NFL Old School Game of the Week: Bengals Overcome 21-Point Halftime Deficit to Beat Vikings

 

Bengals kicker Doug Pelfrey is hoisted up by his teammates after his game-winning field goal in Cincinnati's win over the Minnesota Vikings.

Christmas is supposed to be the time of the miracles and the Cincinnati Bengals would get one when they hosted the Minnesota Vikings on Christmas Eve during the final week of the 1995 NFL regular season.

The Bengals came into the game with a 6-9 record having secured their fifth consecutive losing season since the team's last appearance in the postseason in 1990 when they fell to the Los Angeles Raiders 20-10 in the AFC Divisional Playoffs.

Following a 3-13 season in 1991, head coach Sam Wyche was fired and replaced by his wide receivers coach, Dave Shula, son of legendary Miami Dolphins head coach Don Shula.

Unlike his father who only had two losing seasons, Dave's run in Cincinnati was not going well as the team lost more than 10 games in each of his first three seasons.

 A loss to the Vikings would secure a fifth straight season of at least 10 losses for the Bengals and possibly Shula his job as his fate was uncertain as the team prepared to wrap up the 1995 season hosting the Vikings.

The Vikings came into the game with a 8-7 record, still alive for a playoff spot as Minnesota needed to defeat Cincinnati, then have the Chicago Bears and Atlanta Falcons lose their games in Week 17 which would allow the Vikings to clinch the final spot in the NFC playoffs.

The Vikings were led by head coach Dennis Green, who had not missed the playoffs since his arrival in Minnesota in 1992, as he and his team were hoping for a Christmas miracle to participate in the NFL postseason for 1995.

The Vikings got the ball to start the game as they would drive 58 yards in nine plays as a 19-yard pass from quarterback Warren Moon to Jake Reed and a 15-yard run by running back Amp Lee would set up a 20-yard field goal by Fuad Reveiz to give Minnesota a 3-0 lead.

After a 32-yard return by David Dunn on the ensuing kickoff, the Bengals would begin their first possession of the game at the 50-yard-line as quarterback Jeff Blake hit passes of 12 yards to Carl Pickens and nine yards to Darnay Scott to set up  Doug Pelfrey's 44-yard field goal which tied the game at 3 with 6:16 left in the first quarter.

The Vikings would get the ball back at their 28-yard-line as it took them three plays to drive into Bengals territory until  Lee fumbled the football after he was hit by Cincinnati defensive end Artie Smith, leading to a recovery by cornerback Rod Jones to give the Bengals the ball at their 38-yard-line.

The two teams would exchange punts as the game moved into the second quarter when the Vikings began a drive from their 24-yard-line as they slowly drove to midfield when they faced a 3rd & 11 at their 49-yard-line.

That is when Moon went deep and connected with Reed for a 51-yard touchdown to give Minnesota a 10-3 lead with 8:08 remaining in the second quarter.

It would only take the Vikings 27 seconds to get back into the end zone as defensive back Alfred Jackson intercepted a Blake pass intended for Pickens and ran it back 37 yards for a touchdown to increase Minnesota's lead to 17-3.

Following a three-and-out by the Bengals on their next possession, the Vikings would get the ball at their 14-yard-line as Minnesota would drive to the Cincinnati 34-yard-line until three straight incomplete passes led to a punt back to the Bengals who would begin their next drive at their 20-yard-line.

The Vikings' defense would force another three-and-out to give their offense the ball at their 43-yard-line and a chance to pick up some points before the end of the first half as just 24 seconds remained before halftime.

The drive began with Moon completing a 16-yard pass to wide receiver Cris Carter, followed by back-to-back completions to David Palmer which totaled 27 yards to put the Vikings at the Bengals' 14-yard-line when Moon found Carter in the end zone for the touchdown to increase the Minnesota lead to 24-3 with just two seconds left in the first half.

Vikings quarterback Warren Moon completed 26 of 43 passes for 294 yards and threw two touchdowns.

The Bengals would run out the clock to end the first half down three touchdowns after a first half in which Cincinnati was outgained 310-48 and accumulated only two 1st downs in the game's first 30 minutes.

