1979: Bucs Dominate Rams in Key Early Showdown

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had been regarded as something of a joke when they lost all 14 of their games during the inaugural season of 1976 and a total of 26 straight before finally entering the win column in the last two contests of ’77. They had risen to 5-11 in 1978, but had collapsed in the second half of the year after a promising start. Still, by 1979 Head Coach John McKay’s team was ready to contend and won its first three games. QB Doug Williams had shown promise as a rookie in ’78 and, if he lacked polish and consistency, he was also displaying the ability to make big plays. Third-year RB Ricky Bell was proving why the Bucs had taken him first overall in the 1977 draft and he was joined in the backfield by rookie HB Jerry Eckwood. Most significantly, the defense had come together to become one of the best units in the NFL. Anchored by DE Lee Roy Selmon, it was tough against the run and pass.

On September 23 the Bucs faced their toughest test to date against the visiting Los Angeles Rams. LA had been a regular contender throughout the decade and had won the NFC West for six straight seasons, first under Chuck Knox as head coach and now Ray Malavasi. The Rams also boasted a strong defense and a conservative offense directed by QB Pat Haden. They were 2-1 coming into the contest with the Buccaneers, having lost their opening game but winning the next two.

Things did not get off to a promising start for the fans at Tampa Stadium. On the second play of the game, Eckwood fumbled and CB Pat Thomas recovered for the Rams at the Tampa Bay 39. However, the LA offense could gain a total of just two yards against the inspired Buccaneers defense and the Rams were forced to punt.

The Rams blew another opportunity on their next series when they drove to the Tampa Bay 26 but Frank Corral missed a field goal attempt. However, following the missed field goal try, Rams LB Jim Youngblood intercepted a Doug Williams pass and returned it 31 yards for a touchdown. Corral missed the extra point attempt but Los Angeles held a 6-0 lead after a quarter of play.

Things changed decisively in the second quarter as the Buccaneers scored three touchdowns. The first was set up when NT Bill Kollar recovered a fumble by Rams HB Lawrence McCutcheon at the LA 27. Three plays later, the Bucs capitalized when Williams connected with WR Larry Mucker for a 15-yard TD.

The next scoring drive was helped along when, after stopping the Bucs at their own 24, Pat Thomas was flagged for roughing punter Tom Blanchard. LA gave away more territory on the next play when Williams threw an incomplete pass but the Rams were called for a personal foul, advancing the ball to the Tampa Bay 46. Two plays later, Willams completed a pass to WR Morris Owens at the LA 28 and a roughing the passer penalty put the ball on the 14. Three plays after that Ricky Bell ran through the middle of the line for a five-yard touchdown and, with the successful PAT, it was 14-6 in favor of the Buccaneers.

The Rams failed to score when Corral missed another 47-yard field goal in a driving rain – one of several heavy showers during the game that drenched the already-wet field. Tampa Bay drove 70 yards in six plays, capped by a Williams pass to TE Jimmie Giles down the middle of the field for a 29-yard touchdown. The Bucs went into halftime with a 15-point lead.

The second half was anticlimactic as neither team scored again. Tampa Bay’s defense completely stymied the Rams, with linebackers Dewey Selmon (Lee Roy's brother, pictured at top), Richard Wood, David Lewis, and Cecil Johnson performing notably well. The Buccaneers had another opportunity to pad their lead in the fourth quarter, advancing to the LA 15, but Neil O’Donoghue’s 32-yard field goal attempt was blocked. It wasn’t needed as Tampa Bay won by a score of 21-6.

On a day when the defenses dominated, the Buccaneers led in total yards (249 to 186) and first downs (15 to 11). The Rams turned the ball over four times, to three by Tampa Bay, and hurt themselves with five penalties that cost 61 yards (and came primarily on the second scoring drive by the Bucs).

Doug Williams completed only 5 of 20 pass attempts, but they were good for 101 yards and two touchdowns, keeping in line with the young quarterback’s big-play ability. He gave up the one interception, which directly led to LA’s only score. Ricky Bell (pictured at left) ran the ball 18 times for 69 yards and a TD and Jerry Eckwood accounted for 59 yards on 22 carries. The five pass completions were each to different receivers – Jimmie Giles, with his 29-yard scoring reception, led the team in yards.

For the Rams, Pat Haden was successful on 13 of 27 passes, but for just 64 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. FB Elvis Peacock led the running game with 47 yards on 6 carries while HB Wendell Tyler was right behind at 43 yards on 7 attempts. Lawrence McCutcheon, who gained just 9 yards on 8 carries, had the most pass receptions with 5, although for just 9 yards. TE Charle Young had the most receiving yards, with 28 on two receptions. Only three catches were made by wide receivers, gaining a total of 19 yards.

