NFL Old School Game Of The Week: 'Scabskins' Stun Cowboys

NFL fans were not happy when replacement players were brought in to play NFL games during the 1987 NFL strike.

One of the reasons the National Football League became the most popular league in America was the fact they have had labor peace for 30 years, meaning no cancellation of regular season games, unlike the NBA, NHL, and Major League Baseball.

But that wasn't always the case as not one but two player strikes nearly crippled the league during the 1980s.

The first came in 1982, which lasted for 57 days and reduced the season from 16 games to 9 games.

The second came in 1987, when the NFL Players Association demanded chances to the league's free agent policy.

Just like the strike in 1982, players struck after the second game of the regular season and games for the third week of the season were cancelled.

Vowing to avoid the 1982 debacle and put pressure on the union, the NFL decided to resume the season with replacement players filling the rosters of all 28 teams in the league, with the results counting toward who would make the playoffs, assuming the regular players would return.

While attendances and TV ratings dropped, the move worked as several NFL stars like 49ers quarterback Joe Montana and Seahawks wide receiver Steve Largent and helped end the strike one month after it began.

Still before all the regular players would return, there was one game left to be played and that was the Monday Night Football encounter between the Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys.

While the Cowboys had about 20 players cross the picket lines, the Redskins were filled with all replacement players or "scabs" as they become to be known.

Nevertheless, the "Scabskins" did pretty well winning their two previous games, the first being a 28-21 win over the St.Louis(now Arizona) Cardinals where wide receiver Anthony Allen set the Redskins record for most receiving yards in a game with 255 yards on seven catches and three touchdowns.

Washington followed that up with a 38-12 win over the New York Giants behind a 128-yard rushing performance by running back Lionel Vital, increasing the "Scabskins" record to 2-0 as they head to Dallas to take on the Cowboys on Monday Night Football.

Facing a team mixed with actual NFL players, the Redskins were essentially given no chance to defeat the Cowboys.

But the "Scabskins" would write one of the greatest Cinderella stories in NFL history in the final game for the replacement players.

Cowboys running back Tony Dorsett carried the ball 19 times for 81 yards, but had two costly fumbles.

The Cowboys got the ball to start the game and begin their possession at their 20-yard-line with Danny White back at quarterback and Tony Dorsett back in the backfield at running back.

Dorsett did not seem rusty as he picked up 17 yards on his first two carries, but on his fourth carry, Dorsett lost the football when he fumbled the football on a 3rd-and-1 with Redskins defensive tackle Dan Benish recovering the fumble at the Cowboys' 46-yard-line.

From there, the Redskins went to Vital, who carried the ball three straight times for 16 times before quarterback Ed Rubbert found tight end Joe Caravello for 22 yards, giving Washington a 1st-and-goal at the eight-yard-line.

But on 3rd-and-goal from the one-yard-line, fullback Wayne Wilson was dropped for a one-yard loss, forcing the Redskins to settle for a 19-yard field goal by Obed Ariri, which gave Washington a 3-0 lead with 8:49 remaining in the first quarter.

After both teams went three-and-out on their next possession,the Cowboys got the ball back at their 10-yard-line, only to have Dorsett fumble the ball for the second time in three possessions, when he was hit by Redskins defensive end Alec Gibson with linebacker Bobby Curtis recovering the loose ball at the Dallas 41-yard-line.

Even though they were in Dallas territory, it appeared the Redskins were in trouble when Rubbert was knocked out of the game with a bruised shoulder following a hit by Dallas linebacker Dale Jones on 2nd-and-6.

Rubbert was replaced by Tony Robinson, who had been in jail in the spring of 1987 for selling cocaine and was out on a prison furlough to play in another football league when the strike hit.

All Robinson did on his first play from scrimmage was scramble out of the pocket and find tight end Craig McEwen for a six-yard gain, then hit Anthony Allen for a 25-yard completion to give Washington a 1st-and-goal at the Dallas eight-yard-line.

However, the Redskins gave the ball back to Dallas when Vital fumbled on 2nd-and-goal as Cowboys defensive tackle Kevin Brooks recovered the loose ball at the Cowboys' five-yard-line with 55 seconds to go in the first quarter.

Redskins quarterback Tony Robinson came off the bench to complete 11 of 18 passes for 152 yards.

The score was still 3-0 in the middle of the second quarter when Washington linebacker Reggie Bunch was able to partially block a Buzz Sawyer punt, giving the Redskins the ball at the Dallas 47-yard-line with 8:52 to go before halftime.

The drive got off to a good start was Vital ran for 21 yards on the first play of the drive, but the Redskins were unable to pick up another 1st down, forcing them to try a 43-yard field goal attempt by Ariri.

However, Ariri's kick hit the right goalpost and the score remained 3-0 midway with 7:44 left in the second quarter.

Following another Cowboys punt, the Redskins drove took over at their 36-yard-line and were able to drive to the Dallas 11-yard-line, thanks to a 29-yard-run by Vital on the first play of the drive and a 4th-and-2 gamble that paid off when Cowboys defensive tackle Randy White was called for offsides, giving Washington 1st-and-10 at the Dallas 11-yard-line with less than two minutes in the half.

But the Cowboys defense was able up to not only hold the Redskins out of the end zone, but get the ball back when Dallas defensive back Tommy Haynes intercepted a Robinson pass to give the Cowboys the ball at their 23-yard-line with 1:12 left in the first half.

