NFL Old School Game of the Week: Chargers Knock off Dolphins in Another Playoff Thriller

 

Chargers cornerback Dwayne Harper celebrates after his team overcome a 15-point halftime deficit to beat the Dolphins in the 1994 Playoffs.

On January 2, 1982, the San Diego Chargers and the Miami Dolphins participated in one of the greatest games in NFL history as the Chargers came away with a 41-38 overtime victory in the divisional round of the AFC playoffs in a game had a combined 1,036 yards of total offense and push both teams to the brink of complete exhaustion under the hot, muggy conditions of south Florida.

Thirteen years later, the two teams participated in another postseason classic as the Dolphins traveled to San Diego to take on the Chargers once again in the divisional round of the AFC Playoffs.

The Dolphins were coming off a 27-17 win over the Kansas City Chiefs the week before as Miami quarterback Dan Marino completed 22 of 29 passes for 257 yards and threw two touchdowns in the game.

Marino, who was coming off a career-threatening Achilles tendon injury one year earlier, was hoping to lead the Dolphins back to the Super Bowl for the first time in a decade who would become the first team in Super Bowl history to play the championship game in their home stadium as Joe Robbie Stadium was set to host the Super Bowl that year.

Standing in their way were the Chargers, who were the #2 seed in the AFC playoffs with a 11-5 record which earned them the AFC West division title, the second division championship since Bobby Ross became the San Diego head coach in 1992.

On the field, the Chargers offense was led by quarterback Stan Humphries, who had arrived in San Diego the same time as Ross did, and running back Natrone Means who ran for 1,350 yards and scored 12 touchdowns during the regular season.

The defense was led by all-pro linebacker Junior Seau, who led the team in tackles with 155(124 of them solo), and defensive end Lesile O'Neal who led the team in sacks with 12.5 as San Diego won their first six games of the '94 season before going 5-5 during the rest of the season.

The Chargers were also looking for revenge as it was the Dolphins who had eliminated the Chargers two years earlier in the divisional round of the AFC playoffs as Miami defeated San Diego 31-0 to end the Chargers' first trip to the postseason in a decade.

The Dolphins would start the game on offense as it took Miami just one play to get into Chargers territory as Marino completed a 31-yard pass to tight end Keith Jackson to give the Dolphins a 1st down at the San Diego 35-yard-line.

But the Dolphins would move no further as two incomplete passes and a quarterback sack would force them to punt the ball to the Chargers, who would take over at their 20-yard-line.

After both teams went three-and-out, the Chargers got the ball back at their 14-yard-line as three runs by Means for 33 yards and a pair of completions by Humphries would move San Diego to the Miami 32-yard-line until Means caught a six-yard pass only to fumble when he was hit by Miami defensive end Marco Coleman as linebacker Jesse Soloman would make the recovery for the Dolphins at their 21-yard-line.

From there, the Dolphins would travel 79 yards in nine plays as Marino completed two passes to Irving Fryar for 37 yards on the drive which ended with an eight-yard touchdown pass to Jackson to give Miami a 7-0 lead with 2:24 to go in the first quarter.

The Chargers would get the ball back at their 26-yard-line as they hold the ball for nearly seven minutes as they drove 72 yards in 14 plays to set up a 20-yard field goal by John Carney that put San Diego on the scoreboard to make it a 7-3 game with 10:36 remaining in the second quarter.

The Dolphins would get great field position for their next possession as O.J. McDuffie would return the ensuing kickoff 42 yards to the Miami 48-yard-line as Marino would go a perfect 5-of-5 on the six-play drive which ended with another touchdown pass to Jackson, this one from nine yards out to extend the Dolphins' lead to 14-3 midway through the second quarter.

The Chargers next drive would start at their 27-yard-line as Humphries would complete a nine-yard pass to Mark Seay which was followed by two straight carries by Means for 38 yards to put San Diego at the Miami 26-yard-line.

Eric Bieniemy would give Means a breather as he carried the ball on the next two plays, gaining a total of 20 yards to give the Chargers a 1st & goal at the Dolphins' six-yard-line.

However, the Chargers could not punch into the end zone as they settle for another 20-yard field goal by Carney that cut the Dolphins' lead to 14-6 with 2:47 left before halftime.

The Dolphins would begin their next possession at their 30-yard-line as Marino would complete six of eight passes for 66 yards on the nine-play, 70-yard drive that culminated with Marino's third touchdown pass of the first half, a 16-yarder to wide receiver Mike Williams with 27 seconds left in the half to push Miami's lead back to double digits at 21-6.

The Chargers would try to get some more points before the end of the half but Humphries would be picked off by Miami defensive back Frankie Smith to end the first half with the Dolphins on top 21-6.

Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino completed 17 of 24 passes for 206 yards and threw three touchdowns in the first half.

San Diego would get the ball to start the second half as the Chargers would drive from their 28-yard-line to the Miami 25-yard-line until they were faced with a 4th & 7 situation when Ross decided to gamble and go for the 1st down.

The gamble would work as Humphries would complete a 15-yard pass to give the Chargers a 1st & goal at the Miami 10-yard-line as San Diego would advance all the way to the one-yard-line when they were faced with another 4th down situation as Ross once again went for it.

But this time the gamble would not pay off as Means would take it outside and get pushed out of bounds by Coleman and strong safety Michael Stewart to end the Chargers' 15-play, 71-yard drive that took nearly eight minutes off the clock only to result in zero points.

However, the Chargers would get two points on the Dolphins' next play from scrimmage as defensive tackle Reuben Davis would tackle running back Bernie Parmalee in the end zone for a safety to cut the Miami lead to 21-8 but more importantly give the ball right back to the Chargers following the Dolphins' free kick.

Starting at their 46-yard-line, the Chargers would drive to the Miami 24-yard-line until Means took a handoff from Humphries around the right side, broke through a few Miami tackles, then carried Dolphins cornerback J.B. Brown for the last seven yards into the end zone for an amazing 24-yard touchdown run that with the extra point cut the Dolphins' lead to 21-15 with 2:42 left in the third quarter.

The Chargers caught a break on the touchdown as replays showed that Means had stepped out of bounds at the two-yard-line but with no instant replay in the NFL in 1994 the touchdown stood.

After both teams traded punts, the Dolphins had the ball at their 15-yard-line when the most bizarre play of the game occurred as Marino completed a 20-yard pass to Jackson, who while being dragged down by Charger defenders, tried to lateral the ball to Fryar, only for the ball go forward and be recovered by the Chargers.

But instead of getting the ball in Miami territory with a chance to drive for the go-ahead touchdown, the officials ruled that Jackson had thrown an illegal forward pass which negated the fumble and allowed the Dolphins to keep the ball after a five-yard penalty and loss of down.

The Dolphins would end up punting the ball back to the Chargers who took over at their 19-yard-line with 8:03 left in the game and needing seven points to take the lead.

The drive would begin with two runs by Means for 13 yards followed by Humphries completing three of his next four passes for 31 yards to move San Diego to the Miami 37-yard-line when the game's next controversy occurred.

Humphries would threw deep for Shawn Jefferson in the end zone, who would make the catch and get both feet in bounds for an apparent touchdown only for the officials to say he did not get both feet in bounds to make the pass incomplete and bring up 2nd & 10 at the Miami 37-yard-line.

That is when disaster struck for the Chargers as Humphries would be picked off as Miami cornerback Troy Vincent would tip a pass intended for Martin that ended up in the hands of Stewart to give the Dolphins the ball at their 24-yard-line with 4:24 left on the clock and a chance to milk some time off the clock.

However, the Chargers' defense would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball back at their 39-yard-line with 3:16 left to go in the game and all three timeouts in San Diego's pocket plus the two-minute warning.

Chargers running back Natrone Means ran for 139 yards on 24 carries and scored one touchdown.

The drive would begin with a nine-yard pass from Humphries to Ronnie Harmon, followed by a three-yard-run by Means to pick up a San Diego 1st down and then a 10-yard pass from Humphries to Martin for another Chargers 1st down at the Miami 39-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit.

Humphries would then complete a six-yard pass to Harmon on 1st down, throw an incomplete pass on 2nd down, and then hit Martin for 15 yards to give San Diego a fresh set of downs at the Dolphins' 18-yard-line with a little over a minute to go.

Harmon would get his hands on the ball on the next two plays, first catching a eight-yard pass from Humphries and then running for one yard to set up a 3rd & 1 when Means got the call as he was able to pick up the needed yard to give San Diego a 1st & goal at the Miami eight-yard-line.

That is when Humphries hits a wide open Seay, who catches the ball at the four-yard-line, then runs in untouched for the eight-yard touchdown that with Carney's extra point gave the Chargers their first lead of the game at 22-21 with just 35 seconds left in the game.

The Dolphins would get one last chance to win the game as Carney would squib the ensuing kickoff to give Miami good field position as they would take over possession at their 38-yard-line.

After an incomplete pass on 1st down, Marino would throw deep for Fryar, who drew a pass interference penalty on Chargers defensive back Eric Castle, resulting in a 32-yard gain to give Miami a 1st down at the San Diego 30-yard-line with 17 seconds remaining.