Tampa Bay made it to 5-0 before being upset by the Giants. The Bucs slumped during the second half of the season but still won the NFC Central with a 10-6 record. The Rams, on the other hand, finished strong after getting off to a 4-5 start and once again topped the NFC West at 9-7, by which time Vince Ferragamo had replaced the injured Haden at quarterback. The two teams faced each other again in the NFC Championship game in which LA got its revenge in another defensive struggle before succumbing to the Steelers in the Super Bowl.

Doug Williams continued to be a low-percentage passer, completing just 41.8 percent of his 397 throws for 2448 yards with 18 touchdowns and 24 interceptions. Ricky Bell had his best year, rushing for 1263 yards on 283 carries (4.5 avg.) and scoring 7 TDs – adding in passing yards, he had 1511 yards from scrimmage and nine total scores.

Defense continued to carry the Bucs, as the unit gave up the fewest yards (3949) and points (237) in the league. Lee Roy Selmon was selected to the first of six straight Pro Bowls and was also chosen as NFL Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press.

1974: Steelers and Broncos Play to Tie in First NFL Regular Season Overtime Game

Among several significant rules changes in effect for the 1974 NFL season was the introduction of overtime for regular season games that were tied after the regulation four quarters. However, unlike the postseason, where overtime was already in use and had yielded some memorable results, the overtime for the regular season contests would be limited. If the score was still even after one extra 15-minute period it would end as a tie.

Overtime wasn’t necessary for any of the opening week games in ’74, but on September 22 the new rule came into effect for the first time in a contest at Denver between the Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Broncos, coached by John Ralston, were coming off the franchise’s first winning record (7-5-2) in ’73 but had lost their Week 1 contest to the Rams. 35-year-old QB Charley Johnson made the passing game formidable and eighth-year RB Floyd Little was still effective. It was hoped that the first draft choice from 1973, RB Otis Armstrong, would contribute more in his second year, while third-year TE Riley Odoms had already emerged as a key factor in the offense. The defense included rising stars in DE Lyle Alzado, DT Barney Chavous, and SS Bill Thompson.

Pittsburgh, in Head Coach Chuck Noll’s sixth season, was a tough defensive team with an offense still struggling to excel. A surprise coming into the ’74 season was the replacement of 1970’s overall first draft pick, Terry Bradshaw, at quarterback by Joe Gilliam (pictured above), a strong-armed African-American at a time when black signal callers were a rarity. The Steelers had made it to the playoffs the previous two years and were looking to move up. They had won their opening game against the Colts by a 30-0 score.

The fans at Mile High Stadium witnessed an exciting first quarter. There were 37 plays from scrimmage in all with the Broncos maintaining possession for most of the period. It started off when Denver’s Jim Turner squibbed the opening kickoff, which WR Jerry Simmons recovered for the Broncos. After driving to the Pittsburgh 39, Denver was forced to punt, but Billy Van Heusen pinned the Steelers down at their one yard line. The Steelers went three-and-out and punted in turn, giving the Broncos excellent field position.

On Denver’s first play following the punt, Charley Johnson fired a pass to Otis Armstrong for a 45-yard touchdown. The Steelers came right back, however. On the fourth play of their next series, Gilliam threw a screen pass to RB Steve Davis that, using downfield blocking effectively, was turned into a 61-yard TD. Roy Gerela’s extra point made it 7-7 at five minutes into the opening period.

Armstrong returned the ensuing kickoff 33 yards to the Denver 42. A second down pass to Floyd Little gained 18 yards and shortly thereafter Johnson, just getting his pass away over the hands of a Pittsburgh linebacker, hit WR Haven Moses at the four yard line. Two plays later, Moses finished off the drive with a touchdown reception in the corner of the end zone and the Broncos retook the lead.

On Pittsburgh’s next play from scrimmage, Gilliam threw to WR Frank Lewis who fumbled when hit hard by CB Calvin Jones. LB Mike Simone recovered for the Broncos and ran to the Denver one, where he was brought down by OT Jon Kolb. Rookie FB Jon Keyworth powered in for another Denver TD. While there were still five minutes left in the period, the first quarter scoring was over and the Broncos held a 21-7 lead.

In the second quarter, the Steelers put together an 87-yard drive that culminated in Gilliam scoring on a quarterback sneak. That was it for the first half scoring as Denver went into halftime leading by 21-14. Pittsburgh had the edge in total offense at the half (193 to 165) but suffered from dropped passes and a total of eight penalties that cost 66 yards.

Early in the third quarter, the Steelers tied the game following a third-down interception of a Johnson pass. Johnson suffered a severe shoulder sprain on the play, forcing him out of the game, and backup Steve Ramsey went the rest of the way. On the ensuing series, FB Franco Harris made a big catch for Pittsburgh at the Denver 13 and Davis finished the drive with a one-yard run followed by the tying extra point.