Dallas was able to drive into Redskins territory but came with no points as the first half came to a end with the "Scabskins" shockingly leading the Cowboys 3-0.

Washington got the ball to start the second half and put together its best drive of the game: a six-play, 80-yard drive that began with a 42-yard pass from Robinson to McEwen and ended with a 16-yard touchdown run by wide receiver Ted Wilson on an end around to increase the Redskins' lead to 10-0 with 11:35 left in the third quarter.

The Cowboys would respond with a seven-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that was capped off by White's 38-yard touchdown pass to Kelvin Edwards, to cut the deficit back to a field goal at 10-7 with 8:10 to go in the third quarter.

It seemed that the offenses for both teams had awakened as the Redskins would drive from their 21-yard-line to the Cowboys nine-yard-line as Washington converted on three 3rd down conversions on the drive with the first being a 30-yard-pass from Robinson to McEwen on 3rd-and-5 from the Washington 26-yard-line, followed by a 12-yard run by Ted Wilson on another end around on 3rd-and-3 from the Dallas 37-yard-line, then a nine-yard run by Tim Jessie to give the Redskins a 1st-and-goal at the nine-yard-line.

However, the drive ended on 2nd-and-goal from the seven-yard-line when Robinson was picked off again by Haynes, giving Dallas the ball back at their five-yard-line with 55 seconds left in the third quarter.

Redskins tight end Craig McEwen had seven catches for 108 yards, six of them for 102 yards in the second half alone.

The Cowboys were able to drive 24 yards before they had to punt, giving the ball back to the Redskins at their 47-yard-line with 13:17 left in the fourth quarter.

Just like they did on their previous drive, the Redskins were able to convert on three 3rd down situations as Robinson snuck for a 1st down on 3rd-and-1 at the Dallas 44-yard-line, then hit McEwen for a six-yard completion on 3rd-and-6 at the Cowboys 38-yard-line, and finally connecting with McEwen again, this time for seven yards on 3rd-and-6 from the Dallas 28-yard-line.

But on the Redskins were unable to convert on their fourth 3rd down situation of the drive as Robinson overthrow a pass intended for Allen in the end zone, forcing the Redskins to try a 39-yard field goal attempt by Ariri.

Ariri's kick was good to increase the Redskins' lead to 13-7 with over six minutes to go in the 4th quarter.

Facing an embarrassing loss to a bunch of "scabs", the Cowboys took over at their 25-yard-line with 6:05 left in the game and seemed poised to end the Redskins' chances of a momentous upset as White hit Mike Renfro for 15 yards on 3rd-and-7 from the Cowboys' 28-yard-line.

But on the very next play, White was picked off by Redskins defensive back Michael Mitchell on a pass intended for Renfro.

Mitchell's 17-yard return gave Washington the ball at the Dallas 34-yard-line with 4:26 left and a chance to run out the clock, only to have the Cowboys defense not permit a 1st down and force a Redskins punt, giving White and the Dallas offense the ball at their seven-yard-line with 2:37 and a chance to pull out the victory.

After a holding penalty pushed Dallas back to the three-yard-line, White connected with E.J. Jones for 10 yards on the final play before the two-minute warning, then came right back with a 19-yard pass to Edwards, followed by a 16-yard screen pass to Dorsett, putting the Cowboys at their 48-yard-line.

Following a three-yard pass to Jones to put the Cowboys into Redskins territory, White connected with Cornell Burbage for 12 yards, then found Renfro for 17 yards, to give Dallas a 1st-and-10 at the Redskins' 20-yard-line with under a minute to go.

It looked like the Redskins' chances of a fairy tale ending were going to be squashed until White finally threw an incomplete pass on 1st down, which was followed by a three-yard run by Dorsett, and then a four-yard scramble by White, setting up a do-or-die 4th-and-3 from the 13-yard-line with seven seconds left.

White threw a pass over the middle for Edwards, but the pass fell incomplete, giving the ball back to the Redskins with two seconds left.

And after Robinson took a knee, the "Scabskins" had pulled off one of the greatest upsets in NFL history with their 13-7 win over the Cowboys in the final game featuring replacement players as all the regular players came back the following week.

Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs is carried on the shoulders of some of the "Scabskins" after their upset over the Dallas Cowboys.

The Cowboys would end up finishing the season with a 7-8 record and out of the playoffs while the Redskins finished 11-4 and winning the NFC East Division, which earned them a spot in the playoffs.

Washington would knock off the Chicago Bears 21-17 in the Divisional Playoffs, then held off the Minnesota Vikings 17-10 in the NFC Championship Game, and then scored 35 points in the second quarter of Super Bowl XXII as they routed the Denver Broncos 42-10 for the team's second Super Bowl title in six seasons, with the first one occurring ironically during the 1982 strike-shortened season.

While the "Scabskins" never got Super Bowl rings for helping out the Redskins during the 1987 season, they did get the next best thing: a movie made about their story in the 2000 comedy The Replacements starring Keanu Reeves and Gene Hackman, which used the Redskins' win over the Cowboys as inspiration for the climax of the movie.

If you want to watch the highlights from the game, click below to watch:

College Football: 10 Greatest Championship Saturday Upsets

The four teams of the College Football Playoff will be determined after Championship Saturday.

