. The Cowboys got on the board before the half when Billy Cundiff kicked a field goal from 33 yards out, but their offense had sputtered much of the way as the first seven possessions ended in six punts and an interception. QB Quincy Carter failed to complete a pass until the second quarter.

Nevertheless, the Cowboys tied the score at 10-10 in the third quarter when RB Michael Wiley ran 46 yards for a touchdown. The Texans went back in front to stay early in the fourth quarter when Bradford made an outstanding catch of a pass from Carr for a 65-yard touchdown.

Houston regained possession on the ensuing kickoff thanks to a fumble, but was unable to capitalize when a Carr pass was deflected for an interception. However, the Texan defense continued to frustrate the Dallas offense and scored the final points of the game when NT Seth Payne tackled Carter in the end zone for a safety with under three minutes remaining. The Texans won by a score of 19-10.


David Carr completed 10 of 22 passes for 145 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Ominously, he was sacked six times, which would be a chronic problem throughout the inaugural season – Carr took every snap for the Texans and was sacked an NFL-record 76 times. RB James Allen led the team in rushing with 56 yards on 19 carries. Corey Bradford (pictured at left) was the top receiver with four catches for 99 yards and a touchdown.

The Cowboys largely won the statistical battle, outrushing the Texans 155 yards on 24 carries to 87 yards on 35 attempts. They also had the most total yards, 267 to 210. RB Emmitt Smith, who was closing in on the career rushing record, led the team with 67 yards on 17 carries (Wiley’s 46-yard TD run was his only carry of the day). Quincy Carter completed just 13 of 30 passes for 131 yards with one picked off. WR Joey Galloway was the top receiver, catching 6 passes for 69 yards.

Both teams were heavily penalized, with the Texans drawing 11 flags and Dallas 9. There were few turnovers, as the Cowboys lost the ball twice (one fumble and one interception) and Houston gave up the one interception.

Said Dallas owner Jerry Jones afterward, “I’m disappointed for Cowboys fans everywhere.” An embarrassed Emmitt Smith added that “We did nothing good.” Nevetheless, there were some bright spots for the Cowboys, such as the play of the defense and in particular that of DT La’Roi Glover. Glover, a six-year veteran who had been signed as a free agent, recorded 1.5 sacks and intercepted Carr’s deflected pass in his regular season debut with the Cowboys. Dallas went on to a 5-11 record for the third consecutive season – the last under Head Coach Dave Campo.

As for Houston, it was the first time that a modern NFL expansion team had won its initial regular season game since the Vikings did so in 1961, and as was the case in that instance there were few wins thereafter. The Texans lost their next five games on the way to finishing the season with a 4-12 record, placing them at the bottom of the AFC South.

The opening game against the Cowboys set the tone for the rest of the year: the defense played respectably, but the offense ranked at the bottom of the NFL. David Carr showed toughness but also made plenty of rookie mistakes. The offensive line performance was spotty, and the loss of Tony Boselli to shoulder surgery (he ended up never playing for the team) was a major blow. The running game suffered accordingly, as rookie RB Jonathan Wells led the club with 529 yards on the ground, but with an average gain of only 2.7 yards-per-carry. And while veterans like Gary Walker and Aaron Glenn made the Pro Bowl, others were disappointments (Boselli and Jermaine Lewis).

But at least for one week, Carr and the Texans were 1-0 and had reason to exult.

2008: Turner’s 220 Rushing Yards & Ryan’s Passing Lead Falcons Over Lions

The 2007 NFL season had been a dreadful one for the Atlanta Falcons, both on and off the field. QB Michael Vick had already been a source of some controversy for not better developing his great potential, but his off-field involvement in an illegal dog-fighting ring forced his removal from the team and eventual imprisonment. Then, 13 games into the season, first-year Head Coach Bobby Petrino abruptly resigned to return to the college ranks at Arkansas. The Falcons went 4-12 to end up at the bottom of the NFC South.

In the offseason, owner Arthur Blank took steps to revitalize the organization. Thomas Dimitroff, chief of scouting for the Patriots, was hired as general manager. Mike Smith, who had been defensive coordinator in Jacksonville, became the new head coach. In the first round of the draft, the Falcons chose QB Matt Ryan of Boston College. The roster was revamped: RB Michael Turner (pictured above), who had been backing up LaDainian Tomlinson in San Diego, was acquired as a free agent, as were safety Erik Coleman and PK Jason Elam; CB Domonique Foxworth was picked up in a trade with Denver just before the first game.