Another good Van Heusen punt forced the Steelers to start their next possession at their 9, and after getting out to the 38, Davis fumbled after catching a screen pass and Lyle Alzado recovered for Denver. Two plays later, Armstrong made an outstanding 32-yard run up the middle to the Pittsburgh three. Ramsey threw to Riley Odoms for a touchdown to put the Broncos back in front.

Gilliam hit on passes of 38 yards to WR John Stallworth, nine yards to TE Randy Grossman, and 10 yards to Lewis as the Steelers drove to another score. Davis ran for a one-yard touchdown and Gerela’s extra point made it 28-28.

Ramsey gave up an interception to LB Marv Kellum that gave the Steelers the ball at the Denver 16. Pittsburgh took the lead shortly thereafter when RB John “Frenchy” Fuqua scored from a yard out to make it 35-28.

It looked like big trouble for the Broncos when Ramsey turned the ball over again, this time on a fumble at his own 32 that Pittsburgh DE L.C. Greenwood recovered. However, after completing four passes, including a 17-yarder to Grossman to advance the ball to the Denver 14, Gilliam was sacked on a play that also drew a holding penalty and a pass intended for Stallworth bounced off the receiver’s hands as he was hit and was picked off by LB Tom Jackson at the 11, who proceeded to make a big return to the 50.

Armstrong caught a pass to get to the Pittsburgh 38, ran for 15 yards, and then caught another pass for a 15-yard touchdown. The extra point tied the game at 35-35.

With the score tied in the fourth quarter, the Steelers made it to midfield but were stymied by the Denver defense. However, on their next possession inside the last minute of regulation Gilliam passed the Steelers from the Denver 42 to the eight yard line. With five seconds left on the clock, Roy Gerela attempted a 25-yard field goal to win, but Barney Chavous and Bill Thompson broke through the line to block the kick and send the contest into overtime.

In the overtime period, the Steelers again drove to midfield but a sack by Tom Jackson moved them back and a third-and-22 pass was intercepted by DB John Rowser at the 35. Thanks to outstanding running by Armstrong, the Broncos drove into field goal range, but Jim Turner’s 40-yard attempt was wide to the right.

The Steelers had one last shot, getting the ball back at their own 16 yard line with 50 seconds remaining in the extra period. Coach Noll proved unwilling to take any chances, however, as Pittsburgh passed once and ran two running plays to exhaust the remaining time. The three-hour and 49-minute contest concluded as a 35-35 draw.

“I don’t think either team deserved to lose and neither team did,” summed up Denver’s Coach Ralston.

The teams combined for 160 plays that yielded 816 yards, with Pittsburgh accumulating the most (484 to 332) and also leading in first downs (33 to 20). The Steelers also turned the ball over four times, to three suffered by Denver, and penalties continued to be a problem as they committed 12 at a cost of 91 yards to 7 flags thrown on the Broncos for 61 yards. The Steelers converted 7 of 18 third downs, however, while Denver was only successful on one of 11.

Joe Gilliam provided plenty of excitement with his deep drops and rifled passes, going to the air 50 times and completing 31 for 348 yards with a touchdown and two intercepted. Franco Harris rushed for 70 yards on 20 carries and also led the club in pass receiving with 9 catches for 84 yards. Likewise, Steve Davis was at his best as a receiver out of the backfield – while he ran for two short TDs, he gained just 16 yards on 6 attempts but had 5 pass receptions for 58 yards and another score.

Otis Armstrong (pictured below) was the biggest star on offense for the Broncos as he rushed for 131 yards on 19 carries and caught 5 passes for 86 more yards plus two TDs. Charley Johnson completed 6 of 15 passes for 129 yards with two touchdowns and one interception before having to leave and Steve Ramsey added 6 completions in 12 attempts for 62 yards, also with two touchdowns and an interception. Haven Moses gained 61 yards and scored a TD on his three pass receptions.

The Steelers lost to Oakland the following week but then won five straight on their way to a 10-3-1 record that topped the AFC Central. They advanced to the Super Bowl where they attained the first NFL Championship in franchise history. Denver ended up second in the AFC West at 7-6-1.

Despite the impressive early showing, Joe Gilliam didn’t last as the starting quarterback for the Steelers – he was backing up Terry Bradshaw by the end of the season. He completed 45.3 percent of his 212 passes for 1274 yards with four touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Otis Armstrong had an outstanding year for the Broncos, leading the NFL in rushing with 1407 yards on 263 carries (5.3 avg.). He scored 9 TDs and also 38 passes for 405 more yards and three additional touchdowns. His 1812 yards from scrimmage also led the league.

There was just one other regular season overtime game in 1974, which was settled in overtime. It would be 1976 before another game ended in a tie in the NFL. 