The Bengals would get the ball to start the second half when Cincinnati turned to running back Eric Bieniemy to get their offense back on track as he would run for 13 yards on the first play of the drive then three plays later run for 20 yards that with a face mask penalty on Vikings free safety Orlando Thomas put the Bengals at the Minnesota 11-yard-line.

After Blake threw an incomplete pass on 1st down, then hit Dunn for six yards on 2nd down, Bieniemy got the ball again on 3rd & goal as he took up the gut for the five-yard touchdown to cap off the eight-play, 65-yard drive and cut the Bengals' deficit to 24-10 with 11:08 left in the third quarter.

Following a Minnesota punt, the Bengals would begin their next possession on their four-yard-line as Blake, who completed only four of 14 passes for 35 yards in the first half, was able to complete passes of seven yards to Scott and 16 yards to Tony McGee to give Cincinnati a fresh set of downs at its 27-yard-line.

After a four-yard run by Bieniemy, Blake found Pickens for 13 yards and another 1st down as Bieniemy would get the ball on the next two plays, running for 13 yards to give the Bengals a 1st down at the Minnesota 43-yard-line.

From there, the Bengals would rely on the right arm of Blake as he completed an eight-yard pass to James Joseph, then found Pickens for 11 yards, followed by a 13-yard completion to McGee, and then finally wrapping up the drive with a 11-yard touchdown pass to Pickens.

In all, Blake completed all seven of his passes for 79 yards on the 10-play, 96-yard touchdown drive which cut the Vikings' lead to 24-17 with 3:20 remaining in the third quarter.

The Vikings would hold the ball for the rest of the third quarter until they were forced to punt on the first play of the fourth quarter as the Bengals would get the ball back at their 27-yard-line when disaster struck on 2nd & 7 when Blake was intercepted by Minnesota linebacker Jeff Brady to give the Vikings the ball at the Cincinnati 33-yard-line.

The Vikings would run six plays for a total of 13 yards before bringing on Reveiz to attempt a 38-yard field goal which would push the Minnesota lead back to double digits.

However, Reveiz would slip as he came to kick the football, which sailed wide right and no good to keep the score at 24-17 as the Bengals would take over at their 28-yard-line.

Minnesota's defense would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball back at their 24-yard-line, only for them to go three-and-out and punt the ball back to the Bengals punter Mike Saxon would shank the punt as it went only 15 yards to allow Cincinnati to begin its next possession at the Vikings' 40-yard-line.

That is when Blake completed a 35-yard pass to Scott to give Cincinnati a 1st & goal at the Minnesota five-yard-line as after two incomplete passes, Blake would find McGee in the end zone for the five-yard touchdown that with the extra point by Pelfrey tied the game at 24 with 9:01 left in regulation.

With their three-touchdown lead disappeared, The Vikings would methodically drive down the field as Moon completed four passes for 42 yards while Graham would run for 26 yards on five carries to lead Minnesota move from their 20-yard-line to the Bengals' seven-yard-line where the drive would stall.

Reveiz would be given a chance to redeem himself for his earlier miss as he attempted a chip-shot 25-yard field goal, only for it to sail wide left and no good, to keep the game tied as the Bengals would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line with 2:06 left in regulation and a chance to drive for the game-winning score.

The drive got off to an auspicious start as Bieniemy ran for one yard on 1st down which was followed by an incomplete pass on 2nd down to bring up 3rd & 9 when Blake found Dunn for nine yards to give the Bengals a 1st down at their 30-yard-line.

The third down conversion would kickstart the Bengals' drive as Blake hit Pickens for 18 yards on the next play, then completed two straight passes to Bieniemy for a total of 16 yards to put Cincinnati at the Minnesota 36-yard-line.

However, a false start penalty would push the Bengals back five yards as Blake would then an incomplete pass on 1st down, then complete a five-yard pass to Bieniemy on 2nd down, followed by a two-yards pass to Joseph on 3rd down to bring up 4th & 8 with just a few seconds left.

That is when Shula sent in the field goal unit as Pelfrey would come to attempt a 51-yard field goal that would give the Bengals the win or send the game into overtime with a miss.