The Dolphins would travel no further as Marino would throw two straight incomplete passes before Shula sent in Pete Stoyanovich to go and try to win the game with a 48-yard field goal.

The snap from center Jeff Dellenbach was high but holder John Kidd was able to catch it and get a good hold for Stoyanovich, whose kick was long enough but sailed wide left and no good as the Chargers would come away with the 22-21 victory and advance to the AFC Championship Game for the first time in 13 years.

One week later, the Chargers' magical season would continue with a 17-13 upset over the Pittsburgh Steelers as linebacker Dennis Gibson would knock down Steelers quarterback Neil O' Donnell's pass intended for running back Barry Foster on 4th & goal late in the game to preserve the San Diego victory and send the Chargers to first ever Super Bowl.

However, the Chargers would be unable to lift the Lombardi Trophy as they were crushed by the San Francisco 49ers 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX behind 49ers quarterback Steve Young's record six touchdown passes.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: SMU's Pony Express Completes Undefeated Season with Cotton Bowl Victory

SMU quarterback Lance McIlhenny runs for what would be the only touchdown in the 1983 Cotton Bowl.

When it comes to the 1982 college football national championship, the majority of experts and fans will recognize the Penn State Nittany Lions as the national champions as they were voted #1 in the final AP and Coaches polls after their win in the Sugar Bowl against #1 Georgia.

But if you ask anyone associated with the SMU football program, they will tell you they should have been voted national champions and will point to their win in the 1983 Cotton Bowl over the Pittsburgh Panthers as part of their argument.

The Mustangs came into the game ranked #4 in the country with a 10-0-1 record with their only blemish of the season coming in their regular season finale whey played the Arkansas Razorbacks to a 17-17 tie.

The Mustangs were led by head coach Bobby Collins, who was in his second season as the SMU head coach after taking over from Ron Meyer, who had left to become the head coach of the NFL's New England Patriots following the 1980 season.

Collins inherited a team which featured the famous "Pony Express" backfield in running backs Eric Dickerson and Craig James, who had combined to run for over 2,500 yards during the 1982 regular season as Dickerson finished the 1982 season with 1,617 yards and 17 touchdowns to finish 3rd in the Heisman Trophy race while James ran for 938 yards.

At quarterback was junior Lance McIlhenny, who had taken over as the SMU starting quarterback since midway through the 1980 season when the Mustangs switched from a pro-style offense to a triple option attack,t he Mustangs did not have to travel far from their home in Dallas to play in the school's first Cotton Bowl since 1966 after winning the Southwest Conference championship for the second year in a row(They did not play in a bowl game in 1981 because they were on NCAA probation).

Standing in their way were the #6 Pittsburgh Panthers who having to salvage their season after they were unble to fulfill their national championship expectations.

The Panthers had finished the previous two seasons as the #2 team in the country and were seen as national title contenders as they were ranked #1 in the preseason AP and coaches poll.

The Panthers were led by quarterback Dan Marino, who had thrown for 34 touchdown passes in 1981 and defensive end Chris Doleman on a team which had 18 starters returning from the season before for first-year head coach Foge Fanzio, who had been promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach after Jackie Sherill's departure for Texas A&M following the '81 season.

Pitt would win their first seven games of the season before falling to Notre Dame 31-16 in the first week of November then would lose to Penn State 19-10 in the final game of the regular season to finish the regular season with a 9-2 record as they earned an invitation to take on the Mustangs in Dallas on New Year's Day.

While Pitt was hoping to finish the season with their fourth straight 10-win season, the Mustangs were looking to complete an undefeated season for the first time since 1947 as the two teams meet on a cold, windy day in Dallas which featured some sleeting during the game.

 Pitt would get the ball to start the game as they would drive from their 28-yard-line to inside SMU territory until the Panthers were faced with a 4th down at the Mustangs' 38-yard-line.

Lined up to punt, the Panthers ran a fake as the ball was snapped to the upback, Rick Duckovich, who ran 11 yards to the SMU 27-yard line to give Pitt a fresh set of downs.

On the very next play, Marino completed a screen pass to fullback Joe McCall that went for 26 yards to put the Panthers at the SMU one-yard-line where they had a 1st & goal only for disaster to strike when McCall fumbled the ball when he tried to leap over a pile to get into the end zone.

SMU strong safety Wes Hopkins would make the recovery to end the Pitt scoring threat and give the Mustangs offense the ball at their two-yard-line.

From there, the SMU offense would launch a 22-play, 91-drive that took over nine minutes off the clock as the "Pony Express" drove to the Pitt seven-yard drive which was aided by four penalties for 40 yards by the Panthers' defense which included two personal fouls.

But just like the Panthers on their first drive of the game, the Mustangs would turn it over as McIlhenny fumbled the football when he was hit by Pitt cornerback Tim Lewis as nose guard JC Pelusi would make at the Pittsburgh 14-yard-line to end the SMU scoring threat.

Pitt quarterback Dan Marino would complete 19 of 37 passes for 187 yards.

The game was still scoreless late in the second quarter when the Panthers would force another turnover when free safety Tom Flynn knocked the ball loose from James which was recovered by fellow defensive back Dan "Peep" Short to give Pitt the ball at their 36-yard-line with 2:35 left before halftime.

Marino would complete four passes to get the Panthers down to the SMU 10-yard-line where Eric Schubert would attempt a 26-yard field goal only for the kick to sail wide left and no good as the first half would end in a scoreless tie, the first time that happened in a Cotton Bowl since 1961.

After SMU punted the ball following their opening possession of the second half, the Panthers took over at their 38-yard-line as Marino would complete his next five passes for 28 yards to lead Pitt to the SMU 19-yard-line when Mustangs nose guard Michael Carter sacked Marino for a nine-yard-loss.

The Panthers would end up settling for a 43-yard field goal by Schubert to end the 13-play, 36-yard drive to give Pitt a 3-0 lead with 4:34 left in the third quarter.

The Mustangs would begin their next possession at their 20-yard-line as Dickerson got to carry the ball twice to start the drive as he ran for 12 yards to give SMU a 1st down at its 32-yard-line when McIlhenny was dropped for a six-yard loss by Pelusi to make it 2nd & 16.

Dickerson would run for three yards to set up 3rd & 13 when McIlhenny put the ball in the air as he completed a 20-yard pass to flanker Bobby Leach to give the Mustangs a 1st down at their 49-yard-line.

Just when it seemed like the Mustangs' offense had it moving, Leach would be dropped for a 11-yard los on an end around by Doleman and Short to bring up 2nd & 21 at the SMU 38-yard-line.

That is when McIlhenny went deep and fired a pass for Leach down the right sideline who would make an over-the-shoulder catch as he was knocked out of bounds at the Pitt 20-yard-line after a 42-yard completion.

The Mustangs would go back to Dickerson as he would carry the ball on the next two plays to pick up nine yards and set up 3rd & 1 when James got the ball as he ran for two yards to pick up the 1st down at the Pitt nine-yard-line.

McIlhenny would then fake a handoff to Dickerson, ran to his right and fake a pitch to James, took up the middle and broke a tackle attempt to Pitt linebacker Yogi Jones, to run into the end zone for a nine-yard touchdown to complete the 11-play, 80-yard drive and give SMU  7-3 lead with 13:49 left in the fourth quarter.

The Panthers would begin their ensuing possession at their 26-yard-line as Marino would complete a 19-yard pass to split end Keith Williams, then hit running back Bryan Thomas for 11 yards on a 4th & 3 at the SMU 33-yard-line which was followed by a 15-yard run by Thomas to give Pitt a 1st & goal at the Mustangs' seven-yard-line.

After a McCall run that went for no gain on 1st down, Marino tried to hit Williams again but overthrew him in the end zone to set up 3rd & goal when Marino fired a pass before he was hit by SMU linebacker Clarence McDade that was intended for Dwight Collins in the end zone.

But Hopkins would get in front of the pass to deflect it as SMU free safety Blane Smith would make  the interception to give the ball back to the Mustangs with 8:08 left in the game and SMU still ahead 7-3.

The Pitt defense would force the Mustangs to punt to give the ball back to Marino and the Panthers offense at their 38-yard-line with 4:29 left to play as Panther fans hoped Marino could pull off a game-winning touchdown in the final minutes just like he did in the Sugar Bowl one year earlier.

The drive would begin with an eight-yard run by Thomas that was followed by a one-yard run by McCall which got 15 yards added on to it as Carter was called for a late hit penalty to give Pitt a 1st down at the SMU 37-yard-line.

An incomplete pass followed by a one-yard run by Marlon McIntyre followed by another incomplete pass set up 4th & 9 when Marino fired a low pass for a diving Dwight Collins at the SMU 26-yard-line that Collins dropped, the sixth such drop for the Pitt offense, to turn the ball over on downs and give the Mustangs a chance to run out the remaining 2:11 on the clock.

Dickerson would pick up two 1st downs to milk the remaining time in the game as the Mustangs came away with the 7-3 victory, their first Cotton Bowl win since 1949 and their 11th victory of the season to finish with a 11-0-1 record.

Despite the loss, the Panthers would still finish the season ranked in the top 10 as they earned the #9 ranking in the final coaches' poll and #10 ranking in the final AP poll as Marino would go on to a Hall-of-Fame career as he would play 17 seasons with the Miami Dolphins.