MVP Profile: Y.A. Tittle, 1961

Quarterback, New York Giants

Age:  35 (Oct. 24)

14^th season in pro football, 12^th in NFL and 1^st with Giants

College: LSU

Height: 6’0”    Weight: 195

Prelude:

While drafted by the NFL’s Detroit Lions in 1948, Tittle instead signed with the Baltimore Colts of the AAFC. He had an immediate impact, leading the league in yards per attempt (8.7) and throwing for 16 TDs against 9 interceptions. After another year in the AAFC, Tittle and the Colts joined the NFL in 1950, and he led the league in pass completions (161) although the team went a dismal 1-11 and folded. Picked up by the 49ers in ’51, he gradually took over from Frankie Albert as the starting quarterback and was selected to the Pro Bowl following the 1953, ’54, and ‘57 seasons. In 1957 the 49ers tied for first in the Western Conference and Tittle also received MVP consideration. He suffered through an injury-plagued season in 1958 and, and while he bounced back with a Pro Bowl year in ’59, by ’60 found himself in competition with the up-and-coming John Brodie. With Head Coach Red Hickey committing to a shotgun offense for 1961, Tittle was dealt to the New York Giants in the preseason.

1961 Season Summary

Appeared in 13 of 14 games, started 10 of them

[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Passing

Attempts – 285 [6]

Most attempts, game – 41 at Washington 10/1

Completions – 163 [6]

Most completions, game – 24 at Washington 10/1

Yards – 2272 [7]

Most yards, game – 315 at Washington 10/1

Completion percentage – 57.2 [3]

Yards per attempt – 8.0 [6]

TD passes – 17 [5]

Most TD passes, game – 3 vs. Washington 11/5, vs. Philadelphia 11/12, vs. Pittsburgh 11/19

Interceptions – 12 [12, tied with John Brodie]

Most interceptions, game – 4 at Dallas 10/15

Passer rating – 85.3 [4]

300-yard passing games – 3

200-yard passing games – 5

Rushing

Attempts – 25

Most attempts, game – 4 (for 1 yd.) at Washington 10/1, (for 7 yds.) vs. Pittsburgh 11/19, (for 4 yds.) at Cleveland 11/26

Yards – 85

Most yards, game – 34 (on 3 att.) vs. Washington 11/5

Yards per attempt – 3.4

TDs – 3

Points

TDs - 3

Points – 18

Postseason: 1 G (NFL Championship at Green Bay)

Pass attempts – 20

Pass completions – 6

Passing yards – 65

TD passes – 0

Interceptions – 4

Rushing attempts – 1

Rushing yards – -4

Rushing TDs – 0

Awards & Honors:

NFL MVP: NEA

1^st team All-NFL: UPI, Sporting News

2^nd team All-NFL: NY Daily News

Pro Bowl

Giants went 10-3-1 to finish first in the Eastern Conference while ranking second in the NFL in points scored (368) and touchdowns (46, tied with the Eagles). Lost NFL Championship game to Green Bay Packers (37-0).

Aftermath:

Tittle continued his career revival in New York, receiving MVP, All-Pro, and Pro Bowl recognition after each of the next two seasons and tossing over 30 TDs (33 and 36) in back-to-back years in 1962 and ’63. The Giants won the Eastern Conference in all three, but came up short in the title games after each. The team collapsed in 1964, Tittle’s last season. He retired as NFL career leader in pass attempts (3817), completions (2118), and yards (28,339). The Giants retired his #14, and Tittle was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Class of 1971.

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MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or Player of the Year in the NFL, AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers Association, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, Maxwell Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself). 

[Updated 2/6/14]

1970: Revenge-Minded Vikings Beat Chiefs

The 1969 pro football season – the last in which the NFL and AFL existed as separate entities – ended with the AFL Champion Kansas City Chiefs handily defeating the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings in the Super Bowl. Much was said about how Kansas City Head Coach Hank Stram’s complex offense had been too much for Minnesota’s vaunted defense to handle. 

On September 20, 1970 the two teams opened the new season of the merged league at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, Minnesota. There were some changes – most notably, fiery Vikings QB Joe Kapp was holding out (he would not return to the team, joining the Boston Patriots instead), but Head Coach Bud Grant’s club retained the tough defense anchored by the line of ends Carl Eller and Jim Marshall and tackles Alan Page and Gary Larsen (pictured above #59 LB Lonnie Warwick, #88 Alan Page, #77 Gary Larsen, #60 LB Roy Winston, #81 Carl Eller). The Chiefs still had the same veteran core that included QB Len Dawson and WR Otis Taylor on offense and a star-filled defense that featured DT Buck Buchanon, MLB Willie Lanier, OLB Bobby Bell, and FS Johnny Robinson.

There was a capacity crowd of 47,900 on a rainy afternoon at Metropolitan Stadium. DB Charlie West started things off well for Minnesota as he returned the opening kickoff 49 yards to his own 47. The Vikings got into KC territory but a penalty combined with a sack of QB Gary Cuozzo by Buchanon drove them back and forced a punt.