Pelfrey's kick was barely cross over the crossbar as time expired as his 51-yard field goal gave the Bengals a 27-24 victory as Cincinnati for the second time in team history overcame a three-touchdown deficit to win a game(To read about the previous occasion, click on the link highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2017/09/nfl-old-school-game-of-week-third.html).

Bengals quarterback Jeff Blake completed 19 of 26 passes for 193 yards and threw two touchdowns in the second half of Cincinnati's comeback win.

While the collapse against the Bengals officially eliminated the Vikings from playoff contention, they would not have gotten in anyway as the Falcons and Bears both won their games to finish tied for the last playoff spot which went to Atlanta while Minnesota finished the season with a 8-8 record.

As for the Bengals, their win over the Vikings allowed them to finish with a 7-9 record, the team's best record since 1990 which paved the way for Shula to return to coach the team for the 1996 season.

However, the Bengals would get off to a 1-6 start the following season which led to Shula being fired midway through the season(If you want to read about his final game as coach, click on the link highlighted here: https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2021/12/nfl-old-school-game-of-week-young-plays.html)to finish a four-and-half year tenure where Cincinnati won only 19 games.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Tennessee Scores 20 in 4th Quarter For Comeback Win over Virginia in Sugar Bowl

 

Even though there were no national championship implications, there was still a lot on the line when the Tennessee Volunteers battled the Virginia Cavaliers in the Sugar Bowl on New Year's Day of 1991.

The Volunteers came into the game ranked #10 as they were led by head coach Johnny Majors, who was in his 14th season as the head coach in "Rocky Top" having led Tennessee back from mediocrity following a disappointing 5-6 season in 1988 which led to the promotion of offensive line coach Philip Fulmer to offensive coordinator.

With Fulmer calling the plays and an offense which featured future NFL wide receivers Carl Pickens and Alvin Harper, the team's scoring average went from 19.2 in 1988 to 28.8 in 1989 as Tennessee went 11-1 to finish #5 in both the AP and coaches polls, then increased to 36.8 for the 1990 season in which the Vols went 8-2-2 and won the SEC championship to earn the Vols their first trip to the Sugar Bowl in five years where a victory would guarantee a second straight top 10 ranking in the final polls.

Meanwhile, the Cavaliers came into the Sugar Bowl hoping to salvage something of what looked to be at the start of November when they were ranked #1 in the country.

Virginia had entered the 1990 season ranked #15 in the preseason AP poll as the Cavaliers were coming off a 10-win season and an offense which featured quarterback Shawn Moore, running back Terry Kirby, and wide receiver Herman Moore.

The Cavs jumped out to a 7-0 start in 1990 as Virginia took over the #1 spot in both polls for the first time in school history until they were upset by the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 41-38 in many consider the greatest game in ACC football history(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here:(https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2018/11/college-football-old-school-game-of_14.html).

Virginia bounced back to win the following week against North Carolina which was followed by the Cavs accepting an invitation to play in the Sugar Bowl.

However, the Cavs would lose their final two games of the regular season, first losing to Maryland 35-30 and then to arch rival Virginia Tech 38-13 as Shawn Moore did not play in the finale because of a dislocated thumb on his throwing hand.

Having fallen out of both the AP and coaches top 25, the Cavs hoped to end the 1990 season with a bang as Moore would return to the lineup though questions remained on how well he could throw the ball.

Virginia would get the ball to start the game as running back Jerrod Washington returned the opening kickoff 37 yards to the Virginia 39-yard-line.

From there, the Cavs would use the running game to drive 61 yards in 12 plays though Moore would complete all three of his passes on the drive for 21 yards to set up fullback Gary Steele's 10-yard touchdown run to give Virginia a 6-0 lead with 9:19 left in the first quarter as the extra point was blocked.

Tennessee would begin their opening possession of the game at their 45-yard-line as the Vols would drive down to the Virginia 35-yard-line until Thompson fumbled the football after he was hit by Virginia defensive back Keith McMeans as defensive end Donald Reynolds recovered the fumble for the Cavs at their 36-yard-line.