The Falcons opened the 2008 season on September 7 at the Georgia Dome against the Detroit Lions. Detroit was coming off its seventh straight losing season, although the 7-9 finish had been the best record of that string. Third year Head Coach Rod Marinelli had revamped both the players and coaching staff in an effort to yield better results.

It didn’t take long for the restructured Atlanta offense to score points. Ryan (pictured below), who had won the starting quarterback job during the preseason, handed off to Turner twice before firing his first regular season NFL pass – a 62-yard touchdown to WR Michael Jenkins. The Falcons scored on their next two possessions as well, on runs by Turner that covered 66 and five yards, and had a 21-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.


The Lions fought back in the second quarter, controlling the ball for much of the time and scoring two touchdowns on a three-yard run by RB Kevin Smith and 21-yard pass from QB Jon Kitna to WR Roy Williams. Atlanta’s lead was just 21-14 at halftime.

The Falcons took decisive control in the third quarter as Elam kicked a 50-yard field goal and RB Jerious Norwood ran 10 yards for a TD. The Lions scored once more after an eight-play, 75-yard drive capped by Kitna’s one-yard touchdown pass to TE Casey Fitzsimmons. But Atlanta put together a 12-play possession that was completed by Elam’s 25-yard field goal in the fourth quarter and the Lions were unable to come back. The final score was 34-21 in favor of the Falcons.

Atlanta set a team record in outrushing the Lions, 318 yards to 70. Michael Turner also set an individual club record as he gained 220 yards on 22 carries with the two touchdowns. It was also a record for a player in his first game with an NFL team.

Matt Ryan completed 9 of 13 passes for 161 yards with a TD and none picked off. WR Roddy White and Jerious Norwood both caught two passes, for 54 and six yards, respectively, while Jenkins had the most receiving yards for Atlanta with his lone reception, the 62-yard TD.

Detroit had to go to the air far more often as Jon Kitna threw 33 passes and completed 24 of them for 262 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. WR Calvin Johnson was the leading receiver with 7 catches for 107 yards. Kevin Smith gained 48 yards on 16 carries with the one TD.

A delighted Mike Smith, having achieved his first head coaching win at any level, said “We wanted a fast start, and I thought we did that.” The rookie quarterback, Ryan, showed emotion (after throwing his first touchdown pass, he knocked over C Todd McClure while charging down the field in celebration). He also showed poise and leadership. As Turner said afterward, “He didn’t seem like a rookie. He took control of the huddle…He was a real drill sergeant out there. He was letting everyone know who was in control.”

The Falcons built upon their opening game win to go 11-5, finishing second in the NFC South and earning a wild card berth in the postseason; they lost to the Arizona Cardinals in the opening round. The loss for Detroit was the first of many as the Lions ended up with an 0-16 record.

Michael Turner was the NFL’s second-leading rusher with 1699 yards on 376 carries for a 4.5-yard average and 17 touchdowns. He had a second 200-yard rushing game during the course of the season as well and received consensus 1st team All-Pro honors as well as selection to the Pro Bowl. Matt Ryan started all 16 games and passed for 3440 yards with 16 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He ranked fourth in the league in yards per attempt (7.9) and second in yards per completion (13.0) and was named Offensive Rookie of the Year by the Associated Press.

1946: Browns Dominate Miami in First AAFC Contest

There were 60,135 fans at Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium on September 6, 1946 to witness the debut of a new pro football league, the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). The size of the crowd was notable in itself, for it was the larger than any that had assembled to watch a regular season NFL game to date.

The AAFC had been organized by Arch Ward, sports editor of The Chicago Tribune, who had previously brought major league baseball’s All-Star Game and football’s College All-Star Game into being. The league was determined to be truly national in scope, with teams on the west coast (San Francisco and Los Angeles) and southeast (Miami) as well as the major centers of New York City and Chicago (the NFL’s Rams moved from Cleveland to Los Angeles in 1946 to extend the older league’s reach as well). By and large, the AAFC franchise owners were wealthier than their NFL counterparts and prepared to spend money in the competition for talent.