Following a 65-yard punt by Jerrel Wilson that landed at the Minnesota three, the Vikings put together a long 15-play drive that ended with a 20-yard field goal by Fred Cox on the first play of the second quarter.

The Vikings got more points just three plays later. Kansas City HB Mike Garrett fumbled when hit by Carl Eller and Jim Marshall picked it up and rumbled 24 yards before tossing a lateral to LB Roy Winston at the KC 14, who took it the rest of the way for a touchdown and 10-0 lead.

The Chiefs came back with a big play as Dawson passed to Otis Taylor for a 59-yard touchdown. However, the Vikings embarked on another time-consuming drive, going 48 yards in 13 plays. With 47 seconds left in the half, and following two pass interference penalties on the Chiefs, HB Dave Osborn powered over from a yard out for a touchdown.

Minnesota controlled the ball effectively in the first half, running 41 plays to just 17 for the Chiefs and taking advantage of mistakes to build a 17-7 halftime lead. This was despite Len Dawson completing his first 12 passes as the Vikings simply kept the ball out of his hands for large stretches of time.

Kansas City came out throwing in the third quarter and Dawson completed five straight passes. The Chiefs ended up with a 28-yard field goal by Jan Stenerud, but were otherwise shut down the rest of the way.

In an eventful portion of the third quarter, Alan Page pulled the ball away from Kansas City FB Robert Holmes, but the Chiefs regained possession two plays later when FB Bill Brown fumbled and DT Curley Culp recovered. However, on the next play, the ball was turned over again when SS Karl Kassulke intercepted a Dawson pass. CB Jim Marsalis returned the favor a snap later when he intercepted Cuozzo’s pass intended for WR Gene Washington.

In the final period, RB Oscar Reed scored another TD for the Vikings that was set up by FS Paul Krause’s interception and 40-yards return to the KC 7. Cox capped the scoring with a 40-yard field goal and Minnesota ended up with a convincing 27-10 win.

The Chiefs, who had played with such precision in the Super Bowl, made costly mistakes, turning the ball over four times (to three by Minnesota) and committing untimely penalties. While the Vikings barely outgained them (220 yards to 218), Minnesota had 17 first downs to just 8 for Kansas City, only one of which came on the ground.

Gary Cuozzo turned in a workmanlike performance, completing 12 of 20 passes for 100 yards, although with two interceptions. Of Minnesota’s committee of running backs, 10^th-year veteran Bill Brown led with 55 yards on 17 carries. TE John Beasley caught three passes for 41 yards and WR Bob Grim also had three receptions, for 19 yards.

For the Chiefs, Len Dawson (pictured at right) was successful on 18 of his 27 throws for 164 yards with a TD and two interceptions. With the one long scoring play, Otis Taylor gained 100 yards on his 5 catches. FB Wendell Hayes, also heading a running-game-by-committee, ran for 22 yards on 7 attempts while Mike Garrett was held to 16 yards on 7 carries and had the damaging fumble.

“It happened eight months ago,” said Bud Grant in reference to the Super Bowl defeat, “but they’ve been shoving it down our throats ever since. We couldn’t say anything because that’s the price you pay when you lose.”

“If they would have gotten ahead, they probably would have tried more of their razzle-dazzle,” said Vikings LB Roy Winston. “We were better prepared this time and Kansas City was not fortunate to get ahead.”

“You can’t score unless you have the ball,” summed up Hank Stram from the losing side.

The Vikings went on to win the NFC Central with a 12-2 record, identical to their 1969 tally. However, they didn’t reach the Super Bowl again, falling to the 49ers in the Divisional round. Kansas City also failed to repeat, missing the postseason altogether by posting a 7-5-2 record and placing second in the AFC West.

Minnesota’s defense was the top-rated in the NFL and accounted for a total of five touchdowns during the season. Carl Eller and Alan Page (who recovered seven fumbles) were consensus first-team All-Pros and were joined as Pro Bowl selections by Gary Larsen and Karl Kassulke. 

1993: Testaverde Comes Off Bench to Rally Browns Past Raiders

The Cleveland Browns came into the 1993 NFL season after having endured three straight losing records. Under third-year Head Coach Bill Belichick, the Browns were showing signs of steady improvement and were active in signing free agents during the offseason. One of those newcomers was QB Vinny Testaverde, once a first-overall draft choice who had spent six uneven years in Tampa Bay. He was brought in to back up the team’s popular but brittle star quarterback, Bernie Kosar, who oddly enough Testaverde had understudied for two years at the University of Miami. With a healthy Kosar behind center, Cleveland had gotten off to a 2-0 start in ’93.