As for SMU, despite being the only college football team not to lose a game in 1982, they would finish ranked #2 in both the final AP and coaches poll behind Penn State, who was voted #1 in both polls after defeating #1 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

The Mustangs would remain a national power for the next two seasons as they would finish with back-to-back 10-2 seasons until they finished with two straight 6-5 seasons in 1985 + 1986 before the program was banned from playing for two seasons after receiving the infamous "Death Penalty" for repeated NCAA violations in 1987.

Eric Dickerson ran the ball 27 times for 124 yards.

The Pitt defense would force the Mustangs to punt to give the ball back to Marino and the Panthers offense at their 38-yard-line with 4:29 left to play as Panther fans hoped Marino could pull off a game-winning touchdown in the final minutes just like he did in the Sugar Bowl one year earlier.

The drive would begin with an eight-yard run by Thomas that was followed by an one-yard run by McCall which got 15 yards added on to it as Carter was called for a late hit penalty to give Pitt a 1st down at the SMU 37-yard-line.

An incomplete pass followed by a one-yard run by Marlon McIntyre followed by another incomplete pass set up 4th & 9 when Marino fired a low pass for a diving Dwight Collins at the SMU 26-yard-line that Collins dropped, the sixth such drop for the Pitt offense, to turn the ball over on downs and give the Mustangs a chance to run out the remaining 2:11 on the clock.

Dickerson would pick up two 1st downs to milk the remaining time in the game as the Mustangs came away with the 7-3 victory, their first Cotton Bowl win since 1949 and their 11th victory of the season to finish with a 11-0-1 record.

Despite the loss, the Panthers would still finish the season ranked in the top 10 as they earned the #9 ranking in the final coaches poll and #10 ranking in the final AP poll as Marino would go on to a Hall-of-Fame career as he would play 17 seasons with the Miami Dolphins.

As for SMU, despite being the only college football team not to lose a game in 1982, they would finished ranked #2 in both the final AP and coaches poll behind Penn State, who was voted #1 in both polls after defeating #1 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

The Mustangs would remain a national power for the next two seasons as they would finish with back-to-back 10-2 seasons until they finished with two straight 6-5 seasons in 1985 + 1986 before the program was banned from playing for two seasons after receiving the infamous "Death Penalty" for repeated NCAA violations in 1987.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Manning Gets The Best of Marino in Quarterback Duel

 

Colts quarterback Peyton Manning completed 23 of 29 passes for 260 yards in leading Indianapolis to a Week 14 win over the Miami Dolphins.

Every once in a while in sports, the past meets the future when a great athlete towards the end of his or her career goes up against an athlete who seems poised for greatness.

That was the case in Week 14 of the 1999 NFL season as Dan Marino, who was in his 17th NFL season faced with off second-year quarterback Peyton Manning as the Miami Dolphins hosted the Indianapolis Colts.

The Colts came into the game with a 9-2 record which was a remarkable turnaround for Indianapolis as the Colts had had back-to-back 3-13 seasons in 1997 + 98.

In his second year since being selected with the #1 overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft, Manning had thrown for 2,952 yards and 21 touchdown passes up to this point in the 1999 NFL season as the Colts traveled to Miami, hoping to extend their seven-game winning streak.

While Manning's career was on the upswing, Marino was clearly in the twilight of his career as the 38-year-old had missed five games of the '99 season because of a bone spur in his throwing shoulder.

Marino returned for the Dolphins' Thanksgiving showdown with the Dallas Cowboys where Marino was benched after throwing five interceptions in a 20-0 loss to the Cowboys to drop the Dolphins to 8-3 and one game behind the Colts in the AFC East.

Many in the media thought it was a possibility that Marino would not start and that Damon Huard, who had the Dolphins to a 4-1 record during his time as the Miami starting quarterback, would get the start in the Dolphins' showdown with the Colts.

But head coach Jimmy Johnson said that Marino would start as Miami fans hoped that Marino could do against the Colts what he had done eight weeks earlier as he lead Miami to a 34-31 win when he threw the game-winning touchdown pass with 27 seconds to go in the game.

However, that finish did come with controversy when an apparent Marino fumble with 1:22 left in the game was overturned to an incomplete pass which allowed the Dolphins to continue on their game-winning drive.

If Miami defeated Indianapolis, the two teams would be tied for the AFC East division with identical 9-3 records but the Dolphins would hold the tiebreaker as they had swept the season series with the Colts.

After the Dolphins went three-and-out to start the game, the Colts would get the ball at their 46-yard-line as Manning handed the ball off to rookie running back Edgerrian James three straight times as the rookie running back gained 22 yards on the three runs to put Indianapolis at the Miami 32-yard-line.

Manning would then throw his first pass of the game, a 15-yard pass to tight end Ken Dilger to give Indianapolis a 1st down at the Miami 17-yard-line when James get another carry as he ran for six yards, only to have it called back because of an illegal crack block on wide receiver E.G. Green.

The penalty pushed the Colts back 15 yards as Indianapolis wound up settling for a 44-yard field goal by Mike Vanderjagt to give Indy a 3-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

The Dolphins would respond with a 11-play, 55-yard drive that took over five minutes to complete and did not end until Olindo Mare kicked a 31-yard field goal to tie the game at 3.

The Colts would start its ensuing possession at its 21-yard-line and appeared it was going to be a three-and-out as Manning threw an incomplete pass on 3rd & 3 only to have Dolphins linebacker Zach Thomas get called for holding to give Indianapolis a fresh set of downs at its 33-yard-line.

On the very next play, Manning would find Dilger for 26 yards to put the Colts in Miami territory as James would then run it in for a 41-yard touchdown to give Indianapolis a 10-3 lead with 42 seconds left in the first quarter.

Colts running back Edgerrian James ran for 120 yards on 23 carries and scored two touchdowns.

It would not take long for the Colts to get back into the end zone as on the opening play of the Dolphins' ensuing possession, cornerback Jeff Burris stripped running back J.J. Johnson of the ball at the end of a seven-yard run, leading to a scoop and score by strong safety Chad Cota for a 25-yard touchdown to increase the Indianapolis lead to 17-3 with just 19 seconds to go in the opening quarter.

Things went from bad to worse for the Dolphins on their next drive when Marino was intercepted by the Colts' other starting cornerback in Tyrone Poole, whose 36-yard return put Manning and the Indy offense at the Miami 33-yard-line.

The Colts would drive to the Miami 19-yard-line until a snap from center Larry Moore went over the head of Manning as the second-year quarterback would fall on the ball after a 22-yard loss, forcing Indianapolis to punt the back to the Dolphins who would get the ball back at their 12-yard-line.

Miami picked up one 1st down before facing a 3rd & 17 at their 17-yard-line when Marino fired a deep pass for Tony Martin which fell incomplete but a drew 43-yard pass interference penalty on Colts defensive back Tony Blevins to give the Dolphins a 1st down at the Indianapolis 40-yard-line.

Three plays later, the Dolphins were in the end zone as Marino fired a 24-yard touchdown pass to Oronde Gadsden to cut the Colts' lead in half to 17-10 with 5:16 left in the second quarter.

The Colts would respond with an eight-play, 68-yard drive which saw Manning complete all four of his passes for 53 yards which culminated with an one-yard touchdown run by James to push the Indianapolis lead back to two touchdowns at 24-10 with just 57 seconds left before halftime.

The Dolphins tried to muster a drive to get some points before the end of the first half but would go three-and-out as Manning would take a knee to run out the remaining nine seconds as the Colts went into the halftime break ahead 24-10 and set to get the ball to start the second half with a chance to extend their lead.

However on the second play from scrimmage, Manning threw a pass that bounced off the hands of wide receiver Marvin Harrison and into the arms of Dolphins cornerback Sam Madison who returned the interception back for a 21-yard touchdown to cut the Colts' led to 24-17 just 49 seconds into the second half.

Manning would shake off the pick-six on the first play of the Colts' ensuing possession as he hit Harrison on a 36-yard bomb to give Indianapolis a 1st down at the Miami 38-yard-line.

After a James run that lost two yards, Manning went back to Harrison on the next two plays as the two connected for a six-yard gain on 2nd & 12 then after a holding penalty pushed the Colts back three yards, connected again this time for 13 yards on 3rd & 9 to give Indianapolis a fresh set of downs at the Dolphins' 24-yard-line.

Manning would then complete a 17-yard pass to Dilger to give the Colts a 1st & goal where James ran for two yards to set up 2nd & goal when Peyton found Terence Wilkins for the five-yard touchdown to push the Colts' lead back to 14 points at 31-17 midway through the third quarter.

Following an exchange of punts, the Dolphins got the ball at their 43-yard-line when Marino completed a 24-yard pass to Martin which was followed by a 33-yard touchdown from Marino to Martin to cut the Colts' lead to 31-24 with 3:53 remaining in the third quarter.

The Colts would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line and seemed poised to increase their lead back to two touchdowns as Manning completed a 19-yard pass to Harrison which was followed by two runs by James that totaled 24 yards to put Indianapolis at the Miami 37-yard-line when Manning was picked off by the Dolphins' other starting cornerback, Patrick Surtain, whose 28-yard return gave Marino and the Miami offense the ball at their 49-yard-line.