This Saturday marks the final Saturday of the college football regular season or first Saturday of the postseason depending on your point of view, as nine of the 10 FBS conferences will hold conference championship games, with some of the winner of the Power Five Conferences(ACC, SEC, Big 10, Big 12, Pac 12) earning spots in the College Football Playoff.

This Saturday has become known as "Championship Saturday" and has produced some of the most memorable upsets in college football history and caused chaos in determining which teams play for the national championship.

With that in mind, I have come up with a list of what I think are the 10 greatest upsets to ever occur on Championship Saturday.

Here now are the 10 Greatest Championship Saturday Upsets:

10. 2013 Ohio State-Michigan State(Big 10 Championship)

#2 Ohio State had gone 24-0 since Urban Meyer had taken over as head coach in 2012, and one more win would send them to the BCS Championship Game.

But #10 Michigan State, led by quarterback Connor Cook’s 301 yards and three touchdowns, stunned the Buckeyes 34-24 to earn a trip to the Rose Bowl and allow for Auburn to go to the Title Game and play Florida State.

Connor Cook was the MVP in Michigan State's upset of Ohio State in the 2013 Big 10 Championship Game.

9. 2001 Texas-Colorado (Big 12 Championship)

After Tennessee knocked off #2 Florida 34-32 earlier in the day, #3 Texas had a chance to earn a trip to the Rose Bowl and play #1 Miami for the national title with a win over #9 Colorado in the Big 12 Championship Game.

However, Texas quarterback Chris Simms turned the ball over four times in the first half, which put the Longhorns in a 29-10 hole, that backup quarterback Major Applewhite come close to digging the Longhorns out of it, but it wasn’t enough as Colorado defeated Texas 39-37.

Chris Simms' 4 1st half turnovers doomed Texas's chance to play for the national championship in 2001.

8. 1998 UCLA-Miami

UCLA was ranked #2 in the BCS standings and one of three undefeated teams entering Championship Saturday as they traveled to the Orange Bowl to play the Miami Hurricanes in a game that had been rescheduled from September because of a hurricane.

However, UCLA could not contain Miami running back Edgerrin James, who ran for 299 yards on 39 carries and scored three touchdowns, including the game-winner with 50 seconds left to give the Hurricanes a 49-45 upset and opening the door for...

Edgerrian James(5) ran wild over the UCLA defense as his school record 299 yards helped Miami knock off UCLA.

7. 1998 Kansas State-Texas A&M (Big 12 Championship)

#3 Kansas State, who learned of the Bruins loss during their game with #10 Texas A&M, and needing just to beat the Aggies to play for the national championship.

It seemed that the Wildcats were on their way to the Fiesta Bowl(where the National Championship Game was played that year) as they held a 27-12 lead in the 4th quarter, only to have the Aggies come back to tie the game and send it into overtime.

Then in double overtime, A&M quarterback Brandon Stewart fired a swing pass to Sirr Parker, who turned the play into a game-winning 32-yard touchdown to give the Aggies a 36-33 double overtime win and send one-loss Florida State to the Fiesta Bowl to play undefeated Tennessee.

6. 2014 Wisconsin-Ohio State (Big 10 Championship)

Even they were #6 and higher ranked than the Badgers, Ohio State entered the Big 10 Championship Game as 4 ½ point underdogs because the Buckeyes were down to their third string quarterback in Cardale Jones.

But Jones’s three touchdowns and running back Ezekiel Elliott’s 220 yards, the Buckeyes destroyed Wisconsin 59-0 and leapfrogged TCU and Baylor, to enter the inaugural College Football Playoff, and end up winning the national title with Jones at quarterback.

In his first career start, quarterback Cardale Jones(12) lead Ohio State to a 59-0 win over Wisconsin and a spot in the College Football Playoff.

5. 2003 Kansas State-Oklahoma (Big 12 Championship)

#1 Oklahoma was a two-touchdown favorite as they played #13 Kansas State for the Big 12 Championship.

But the Sooners would be shellshocked by the Wildcats 35-7 as Kansas State quarterback Eli Roberson threw four touchdown passes and running back Darren Sproles ran for 235 yards.

Despite the loss, somehow Oklahoma finished #2 in the BCS standings over Pac-10 champion USC and played in the BCS Title Game, which they lost 21-14 to LSU causing a split national championship between USC and LSU.

Darren Sproles chewed up the Oklahoma defense as he ran for 235 yards in Kansas State's 35-7 upset over the Sooners.

4. 2001 Tennessee-LSU (SEC Championship)

One week after their win over #2 Florida and #3 Texas’ loss in the Big 12 title game(see number 9), Tennessee jumped to #2 in the BCS rankings and needing a win over #21 LSU in the SEC Championship Game, which had been moved back a week because of the 9/11 attacks, to play Miami for the national title.

It looked good for the Volunteers as they built a 17-7 lead and had knocked out LSU starting quarterback Rohan Davey out of the game, until backup Matt Mauck helped the Tigers to outscore the Vols 24-3 over the last 33:52 of the game to give the Tigers a 31-20 win and send Nebraska, who had lost to Colorado 62-36 in their final game of the regular season and didn’t even play for their conference championship, to the Title Game.

Matt Mauck come off the bench and ran for two touchdowns to lead LSU to a 31-20 upset victory over Tennessee.