On September 19 the Browns took on the Raiders at Los Angeles. The Raiders were also 2-0 under Head Coach Art Shell. They were coming off a disappointing 7-9 record in 1992 after having been a playoff team the prior two years and had also brought in a new free agent quarterback, ex-Giant Jeff Hostetler. The veteran club had many aging players, but DE Howie Long was still outstanding and WR Tim Brown and CB Terry McDaniel were solid talents.

There were 48,617 fans in attendance at the Memorial Coliseum. The Raiders started off with an 80-yard drive that took eight plays and benefited from a 26-yard gain on a pass to WR Alexander Wright in a third-and-ten situation from 38-year-old backup QB Vince Evans, who came into the game when Hostetler was injured while being sacked. Hostetler returned and finished off the series with a two-yard touchdown throw to TE Andrew Glover.

The teams traded punts until late in the opening period when Kosar was intercepted by DT Chester McGlockton, giving the Raiders the ball at the Browns’ 7. They weren’t able to punch in for a TD, however, and settled for a 24-yard field goal by Jeff Jaeger to make it 10-0.

Following another Kosar interception on the last play of the first quarter, LA added another Jaeger field goal, this time from 27 yards. That was it for the first half scoring as Cleveland was only able to generate 37 net yards and three first downs while the Raiders failed to put more points on the board when they had opportunities. McGlockton and Howie Long dominated the line of scrimmage and harassed Kosar throughout the first thirty minutes.

Neither offense was effective in the third quarter until Cleveland RB Tommy Vardell took off for a 54-yard gain to the LA 24 yard line. But the Browns moved backward rather than forward as Kosar was sacked for a nine-yard loss, Vardell lost two yards on a running play, and Kosar fumbled and lost three more yards on the recovery. Cleveland was forced to punt.

Late in the period, and following another punt by the Raiders, the Browns moved into Los Angeles territory again thanks to a pass to Vardell that gained 21 yards, but the fourth quarter opened with Kosar, under heavy pressure, being intercepted on a pass at the goal line by Terry McDaniel.

When the Browns got the ball back after another three-and-out possession by the Raiders, Testaverde was in to relieve Kosar. Taking over at his 33, the ex-Heisman Trophy winner completed passes of 11 yards to TE Brian Kinchen, 18 yards to WR Lawyer Tillman on a third-and-seven play, and 15 yards to WR Mark Carrier, who had been a teammate previously with the Bucs. The drive stalled at the LA 14, but Matt Stover kicked a 32-yard field goal and Cleveland was finally on the board.

Once again the Raiders failed to move the ball on offense, but two plays after Jeff Gossett’s punt, CB James Trapp intercepted a Testaverde pass to once more put LA in possession in Cleveland territory at the 38. Three plays netted three yards, but Jaeger kicked his third field goal of the game from 53 yards to give the Raiders a seemingly-secure 16-3 lead with five minutes remaining in the game.

It seemed even worse for the Browns when RB Eric Metcalf fumbled the kickoff and, while he recovered, the offense had to start at its own 10 yard line. However, Testaverde again began completing passes – 17 yards to Carrier on first down, 13 yards to RB Leroy Hoard on a second-and-ten play, 22 yards to Metcalf for a big third-down conversion, and 18 yards to WR Michael Jackson. Testaverde was sacked after Cleveland got inside the LA 10, but responded with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Tillman that capped the 12-play, 90-yard series. With Stover’s successful extra point, the Browns were down by 16-10 with 2:26 remaining on the clock.

The Raiders took possession following the ensuing kickoff deep inside their own territory and, following an outstanding play by Cleveland LB Pepper Johnson to prevent Hostetler from completing a third-down pass to Glover, Gossett ran out of the end zone from punt formation to take an intentional safety.

Metcalf returned the free kick for 37 yards to give the Browns good field position at the LA 45. Vardell ran for eight yards and, after Testaverde’s pass intended for Jackson was incomplete, three more yards and a first down. Testaverde threw to Carrier for 16 yards to the 18 yard line and, after spiking the ball to stop the clock, passed again to Carrier for 17 more yards to put the ball on the one with 11 seconds remaining. The Browns used their last time out and Testaverde tossed an incompletion. On second down, Metcalf took a pitch and ran around end for a touchdown and the Browns could celebrate. Cleveland came away with a dramatic 19-16 win.

“I’m physically and emotionally shocked,” said a disappointed Howie Long afterward.

In a game dominated by defense, the Browns outgained the Raiders (316 yards to 156), who only had 85 net passing yards. Cleveland also had more first downs (20 to 11). However, the Browns turned the ball over four times, to none by Los Angeles. Cleveland recorded six quarterback sacks to LA’s five and the teams combined for a total of 14 punts.