Virginia would drive to the Tennessee 40-yard-line when Moore gave his thumb his toughest test by trying to throw a deep pass for Johnnie Wilson, only to have the pass be underthrown and intercepted by Tennessee free safety Dale Carter at the Vols' eight-yard-line.

The Virginia defense would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball back at the Tennessee 28-yard-line after Joey Chapman's punt only went 13 years after the ball hit the side of his foot.

The Cavs would travel 23 yards in five plays to set up a 22-yard field goal by Jake McInerney to increase the Virginia lead to 9-0 with 35 seconds to go in the opening quarter.

Despite a dislocated right thumb, Virgina quarterback Shawn Moore would gut it out as he completed 9 of 22 passes for 62 yards and ran for 76 yards on 11 carries.

The Vols would get the ball back at their 46-yard-line following a 27-yard return by Carter on the ensuing kickoff and seemed poised to get on the scoreboard as the first quarter came to an end with Tennessee at the Virginia 23-yard-line following a 29-yard pass from Kelly to Vince Moore followed by a two-yard run by Thompson.

However, disaster would strike on the second play of the second quarter when Kelly was intercepted by cornerback Tony Covington at the one-yard-line to end the Volunteers' scoring threat.

After moving to their 24-yard-line, the Cavs would punt the ball back to the Vols who took over at their 35-yard-line as Kelly found Vince Moore again, this time for 22 yards for a 1st down at the Virginia 43-yard-line when Kelly threw deep only to be intercepted again, this time by Tyrone Lewis on a deep pass intended for Pickens.

Taking over at their 20-yard-line, the Cavs would use their running game to drive 80 yards in 15 plays(12 of those runs)taking up nearly seven minutes off the clock and not ending until Kirby punched it in for an one-yard touchdown to increase the Virginia lead to 16-0 with 4:06 left in the first half.

The Vols would get the ball at their 24-yard-line to start their ensuing possession when they decided to go no-huddle as they drove to the Virginia 18-yard-line until the drive stalled when Kelly was sacked for an 11-yard loss and threw two incomplete passes to force a field goal attempt.

But Greg Burke's 46-yard attempt would said wide left and no good to keep it 16-0 as Virginia would run out the clock to end the first half which was a nightmare for Tennessee as their offense had committed three turnovers while their defense had spent nearly 22 minutes on the field.

The Vols would get the ball to start the second half as they went back to their no-huddle offense to drive from their 18-yard-line to the Virginia 48-yard-line when they were faced with a 4th & 1 situation.

Majors decided to gamble and go for the 1st down which was successful as Thompson picked the one yard to give the Vols a fresh set of downs.

From there, the Vols would drive down to the Virginia 10-yard-line when Kelly fired a pass for Harper at the goal line for an apparent touchdown, only for it to be ruled incomplete to force a 4th down as Burke would come on to  end the 16-play, 72-yard drive with a 27-yard field goal to make it 16-3 with 9:05 left in the third quarter.

Virginia would begin its opening possession of the second half at their 21-yard-line as six straight running plays put the Cavs at the Tennessee 33-yard-line until back-to-back incomplete passes forced a 50-yard field goal attempt by McInerney which would miss to the left to keep the score 16-3 with 5:33 remaining in the third quarter.

After forcing a three-and-out, the Cavs would get the ball back at their 46-yard-line when they ran the ball five straight times as they drove to the Tennessee 23-yard-line when Moore put the ball up in the air again as he threw a pass intended for tight end Aaron Mundy only to have it intercepted by cornerback Floyd Miley at the Tennessee six-yard-line with just 35 seconds left in the third quarter.

Sticking to the no-huddle, Thompson would carry the ball five straight times for 65 yards with the biggest run being a 38-yard gallop on the opening play of the fourth quarter, to led Tennessee to the Virginia 29-yard-line.

Following a 14-yard pass from Kelly to Pickens on 3rd & 8, Thompson got the ball again as he ran for eight yards on 1st down, then for a seven-yard touchdown run to end the nine-play, 94-yard drive in which the senior running back carried the ball seven times for 80 yards to put the Vols on the board down 16-10 with 12:51 left in the fourth quarter.