After two incomplete passes, Marino would find Yatil Green for 26 yards to give the Dolphins a 1st down at the Colts' 25-yard-line as Marino would complete a one-yard pass to Stanely Pritchett, before hitting Gadsen on back-to-back passes for 23 yards to give Miami a 1st & goal at the one-yard-line.

That is when Marino threw a one-yard touchdown pass to Pritchett that with the extra point tied the game at 31 with 13:07 to go in regulation.

Dan Marino bounced back from a five-interception game to throw for 313 yards and three touchdowns in a losing effort to the Colts.

The Miami defense would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball back at their 35-yard-line as two runs by Johnson collected two yards to set up 3rd & 8 when Marino was sacked by Colts linebacker Cornelius Bennett, knocking the ball loose as Mike Peterson recovered the fumble to give Indianapolis the ball at the Miami 32-yard-line.

However, the Colts could not take advantage of the turnover as Manning was sacked by Dolphins defensive end Trace Armstrong for a nine-yard loss, knocking the Colts out of field goal range and forcing them to punt the ball back to the Dolphins, who would take over at their five-yard-line.

The Dolphins would pick up one first down before punting the ball back to the Colts, who would take over in Miami territory after Wilkins returned the ensuing punt 27 yards to the Miami 37-yard-line.

Two runs by James gained nine yards to set up 3rd & 1 when Manning handed the ball off one more time to James, only to dropped for a three-yard loss by Thomas, forcing the Colts to settle for a 48-yard field goal by Vanderjagt to give Indianapolis with 4:24 left in the fourth quarter.

Miami would get the ball back at its 20-yard-line as the Dolphins hoped that Marino would do what he did two months earlier against the Colts and lead Miami to the winning score.

Marino would come out firing as he would complete a 23-yard pass to Gadsden to start the drive which was followed by a 15-yard pass to Martin to put Miami in Indianapolis territory at the Colts' 42-yard-line.

JJ Johnson would get his hands on the next two plays as he caught a seven-yard pass on 1st down, then ran for two yards on 2nd down to set up 3rd & 1 when Marino completed a three-yard pass to Green to give Miami a fresh set of downs at the Colts' 30-yard-line.as the two-minute warning struck.

After a 10-yard pass to Martin, Marino would hand the ball off to Johnson who gained just one yard to set up 2nd & 9 when Marino threw a five-yard pass to make it 3rd & 4 when Marino throw an incomplete pass to bring up 4th down as Mare would come on to kick a 32-yard field goal to tie the game at 34 with 36 seconds left in regulation.

That was enough time for the Colts to try and get into field goal range especially with the fact that they had all three timeouts left in their pocket as Manning would get good field position as Wilkins returned the ensuing kickoff 32 yards to the Indianapolis 30-yard-line.

Manning would go to his most trusted receiver as Harrison as two connected for a 16-yard completion to start the drive that was followed by a 18-yard completion to put the Colts at the Dolphins' 34-yard-line with 17 seconds to go.

Manning would then hand the ball off to James in hopes of making the field goal attempt a little shorter but James would be dropped for an one-yard loss as head coach Jim Mora sent in Vanderjagt to attempt a 53-yard field goal with six seconds to go.

Vanderjagt's kick was straight but the distance was a question mark as it appeared it might fall short of the goal posts.

But the kick would barely pass the crossbar as time expired as Vanderjagt's 53-yard field goal gave the Colts a 37-34 win and a two-game lead in the AFC Eastern Division.

Marvin Harrison caught eight passes for 125 yards including two for 34 yards on the game-winning drive.

Marino and the Dolphins would win only one more game during the regular season as Miami finished with a 9-7 record but earned a Wild Card spot in the AFC playoffs thanks to winning a tiebreaker over the Kansas City Chiefs as the Dolphins had a better record against common opponents they had with the Chiefs.

In the playoffs, Marino would lead the Dolphins to a 20-17 upset win over the Seattle Seahawks only to be eliminated the following week by the Jacksonville Jaguars 62-7 in one of the most lopsided losses in NFL playoff history.

Two months later, Marino announced his retirement from the NFL after 17 seasons in which he threw for 61,361 yards and 420 touchdown passes in a Hall-of-Fame career which unfortunately featured zero Super Bowl rings.

As for Manning and the Colts, they would go on to win the AFC East division title, the first division title in 12 years, as Indianapolis finished the regular season with a 13-3 record and the #2 seed in the AFC playoffs.

But the Colts would be stunned by the Tennessee Titans 19-16 in the Divisional Round of the AFC playoffs, ending the greatest single season turnaround when it comes to wins and losses in NFL history.

Manning would go a spectacular 18-year NFL career in which he threw for 71, 940 yards and 539 touchdown passes as he led the Colts to a Super Bowl title in 2006 and then the Denver Broncos in 2015 which was Peyton's final season.

Six years later, Manning would join Marino in the Pro Football Hall-of-Fame.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Marino Leads Dolphins to Playoff Comeback Win over Chiefs

 

Dan Marino would throw two touchdown passes in the 4th quarter to lead Miami back from 13 points down to beat Kansas City.

On Christmas Day in 1971, the Miami Dolphins and the Kansas City Chiefs participated in the longest game in NFL playoff history as the Dolphins defeated the Chiefs 27-24 when Garo Yepremian kicked a 37-yard field goal 7:40 into the second overtime period.

Nearly two decades later, the two teams would face each other in another postseason classic as the Chiefs traveled to south Florida to take on the Dolphins in the Wild Card round of the AFC Playoffs.

The Dolphins were returning to the playoffs for the first time since 1985 as Miami went 12-4 thanks in large part to an improved defense which gave up nearly 15 points per game to after four straight seasons where the defense gave up at least 22 points per game.

Despite the improvement on defense, the Dolphins' Super Bowl hopes rested on the right arm of quarterback Dan Marino who threw for 3,563 yards in his eighth season as the Miami quarterback as he along with longtime head coach Don Shula was hoping to get back to the Super Bowl after playing in the big game following his record-shattering 1984 season.

Standing in the Dolphins' way were the Chiefs who making only their second postseason appearance since that fateful Christmas in 1971 as Kansas City would go 11-5 in 1990 to earn one of the three Wild Card berths in the AFC playoffs(The other two were the Dolphins and the Houston Oilers).

Kansas City was led by head coach Marty Schottenheimer, who had come over from the Cleveland Browns, to help begin a Chiefs renaissance as their appearance in the 1990 playoffs would be the first of six straight postseason appearances.

The Chiefs' offense was led by quarterback Steve Deberg who in his 14th year in the NFL had the best season of his career as he threw for 3,444 yards and 23 touchdown passes even though he broke his pinky finger on his left hand in week 14.

With his finger heavily tapped and almost entirely in the shotgun formation, DeBerg was good to go as for the Chiefs' AFC Wild Card Game with the Dolphins.

The Dolphins got the ball to start the game as they would drive from their 14-yard-line to the 50-yard-line until they were forced to punt only to have Chiefs defensive back Charles Washington block Reggie Roby's kick to give Kansas City the ball at the Miami 37-yard-line.

It looked like the Dolphins were going to avoid having the blocked punt be turned into points as free safety Louis Oliver intercepted a Deberg pass only to have it nullified because of a pass interference penalty on Oliver to give the Chiefs a 1st down at the Miami 32-yard-line.

Six plays later, the Chiefs would kick a field goal as Nick Lowery hit a 27-yarder to give Kansas City a 3-0 lead with 5:07 left in the first quarter.

The Dolphins would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line as Miami would drive into Kansas City territory as the first quarter came to an end with Miami about to face a 4th & 6 at the Chiefs' 40-yard-line.

Instead of trying to pin the Chiefs back with a punt, Shula sent in the field goal unit as Pete Stoyanovich to attempt a 58-yard field goal, which he made to break the record of the longest field goal in NFL playoff history, which tied the game 3-3 as the second quarter began.

The Chiefs would begin their next possession at their 15-yard-line as DeBerg would complete a 33-yard pass to Stephone Paige which was followed by a 15-yard pass to Robb Thomas to give Kansas City a 1st down at the Dolphins' 37-yard-line.

The next three plays would pick up seven yards to set up 4th & 3 at the Miami 30-yard-line when Schottenheimer decided to go for the 1st down as DeBerg would throw a pass intended for Thomas which end up being intercepted by Miami strong safety Jarvis Williams to give the Dolphins the ball at their 12-yard-line.

After an exchange of punts, the Dolphins would drive from their 37-yard-line to the Chiefs' 39-yard-line when Stoyanovich came on to attempt another long field goal, this one from 57 yards out.

While the kick was on target, it did not have the distance as it fell short of the uprights to allow the Chiefs to get the ball at their 39-yard-line with 3:36 left in the first half.

Two runs by running back Christian Okoye for 19 yards and a 16-yard pass from DeBerg to Paige would put the Chiefs at the Dolphins' 26-yard-line when DeBerg threw a pass down the right sideline for Paige, who made the catch in the end zone for the first touchdown of the game to give the Chiefs a 10-3 lead with 1:54 left before halftime.