Bernie Kosar had been dismal, completing 8 of 17 passes for 71 yards and tossing three interceptions. Vinny Testaverde, in less than a quarter of play, was successful on 10 of 22 throws for 159 yards with a touchdown as well as an interception. Tommy Vardell rushed for 104 yards on 14 carries – noteworthy because it was the first hundred-yard rushing performance by a Brown in 70 games, covering five years. Mark Carrier caught 5 passes for 73 yards.

For the Raiders, Jeff Hostetler went to the air 25 times and completed just 11 for 94 yards and a TD, although with none picked off. RB Greg Robinson was the top ground-gainer with 59 yards on 18 carries. FB Steve Smith paced the club with 4 catches for 42 yards.

While all the right assurances were made in the immediate aftermath that Bernie Kosar was still the starting quarterback, he was soon supplanted by Testaverde and, in a shocking move, was waived at midseason – especially shocking because Testaverde was injured at the time and third-stringer Todd Philcox had to step in. The Browns, after having gotten out to a 5-2 start, ended up on the wrong side of .500 again at 7-9, but Testaverde finished up as the starting quarterback with his best year to date in the NFL. He completed 56.5 percent of his passes for 1797 yards and, for the first time, tossed more touchdown passes (14) than interceptions (9). The stage was set for improvement in 1994.

Eric Metcalf (pictured below) was a consensus first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl selection as he gained a league-leading 1932 total yards (611 rushing, 539 receiving, 464 returning punts, and 318 returning kickoffs). Tommy Vardell rushed for 644 yards on 171 carries (3.8 avg.) – the 104-yard game against the Raiders was the only hundred-yard rushing performance of his career.

The Raiders recovered to go 10-6, finishing second in the AFC West but earning a spot in the postseason as a Wild Card. They made it to the Divisional round before losing to Buffalo.

1966: Namath Throws 5 TD Passes as Jets Rout Oilers

The New York Jets had made a big splash in 1965 when they signed QB Joe Namath (pictured at right) to a huge contract out of Alabama. The young quarterback had shown plenty of potential during his rookie season, but both he and Head Coach Weeb Ewbank’s Jets were still a work in progress. There was a solid veteran core with flanker Don Maynard, FB Bill Mathis, G Sam DeLuca, and LB Larry Grantham, and they were joined by talented younger players such as split end George Sauer, FB Matt Snell, OT Winston Hill, G Dave Herman, and C John Schmitt on offense and DE Verlon Biggs and MLB Al Atkinson on defense. Two 1966 rookies would have an immediate impact on the offense in HB Emerson Boozer, who brought much-needed outside speed, and TE Pete Lammons.

The Jets won their first game at Miami and were hosting the Houston Oilers for their home-opening contest on September 18, 1966. It seemed as though the Oilers would provide a good test, for they had already played two games and were off to a strong start. Wally Lemm had returned as head coach after a four-year hiatus with the NFL Cardinals. He first became coach during the 1961 season and led Houston to ten straight wins, including the AFL Championship game. Now he was looking to turn around a team that had endured three straight losing years. The Oilers still had 39-year-old George Blanda at quarterback and 31-year-old Charley Hennigan at flanker. But defense had dominated in the early going, most notably the line that contained 6’5”, 270-pound Pat Holmes, who had played four years in the CFL, and 6’9”, 315-pound ex-Charger Ernie Ladd at the tackle positions. Houston had soundly beaten Denver and Oakland by a combined score of 76-7 and was expected to give the Jets a tough contest.

There was a big crowd of 54,681 on hand at Shea Stadium for the battle of unbeaten teams. Houston scored first on a 49-yard field goal by Blanda. But Namath, who had hyper-extended his right knee when the two teams played in the preseason, set the tone with a 67-yard touchdown pass to Sauer in which he had plenty of time in the pocket.

In the second quarter, Blanda booted another field goal, from 30 yards, to narrow New York’s lead to 7-6. Late in the period the Jets put together an 85-yard drive in 11 plays. A screen pass to Matt Snell was good for a 25-yard TD to cap the series with just over two minutes remaining in the half.

The Jets weren’t done scoring before halftime, however, as Al Atkinson intercepted a Blanda pass at the Houston 33 on the first play following the ensuing kickoff. Namath threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Pete Lammons and the home team held a 21-6 lead at the intermission.

Less than two minutes into the third quarter, Namath tossed another scoring pass, this time to Don Maynard for 55 yards. The Jets had broken the game open in a span of four minutes of playing time, from the second to third quarters, and they were far from done. Namath threw another scoring pass to Maynard, this time covering 37 yards, and Jim Turner added a 32-yard field goal.

The Oilers didn’t penetrate deeper than the New York 30 until ten minutes into the third quarter. Blanda tossed an 11-yard touchdown pass to HB Sid Blanks, but it was a case of too-little, too-late. The Jets took a 38-13 lead into the final period.