The Cavs would start their ensuing drive at their 32-yard-line with eight consecutive running plays, which included a 4th & 1 quarterback sneak at the Vols' 48-yard-line, until Moore threw two straight incomplete passes to bring up 4th down and a a punting situation.

However, the Cavs would get a reprieve when Tennessee cornerback J.J. McCleskey ran into punter Ed Garno, drawing a 15-yard roughing-the-kicker penalty to give the Cavs a fresh set of downs at the Vols' 31-yard-line.

But the Cavs would be unable to pick up a 1st down as two more passes by Moore fell incomplete, forcing Virginia to settle for a 43-yard field goal by McInerney to push the Virginia lead to 19-10 with 7:34 remaining in the game.

Tennessee quarterback Andy Kelly would complete 14 of 18 passes for 142 yards in the fourth quarter.

The Vols would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line as Kelly came out firing as he completed four consecutive passes for 39 yards before handing the ball off to running back Greg Amsler on back-to-back plays as the fullback gained 13 yards on his two carries to put Tennessee at the Virginia 28-yard-line.

Tennessee would go back to the air as Kelly completed a 11-yard pass to Amsler, which was followed by a two-yard run by Amsler to set up 2nd & 8 when Kelly found Pickens in the right corner of the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown to bring the Vols to within two points at 19-17 with 4:24 in the game.

With their 16-point halftime lead all but evaporated, the Cavs looked to their running game to bail them out as they began their next drive at their 32-yard-line.

The drive got off to a promising start as Moore ran for 22 yards on the first play from scrimmage which was followed by a Tennessee penalty for having too many men on the field to give the Cavs another 15 yards and the ball at the Vols 31-yard-line.

Two straight running plays picked up five yards to set up 3rd & 5 when Moore threw another incomplete pass to bring up 4th down and the field goal unit as McInerney came on to kick a 44-yard field goal to make it 22-17 in favor of Virginia with 2:31 left in the game.

Following a 21-yard return by Carter on the ensuing kickoff, the Vols took over at their 21-yard-line as Kelly completed a four-yard pass to Amsler followed by an incomplete pass to force a 3rd & 6 situation when Kelly hit Pickens for eight yards and a 1st down.

Kelly would go back to Pickens on the next play, this time connecting for 22 yards to give the Vols a 1st down at the Virginia 45-yard-line when an incomplete pass and a five-yard run by Thompson brought up another 3rd down situation for Tennessee as Kelly completed an eight-yard pass to Harper to pick up another 1st down at the Cavs' 32-yard-line.

Passes to Amsler for Amsler for three yards and tight end Von Reeves set up a 3rd & 1 when Kelly threw an incomplete pass to bring up a do-or-die 4th & 1 with 54 seconds to go.

That is when Kelly handed the ball off to Amsler who ran up the middle for six yards and a 1st down at the Cavs' 17-yard-line.

From there, Kelly would connect with Harper for 13 yards to give the Vols a 1st-and-goal at the Virginia four-yard-line as Amsler would carry for three yards to the one-yard-line to set up 2nd down when Kelly handed the ball off to Thompson who dove over the top for the touchdown to give Tennessee its first lead of the game at 23-22 with 31 seconds to play.

Tony Thompson dives for what would be the game-winning touchdown.

Tennessee attempted a two-point conversion following the touchdown but Kelly's pass intended for Pickens fell incomplete.

When the Cavs' offense came back onto the field, they did so Blundin taking over at quarterback for Moore who had been unable to complete a pass in the second half going 0-for-6.

However, it was too little too late as Blundin threw an incomplete pass on 1st down, was sacked on 2nd down, and then was picked off by Carter on the final play of the game with the Vols on top 23-22.

Despite the loss, the Cavs would finish ranked #15 in the final coaches poll and #23 in the final Associated Press poll while the Vols would climb to #7 in the coaches poll and #8 in the AP poll.

Majors would coach Tennessee through the 1992 season when was he forced to step down as head coach in favor of Fulmer, who had led the Vols to a 3-0 record earlier in the 92 season when Majors was recuperating from heart surgery.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Steelers Score 36 Straight Points To Win Shootout Over Bengals

Steelers quarterback Neil O' Donnell would throw complete 24 of 31 passes for 377 yards and throw three touchdowns in the Steelers' comeback win over the Bengals.