The Dolphins would drive from their 20-yard-line to the Kansas City 40-yard-line until Marino fumbled the football when he tried to scramble as Chiefs defensive end Neil Smith stripped Marino of the football which was recovered by cornerback J.C. Pearson to give Kansas City the ball at their 38-yard-line with 65 seconds left in the first half.

The Chiefs would drive to the Dolphins' 38-yard-line until they were faced with a 4th & 1 when Schottenheimer decided to go for the 1st down in hopes of making a Lowery field goal attempt shorter.

Okoye ran for three yards to pick up the 1st down only to have it called back because of an illegal motion penalty on the Chiefs, which led to Schottenheimer to punt the ball away as the first half would come to a close with Kansas City ahead 10-3.

Despite a broken finger, Chiefs quarterback Steve DeBerg would throw for 269 yards and a touchdown.

The two teams would trade punts to begin the second half as the Chiefs would begin their second possession of the half at their 30-yard-line as DeBerg completed a 26-yard pass to Emile Henry to give Kansas City a 1st down at the Miami 44-yard-line.

After a quarterback sack on 1st down and an incomplete pass on 2nd down, DeBerg completed a 13-yard pass to Todd McNair to set up 4th & 2 at the Miami 36-yard-line when Schottenheimer decided to go for the 1st down again which he got as Okoye ran for five yards to give the Chiefs a fresh set of downs at the 31-yard-line.

DeBerg would then hit passes of 11 yards to Alfredo Roberts and 16 yards to Paige to put Kansas City at the Miami four-yard-line with a 1st & goal as an intentional grounding would stall the drive and force the Chiefs to settle for a 25-yard field goal to increase their lead to 13-3 with 4:46 left in the third quarter.

The Chiefs seemed poised to put the game away when on the first play of the Dolphins' ensuing drive, Marino completed a short pass to Duper, who then fumbled after he was hit by Chiefs free safety Deron Cherry as linebacker Dino Hackett would recover the football to give Kansas City the ball at the Miami 29-yard-line.

However, the Chiefs would settle for another field goal as three runs by Okoye for eight yards set up a 38-yarder from Lowery which increased Kansas City's lead to 16-3 with 2:50 left in the third quarter.

Needing two touchdowns to take the lead, the Dolphins would begin their next possession at their 34-yard-line as running back Sammie Smith would catch a 13-yard screen pass from Marino, then ran the ball three straight times for eight yards to set up a 4th & 2 at the Kansas City 45-yard-line when Shula decided to go for the 1st down.

The gamble would pay off as Smith would pick up the two yards to give the Dolphins a 1st down at the Chiefs' 43-yard-line as the third quarter came to an end.

The fourth quarter would begin with Marino completing a nine-yard pass to Smith which was followed by a 23-yard pass to Mark Clayton to put the Dolphins at the Kansas City 11-yard-line as Smith would carry the ball on the next two plays picking up 10 yards to give Miami another 1st down at the one-yard-line.

That is when Marino found Tony Paige for the one-yard touchdown to end the 10-play, 66-yard drive and cut the Chiefs' lead to 16-10 with 12:18 left in the fourth quarter.

The Chiefs would start their next drive at their 25-yard-line as DeBerg completed a 33-yard pass to Henry to put Kansas City at the Miami 42-yard-line as the next three plays netted just one yard, forcing the Chiefs to punt the ball back to the Dolphins who would take over at their 15-yard-line with a chance to take the lead.

The drive got off to a great start as Marino found tight end Ferrell Edmunds for 37 yards to give the Dolphins a 1st down at the Chiefs' 48-yard-line.

From there, the Dolphins would convert on three straight 3rd down situations to drive to the Chiefs' 12-yard-line when Marino fired a pass for Clayton, who was being covered by Chiefs cornerback Albert Lewis, who tried to jump the route to make the interception.

However, Lewis would be unable to make the pick as the ball as Clayton would make the catch at the six-yard-line and then run into the end zone for the 12-yard touchdown to end the 11-play, 85-yard drive and give the Dolphins their first lead of the game at 17-16 with 3:28 to play.

Mark Clayton would catch what would be the game-winning touchdown in the Dolphins' 1990 AFC Wild Card win over the Chiefs.

Now behind for the first time in the game, the Chiefs would get the ball back at their 22-yard-line as DeBerg would connect with Paige for 20 yards, which was followed by a five-yard pass to tight end Johnathan Hayes and then a 26-yard run by Okoye to put Kansas City at the Miami 26-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit.

It looked like the Chiefs were going to have a 1st down at the Miami 14-yard-line as Okoye carried the ball up the middle for 12 yards only to have left guard Dave Szott get called for a holding penalty to push the Chiefs back to the Dolphins' 37-yard-line where they would face a 1st & 21.

Two incomplete runs and a three-yard run by Okoye would bring up 4th down when Schottenheimer sent in Lowery to attempt a go-ahead 52-yard field goal with 56 seconds left in the game.

Lowery's kick would be on target but it fell just inches short of the upright to make the kick no good as the Dolphins would take two knees to run out the clock as Miami would continue their season with a 17-16 victory.

However, Miami's quest for a Super Bowl title would end the following week as they fell to the Buffalo Bills 44-34.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Chargers Overcome 2 TD Deficit to Stun Marino + Undefeated Dolphins

Dan Fouts threw for  380 yards and four touchdowns in the Chargers' upset win over the Dolphins.

When the Miami Dolphins faced off with the San Diego Chargers in week 12 of the 1984 NFL season, it might been seen by some as a passing of the torch when it came to who had the best passing offense in the league as the famed "Air Coryell" offense of the Chargers was set to meet the new kid on the block in Dan Marino

The Dolphins came into the game with a 11-0 record thanks to their high-powered offense led by Marino, who in his second season in the NFL had already established himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

Through the first 11 games, Marino had throw for 3,678 yards and 30 touchdown passes in directing an offense that featured the "Marks Brothers" in wide receivers Mark Clayton and Mark Duper plus running back Tony Nathan who was more a pass catcher than a runner.

With head coach Don Shula at the helm, many Miami fans were dreaming of another undefeated Dolphins team much like the one Shula directed in 1972.

While the Dolphins were marching toward the playoffs, the Chargers  came into the game with Miami with a 5-6 record as San Diego was hoping to get on some sort of winning streak to get back into the playoff race.

The Chargers were coached by Don Coryell, who had came to San Diego following a five-year stint with the St. Louis Cardinals and led the Chargers to four straight playoff appearances from 1979 through 1982 with two of those appearances resulting in trips to the AFC Championship Game.

Under Coryell, the Chargers led the league in passing every season since 1979 thanks to their explosive "Air Coryell" offense which was led by quarterback Dan Fouts and featured weapons such as tight end Kellen Winslow, wide receivers Charlie Joiner and Wes Chandler and running back Chuck Muncie.

But it seemed that the Chargers' days at the top passing attack in the NFL were numbered especially after trading Muncie just two weeks into the season and then losing Winslow to a devasting knee injury a month prior to the game with the Dolphins.

San Diego still had Fouts, who had set the record for most passing yards with 4,802 in 1981 as well as Joiner and Chandler as they prepared to host the undefeated Dolphins in what many hoped would be a shootout similar to their one in the "Epic in Miami" in January of 1982.

 Starting at the Chargers' 47-yard-line following a 41-yard return by Fulton Walker on the opening kickoff, Marino would complete a nine-yard pass to Clayton, then hand the ball off to Nathan who picked up four yards, and then hit Duper for a 32-yard pass to give Miami a 1st & goal at the San Diego two-yard-line.

But on the very next play, running back Woody Bennett would fumble the football when he was hit by Chargers linebacker Linden King, leading to a recovery by free safety Ken Greene in the endzone for a touchback.

The Chargers would drive into Dolphins territory but would punt the ball back to Miami, who took over at its 20-yard-line as Marino would lead the Miami offense to the San Diego 32-yard-line until he was picked off by Chargers cornerback John Turner on a pass intended for tight end Bruce Hardy.

The Chargers would take over at their seven-yard-line as Fouts hit Bobby Duckworth for a 44-yard completion which was followed by four straight runs by running back Earnest Jackson for 19 yards putting San Diego at the Miami 30-yard-line.

Fouts would then find Pete Holohan for 22 yards to give the Chargers a 1st & goal at the eight-yard-line as two straight running plays would pick up five yards to set up Fouts' three-yard touchdown pass to Sievers to give San Diego a 7-0 lead with 33 seconds left in the first quarter.

The Dolphins would begin its ensuing possession at their 22-yard-line as Marino completed four of six passes for 52 yards on a nine-play, 78-yard drive that ended with Marino throwing a 12-yard touchdown pass to Clayton that helped tied the game at 7 with 11:59 remaining in the second quarter.

After a San Diego three-and-out, the Dolphins got the ball at their 40-yard-line as Marino would go a perfect 5-for-5 for 58 yards on an eight-play, 60-yard drive that culminated with an one-yard touchdown run by fullback Pete Johnson to give Miami a 14-7 lead at the halfway point of the second quarter.

Dan Marino would complete 28 of 41 passes for 332 yards and throw two touchdowns.

The Chargers would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line as they were able to drive to the Dolphins' 41-yard-line where they faced a 4th & 1 when Coryell decided to go for the 1st down which he got when Jackson ran for the one yard that San Diego needed.

Six plays later, the Chargers were back in the end zone as Fouts connected with Joiner for a four-yard touchdown to cap off the 14-play drive and tie the game back at 14 with 2:27 left in the first half.

The Dolphins would begin its next possession at their 28-yard-line as Marino would throw an incomplete pass on 1st down, then hit Duper for 22 yards and a 1st down at the 50-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit.

Marino would then complete back-to-back passes to Nathan totaling 19 yards then found tight end Dan Johnson for six yards before an incomplete pass to bring up 3rd & 4 where Marino hit Nathan again this time for 13 yards and a 1st down at the San Diego 13-yard-line.

After completing a four-yard pass to Clayton, Marino connected with Bennett for a nine-yard touchdown to give the Dolphins a 21-14 lead with 47 seconds left before halftime.

San Diego would get the ball back at its 20-yard-line with enough time to try and drive into field goal range which is exactly what happened as Fouts completed passes of 23 yards to Joiner and 19 yards to Chandler as the Chargers drove to the Miami 28-yard-line with one second left giving Rolf Benirschke a chance to cut into the lead before halftime.

But Benirschke's 46-yard field goal would said wide left and no good keeping the score 21-14 as the first half came to an end.

The two teams traded punts to start the second half until the Chargers forced another turnover when Bennett fumbled the football again at the end of a 14-yard run that was recovered by Greene at the San Diego 21-yard-line.

However, the Chargers could not take advantage of the turnover as Fouts would be intercepted by Miami free safety Lyle Blackwood to give the ball back to Marino at the San Diego 48-yard-line.

Following a four-yard run by Nathan to start the drive, Marino would find Hardy for 13 yards, then Duper for 12 yards, and then Clayton for nine yards to set up a three-yard touchdown run by Johnson to increase the  Dolphins' lead to 28-14 with 2:50 remaining in the third quarter.

The Chargers would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line as Fouts completed a nine-yard pass to Jackson to start the drive, then hit Duckworth for 16 yards and a 1st down at the San Diego 45-yard-line as Fouts would throw two straight incompletions before connecting with Joiner for 13 yards and a 1st down at the Miami 42-yard-line.

Three runs by Jackson would pick up 12 yards before Fouts connected with tight end Eric Sievers for 11 yards to put San Diego at the Dolphins' 19-yard-line when Fouts hit Joiner on a slant pass for the touchdown to cut the Miami lead in half to 28-21 with 13:31 to go in the fourth quarter.

The Dolphins would pick up only one 1st down before punting the ball back to the Chargers who would take over at their nine-yard-line when they would put together one of the more impressive drives in the 
"Air Coryell" era.

Chargers running back Earnest Jackson would have 28 carries for 124 yards.

The drive would began with a 13-yard pass from Fouts to Chandler followed by a nine-yard pass to Sievers to put the Chargers at their 31-yard-line as Jackson would run for three yards, then for 16 more to put San Diego at the 50-yard-line.

After Jackson was dropped for a four-yard-loss on a screen pass, Fouts would connect with Holohan for nine yards, then again for six yards to pick up another 1st down at the Miami 39-yard-line.

Jackson would get his hands on the ball on the next two plays as he caught a five-yard pass then had a carry for four yards to set up 3rd & 1 when running back Buford McGee got the ball and ran for four yards for the 1st down at the Miami 26-yard-line.

Fouts would then hit Sievers on back-to-back passes for seven yards to set up 3rd & 3 as Jackson would run for five more yards and another 1st down at the Miami 14-yard-line where Fouts would complete a pass to Wayne Morris that gained zero yards as the two-minute warning hit.

Following an incomplete pass on 2nd down, Fouts would hit Sievers for nine yards to bring up a do-or-die 4th & 1 when Jackson took a handoff from Fouts and was able to run for two yards for a 1st down at the three-yard-line.

After McGee was stopped for no gain on 1st down, Fouts found Sievers wide open in the end zone for the three-yard touchdown that with Benirschke's extra point tied the game at 28 with 51 seconds left in regulation following an epic 19-play, 91-yard drive that took over 10 minutes off the clock.

The Dolphins would get the ball back at their 33-yard-line with a chance to drive down into field goal range to give Uwe Von Schmann a chance to win the game with a field goal.

Following an incomplete pass to start the drive, Marino would hit Nat Moore for nine yards, then with Clayton for 23 yards, and then Nathan for nine yards before throwing the ball out of bounds to stop the clock with five seconds left and a chance for von Schmann to win the game with a 44-yard field goal.

However, von Schmann's kick would sail wide left and no good, sending the game into overtime tied at 28.

Eric Sievers would catch 12 passes for 119 yards and score two touchdowns.

The Chargers would win the coin toss and chose to receive to start the overtime period as a 25-yard return by Lionel James on the kickoff gave San Diego the ball at its 31-yard-line.

The drive would start with a four-yard run by Jackson followed by a 15-yard pass from Fouts to Sievers to put San Diego at the 50-yard-line as Fouts would throw an incomplete pass to bring up 2nd down when Jackson ran for 10 yards and a 1st down at the Miami 40-yard-line.

Fouts would then find Holohan again for 15 yards and another 1st down at the Miami 25-yard-line as the Chargers were in range for a Benirschke field goal attempt.

However, they would not settle for a field goal just yet as McGee was stopped for no gain on 1st down which was followed by an incomplete pass to bring up 3rd & 10.

That is when Fouts handed the ball off to McGee, who took the ball around the right side of the field and ran it in for a 25-yard walk-off touchdown to give the Chargers a 34-28 overtime win, ending the Dolphins' dreams of an undefeated season.

The Dolphins would bounce back as they would finish the season with a 14-2 record as Marino would set numerous NFL records including breaking Fouts' record of most passing yards in a season as Marino would finish with 5,084 yards and 48 touchdown passes also a NFL record.

The Dolphins would go on to knock off the Seattle Seahawks 31-10 in the AFC Divisional Playoffs then defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 45-28 in the AFC Championship Game behind Marino's 421 yards and four touchdown passes, to advance to Super Bowl XIX where they would fall to the San Francisco 49ers 38-16.

As for the Chargers, the win over the Dolphins would be the highlight of their season as they would lose three of their last four games of the season to finish with a 7-9 record and out of the playoffs for the second straight season.

The "Air Coryell" era would last until midway through the 1986 season when Coryell resigned halfway through the season after a 1-7 start.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: Marino Outlasts Bledsoe in Memorable Opening Day Duel

As the Miami Dolphins began the 1994 season, the biggest question was how would Dan Marino look one year after tearing his right Achilles tendon, which ended his 1993 season just five games in.

The injury was so catastrophic that it caused Marino's right calf muscle to degenerate which lead to a special shoe to be fitted for Marino's right foot.

In the preseason, Marino struggled as he was unable to put weight on his toes and push off on his right foot, leading to some wonder whether or not Bernie Kosar, the former Cleveland Browns quarterback who had been signed in the offseason, to become the Miami starter.

But legendary head coach Don Shula decided to have Marino start the season as the #1 quarterback as the Dolphins hosted the New England Patriots in week 1 of the 1994 NFL season.

While some thought Marino's best days were behind him, many thought the future was bright for Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who had been selected as the #1 overall pick of the 1993 NFL draft.

In his rookie season, Bledsoe started 12 games for the Patriots, winning five of them as New England went 5-11 in the first season under head coach Bill Parcells.

Having ended the '93 season on a four-game winning streak, hopes were high that the Patriots could take the next step and become a contender for a spot in the AFC playoffs as they traveled to Miami to take on the Dolphins.

 After the Patriots went three-and-out on their opening possession of the game, the Dolphins would get the ball at their 36-yard-line with Marino throwing as his first two passes went incomplete before connecting with Scott Miller for 16 yards and a 1st down at the New England 48-yard-line.

From there, running back Terry Kirby would run the ball three straight times for a total of nine yards setting up 4th & 1 when Shula decided to go for the 1st down as Marino handed it off again to Kirby, who lost the football after he was hit by Patriots linebacker Marty Moore as free safety Myron Guyton made the recovery at the New England 41-yard-line.

The Patriots would convert the turnover into points as they drove 59 yards in 10 plays with the drive being capped off with an one-yard touchdown run by Kevin Turner to give New England a 7-0 lead with 4:44 left in the first quarter.

Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe 32 of 51 passes for 421 yards and threw five touchdown passes.

The Dolphins would begin its next possession at its 30-yard-line and put together a drive that would last into the second quarter as Marino completed six of his next passes for 45 yards and even scrambled for 10 yards as Miami drove to the Patriots' two-yard-line where they had 1st & goal.

After an one-yard run by Kirby on 1st down and an illegal shift penalty pushed Miami back five yards, Marino fired a pass that bounced off the hands of running back Keith Byars and into the arms of Patriots linebacker Dwayne Sabb for the interception to give the ball back to the Patriots at their nine-yard-line.