One of the new AAFC owners was Arthur “Mickey” McBride in Cleveland, who had made his money in real estate and taxi services. He hired Paul Brown (pictured above) as head coach and general manager, a smart public relations – as well as football – move. Brown was already a semi-legendary figure in Ohio football from his coaching stints at Massillon High School and Ohio State. He had most recently coached during World War II at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station and, everywhere he had been, he had produced winning teams. Likely in tribute, when a fan contest to name the new club was held, “Browns” was the winner.

Brown signed players that he was familiar with from his college and service coaching, including Otto Graham, who had been a single-wing tailback at Northwestern; end Mac Speedie, from Utah but who Brown knew from service football; and end Dante Lavelli and tackle/placekicker Lou Groza, from Ohio State. There were also Bill Willis, a guard from Ohio State, and 230-pound fullback Marion Motley, who was familiar to Brown from high school and service teams, who were not only talented players but the first two African-Americans in the AAFC (the NFL’s Rams broke that league’s color barrier in ’46 also).

All of those players were making their pro debuts in the opening game along with the new franchise and league. Other significant Browns players who had at least some prior pro experience included HB Edgar “Special Delivery” Jones, who briefly played for the Chicago Bears in 1945; tackle Lou Rymkus, formerly of the Washington Redskins; and Gaylon Smith, an all-purpose back who had spent four seasons with the Cleveland Rams.

The Browns’ opponents in the season-opening game were the Miami Seahawks, coached by Jack Meagher. They fell quickly behind in the first quarter as QB Cliff Lewis threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Speedie for the first score in Browns history. Groza followed with a 22-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

It was 27-0 by halftime as the Browns broke the game open in the second quarter. Otto Graham threw the first TD pass of his illustrious career, of 39 yards to Lavelli, HB Tom Colella ran for a 50-yard touchdown, and Groza booted another field goal, from 27 yards out.

The defense added two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter, as HB Don Greenwood scored on a three-yard fumble return and HB Ray Terrell intercepted a pass and ran 76 yards. In between, Groza kicked his third field goal, of 21 yards.

The final score was 44-0 and demonstrated both the dominance of the Browns and the weakness of the Seahawks. “I couldn’t believe we beat a pro team 44-0”, said Lavelli afterward.

Cleveland won its first seven games and didn’t allow another club to score in double figures until the seventh contest. After losing for the first time to the team that would be their chief nemesis in the AAFC, the San Francisco 49ers, the Browns lost once more to the Los Angeles Dons before completing the regular season with a 12-2 record. Finishing at the top of the Western Division, they went on to defeat the New York Yankees for the league title.

As outstanding as the Browns were, the Miami Seahawks proved to be the biggest failure of the AAFC’s first season. Two of the club’s games were postponed by hurricanes and the team never drew more than 9700 fans at home (they scheduled their games on Monday nights). The Seahawks weren’t helped by the fact that seven of their first eight games were played on the road and they were already 1-7 by that point. They finished at the bottom of the Eastern Division with a 3-11 tally.

Coach Meagher resigned after six games and was replaced by player/coach Hamp Pool. Owner Harvey Hester went broke and the other teams were forced to pay off the club’s debts at the end of the season. The franchise was expelled and replaced by the first incarnation of the Baltimore Colts for 1947.

2002: 49ers Defeat Giants in Thursday Night Opening Game

The NFL chose to open the 2002 regular season with a Thursday night game prior to the weekend contests. The New York Giants hosted the San Francisco 49ers at Giants Stadium in the New Jersey Meadowlands on September 5. There was a celebrity-filled concert at Times Square prior to the kickoff, much of it in tribute to the recovery efforts in New York City following the previous year’s terrorist attack.

The Giants, coached by Jim Fassel and NFC champions in 2000, had slipped to 7-9 in ’01 and there had been dissension sown along the way. Even a bright spot like DE Michael Strahan breaking the single-season record for sacks with 22.5 was clouded by controversy when it appeared that Green Bay QB Brett Favre had set himself up for the record-setting sack in the season finale. In the ensuing offseason, defensive coordinator John Fox left the club to become head coach of the Carolina Panthers and a mainstay at linebacker, Jessie Armstead, moved on to Washington as a free agent.