Sometimes football is a lot like basketball as one team gets on a run to break open a game and come back from a huge deficit.
That's exactly what happened in the 1995 Week 12 matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals, where the Steelers put together a dominating run in the second half.
Pittsburgh entered the game with a 6-4 record, but on a three-game winning streak, which began one week after an embarrassing 27-9 loss to the Bengals at home in Three Rivers Stadium.
The Steelers were led by head coach Bill Cowher and quarterback Neil O' Donnell, who along with the rest of the Steelers were on a mission to get to the Super Bowl after they had fallen three yards short of the game-winning touchdown in their heartbreaking 17-13 loss to the San Diego Chargers in the previous year's AFC Championship Game.
While the Steeelers were looking toward the Super Bowl, the Bengals were hoping just get into the playoffs as they entered the game with Pittsburgh with a 4-6 record.
Ever since their last playoff appearance in 1990, the Bengals' fortunes had turned for the worse as they had encountered three seasons where they went 3-13 and another where they went 5-11.
Cincinnati was under the direction of David Shula, son of the NFL's all-time winningest head coach Don, whose in his fourth season, but looked to have found his franchise quarterback in Jeff Blake, who had become the Bengals starter after an 0-7 start during the 1994 season, replacing former 1st round pick David Klinger.
With Blake at the helm, Cincinnati fans had a glimmer of hope of ending their playoff drought if they get on a winning streak to end the season.
What proceeded was a game of two halves as both teams held control for one half of play and combined for 80 points and 821 yards of total offense.
The fireworks began on the game's opening kickoff when the Bengals' return man David Dunn received the kickoff, ran seven yards, then threw a backwards lateral across the field to Jeff Hill, who proceeded to run 55 yards before being knocked out of bounds by Steelers kicker Norm Johnson, giving Cincinnati the ball at the Pittsburgh 35-yard-line.
Six plays later, the Bengals had the first touchdown of the game as Blake hit Darnay Scott from four yards out to give Cincinnati a 7-0 lead just 1:39 into the game.
The Steelers would get good field position for their first drive of the game as Ernie Mills returned the ensuing kickoff 34 yards to the Pittsburgh 40-yard-line.
But on 3rd & 2 from the Steelers' 48-yard-line, O' Donnell connected with Mills for an apparent 1st down, only to have Mills fumble the football, which was recovered by the Bengals' Todd Kelly at the Cincinnati 47-yard-line.
The Bengals could not take advantage of the turnover as they went three-and-out, punting the ball back to the Steelers who took over at their 42-yard-line after punter Lee Johnson shanked his kick, which went only 21 yards.
The Steelers would drive to the Bengals' 20-yard-line until a sack by Bengals linebacker Andre Collins forced the Steelers to attempt a 50-yard field goal which Johnson made, cutting the Bengals lead to 7-3 with 7:04 left in the first quarter.
The Bengals responded with an eight-play, 68-yard drive which saw running back Harold Green carry the ball four times for 26 yards and Blake hit Scott for a 23-yard gain, that ended with Blake running it in from one yard out to extend the Cincinnati lead to 14-3 with 2:40 to go in the first quarter.

Bengals quarterback Jeff Blake accounted for all four touchdowns(three passing, one rushing) that Cincinnati scored.

