NFL Old School Game of the Week: Eagles Stun Saints With 26 Point 4th Quarter For Playoff Win

Eric Allen celebrates after scoring on a pick-six to complete the Eagles' comeback from a 13-point deficit.

When NFL fans think about the events of January 3, 1993,  the first thing that comes to their minds is the Buffalo Bills' legendary comeback from a 35-3 deficit to knock off the Houston Oilers 41-38 in overtime for the greatest comeback win in NFL history.

However, that game was not the only game to feature a memorable comeback as the Philadelphia Eagles faced off with the New Orleans Saints in a NFC Wild Card game.

The Eagles entered the game with a 11-5 record to earn their fourth playoff berth in five seasons, but things had not been easy.
Tragedy struck the Eagles on June 25, 1992 when all-pro defensive tackle Jerome Brown was killed in a car accident. He was only 27 years old.
The Eagles rallied around each other and vowed to "Bring It Home for Jerome" and win the Super Bowl in honor of their fallen teammate.
The Eagles would jump out to a 4-0 start with a defense that still featured defensive end Reggie White, linebacker Seth Joyner and cornerback Eric Allen as well as a offense with quarterback Randall Cunningham, who was coming off a knee injury that had sidelined him for the 1991 season.
However, the Eagles struggled in the middle of the season as they lost five of their next eight games to fall to 7-5.
But the Eagles would storm back with a four-game winning streak to earn a Wild Card spot and a trip to New Orleans with a chance to earn their first postseason win since 1980.
The Saints came into the game with a 12-4 record to earn New Orleans its fourth playoff berth in six seasons.
The Saints were led by their dominant defense, which allowed only 202 points during the season, the least amount of points allowed by a team during the 1990s.
All four of their linebackers: Rickey Jackson, Vaughn Johnson, Sam Mills, and Pat Swilling were all selected to the Pro Bowl for their outstanding season.
But the Saints knew it would mean nothing without a playoff victory, something they had been lacking as they had been one-and-done in all three previous trips to the playoffs, with two of those losses coming home at the Superdome.
Either way, one team was finally going get to a playoff victory after this game.
The Saints got the ball to start the game and promptly drove 73 yards in eight plays, culminating with a one-yard touchdown run by Craig "Ironhead" Heyward to give New Orleans a 7-0 lead with 9:20 left in the first quarter.
After both teams traded punts, the Eagles got the ball back at their 20-yard-line when Cunningham's legs got Philadelphia a 1st down as he scrambled for 15 yards to the Philly 43-yard-line on 3rd & 2.
On the very next play, Cunningham threw a a 57-yard touchdown pass to Fred Barnett, that along with the extra point, tied the game at 7 with 3:22 left in the first quarter.

Eagles quarterback Randall Cunningham would complete 14 of 20 passes for 132 yards in the second half to finish with 219 yards on 19 of 35 passes.

The Saints would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line and were at midfield after Saints quarterback Hebert hit Eric Martin for 26 yards on 2nd & 6.
Hebert would connect with running back Dalton Hilliard on the very next play for 10 yards, only to have Hilliard fumble the football after he was hit by linebacker Byron Evans, leading to an recovery by Eagles strong safety Rich Miano at the Eagles' 40-yard-line.
However, the Saints defense would force the Eagles to go three-and-out to get the ball back at their 17-yard-line with 25 seconds left in the first quarter.
New Orleans would proceed to hold the ball for over seven minutes as they drove 71 yards in 13 plays, coming away with three points as Morten Andersen made a 35-yard field goal to break the 7-7 tie and give the Saints a 10-7 lead midway through the second quarter.
Then after forcing another three-and-out, the Saints got the ball back at their 47-yard-line and quickly drove down the field as Hebert hit Quinn Early for 20 yards to start the drive, which was followed up by a 24-yard run by rookie running back Vaughn Dunbar, setting up a 1st & goal for the Saints from the Eagles' nine-yard-line.
After Dunbar picked up two yards on 1st & goal, Hebert found Early in the end zone for the seven-yard touchdown to extend the Saints' lead to 17-7 with 4:14 to go in the first half.
Neither team would mount another scoring threat for the rest of the first half as the Saints would go into the locker room with a 17-7 lead at halftime.
The Eagles got the ball to start the second half and put together their best drive since their only touchdown as they drove 55 yards in eight plays until Cunningham lost the football when he was hit by Jackson, forcing as fumble that was recovered by Saints defensive end Wayne Martin at the New Orleans 31-yard-line.

Fred Barnett makes a fantastic catch, one of four for 102 yards, as he become the only receiver to have 100 receiving yards in a game against the Saints in 1992.

