Strategy Buries Barry Cowboys’ Late Mistakes Help Eagles Earn Upset
To Barry Switzer, it was a no-brainer, even if failing on fourth-and-1 will lead people to accuse him of having no brains.
At the Dallas 29, the Cowboys coach went for it twice in the final moments Sunday. Both plays failed, although only one counted, and that led to Philadelphia’s stunning 20-17 victory.
The Eagles defense, which held Dallas to 47 yards in the second half, stopped Emmitt Smith’s first run, but officials had whistled the play dead just before it began for the 2-minute warning. So the Cowboys tried it again, and once again failed.
So why, Barry?
“Because I wanted to make a foot to control the ball,” he said. “Because if we kick in the wind, they’re going to come back and kick a field goal to win the thing, anyway. So if we keep the ball, maybe there’s a chance we can do something with the time left to win the ballgame.”
Instead, the Eagles stuffed Smith and Gary Anderson nailed a 42-yard field goal with 1:26 left, giving the Eagles the upset. And giving the Cowboys, who clinched a playoff berth despite the loss, a serious case of self-doubt.
“I can’t second-guess them, but I am sure they will be second-guessed,” said William Fuller, whose sack of Aikman ended the game. “I don’t take it as Dallas insulting our defense. I guess they felt the odds were with them. Maybe after the first one, maybe they should have thought about it.”
The second-guessing wasn’t coming from the Cowboys, who blew their edge for home-field advantage in the NFC playoffs as well as a chance to lock up the NFC East title - with their second consecutive defeat. San Francisco’s victory at Carolina gave the 49ers that edge.
Lions 24, Oilers 17
At Houston, Detroit’s top-ranked offense got a pair of TD passes from Scott Mitchell to Herman Moore and beat Houston for the Lions’ fifth straight win.
No. 1 pick Steve McNair threw his first career touchdown pass for the Oilers.
Patriots 31, Jets 28
At Foxboro, Mass., two of the AFC’s worst teams traded mistakes all day before the Patriots finally used one of their own to win the game.
Troy Brown scooped up Dave Meggett’s fumbled kickoff return and raced 75 yards for the go-ahead touchdown with 5:39 left as the Patriots blundered their way past the New York.
Among the lowlights:
- New England’s Drew Bledsoe’s first seven passes resulted in six incompletions and an interception; Boomer Esiason was sacked four times by the NFL’s fifth worst pass defense.
Bills 45, Rams 27
At St. Louis, Jim Kelly had four touchdown passes despite a sore throwing shoulder and Thurman Thomas returned from a hamstring injury that’s hampered him most of the season with 129 yards rushing in the Bills’ win.
The Bills sacked Rams quarterback Mark Rypien, formerly of Washington State and Shadle Park High School four times. Rypien was standing in for the injured Chris Miller.
Falcons 19, Saints 14
At Atlanta, Morten Anderson kicked four field goals including an NFL record three of more than 50 yards to give Atlanta a win.
Andersen’s field goals covered 25, 51, 55 and 55 yards as the Falcons (8-6) snapped a two-game losing streak to remain in the chase for a wild card playoff berth.
Colts 41, Jaguars 31
At Jacksonville, Fla., Jim Harbaugh was out. Marshall Faulk couldn’t find any running room. It didn’t matter, though, for the Indianapolis Colts.
Aaron Bailey returned the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown and the Colts scored twice after Jacksonville turnovers.
Indianapolis retained an inside track to a wild card spot in the AFC, while Jacksonville lost its sixth in a row and stayed in position to claim the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft.
49ers 31, Panthers 10
At Clemson, S.C., Steve Young, sidelined with shoulder problems in the Panthers’ Nov. 5 victory in San Francisco, threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third in their rematch, leading the 49ers to a win.
Young completed 31 of 45 passes for 336 yards in what was easily his best performance in three games since undergoing surgery Nov. 13 on his throwing shoulder.
Bengals 16, Bears 10
At Cincinnati, Bengals quarterback Jeff Blake dinked and dunked against Chicago’s deep coverages to set up three field goals, then threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Darnay Scott, sending the Bengals to a win and putting the Bears on the brink of playoff elimination.
Chicago is a long shot for a second consecutive playoff appearance when its offense froze up on a 15-degree afternoon and the league’s third-worst pass defense gave up another big play.
Steelers 29, Raiders 10
At Oakland, Calif., the Steelers, who have the NFL’s stingiest defense, intercepted former Washington QB Billy Joe Hobert four times in winning their seventh straight game. Oakland has lost four in a row, the last three without regular quarterback Jeff Hostetler.
Neil O’Donnell threw scoring passes of 37 and 14 yards to Ernie Mills in the first half and Norm Johnson kicked five field goals for the Steelers.
Giants 20, Redskins 13
At East Rutherford, N.J., Rodney Hampton converted a fourth-and-inches from the Giants 41 right after the 2-minute warning to set up a tie-breaking 40-yard touchdown pass from Dave Brown to Chris Calloway with 1:12 to play as New York defeated Washington.
It marked the first time this season the Giants have posted consecutive wins and they accomplished it with a late gamble after Washington (4-10) tied the game at 13-13 on a 1-yard run by Terry Allen with 3:35 to go.
Buccaneers 13, Packers 10 (OT)
At Tampa, Fla., Michael Husted kicked a winning 47-yard field into a stiff wind, and Tampa Bay is alive for a playoff spot.
Husted delivered his third winning kick of the year, converting with 11:14 remaining in overtime and sending the Buccaneers past the Packers.
MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: SUNDAY’S BEST Quarterbacks Jim Kelly, Buff.,19-25-237 Steve Young, S.F.31-45-336 Scott Mitchell, Det.16-36-283 Running backs Brett Perriman, Det.6-128 Erric Pegram, Pitt.26-122 Rashaan Salaam, Chi.22-105 Receivers Brian Blades, Sea.7-127 Johnny Mitchell, Jets9-108