3. 1996 Texas-Nebraska(Big 12 Championship)

After learning that his Texas Longhorns were 21-point underdogs to the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Texas quarterback James Brown said that he thought Texas would beat Nebraska by 21 points.

While they did not win the game by three touchdowns, the Longhorns did upset the Huskers 37-27, thanks in large part to a 61-yard pass play from Brown to tight end Derek Lewis on 4th-and-inches from the Texas 28-yard-line, that set up Priest Holmes’ 3-yard game-clinching touchdown run.

The upset denied the Cornhuskers a chance at a third straight national championship and help send Florida to the title game where they would rout their instate rival Florida State 52-20 for the national championship.

2. 2006 USC-UCLA

Even though they had lost Heisman Trophy winners Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush to the NFL the year before, the USC Trojans were in line to play in the National Championship Game if they defeated their crosstown rival the UCLA Bruins, who entered the game with a 5-6 record.

But the Bruins hold the Trojans to just nine points, ending their streak of 63 straight games of scoring at least 20 points, and defeat USC for the first time since 1998 with a 13-9 win which opens the door for the Florida Gators to play Ohio State for the National Championship.

UCLA defensive lineman Brian Ruziecki waves the school's flag after the Bruins' upset of USC in 2006.

1.2007 Pittsburgh-West Virginia

It seemed like a forgone conclusion that #2 West Virginia would be in the BCS Championship Game as they were 28-point favorites over 4-7 Pittsburgh.

But the Pitt defense held the vaunted Mountaineer offense, which averaged 42 points per game, to 183 yards of total offense and nine 1st downs, to pull off the 13-9 upset which coupled with #1 Missouri’s 38-17 to Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game, allowed for two-loss LSU to make it to the Title Game, where they defeated Ohio State for the national championship.

Larry Williams sits on the field in disbelief after his West Virginia Mountaineers lost their chance to the play for the national championship following a 13-9 loss to 28-point underdog Pitt.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Big Ben's 503 Yards Leads To Steelers To Walk-Off TD Win

Ben Roethlisberger threw for 503 yards and three touchdown passes, including one as time expired, on 29-of-46 passing to give the Steelers a 37-36 win over the Green Bay Packers.

Pittsburgh Steelers Ben Roethlisberger is one of the greatest quarterbacks of this generation and a 1st-ballot Hall-of-Famer as he holds nearly every Steelers passing record, his two Super Bowl rings, and 30 career 4th quarter comebacks during his 14-year career.

One of "Big Ben"'s greatest games came in Week 15 of the 2009 NFL season as he threw for 503 yards in a back-and-forth quarterback duel with Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The Steelers entered their Week 15 matchup with the Packers on a five-game losing streak, dropping them to 6-7 under third year head coach Mike Tomlin, who had led the Steelers to the Super Bowl championship the following season.

If the Steelers were to going to defend their Super Bowl title, they had to defeat the Packers in Pittsburgh just to keep their playoff hopes alive.

While the Steelers' playoff chances were on life support, the Packers seemed poised to earn a playoff spot as they entered their game with Pittsburgh with a 9-4 record.

Led by quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who was in his second year as the Packers' starting quarterback, replacing the legednary Brett Favre, Green Bay hoped to get one win closer to the playoffs while also ending any hope for the Steelers to make the playoffs.

Despite the fact that it was 30 degrees with a wind chill of 21 degrees, the cold conditions would have no effect on the offenses or the passing game as both quarterbacks combined 886 passing yards ans six touchdown passes in a game that would not be decided until literally the final second.

After the Packers went three-and-out to start the game, the Steelers got the ball at their 40-yard-line where it took them only one play to get in the end zone as Roethlisberger hit Mike Wallace for a 60-yard touchdown to give Pittsburgh a 7-0 lead just 42 seconds into the game.

Steelers wide reciever Mike Wallace had only two catches in the game, but both went for touchdowns including one on the Steelers' first offensive play of the game.

Following an exchange of punts, the Packers began their third possession of the game at their 12-yard-line where after running back Ryan Grant picked up five yards on two straight runs, Rodgers dropped back and fired a pass down the middle for Greg Jennings, who made the catch at the Green Bay 45-yard-line, then broke the tackle attempt by Steelers defensive back Tyrone Carter and outran the rest of the Pittsburgh defense for a 83-yard touchdown that tied the game with 10:08 left in the first quarter.

The Steelers responded with a 10-play, 72-yard touchdown drive which saw Roethlisberger complete all five of his passes on the drive for 45 yards, setting up a two-yard touchdown run by Rashard Mendenhall to put Pittsburgh back up front, 14-7 with 3:52 to go in the opening quarter.

After another exchange of three-and-outs, the Packers were poised to put more points on the scoreboard as Donald Driver picked up 49 yards on a catch-and-run to put Green Bay on the Steelers' 21-yard-line as the first quarter came to a close.

But the Steelers defense would not permit another 1st down forcing to the Packers to settle for a 34-yard field goal attempt by Mason Crosby.

However, Crosby's kick was wide right and the score remained 14-7 in Pittsburgh's favor early in the second quarter.

The defenses seemed to take control of the game in the second quarter until the Packers put together an eight-play, 52-yard touchdown drive that saw Rodgers account for all of the yards on the drive as he completed five of seven passes for 38 yards, then ran for a 14-yard touchdown that with Crosby's extra point tied the game at 14 with 3:04 left in the first half.