On the very next play, Hebert connected with Dunbar for a 35-yard catch & run to give the Saints a 1st down at the Eagles' 34-yard-line.
Soon, the Saints were faced with a 3rd & 1 from the Philly 25-yard-line when the Eagles defense made what might the first of several key stops in the second half as linebacker Ken Rose and defensive back William Frizzell stopped "Ironhead" for no gain, forcing Andersen to come on and kick a 42-yard field goal which extended the Saints' lead to 20-7 with 6:28 left in the third quarter.
The Eagles would go three-and-out again on their next drive, punting the ball back to the Saints who took over at their 25-yard-line.
That is when Allen made his presence felt as he picked off a Hebert pass intended for Early, giving the Eagles the ball at their 30-yard-line.
Cunningham and the Eagles would drive 39 yards in nine plays before settling for a 40-yard field goal by Roger Ruzak to cut the Saints' lead to 20-10 with 61 seconds left in the third quarter.
The Saints got the ball at their 20-yard-line and were faced with another 3rd & 1 as the 4th quarter began.
That is when Hebert then a pass intended for Martin, only to have Evans knock the ball away for an incomplete pass to force a three-and-out.
The Eagles would get the ball at their 36-yard-line and were able to convert on two straight 3rd down situations, with the first being a 3rd & 5 when Cunningham completed an eight-yard pass to Calvin Williams for a 1st down at the Philly 49-yard-line, which was followed by a seven-yard completion to Keith Byars for a 1st down at the Saints' 35-yard-line.
Two plays later, the Eagles would be faced with another 3rd down situation, this time needing 10 yards for the 1st down.
That is when Cunningham threw a pass for Barnett who made a spectacular leaping catch between two New Orleans defenders for a 35-yard touchdown to bring the Eagles to within three points at 20-17 with 10:37 left in the 4th quarter.
As the Eagles defense were on the sidelines waiting to get back on the field, Joyner told White that he was going to make a play when they got back on the field.
Sure enough on the next play from scrimmage, Joyner intercepted a Hebert pass and returned it 14 yards to the Saints' 26-yard-line.
It would take the Eagles five plays to get in the end zone as running back Heath Sherman punched in from six yards out off a sweep to the left side to give the Eagles its first lead of the game at 24-20 with 6:48 to go in the game.
Now trailing for the first time in the game, the Saints offense needed to put together a scoring drive as they took over at their 20-yard-line.
However, the Saints would go backwards as Eric Martin would be called for offensive pass interference on the first play of the drive, pushing the Saints back 10 yards to their 10-yard-line, which was followed by an incomplete pass and a pass to Dunbar that lost four yards setting up 3rd & 26.
That is when White sacked Hebert for a safety, giving the Eagles two points and extending their lead to 26-20 with 5:36 left to play.

Reggie White(92) celebrates after sacking Saints quarterback Bobby Hebert for a safety.

Following the free kick, the Eagles took over at their 38-yard-line and Sherman carried the ball three straight times for 32 yards to set up a 39-yard field goal by Ruzek to extend Philly's lead to 29-20 with 2:36 left in the game.
Now needing two scores to win, the Saints were need a miracle just like the Bills had done earlier in the day to pull out the win as they took over at their 16-yard-line.
But those hopes evaporated when Allen intercepted Hebert again and returned it for a 18-yard pick-six to put the final nail in the Saints' coffin as the Eagles would come away with the 36-20 win after scoring 29 unanswered points in the last 16 minutes of the game.
The Saints would not return to the postseason under Jim Mora as he coached the team until the middle of the 1996 season when he resigned after his infamous rant following a loss to the Carolina Panthers.

As for the Eagles, they would be eliminated the following week by their NFC East rival, the Dallas Cowboys 34-10 in the Divisional Round.

Then in the offseason, the Eagles would lose White to free agency as he signed with the Green Bay Packers.

Philadelphia would start the 1993 season 4-0 but season-ending injuries to Cunningham and Barnett brought their downfall as they finished the season 8-8 and out of the playoffs.
The Eagles got off to an even better start in 1994 as they jumped out to a 7-2 record, only to lose their last seven games to finish the season 7-9, which lead to the firing of Rich Kotite as head coach, who had been at the helm for Philly's win over New Orleans.
While many Eagles fans still wonder if their team could have won a Super Bowl during this era or if Brown hadn't died, the Eagles did finally "Bring It Home for Jerome" in 2018 as they defeated the New England Patriots 41-33 in Super Bowl LII on February 4, 2018 on what would have been Brown's 53rd birthday.
Here are some highlights of the game: