 |
| Lamar Smith(26) ran for the second most yards in a NFL playoff game in the Dolphins' win over the Colts in their 2000 AFC Wild Card Game. |
You could argue that for Lamar Smith, whose 40-carry, 209-yard performance help lead the Miami Dolphins to a memorable win over the Indianapolis Colts in their 2000 AFC Wild Card Game.
Even though they had made the playoffs the previous three seasons and five out of the last six, the Dolphins making the 2000 playoffs was a surprise considering they had lost quarterback Dan Marino and head coach Jimmy Johnson to retirement following the 1999 season.
Johnson was replaced by defensive coordinator Dave Wannstedt while Marino was replaced by Jay Fielder, who had spent time in the now defunct NFL Europe League, before signing with the Dolphins in 2000 and beating out Damon Huard for the starting quarterback role.
An under the radar move was the signing of free agent Smith who had spent six years in the NFL but his only claim to notoriety had been him being charged with vehicular assault after an accident left his then-Seattle Seahawks teammate, Mike Frier, paralyzed from the neck down.
However in 2000, Smith experienced his best season as he rushed for over 1,139 yards and scored 14 touchdowns in helping the Dolphins to a 11-5 record and an AFC East division title.
Despite their success and playing at home, the Dolphins were slight underdogs to the visiting Indianapolis Colts.
Led by Peyton Manning, the Colts had gone 10-6 and made the playoffs for the second straight season, just two years after going 3-13 in 1998.
Manning threw for 4,413 yards and 33 touchdowns, with 14 of those touchdowns and 1,413 of those yards going to wide receiver Marvin Harrison, while running back Edgerrin James complied over 2,000 yards of offense + 18 touchdowns(1,709 rushing + 594 receiving).
The Colts were not looking for their first playoff victory since 1995 but also head coach Jim Mora's first ever playoff victory as he lost his previous four games, the first three coming during his nearly 10-year stint in New Orleans as the Saints' head coach.
 |
| Colts running back Edgerrin James carried the ball 21 times for 107 yards and caught three passes for 33 yards. |
After forcing the Colts to go three-and-out on their opening drive, the Dolphins got the ball at their 28-yard-line.
It took Miami only three plays to drive to the Colts' 34-yard-line as Fielder hit Tony Martin for 12 yards on the first play of the drive which was followed by a pair of runs by Smith that totaled 26 yards, setting up 2nd & 1.
However, a quarterback sack and an incomplete pass lead to a 4th & 6 from the Indy 39-yard-line where Wannstedt decided to go for the 1st down.
But Fielder's pass intended for O.J. McDuffie fell incomplete, forcing a turnover on downs and giving the ball back to the Colts.
Manning would connect with Jerome Pathon for 25 yards and then hit James for 13 yards to help set up a 32-yard field goal by Mike Vanderjagt to give the Colts a 3-0 lead midway through the 1st quarter.
After both teams went three-and-out on their next possessions, the Dolphins got the ball at their 34-yard-line when they went to Smith to drive them into Colts territory.
Smith carried the ball five straight times, gaining 35 yards, then caught a three-yard pass to set up 3rd & 9 from the Colts' 28-yard-line.
However, a false start pushed the Dolphins back five yards, which was followed by Fiedler being picked off in the end zone by Colts strong safety Chad Cota.
James would get the ball and run it for 34 yards to the Miami 46-yard-line to end the first quarter, which was followed by five plays gaining 18 yards, setting up what looked like to be a 46-yard field goal.
But trying to catch the Dolphins off guard, holder Hunter Smith tried to run for the two yards needed for the 1st down, but was tackled by Dolphins all-pro defensive end Jason Taylor for a six-yard-loss to give Miami the ball at their 34-yard-line.
However, on the next play from scrimmage, Fielder threw his second interception, this time the culprit being defensive end Chad Bratzke, who returned it to the Dolphins' 25-yard-line.
The Colts would convert the interception into points as Vanderjagt made a 26-yard field goal to increase the Indianapolis lead to 6-0 with 9:33 left in the third quarter.
Fielder's woes would continue on the Dolphins' ensuing possession as he was picked off the third time in the first half, second by Cota, whose 23-yard return set up the Colts at the Miami 18-yard-line.
One play after James ran for one yard, Manning hit Pathon for a 17-yard touchdown, then hit tight end Ken Dilger on a two-point conversion to push the Colts' lead to 14-0 with 7:47 to go in the first half.
With their quarterback having thrown three interceptions, the Dolphins decided to lean on Smith to get their offense going and he would answer the call as he carried the ball five straight times to start the drive, picking up 22 yards, with the last one going for no gain and setting up a 4th & 1 at the Colts' 42-yard-line.
Once again, Wannstedt went for the 1st down, but this time the gamble paid off as Fielder ran it for two yards on a fresh set of downs for the Dolphins.
Then it was back to Smith, who only gained three yards on his next two runs, setting up a 3rd & 7 situation from the Colts' 37-yard-line.
That is when the Dolphins went back to the air as Fielder connected with Orande Gadsden for 12 yards and a 1st down.
The drive would stall as the Dolphins would pick up only four more yards, forcing them to settle for a 38-yard field goal attempt by Olindo Mare.
But Mare's kick sailed wide right as the first half came to an end with the Dolphins trailing 14-0.
 |
| Peyton Manning completed 17 of 32 passes for 194 yards and threw a touchdown. |
The Dolphins got the ball to start the second half and went back to Smith, who carried the ball seven times for 42 yards on a 11-play, 70-yard drive that culminated with a two-yard touchdown run by Smith to put Miami on the board and cut the Colts' lead in half to 14-7 with 8:09 to go in the third quarter.