The Steelers took over at their 20-yard-line and had a 1st-and-10 at the Packers' 15-yard-line with less than two minutes left before halftime after Roethlisberger connected with tight end Heath Miller on a 27-yard pass on 3rd-and-5 from the Pittsburgh 25-yard-line, then hit SantonioHolmes for 33 yards on the very next play.

Following a pass interference call on Packers linebacker Brandon Chillar, the Steelers had a 1st-and-goal at the Green Bay six-yard-line.

Roethlisberger would be sacked by Packers linebacker Clay Matthews on 1st down for a four-yard loss, but came back with a screen pass to running back Melwelde Moore that became a 10-yard touchdown to put Pittsburgh back in the lead at 21-14 with 26 seconds left in the first half.

Rodgers drove the Packers into Pittsburgh territory with two passes to Jordy Nelson totaling 37 yards to give Green Bay a 1st down at the Steelers 42-yard-line with seven seconds left.

But two straight incomplete passes would end the half with the Packers trailing the Steelers 21-14 as "Big Ben" threw for 223 yards and two touchdown passes on 14-of-20 passing while Rodgers had 238 yards and one touchdown pass on 13-of-28 passing.

Aaron Rodgers would end the day with 383 yards passing on 26-of-48 passing and accounted for four touchdowns(three passing, one rushing).

After both teams punted on their opening possessions of the second half, the Steelers took over at their 26-yard-line as Roethlisberger continued his hot streak as a 25-yard pass to Mendenhall on 3rd-and-8 from the Pittsburgh 28-yard-line, then hit Hines Ward for 17 more yards to give Pittsburgh a 1st-and-10 at the Packers' 14-yard-line where it appeared that Roethlisberger had his third touchdown pass of the game as he connected with Miller for a 14-yard touchdown.

But the touchdown was called back because of an offensive pass interference penalty on Miller, nullifying the touchdown and forcing the Steelers to settle for a 37-yard field goal by Jeff Reed, which increased the Pittsburgh lead to 24-14 for the only points of the third quarter.

After the Reed field goal, the Packers took over at their 31-yard-line and began a drive that would extended into the 4th quarter.

On the 13-play, 69-yard drive, Rodgers would complete seven of 10 passes for 68 yards, including the 11-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jermichael Finley to cut the Steelers' lead to 24-21 with 13:30 left in the fourth quarter.

Pittsburgh would strike back on the next offensive play from scrimmage as Roethlisberger hit Ward for 29 yards, then found Miller for 12 more yards, to give the Steelers a 1st-and-10 at the Packers' 18-yard-line.

But a two-yard run by Willie Parker and two straight incomplete passes, forced the Steelers to settle for 34-yard field goal by Reed to make a 27-21 Pittsburgh lead with 9:45 to go in the 4th quarter.

It only took the Packers four plays to get back into the end zone as Rodgers hit three straight passes for 38 yards, then handed the ball off to Grant, who busted through the left side for a 24-yard touchdown that with Crosby's extra point gave Green Bay its first lead of the game, 28-27 with 7:45 remaining in the fourth quarter.

The Steelers took over at their 31-yard-line but their drive seemed to get off to an auspicious start as holding call on Holmes push Pittsburgh back to their 21-yard-line.

After a two-yard run by Mendenhall on 1st down, Roethlisberger avoided the Green Bay pressure and fired a pass for Ward, who made the 54-yard catch to give Pittsburgh a 1st down at the Packers' 23-yard-line.

Again, the Packers defense rose up and would not permit another 1st down, forcing another field goal attempt by the Steelers, which was made by Reed from 43 yards out to put Pittsburgh back on top 30-28 with 3:58 left in the game.

Hines Ward makes one of his seven catches for 126 yards, leading all receivers in the game.

That is when Tomlin made a questionable decision as he decided to go for the onside kick on the ensuing kickoff.

Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor did recover the onside kick, but he recovered one yard too early, meaning he was called for illegal touching, which resulted in a five-yard penalty and the ball to the Packers at the Pittsburgh' 39-yard-line.

It took the Packers six plays and 1:52 to get back into the end zone as Rodgers threw his touchdown pass of the game as he found James Jones at the 10-yard-line, who then ran in untouched to complete the 24-yard touchdown, putting Green Bay back in the lead at 34-30.

McCarthy decided to go for the two-point conversion and got it when Rodgers found running back Brandon Jackson in the end zone to increase the Packers lead to 36-30 with 2:06 left in the game.

After a short kickoff return by Stefan Logan on the ensuing kickoff, the Steelers took over at their 14-yard-line with 2:01 left on the clock and just one timeout in their pocket as they needed to drive 86 yards to win the game.

The drive got off to a good start as the Steelers were able to draw a defensive holding penalty on Packers cornerback Charles Woodson, giving them five yards and an automatic 1st down.

However, Roethlisberger would be sacked on 1st down by Packers linebacker linebacker Brady Poppinga for a four-yard-loss, which was followed by a seven-yard pass to Miller and an incomplete pass, setting up a 4th-and-7 from the Green Bay 22-yard-line with 1:14 to go.