Following an exchange of punts, the Patriots would drive from their 20-yard-line to the Miami 18-yard-line until Bledsoe was intercepted by Dolphins cornerback Troy Vincent to give the ball back to Marino at his nine-yard-line with a little over four minutes left before halftime.

Three runs by Kirby for 22 yards plus a 5-yard face mask penalty put the Dolphins at their 36-yard-line when Marino fired a deep pass for Mark Ingram who made the catch at the Patriots' 36-yard-line and then proceed to outran the New England defense to complete the 64-yard touchdown to tie the game at 7 with 2:15 left in the first half.

The Patriots would get the ball back at its 32-yard-line as Bledsoe would complete six of seven passes for 63 yards on an eight-play, 68-yard drive that culminated with a two-yard touchdown pass from Bledsoe to tight end Ben Coates to give New England a 14-10 lead with 25 seconds left before halftime.

Miami would begin its next possession at its 33-yard-line with 19 seconds left in the half and two timeouts giving Marino enough time to possibly to lead the Dolphins into field goal range.

Marino would find O.J. McDuffie for 21 yards, called timeout, and then hit Miller for 21 yards to set up a 42-yard field goal by Pete Stoyanovich as time expired in the first half with the Dolphins trailing 14-10 but set to get the ball to start the second half.

However, the Dolphins would go three-and-out on their initial possession of the second half, forcing them to punt the ball back to the Patriots, where it took them only two plays to get back into the end zone as Bledsoe hit Coates for a 62-yard touchdown to increase the New England lead to 21-10 just 2:27 into the third quarter.

After both teams went three-and-out on their ensuing possessions, the Dolphins got the ball at their 39-yard-line where it took them only one play to get into New England territory as Marino completed a 40-yard pass to former Patriots wide receiver Irving Fryar to give Miami a 1st down at the Patriots' 21-yard-line.

Two plays later on 3rd & 15, Marino fired a 26-yard touchdown pass to tight end Keith Jackson which brought Dolphins to within five points at 21-16 as Miami decided to attempt a two-point conversion which was successful as Kirby ran into it to make a three-point game at 21-18 with 8:13 left in the third quarter.

Dolphins wide receiver Irving Fryar would catch five passes for 211 yards and score three touchdowns.

The Patriots began its next possession at its 25-yard-line as Bledsoe completed back-to-back passes for 30 yards to put New England at the Miami 45-yard-line when Bledsoe was picked off by Dolphins free safety Gene Atkins to give the ball back to the Dolphins at their 35-yard-line.

But just one play later, the Patriots had the ball again as Marino fumbled the snap from center Jeff Dellenbach with New England defensive end Mike Jones making the recovery at the Miami 24-yard-line.

Five plays later, the Patriots were in the end zone again as Bledsoe found Michael Timpson over the middle for a five-yard touchdown to push the New England lead back to double digits at 28-18 with 4:27 left in the third quarter.

Back came the Dolphins as they drove 78 yards in four plays as Marino connected with Fryar a 54-yard touchdown to cut the Patriots' lead to three points at 28-25 with 3:09 remaining in the third quarter.

The Patriots would hold the ball for the rest of the third quarter before punting the ball back to the Dolphins who took over at their 46-yard-line as Kirby ran for four yards on 1st down, then took an handoff from Marino only to pitch it back to the quarterback on a flea flicker, who then found Fryar for a 50-yard touchdown to give Miami its first lead of the game at 32-28 with exactly 14 minutes left in the 4th quarter.

New England would respond with a six-play, 67-yard drive that ended with Bledsoe's fifth touchdown pass of the day, a 23-yarder to Ray Crittenden who made a diving catch in the right corner of the end zone to give the Patriots a 35-32 lead with 10:12 left in regulation.

After both teams punted on their ensuing possessions, the Dolphins got the ball back at its 20-yard-line with 7:14 left in regulation.

The drive got off to an auspcious start as Marino was sacked for a nine-yard-loss on 1st down, but would turn around as Marino hit Byars for seven yards on 2nd down then Kirby for 21 yards on 3rd & 12 to give Miami a 1st down at its 39-yard-line.

Marino would lead the Dolphins to the Patriots' 35-yard-line until they were faced with a 4th & 5 when Shula decided to go for the 1st down instead of a potential game-tying field goal.

The gamble paid off and then some as Marino fired a pass down the right sideline and connected with Fryar for a 35-yard touchdown to give the Dolphins a 39-35 lead with 3:19 left in the fourth quarter.

Marino would finish with 473 yards and four touchdowns on 23-of-42 passes.

The Patriots would get the ball back at its 20-yard-line as Bledsoe would complete two passes for 27 yards before throwing two straight incomplete passes to set up 3rd & 10 when Bledsoe found Coates for an apparent 1st down.

But as Coates ran to the Miami 30-yard-line, he lost the football following an hit by Atkins, leading to Dolphins strong safety Michael Stewart making the recovery to give the Dolphins the ball at their 26-yard-line with 1:51 left and a chance to run out the clock.

However, the Dolphins could not pick up a 1st down and were forced to punt the ball back to the Patriots who took over at their 35-yard-line with 1:18 left in the game.

Bledsoe would complete two passes to get the Patriots to the 50-yard-line until Bledsoe ran out of bullets as he fired four straight incomplete passes to end New England's chances of pulling out the win.

Marino would take a knee to run out the clock in the Dolphins' 39-35 victory which saw both quarterbacks combine for 894 yards and nine touchdown passes.

The Patriots would recover from the Week 1 loss to finish with a 10-6 record to earn New England a trip to the postseason for the first time since 1986 as Bledsoe finished the season as the NFL's leading passer in yards as he threw for 4,555 yards.

Not to be outdone, Marino would finish the season with 4,453 yards and 30 touchdown passes as the future Hall-of-Famer would win the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year award as he led the Dolphins to an identical 10-6 record, but good enough to win the AFC East division title as they swept the season series with the Patriots(Miami defeated New England 23-3 in Week 9)as Miami would knock off the Kansas City Chiefs 27-17 in the Wild Card round then would fall to the San Diego Chargers 22-21 in the Divisional Round.

NFL Old School Game of the Week: O'Brien Comes Off The Bench To Lead Jets To Win over Dolphins in Shootout

Jets quarterback Ken O'Brien came off the bench to throw two touchdown passes in leading the Jets a comeback win over the Miami Dolphins.

Many NFL fans remember the classic quarterback duel between Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino and New York Jets Ken O'Brien in week 3 of the 1986 NFL season in which the two quarterbacks combined to throw for 927 yards and 10 touchdown passes as O'Brien's Jets came out on top 51-45 in overtime(To read about that game, click on the link which is highlighted here:https://oldschoolsportsblog.blogspot.com/2018/09/nfl-old-school-game-of-week-jets-win.html).

However that would not be the last time the two quarterbacks engaged in a shootout.

Two years later, Marino would throw for 521 yards and three touchdown but also threw five interceptions as the Dolphins fell to the Jets 44-30 as O'Brien threw for three touchdowns in the New York victory.

Five weeks later, the Dolphins were set to travel to the Meadowlands to take on the Jets in Week 13 with many fans hoping for another duel between Marino and O'Brien.

However, O'Brien would not be on the bench as Jets head coach Joe Walton had turned to backup quarterback Pat Ryan in hopes of giving the New York offense a spark as the team entered the Miami game on a three-game losing streak to fall to 5-6-1.

Ryan had started the previous week but had lead the Jets to just six points in a 9-6 overtime loss to the Buffalo Bills.

Still, Ryan got the start as the Jets hosted the Dolphins who came into the game with a 5-7 record, hoping to avoid only the second losing season in head coach Don Shula's career with the first coming in 1976 as Miami finished with a 6-8 record.

While Marino was still playing at a high level, the same could not be said for the defense or running game which ranked near the bottom of the league, thus putting more pressure on Marino to lead the Dolphins as they entered their game with the Jets also on a three-game losing streak.

Something had to give as both teams desperately needed a win and keep their slim playoff chances alive.

The Jets got the ball at their 20-yard-line to start the game and rode the right arm of Ryan to drive 80 yards in 12 plays as Ryan completed six of eight passes for 68 yards on the drive that was capped off with an eight-yard touchdown pass to veteran wide receiver Wesley Walker, who had caught a 35-yard pass earlier on the drive, to give New York a 7-0 lead with 9:21 left in the first quarter.

The Dolphins would also begin their initial possession of the game at their 20-yard-line and like the Jets would drive 80 yards primarily through the air as Marino completed five of nine passes for 58 yards on a 13-play drive that culminated with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Marino to Fred Banks to tie the game 7-7 with 4:56 to go in the first quarter.

The Jets would get the ball back at their nine-yard-line when after an incomplete pass on the first play of the drive, ran the ball three straight times picking up 15 yards until Ryan connected with Al Toon for 14 yards, then again for 29 yards to put New York at the Miami 33-yard-line.

Another completion to Toon, this time for 10 yards, and two runs by Freeman McNeil for nine yards had the Jets at the Dolphins' 14-yard-line as the second quarter began when Ryan was intercepted by Dolphins cornerback William Judson to give the ball back to Miami at its 16-yard-line.

The Dolphins would pick up one 1st down before punting the ball back to the Jets who took over at their 38-yard-line as New York ran the ball four straight times for a total of 23 yards to drive to the Dolphins' 39-yard-line.

From there, the Jets went back to the air as Ryan would complete five of his next seven passes for 42 yards with the last pass being a 14-yard touchdown to tight end Mickey Shuler to give New York a 14-7 lead midway through the second quarter.

Pat Ryan completed 27 of 43 passes for 341 yards and threw two touchdown passes.

Following a Miami three-and-out, the Jets got the ball at their 39-yard-line and quickly drove down the field as Ryan connected with Shuler for nine yards to start the drive which was followed by an 18-yard run by Johnny Hector and then a 16-yard pass from Ryan to  Toon to put New York at the Miami 18-yard-line.

That is when the Dolphins' defense showed signs of life as they held the Jets to six yards on the next three plays, forcing New York to settle for a 29-yard field goal by Pat Leahy which increased the Jets' lead to 17-7 with 2:40 left in the second quarter.

The Dolphins would take over at their 26-yard-line with all three timeouts in their pocket and over two and a half minutes to drive down the field and pick up some points before halftime.

After the first two plays picked up four yards, Marino tried to go deep on 3rd & 6 and fired a long pass for Duper that fell incomplete but drew a pass interference penalty on Jets cornerback James Hasty which resulted in a 32-yard gain and a 1st down for the Dolphins at the New York 38-yard-line as the two-minute warning hit.

An one-yard run by Jim Jensen and two incomplete passes forced a 4th & 9 at the Jets' 37-yard-line when Shula decided to gamble and go for the 1st down.

Shula would get more than the 1st down as Marino fired a 37-yard touchdown pass to Banks, who had streaked down the left sideline to make the touchdown catch to bring the Dolphins to within a field goal at 17-14 with 88 seconds to go in the first half.

The Jets would get the ball back at their 24-yard-line with 1:23 left in the first half and two timeouts which gave them plenty of time to pick up some points as the Jets offense had driven down the field on all four of their possessions thus far in the game.

The drive began with a modest three-yard pass from Ryan to Toon which was followed by a 18-yard pass to Shuler then a 20-yard pass to Toon to put the Jets at the Miami 35-yard-line.

That is when Ryan went deep for Walker who made the catch at the Miami six-yard-line for a 29-yard gain that became a 32-yard gain as Dolphins linebacker Mark Brown was called for roughing the passer as he hit Ryan in the jaw with a elbow that led to Brown being ejected from the game.

Ryan stayed on the ground for a minute but got up and was able to hand the ball off to McNeil who ran it in for a three-yard touchdown with eight seconds left in the half to increase the Jets' lead to 24-14.

The Dolphins would return the ensuing kickoff to their 48-yard-line to end the first half to end the first half with Miami trailing 24-14 as their defense had allowed 21 1st downs and 346 yards of total offense.

If the Dolphins were going to come back and win the game, they would need Marino, who had completed only six of 19 passes for 95 yards in the first half to step up his game.

Miami got the ball to start the second half as they took over at their 38-yard-line and proceeded to drive to the Jets' 31-yard-line when Marino connected with Clayton for a 31-yard touchdown to bring the Dolphins to within three points at 24-21 with 11:13 remaining in the third quarter.

Dan Marino completed 17 of 35 passes for 353 yards and threw five touchdowns.

The Jets took over at their 28-yard-line only to give right back to the Dolphins after just one play when running back Roger Vick fumbled the football after a hit by Miami nose tackle Brian Sochia, which was recovered by linebacker Rick Graf at the New York 25-yard-line.

After two plays picked zero yards, Marino fired a 25-yard touchdown pass to Clayton to give the Dolphins their first lead of the game at 27-24 with 10:04 remaining in the third quarter as kicker Fuad Reveiz would miss the extra point.

Then after forcing the Jets to punt for the first time in the game, the Dolphins had the ball at their 20-yard-line when Marino completed a short pass over the middle to tight end Ferrell Edmunds, who managed to outrun the New York defense for a 80-yard touchdown to increase the Dolphins' lead to 34-24 as Miami had scored three touchdowns in a span of three minutes and 29 seconds.

The Jets would keep the ball out of Marino's hands for the next five minutes as they drove 37 yards in 11 plays until they were forced to punt from the Miami 39-yard-line

By this time, Ryan was still feeling groggy from the hit he took to his jaw late in the first half as he struggled to stay in the game.

He ultimately told O'Brien "I'm feeling a little funny. Hang loose" meaning that O'Brien might have come into the game.

Having scored three straight touchdowns, the Dolphins offense was clicking and they looked to continue that trend as they took over at their 15-yard-line with 2:31 left in the third quarter.

After an one-yard run to start the drive, Marino connected with Banks again, this time for 27 yards and another 1st down at the Miami 43-yard-line.

On the next play, Marino threw another short pass to Edmunds, who once again turned upfield and looked to outrun the Jets defense again for another touchdown.

But New York strong safety Rich Miano would pop the ball loose from Edmunds at the end of his 37-yard reception, leading to a fumble that was recovered by Hasty, who returned the fumble 17 yards to the Jets' 37-yard-line.

When the Jets' offense came back onto the field, O'Brien joined them as he took over for the injured Ryan at quarterback.

Despite nursing a sore shoulder, O'Brien came out firing as he completed a 11-yard pass to Shuler to start the drive, then hit Toon for 30 yards for a New York 1st down at the Miami 22-yard-line.

Then, O'Brien handed the ball off to McNeil, who ran for 10 yards and another 1st down, which was followed by a Hector run up the middle for no gain as the Jets sat at the Miami 12-yard-line as the third quarter came to an end.

O'Brien would scramble for five yards on the first play of the fourth quarter then would connect with Shuler for a seven-yard touchdown to bring the Jets to within three points at 34-31 just 51 seconds into the fourth quarter.

Jets wide receiver Al Toon caught 14 passes for 181 yards.

Miami would drive from its 28-yard-line to the New York 48-yard-line before punting the ball back to the Jets who took over at their 26-yard-line with 11:06 remaining in regulation.

The drive began on the ground as McNeil took a handoff from O'Brien and ran around the right side for 13 yards and a 1st down at the New York 39-yard-line.

A five-yard run by Hector and an incomplete pass would lead to a 3rd & 5 where O'Brien connected with Toon for 13 yards and another Jets 1st down at the Miami 43-yard-line.

O'Brien would then an incomplete pass on 1st down which was followed by an nine-yard run by Vick to set up 3rd & 1 where the Dolphins drew an illegal use of hands penalty to give New York a 1st down at the Miami 29-yard-line.

A 12-yard run by McNeil gave the Jets another 1st down at the Dolphins' 17-yard-line when an illegal procedure penalty push the Jets back five yards to the Miami 22-yard-line.

McNeil got four of the five yards back on a 1st down run to set up 2nd & 11 when O'Brien fired a 18-yard touchdown pass to Walker to give New York a 38-34 lead with 5:41 left in the fourth quarter.

The Dolphins would begin its ensuing possession at their 31-yard-line as Marino completed passes of 16 yards to Clayton and 15 yards to running back Ron Davenport to push the Miami offense to the New York 38-yard-line.

However, after a three-yard run by Davenport and two straight incomplete passes, the Dolphins were faced with a 4th & 7 at the New York 35-yard-line with just about four minutes to go.

Like he had done late in the first half, Shula decided to go for the 1st down but this time the gamble did not pay off as Marino's pass intended for Banks fell incomplete giving the Jets the ball at their 35-yard-line with 3:58 to go in the game, hoping to pick up some 1st downs and run out the clock.

The drive began with a four-yard run by McNeil, followed by a seven-yard run by Hector for a New York 1st down at its 46-yard-line as Miami called its first timeout of the second half with 3:03 remaining.

An one-yard run by McNeil and an incomplete pass set up a critical 3rd & 9 when O'Brien found Toon for a 13-yard completion to give the Jets a 1st down at the Dolphins' 40-yard-line as Miami called its third and final timeout with 2:36 to go.

McNeil would run for three yards on 1st down on the last play before the two-minute warning which was followed by two straight runs by Hector that picked up seven yards and another 1st down at the Dolphins' 30-yard-line, allowing the Jets to take a knee twice to seal the 38-34 victory for New York.

The Dolphins would finish the season with a 6-10 record which was the worst record for a single season in Shula's legendary 33-year career as a NFL head coach as he retired following the 1995 NFL season as the all-time wins leader with 347 career wins.

As for the Jets, they would go back to Ryan as the starting quarterback for their game the next week against the Kansas City Chiefs, which they lost 38-34 before going back to O'Brien who came off the bench in the next-to-last game of the regular season and led New York to a 34-16 win over the Indianapolis Colts and a 27-21 win over the New York Giants to finish the season with a 8-7-1 record but not good enough to make the playoffs.

O'Brien would retake the starting quarterback job for the 1989 season, which included another shootout win over the Dolphins in week 3 as the Jets won that game 40-33 and held on to the starting job until the 1992 season when he was replaced by Browning Nagle.

O'Brien would retire from the NFL following the 1993 season which he spent with the Philadelphia Eagles as he started four games but losing in place of an injured Randall Cunningham.