Backup QB Mike Taliaferro came in for Namath in the fourth quarter and New York scored twice more. Emerson Boozer ran for a 39-yard touchdown and Taliaferro tossed an 18-yard TD pass to TE Curley Johnson (his only catch of the year - he was better known as the team’s punter). The Jets came away with a very convincing 52-13 win.

New York’s offensive line did an outstanding job of neutralizing Ladd and Holmes, and thus exposed Houston’s weakness in the defensive backfield. Defensively, another newcomer to the Jets, veteran CB Johnny Sample, had two key interceptions – the first of them stopped Houston’s deepest penetration of the first half after the Oilers had reached the New York 30.

The Jets significantly outgained Houston (466 yards to 207) and had more first downs (23 to 16). The Oilers turned the ball over five times and suffered four quarterback sacks while New York didn’t turn the ball over at all and the line gave up no sacks.

Joe Namath didn’t complete a high percentage of his passes, hitting on 12 of 31 attempts, but they were good for 283 yards and five touchdowns with none intercepted. Don Maynard (pictured below) was the top receiver with 7 catches for 156 yards and two TDs. Matt Snell rushed for 67 yards on 15 carries and also caught two passes for 28 yards and a touchdown. Emerson Boozer added 49 yards on five attempts that included a TD.

For the Oilers, George Blanda was successful on 15 of 34 throws for 144 yards with a touchdown and four interceptions before being relieved by Don Trull. Sid Blanks didn’t accomplish much running the ball, with three carries for six yards, but was the team’s top receiver with 7 catches for 61 yards and a TD out of the backfield. Split end Charley Frazier gained 64 yards on his three receptions. FB Charley Tolar ran for 34 yards on 10 attempts.

“Our whole offensive line was great,” enthused Weeb Ewbank afterward. “You have to especially give Sam DeLuca and Dave Herman credit for keeping Ladd and Holmes out.”

“I’m not too pleased about my accuracy,” summed up Joe Namath. “I’m not satisfied with those statistics but we won and that’s important.”

The win over the Oilers put the Jets in first place in the Eastern Division and they were 4-0-1 before finally losing – at Houston, no less. That was the first of four straight defeats and five in six games as New York finished up at 6-6-2 and in third place.

The defeat at New York was the first ever for Wally Lemm as coach of the Oilers, but it would prove to be far from the last. They lost twice more before beating the Jets at home and didn’t win again the rest of the way, ending up at the bottom of the division along with the expansion Dolphins at 3-11. Don Trull replaced George Blanda as the starting quarterback during the second half of the year and that marked the beginning of a major housecleaning that swept away such stalwarts as Blanda, Charley Hennigan, and Charley Tolar after the season.

Joe Namath’s development was apparent as he led the AFL in pass attempts (471), completions (232), and yards (3379) while tossing 19 touchdown passes. However, he remained very much a developmental project as he also led the league by tossing 27 interceptions.

Rookie of the Year: Rashaan Salaam, 1995

Running Back, Chicago Bears

Age: 21 (Oct. 7)

College: Colorado

Height: 6’1”    Weight: 226

Prelude:

Winner of the 1994 Heisman Trophy after rushing for 2055 yards as a junior, Salaam chose to enter the ’95 NFL draft and was taken by the Bears in the first round (21^st overall). Slow to get on track after a contract holdout that extended into training camp, he took over as the team’s feature back after RB Raymont Harris was lost to a broken collarbone in the season-opening game.

1995 Season Summary

Appeared in all 16 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Rushing

Attempts – 296 [10]

Most attempts, game - 30 (for 122 yds.) vs. Philadelphia 12/24

Yards – 1074 [13]

Most yards, game – 134 yards (on 27 carries) vs. Tampa Bay 12/17

Average gain – 3.6

TDs – 10 [8]

100-yard rushing games – 5

Pass Receiving

Receptions – 7         

Most receptions, game – 2 (for 25 yds.) at Jacksonville 10/15, (for 14 yds.) at NY Giants 11/26

Yards – 56

Most yards, game - 25 (on 2 catches) at Jacksonville 10/15

Average gain – 8.0

TDs – 0

Scoring

TDs – 10

Points – 60

Awards & Honors:

NFC Rookie of the Year: UPI

Bears went 9-7 to finish third in the NFC Central.

Aftermath:

The solid rookie season proved to be by far the best of Salaam’s career. He gained just 496 rushing yards in an injury-plagued 1996 season and 112 yards in three games in ’97 before being cut by the Bears. He appeared in two games for the Cleveland Browns in 1999 and also had a short stint with the Memphis Maniax of the XFL in 2001 (525 yards in 6 games). Overall, he gained just 610 more rushing yards and scored four more TDs in his abbreviated NFL career after his rookie year, a victim of injuries and poor work ethic.

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Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were named Rookie of the Year in the NFL, AFL (1960-69), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press – Offense or Defense, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, or the league itself – Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year). 

[Updated 2/6/14]