On their next possession, the Steelers drove from their 30-yard-line to the Bengals' 38-yard-line where they faced a 4th & 1 situation.
Cowher decided to go for it but a false start penalty on right tackle Leon Searcy pushed the Steelers five yards back and force them to punt the ball back to the Bengals who took over at their nine-yard-line.
That is when the Blake-to-Pickens connection got going as Blake hit Pickens for 25 yards on the first play of the drive which was also the last play of the first quarter.
The two connected again on 2nd & 2 from the Cincinnati 42-yard-line for a 11-yard gain and another 1st down, which was followed by an offsides penalty on Steelers linebacker Greg Lloyd and then a 26-yard pass from Blake to Pickens to give the Bengals a 1st down at the Steelers' 16-yard-line.
Three plays later, the Bengals were faced with their own 4th & 1 situation when Shula decided to go for it.
Blake was able to drop back and lofted a pass for Pickens in the end zone which fell incomplete, only to have Steelers strong safety Carnell Lake get called for pass interference, to give the Bengals a 1st & goal at the one-yard-line.
On the very next play, Blake connected with Pickens for a one-yard touchdown to extend the Cincinnati lead to 21-3 with 11:28 left in the second quarter.
Down by the same margin as their prior defeat to the Bengals, things were not looking promising for the Steelers, especially when they had to start their next drive at their 12-yard-line, only for center Dermontti Dawson get called for illegal use of hands, pushing the Steelers offense back to their six-yard-line.
That is when O' Donnell got rolling as he completed four passes in a row for a total of 30 yards, which was followed by a 22-yard run by Bam Morris that put the Steelers in Bengals territory at the Cincinnati 42-yard-line.
Then on the next play from scrimmage, O' Donnell hit Mills for a 42-yard touchdown to make it a 21-10 game midway through the second quarter.
The Bengals responded with a pair of runs by Green totaling 15 yards, then followed by a 45-yard pass interference penalty on Lake to give the Bengals a 1st & 10 at the Steelers' 13-yard-line.
However, the Steelers defense would only allow three more yards, forcing the Bengals to settle for a 27-yard field goal by Doug Pelfrey to make it a two-touchdown game at 24-10 with 4:33 left in the first half.
Before the first half came to a close, O' Donnell would complete five of six passes for 61 yards, with the big play being a 33-yard completion to Charles Johnson, to set up a 26-yard field goal by Norm Johnson to make it 24-13 after 30 minutes of play.
The Steelers got the ball to start the second half but turned it over on the third play of the drive as running back Erric Pegram fumbled the ball after a pass, which was recovered by Bengals strong safety Bracy Walker, whose nine-yard return set up the Cincinnati offense with the ball at the Pittsburgh 33-yard-line.
This would lead to Blake throwing his third touchdown pass of the game, a 20-yarder to Tony McGee to push the Bengals' lead back to 18 points at 31-13 with 10:31 to go in the third quarter.

Steelers linebacker Greg Lloyd(95) would lead a Pittsburgh defense that limited the Bengals to just 84 yards of total offense and one touchdown in the second half.

It seemed that the Bengals were on their a season sweep of the Steelers as the Pittsburgh defense could not stop the Cincinnati offense and the Steelers had been settling for field goals instead of touchdowns.
But like basketball, football could turn 180 degrees in a matter of minutes and that's exactly what would happen starting with the Steelers' ensuing possession.
After Mills returned the ensuing kickoff 31 yards to the Pittsburgh 38-yard-line, the Steelers got into Bengals territory on the very next play as Bengals cornerback Roger Jones was called for pass interference, resulting in a Pittsburgh 1st down at the Bengals' 42-yard-line.
Then O' Donnell would hit Mills for 18 yards on 3rd & 7 for a 1st down at the Cincinnati 21-yard-line, which was followed by a nine-yard completion to Yancey Thigpen, and two runs by Pegram totaling 11 yards, all leading to an one-yard touchdown run by Morris, which cut the Bengals' lead to 31-20 with 6:46 left in the third quarter.
After forcing a three-and-out, the Steelers got the ball at their 17-yard-line and drove 83 yards in nine plays, culminating with a 15-yard touchdown pass from O' Donnell to Andre Hastings.
Cowher decided to go for two and brought in backup quarterback Kordell Stewart, who had spent the season lining up at various times at quarterback, running back, and wide receiver, earning him the nickname "Slash", to get the two points to make it a field goal game.
Stewart ran a quarterback option and pitched it out to Pegram who ran it in for the two-point conversion to bring Pittsburgh to within three points at 31-28 with 99 seconds left in the third quarter.
The Steelers' defense kept the momentum going as they forced another three-and-out and seemed to get the ball in Bengals territory when Hastings returned the ensuing punt 47 yards to the Bengals' 26-yard-line, only for an illegal block get called on Tim Lester, meaning the Steelers had to start from their 16-yard-line.
Morris would ran for five yards on the last play of the third quarter, which was followed by O' Donnell connecting with Mills for eight yards to give Pittsburgh a 1st down at their 29-yard-line.
That is when Stewart re-entered the game, lined up as wide receiver, and proceeded to run a seam pattern down the middle the field where he caught O' Donnell's pass for him at the Bengals' 40-yard-line.
Stewart would run into the end zone untouched for a 71-yard touchdown to give the Steelers their first lead of the game at 35-31 and third touchdown in a span of 7 minutes and 21 seconds.
But the Pittsburgh scoring barrage was not over.
The Steelers' defense would force the Bengals a third consecutive three-and-out, which included a 13-yard loss on a quarterback sack by linebacker Jason Gildeon, which lead to the Steelers getting the ball back at the Bengals' 39-yard-line after a 31-yard punt by Lee Johnson.
For this drive, the Steelers would go back to their traditional running game as Morris carried the ball five times for 23 yards, with the  last one being a three-yard touchdown to extend the Pittsburgh lead to 42-31 with 9:33 left in the game.