That is when Roethlisberger found Holmes on a crossing route at the Green Bay 40-yard-line, who then ran into Packers territory to the Green Bay 46-yard-line to complete the 32-yard play and give Pittsburgh a 1st down.

After Steelers left tackle Max Starks was called for holding on the next play, pushing the Steelers back to 10 yards and setting up a 1st-and-20, it appeared that the Packers had won the game as defensive back Jarrett Bush intercepted Roethlisberger's pass, only to have the interception negated as Chillar was called for illegal contact after knocking Ward to the ground, drawing a 5-yard penalty and automatic 1st down for Pittsburgh at the Steelers' 49-yard-line.

Following two incomplete passes and a false start on Starks, Roethlisberger found Miller for 20 yards and a 1st down at the Green Bay 36-yard-line.

Then after a defensive holding penalty gave Pittsburgh two extra yards and a 1st down, Roethlisberger found Miller again this time for 15 yards and another 1st down at the Packers' 19-yard-line with 19 seconds left as the Steelers called their final timeout.

With that 15-yard pass, Roethlisberger broke the Steelers' record for most passing yards in a game which had been 473 and held by Tommy Maddox since 2002, as "Big Ben" at this point had 484 yards.

But what was on "Big Ben"'s mind was getting in the end zone which he failed to do as his next two passes fell incomplete, leaving Pittsburgh three seconds for a possible game-winning touchdown.

That is when Roethlisberger dropped back to his 30-yard-line and fired a pass toward the left corner of the end zone for Wallace, who had not made a catch since his 60-yard touchdown catch on the Steelers' first offensive play of the game.

The ball hit Wallace perfectly in the stomach, who made the catch and got both feet in bounds, before he landed out of bounds, to complete the 19-yard touchdown to tie the game as time expired.

Reed come on to kick the extra point to give the Steelers a 37-36, ending their five-game losing streak as Roethelisberger finished with 503 passing yards, becoming the ninth quarterback in NFL history to throw for at least 500 yards in a game.

The win kept the Steelers' playoff hopes alive and even though they would win the last two games of the season to finish 9-7, but would not make the playoffs as they lost on a tiebreaker with three other teams.

The Packers would make the playoffs with a 11-5 record as a Wild Card team, but would be lose to the Arizona Cardinals in the highest scoring playoff game in NFL history as they lost to the Cardinals 51-45 in overtime of their NFC Wild Card Game.

The two teams would come back the following season by making it all the way to the Super Bowl, where the Packers would get revenge as they defeated the Steelers 31-25 to win their fourth Super Bowl title, led by Rodgers' MVP performance as he completed 24 of 39 passes for 304 yards and threw three touchdown passes.

As for Roethlisberger, this game would not be the only time he would throw for at least 500 yards in a game.

In 2014, "Big Ben" threw for 522 yards on 40-of-49 passing and threw six touchdown passes in a 51-34 win over the Indianapolis Colts, and then again in 2017 when he threw for 506 yards and threw three touchdowns on 44-of-66 passing in a 39-38 win over the Baltimore Ravens.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Miami Comes From 24 Points Down to Beat Pats

Earl Morrall completed 15 of 23 passes for 288 yards and threw two touchdown passes in leading the Dolphins back from a 24-point deficit to defeat the Patriots.

Very little was on line for the Miami Dolphins as they entered their 1974 regular season finale with the New England Patriots, as the two-time defending Super Bowl Champions and three-time defending AFC Champions had already locked up their spot in the NFL Playoffs with an AFC East title and knew that they would be traveling to Oakland to face the Raiders in the Divisional Playoffs the following weekend.

With their playoff spot secured, Dolphins head coach Don Shula decided to rest many of his offensive stars including quarterback Bob Griese, running backs Mercury Morris and Larry Csonka, and wide receiver Paul Warfield.

Instead, 40-year-old backup Earl Morrall, who had thrown only four passes during the season would get his first start of the season, as he had been the primary starter during the Dolphins’ undefeated season two years before as Griese was out most of the season with a broken leg.

While the Dolphins had nothing to play for, the Patriots were hoping to end their season on a positive note where after starting the season 5-0, had lost six of their previous eight games, costing them a chance at the playoffs.

Led by second-year head coach Chuck Fairbanks and fourth-year quarterback Jim Plunkett, the Patriots not only entered the game in Miami with not only a chance to secure the franchise’s first winning season since 1966, but also had a chance for one of their players to set a NFL record.

Mack Herron, known as “Mini-Mack” for his 5 foot 5 inches stature, had a chance to break Gale Sayers’ all-purpose yards single season record of 2,440 if Herron could gain at least 182 yards by running the ball, catching the ball, or returning kickoffs and punts.

The Patriots won the coin toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff, which was returned to the New England 28-yard-line by Andy Johnson.

From there, Plunkett led the Patriots to the Miami seven-yard-line in nine plays, including a pair of 20-yard completions, one to Eddie Hinton and the other to Randy Vataha, that set up 1st-and-goal.

Joe Wilson got the ball on the next two plays and had the Patriots at the one-yard-line for 3rd-and-goal when Herron was stopped for no gain setting up 4th-and-goal.

Fairbanks decided to go for the touchdown, but his gamble failed when Plunkett’s pass intended for Herron was broken up by safety Jake Scott, giving the Dolphins the ball at their own one-yard-line.