Neither team would mount a scoring threat for the rest of the third quarter as the Colts clinged to their 14-7 lead as Fielder hit McDuffie for 12 yards on the final play of the third quarter for a Miami 1st down at their 40-yard-line.
From there, the Dolphins ran the ball seven straight times, with Smith carrying it five times for 24 yards, to set up a 38-yard field goal by Mare, which cut the Colts' lead to 14-10 with 10:23 left in the 4th quarter.
Following the kickoff, the Colts would take over at their 23-yard-line but seemed to get into Miami territory very quickly as Manning hit Harrison for an apparent 38-yard completion to the Dolphins' 26-yard-line, only to have Harrison get called for pass interference, pushing the Colts back 10 yards to their 28-yard-line with a 1st & 20.
That is when Manning connected with Pathon for 18 yards, which was followed by a two-yard run by James to pick up the 1st down at the Colts' 48-yard-line.
Then after a 16-yard-run by James gave Indy a 1st down at the Miami 36-yard-line, the Dolphins defense stiffened and allowed only four more yards on the next three plays, forcing the Colts to attempt a 50-yard field goal.
Vanderjagt would make the kick to push the lead back to seven points at 17-10 with 4:55 left in regulation.
Taking over at their 20-yard-line and needing a touchdown to force overtime, the Dolphins begin the drive with an eight-yard pass from Fielder to Smith.
Then after Smith picked up only one yard on 2nd & 2, Fielder would ran for three yards on 3rd & 1 to give Miami a 1st down at their 32-yard-line.
Following an incomplete pass on 1st down, Fielder connected with Gadsden for nine yards, which was followed by a three-yard run by Smith and another 1st down at the Miami 44-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit.
Now knowing that this was probably their last chance to tie the game, the Dolphins went into hurry-up mode as Fielder hit Tony Martin for nine yards on 1st down, then ran for 11 yards to give the Dolphins a 1st down at the Colts' 36-yard-line.
An incomplete pass and a false start would force the Dolphins into a 2nd & 15 situation where Fielder found McDuffie for 19 yards and a 1st down at the Indy 22-yard-line, which was followed by a 13-yard pass to McDuffie to give the Dolphins a 1st & goal at the Colts' nine-yard-line.
Then after two straight incomplete passes, Fielder found tight end Jed Weaver, who made the catch at the two-yard-line, then lunged in for the touchdown that with Mare's extra point, tied the game at 17 with 34 seconds left in regulation.
 |
| Dolphins quarterback Jay Fielder completed six of 10 passes for 67 yards on the Dolphins game-tying touchdown drive. |
The Colts ran the ball one time to run out the clock and send the game into overtime where the Dolphins won the coin toss and took over at their ten-yard-line, but only drove 19 yards before punting the ball back to Indianapolis who got the ball at their 18-yard-line.
The drive began with Manning hitting Harrison for 30 yards to put the Colts at their 48-yard-line.
Then Manning connected with Harrison for six yards, which was followed by a six-yard run by James and a 1st down at the Miami 40-yard-line.
After an incomplete pass and a quarterback sack, the Colts were faced with a 3rd & 12 at the Dolphins' 42-yard-line when Manning hit Harrison for 11 yards, one yard short of the 1st down.
However, the Dolphins offsides on the play, which if Mora accepted would have given the Colts an extra play as they would have had 3rd & 7 at the Miami 37-yard-line.
But Mora declined the penalty and decided to send Vanderjagt in to attempt the game-winning 49-yard field goal with 9:22 left in overtime.
But Vanderjagt's kick was nowhere close to the uprights and sailed wide right, giving the Dolphins the ball at their 39-yard-line with a chance to drive for the winning score.
After an incomplete pass on the first play of the drive, Fielder would hit his next two passes, first to Smith for seven yards, then a six-yarder to Jeff Ogden for a Miami 1st down at the Colts' 48-yard-line.
A 14-yard run by Smith was reduced to four yards as Martin was called for holding, leaving the Dolphins with a 1st & 6 at the Indy 44-yard-line.
Smith would pick up five yards on the next two plays, which lead to a 3rd & 1 where Fielder ran for two yards and the 1st down.
Then after Smith picked up just one yard on 1st down, Fielder found Gadsden for 13 yards and a 1st down at the Colts' 23-yard-line, clearly putting them in field goal range.
But Wannstedt decided to keep the offense and after Smith ran for six yards on 1st down, Fielder handed the ball to Smith for his 40th carry.
Smith ran to the right side, stopped at about the 20-yard-line, then busted through a hole and broke two Colt defenders at the five-yard-line to run for the winning touchdown, a 17-yard run to give the Dolphins a 23-17 win.
The loss dropped Mora's playoff record to 0-5 and would be his final playoff appearance as the Colts went 6-10 the following season, leading to his dismissal after four seasons in Indianapolis with a 32-32 record.
He was replaced by Tony Dungy, who with Manning and Harrison, but not James and Vanderjagt, would lead the Colts to a Super Bowl title during the 2006 season.
As for the Dolphins, they would be eliminated by the Oakland Raiders the following week as Smith was held to just five yards on eight carries and Fielder threw three more interceptions as Miami lost 27-0.
The Dolphins would return to the playoffs the following season but would be knocked out in the Wild Card Round by the Baltimore Ravens as they lost 20-3.
Miami would not make it back to the postseason under Wannstedt as he would resign midway through the 2004 season after an 1-8 start.
Smith would leave Miami after the 2001 season and go to Carolina where he would spend the 2002 season until another DUI arrest lead to him being placed on paid leave which lead to his eventual release in the offseason.
Smith would play four games for the New Orleans Saints in 2003 before retiring from the NFL after nearly a decade in the league.
No comments:
Post a Comment