San Francisco had finished second in the NFC West under Head Coach Steve Mariucci in ’01 with a 12-4 mark and lost to Green Bay in the Wild Card round of the postseason. It was a step in the right direction after the club had run into salary cap trouble and fell below .500 in both 1999 and 2000. The passing combination of QB Jeff Garcia to WR Terrell Owens had been highly productive, although the temperamental Owens (pictured above) clashed with both coach and teammates.

For all of the pregame hoopla, the contest itself seemed anticlimactic as both teams started slowly. The 49ers got the first break on the game’s third play when safety Tony Parrish intercepted a pass by New York QB Kerry Collins. After a 16-yard run by Garcia, the Niners had a first and goal situation at the Giants seven yard line, but couldn’t get into the end zone and the resulting 25-yard field goal attempt by Jose Cortez was blocked.

New York proceeded to drive 69 yards on 11 plays with Matt Bryant, who had been cut the week before but re-signed when PK Owen Pochman had to be placed on injured reserve, booting a 29-yard field goal to give the Giants the early lead.

Cortez, the top placekicker in the XFL in 2001 with the Los Angeles Xtreme, made good on his second field goal attempt from 23 yards to tie the game at 3-3 at the end of the first quarter. That was it for the scoring until the last play of the half when Bryant narrowly made a 33-yard field goal that allowed the Giants to take a 6-3 lead into halftime.

San Francisco went ahead 10-6 in the third quarter as Garcia connected with RB Garrison Hearst on a swing pass that produced a nine-yard touchdown. The Niners seemed in control in the fourth quarter when Cortez kicked a 33-yard field goal following the third interception of a Collins pass.

However, the Giants fought back, driving 77 yards on 14 plays highlighted by Collins passes of 23 yards to WR Amani Toomer in a third-and-16 situation and 20 yards to rookie TE Jeremy Shockey. RB Tiki Barber capped the possession by diving into the end zone from a yard out, and with the successful PAT the score was tied at 13-13 with 1:49 remaining in regulation.

San Francisco’s offense took over on its 30 yard line following the kickoff, and Garcia immediately threw to Owens, who had streaked past Giants CB Jason Sehorn to make the catch on his way to a 33-yard gain. From the New York 37, Garcia passed again, this time to WR J.J. Stokes for 12 yards. After a seven-yard run by Hearst, Cortez was successful on the game-winning field goal from 36 yards. The 49ers went home with a hard-earned 16-13 victory.

Said 49ers Coach Mariucci afterward “It took us the whole game to get going, but we won. Can you call this game ugly? I guess you could say that.”

Indeed, sloppy play and penalties had marred the contest. There were 15 penalties, including 10 by the Giants. New York outgained the 49ers, 361 yards to 279, but had been undone by untimely interceptions (neither team fumbled) and penalty flags.

Terrell Owens was held to just eight yards receiving prior to the clutch catch that helped set up the winning field goal; he ended up with four receptions for 41 yards. TE Eric Johnson had the most receiving yards for the Niners with 44 on three catches. Jeff Garcia completed 16 of 26 passes for 166 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Garrison Hearst was the leading rusher with 40 yards on 12 carries.

Kerry Collins went to the air 45 times and completed 28 of those passes for 342 yards; however, he had the three interceptions as opposed to no TDs. Amani Toomer had an outstanding performance, catching 9 passes for 134 yards, but also had a 44-yard catch to inside the San Francisco 10 yard line wiped out by a holding penalty. The Giants gained just 43 yards on the ground, on 22 carries, with Tiki Barber leading the club with 29 yards on 15 attempts and the one score.


Both teams went on to finish the season with 10-6 records; in the case of the 49ers, it was good enough to win the NFC West while the Giants finished second in the NFC East and qualified for the postseason as a wild card team. They met in the Wild Card round, with San Francisco again coming out on top, 39-38, in a far-more exciting and high-scoring game that came down to a botched field goal attempt and missed pass interference call by the officials.

Terrell Owens caught a career-high 100 passes for 1300 yards and led the league with 13 touchdown receptions. The journeyman placekicker Jose Cortez (pictured above left) failed to last through the year with the 49ers and ended the 2002 season with Washington; he went on to see action with four more teams (as well as a brief second stint with the 49ers in 2005).

The Thursday night opening game was deemed a success and became an annual event, although since 2004 the host team has been the defending Super Bowl champion.

1994: Rookie Marshall Faulk Spurs Colts to Win Over Oilers

The Indianapolis Colts had used their second overall pick in the 1994 NFL draft to choose RB Marshall Faulk of San Diego State, a fast 5’10”, 207-pounder with toughness and solid receiving skills. Faulk wasted no time in having an impact as he led the Colts to a big win in the season opening game on September 4, 1994 against the Houston Oilers at the RCA Dome.

Indianapolis, coming off a 4-12 record in ’93, had not only added Faulk, as well as LB Trev Alberts, in the first round of the draft, but had also revamped much of the team. In taking on the Oilers, Head Coach Ted Marchibroda’s club was up against the defending AFC Central champions, but Houston was a team in transition, especially having lost QB Warren Moon by a trade to the Vikings, G Mike Munchak to retirement, and defensive ends William Fuller and Sean Jones to free agency (gone also was defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan, who had openly feuded with offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride).

Faulk opened the scoring late in the first quarter on a one-yard run, following a series in which the Colts drove 47 yards in seven plays and the rookie running back carried the ball on six of them.

Indianapolis ripped the game open in the second quarter. First, LB Tony Bennett recovered a fumble by Houston QB Cody Carlson and returned it 75 yards for a touchdown. On their next possession, the offense moved 56 yards in eight plays capped by a touchdown pass of four yards from QB Jim Harbaugh to WR Floyd Turner. Houston’s WR Travis Hannah fumbled the ensuing kickoff, which was recovered by the Colts at the Oilers’ 22 yard line, and five plays later Harbaugh connected with Turner again for a nine-yard TD.

No sooner did the Houston offense get on the field when, on the first play, Carlson threw a pass that was intercepted by FS Ray Buchanon, who returned it 22 yards. It took just four plays for Faulk to score his second touchdown of the game, running up the middle from two yards out, and the Colts went into halftime with a 35-0 lead. The 28-point second quarter tied a club record (since broken).

Faulk led off the second half scoring ten minutes into the third quarter with an 11-yard touchdown run before Houston finally scored three late TDs. The final tally was 45-21.

Faulk ended up running for 143 yards on 23 carries with three touchdowns in his regular season debut. He also caught one pass for 31 yards, which was the longest pass play of the day for the Colts (who didn’t have much need to go to the air) and made him the team’s receiving yardage leader for the game. Jim Harbaugh, a veteran free agent signee from the Bears, completed 9 of 12 passes for 105 yards with two TDs and an interception.

Indianapolis outrushed the Oilers, 182 yards to 79. Houston gained the most total yards (374 to 288), a deceiving figure since the Oilers were far behind and went to the air often at a point when the outcome had long been decided. There was plenty of sloppy play throughout – the teams combined for 23 penalties, which were almost evenly divided (12 by the Oilers, 11 by the Colts).

The ineffective Cody Carlson (11 of 22 for 129 yards with an interception) gave way to backup Bucky Richardson who threw 35 passes with 19 completions for 203 yards and three touchdowns. WR Webster Slaughter had 9 receptions for 77 yards, while WR Haywood Jeffires gained 99 yards on 8 catches with two touchdowns. RB Gary Brown rushed for 39 yards on 10 carries.

The big opening day win did not signal a huge turnaround for the Colts, who lost their next three contests, but overall they improved to an 8-8 record that placed them third in the AFC East. The loss did portend bad tidings for Houston, however, as the Oilers went on to a 2-14 finish that was the worst in the NFL.

Marshall Faulk ended his rookie campaign with 1282 yards on 314 carries for a 4.1-yard average and 11 touchdowns while also catching 52 passes for 522 yards and a TD. The rushing total ranked third in the AFC, as did Faulk’s 1804 all-purpose yards, and he was chosen as Offensive Rookie of the Year by the Associated Press. Over the course of his 12-year career with two teams, he would come to be recognized as one of the most productive all-around running backs (receiver out of the backfield as well as runner) in pro football history with an eventual total of 19,172 yards (12,279 rushing, 6875 receiving).