However, the Patriots would get the ball back at the Miami 32-yard-line after forcing the Dolphins to go three-and-out and were quickly near the Dolphins goalline after two plays, a 19-yard pass to Johnson and a 10-yard run by Wilson that set up 1st-and-goal from the three-yard-line.

But after Herron gained one yard on 1st down and Plunkett’s pass for Vataha fell incomplete on 2nd down, the Patriots were in danger of blowing another scoring opportunity as they faced 3rd-and-goal from the two-yard-line.

That is when it appeared that disaster had struck for New England when Plunkett fumbled the snap from center Bill Lenkaitis, only to have left guard John Hannah recover the fumble in the end zone for a Patriots touchdown that put New England up 7-0 with 4:19 left in the opening quarter.

Jim Plunkett completed less than half of his passes, as he went 15-of-41 for 234 yards and threw one touchdown.

The Patriots’ defense were able to increase the lead on the Dolphins’ ensuing possession when cornerback John Sanders intercepted a Morrall pass that was intended for tight end Jim Mandich and returned for a 23-yard touchdown, making it a 14-0 lead for New England with 2:35 left in the first quarter.

It only get better for the Patriots on the ensuing kickoff as Hubert Ginn fumbled the football when he was hit by the Patriots’ Craig Hanneman, which was recovered by Ed Jenkins at the Miami 15-yard-line.

Herron got the call on all four plays of the Patriots’ ensuing drive as he carried the ball three straight times for 11 yards, and then caught a four-yard touchdown pass from Plunkett to increase the New England lead to 21-0 with 37 seconds left in the first quarter, the most points the Patriots have ever scored in a 1st quarter in their team’s history.

When the Patriots got the ball for the first time in the second quarter, they drove 57 yards in 12 plays, ending with a 46-yard field goal by John Smith to push the lead to 24-0 with over nine minutes left in the second quarter.

Even though there was still 39 minutes to play, it seemed like the game was over as only four times up to that point in NFL history had a team come back from a 24-point deficit to win a game and with most of the Dolphins’ starters not playing, chances seemed even more remote for a Miami victory.

And things did not get better on the Dolphins’ ensuing possession as they went three-and-out, giving the ball back to the Patriots who took over at their own 28-yard-line after the Miami punt.

But the “No-Names” rose up for the first time in the game as they forced a three-and-out, giving their offense the ball back at their 24-yard-line.

That is when the Dolphins offense woke up and got moving as Morrall hit Nat Moore for 16 yards on the first play of the drive, which was followed by a 20-yard pass to Melvin Baker that put Miami in New England territory for the first time in the game as the Dolphins had a 1st-and-10 at the Patriots’ 40-yard-line.

Then the Dolphins began to go backwards as Benny Malone was lost six yards on a 1st down run, which was followed by Morrall being dropped for another six-yard loss on 2nd down, and then a delay-of-game, setting up 3rd-and-27.

However, Morrall would hit Moore for 25 yards on 3rd down, to set up a 4th-and-2 at the Patriots’ 32-yard-line which Shula decided to go for the 1st down.

The Dolphins got the 1st down as Morrall connected with running back Don Nottingham for seven yards to give Miami a 1st down at the New England 25-yard-line as the two-minute warning struck.

Two plays later on 3rd-and-8, Morrall try to connect with Mandich for a touchdown, as the tight end was able to draw a pass interference penalty on strong safety Jack Mildren, putting the ball at the one-yard-line where Nottingham punched it in for the Dolphins’ first touchdown and to cut the Patriots’ lead to 24-7 with exactly 90 seconds to go before the halftime break.

It looked like the Dolphins were going to get another chance to cut into the New England lead as Johnson fumbled the ensuing kickoff, which was recovered by Miami’s Charlie Babb at the Patriots’ 27-yard-line.

But on the very next play, Morrall was intercepted by free safety Prentice McCray on a pass intended for Baker, and returned the pick 28 yards to the New England 37-yard-line, giving the Patriots a chance to either run out the clock or add to their lead.

However, the Dolphins’ defense was able to force a three-and-out and get the ball back with about 40 seconds left at their own 41-yard-line.

That is when Morrall connected with Moore for a 22-yard gain on 1st down, then found Baker in the right corner of the end zone for a 37-yard touchdown, that brought the Dolphins to within 10 points at 24-14 with 23 seconds left in the first half.

The Patriots were hoping to get out of the first half with the lead down to only 10 points, but for the second straight time, they fumbled on the kickoff, as Herron lost the football at his own 30-yard-line which was recovered by Lloyd Mumphord at the New England 31-yard-line with 16 seconds left, enough time for the Dolphins to get more points.

Morrall and Nottingham connected on a 20-yard screen pass to set up Garo Yepremian’s 28-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to trim the Patriots’ once 24-point lead down to just a touchdown, at 24-17 as the Dolphins scored 17 points in the last 90 seconds of the first half and were going to get the ball to start the second half.

Don Nottingham only rushed for 41 yards on 15 carries, but had two touchdowns in the Dolphins' comeback win.

The Dolphins drove from their 14-yard-line to the Patriots’ 44-yard-line before the drive stalled and Miami was forced to punt the ball back to New England, who went three-and-out on their opening drive of the 2nd half, giving the ball back to the Dolphins at the Miami 48-yard-line.