Kordell Stewart, or Slash, would catch his first career touchdown, a 71-yard TD that gave the Steelers the lead for good.

Needing to get their offense back on track, the Bengals decided to go for it on 4th & 4 at their own 31-yard-line when Blake hit Pickens for 22 yards for a Cincinnati 1st down at the Steelers' 47-yard-line.
Then after a seven-yard pass to running back Eric Bieniemy, Blake was sacked by Greg Lloyd, fumbling the football, which was recovered by Steelers defensive lineman Bill Johnson at the Pittsburgh 43-yard-line.
With a chance to put the nail in the coffin, the Steelers pulled out a gadget play as they called a reverse on 2nd & 7 from the 46-yard-line, where Mills ran for 20 yards and another Steelers 1st down at the Bengals 36-yard-line.
Then after a four-yard run by Morris and 10-yard holding penalty on left guard led to a 2nd & 16 at the 40-yard-line, O' Donnell would throw his final pass of the game, which turned out to be a 32-yard completion to tight end Jonathan Hayes setting up a 1st & goal at the Bengals eight-yard-line.
Morris would score his third touchdown of the game on the very next play to make it 49-31 with 4:09 to go as the Steelers had turned a 18-point deficit into a 18-point lead.
David Klinger would come in the game on the Bengals' next drive, replacing Blake, and hit his first two passes for 15 yards, until he was picked off by Steelers defensive end Ray Seals, allowing for the Steelers to run out the clock and leave Cincinnati with a 49-31 victory.
The Bengals would finish the season with a 7-9 record as Blake and Pickens would go to the Pro Bowl thanks to Blake's 3,822 passing yards and 28 touchdowns, 17 of those caught by Pickens on 99 catches for 1,234 yards.
With Blake and Pickens, Bengals fans had high hopes for the 1996 season, but a 1-6 start lead to Shula's firing, and being replaced by offensive coordinator Bruce Coslet, who lead the Bengals to a 7-2 record for the rest of the season.
As for the Steelers, their win over the Bengals kept their winning streak alive which they would extend to eight games, earning them their their third AFC Central Division title and the #2 seed in the AFC playoffs.
The Steelers would knock off the Buffalo Bills 40-21 in their Divisional Playoff, then hold off the Indianapolis Colts 20-16 in the AFC Championship Game when Jim Harbaugh's Hail Mary pass on the final play of the game fell incomplete, earning the Steelers their first trip to the Super Bowl in 16 year.(To read more about the game, click on the link here: NFL Old School Game of the Week: Steelers Survive Colts Hail Mary Attempt To Win AFC Title).
However, the Steelers would fall to the Dallas Cowboys 27-17 as O' Donnell threw two costly 2nd half interceptions which set up two touchdown runs by Dallas running back Emmitt Smith.
O' Donnell would leave Pittsburgh in the offseason to sign a 5-year, $25 million contract with the New York Jets, but lasted only two years there before being released and leading him to sign with the Bengals for the 1998 season, where he played only one year, before ending up with the Tennessee Titans, backing up Steve McNair for five years until O' Donnell retired from the NFL after the 2003 season.