But after hitting Baker for a 18-yard gain on the first play of the drive, Morrall would threw his third interception of the day as Sanders made his second pick of the day as intercepted Morrall’s pass that was intended for Moore in the end zone, resulting in a touchback.

However, the Patriots would go three-and-out again, punting the ball to the Dolphins, who took over at their own 39-yard-line where Morrall connected with Nottingham for 13 yards, which was followed by a two-yard run by Malone, and then Morrall going deep for Baker, who made the catch at the Patriots’ five-yard-line, then ran in untouched to complete the 46-yard touchdown and with Yepremian’s extra point, tie the game at 24 with nearly 5 ½ minutes to go in the third quarter.

Following an exchange of punts, the Patriots took over at their own 45-yard-line and put together a nine-play, 38-yard drive which culminated with a 34-yard field goal by Smith, putting the Patriots back in the lead at 27-24 just 64 seconds into the fourth quarter.

It seemed the Patriots had finally recaptured the momentum of the game but Malone returned the ensuing kickoff 73 yards, giving the Dolphins a 1st down at the New England’ 27-yard-line.

The Dolphins went back to what they do best, run the ball, as Malone and Nottingham traded carries on a seven-play drive which ended with Nottingham’s two-yard touchdown run that put Miami back in front, 31-27 with 9:25 left in the final period.

Then after forcing the fourth three-and-out by the Patriots offense, the Dolphins were given a chance to put the game out of reach as Moore returned the ensuing punt 52 yards to the New England 32-yard-line.

However, the Patriots were able to force a field goal attempt, which Yepremian made from 40 yards out to push Miami’s lead to seven points, 34-27 with 4:19 left in regulation.

Needing a touchdown to force overtime, the Patriots got great field position as Yepremian’s kickoff was short and John Tanner’s 17-yard return gave New England the ball at their own 43-yard-line with 4:12 to go.

From there, Plunkett hit Herron for a 32-yard gain, inching him closer to Sayers’ record, but importantly giving New England a 1st down at the Dolphins’ 25-yard-line.

However, Plunkett’s next two incomplete passes fell incomplete and after an offsides penalty on Miami gave the Patriots five yards, Plunkett threw another incomplete pass setting up a 4th-and-5.

With little time left and being 20 yards from the end zone, Fairbanks went for the 1st down, but Plunkett’s pass intended for Herron fell incomplete, giving the ball back to Miami and a chance for the Dolphins to run out the clock with 2:51 to go.

But the Dolphins were unable to get a 1st down and were forced to punt the ball back to the Patriots, where after a 11-yard return by Herron, had the ball at the Miami 48-yard-line with 1:40 to play in regulation.

Wilson got the ball on 1st down and only gained one yard, which was followed by a near disaster as Wilson made a catch, only to fumble the ball.

Wilson recovered his own fumble at the 40-yard-line, setting up a 3rd-and-2 where Plunkett hit Herron for 10 yards that not only gave the Patriots a 1st down, but “Mini-Mack” the all-purpose yards record with 2,444 total yards(1146 returning, 824 rushing, 474 receiving).

Mack Herron(42) ran had 185 all-purpose yards(56 rushing, 68 receiving, and 61 returning) to break Gale Sayers' single season record for all-purpose yards.

With the ball at the 30-yard-line and the clock running, Plunkett found Vataha for 27 yards to give the Patriots a 1st-and-goal at the three-yard-line.

The Patriots offense ran to the three-yard-line and snapped the ball to Plunkett who overthrew Johnson stopping the clock with seven seconds left.

On 2nd down, Plunkett again threw, finding Tanner in the end zone, only to have him drop it, leaving the Patriots with four seconds left and probably one last chance to get into the end zone.

That is when Plunkett dropped back to pass, only to be sacked by Don Reese as time run out, preserving the Dolphins’ 34-27 victory to equal what was then the greatest comeback in NFL history until it was broken in 1980 when Joe Montana lead the 49ers back from 28 points down to beat the New Orleans Saints and then broken again in the 1992 Playoffs when the Buffalo Bills overcome a 32-point deficit to defeat the Houston Oilers.

Griese, Csonka, Morris, and Warfield would return the following week for the Dolphins’ Divisional Playoff where Miami’s quest for a third straight Super Bowl title ended with a 28-26 loss to the Raiders on the famous “Sea of Hands” touchdown catch by Clarence Davis with 24 seconds left in the game.

As for the Patriots, the late-season slide would follow them into the following season as they went 3-11 as Plunkett and Herron’s time with the Patriots came to an end that season as Plunkett lost the starting quarterback job to Steve Grogan and was traded to the San Francisco 49ers following the 1975 season, where he spent two years before being traded to the Oakland Raiders where he ended up winning two Super Bowl rings.

Herron’s production dropped off up dramatically in the ‘75 season as he gained only 771 all-purpose yards and would be out of the league after the season.

As for his all-purpose yards record, it would be broken in 1975 by the Cardinals’ Terry Metcalf, who gained 2,462 yards during the season.

The record is currently held by Darren Sproles, who set the record in 2011 with 2,696 yards.

And finally there is Earl Morrall, who would remain with the Dolphins for two more seasons as Griese and get one more start which he won, a 20-7 win over ironically, the Patriots.

Morrall retired after 21 seasons in the NFL where he played for six different teams and threw for 20, 809 yards and 161 touchdown passes in his career.