So these are the games that get you to the Super Bowl.
49ers-Falcons: SF in white/gold, ATL in red/white. A lot of red to be sure, so the key here is the trim colors. Of course, there's white. Then add in the Niners gold helmets and pants, with a pinch of black surrounding the SF oval on the helmet, the red-white-red stripes on the helmet and pants, and the red socks. Also sprinkle in the black helmet on the Falcons with a touch of silver on the helmet logo. Nice juicy black outlines on the numerals, the helmet logo (though tiny) on the sleeves. White pants with the kinky striping on the sides. You have a rather nice uni matchup. Not extremely colorful, but enough variation in trim colors that the reds doesn't dull the senses.
Ravens-Patriots: BAL in white/black, NE in dark blue/silver. We have seen the Patriots in so many of these playoff encounters at home in recent years that the blue/silver look is actually expected. The Ravens, seeming to cash in on their winning ways in black pants in this season's playoffs that they rode the black pants to the AFC title game. It was the correct option. This matchup didn't spark me as much as the NFC title tilt, but it's not a disaster, either. Again, the black pants may be a little black overload on the Ravens part, but there is also purple numbers, gold and flakes of red and yellow (based on the Maryland coat of arms shield on the sleeves) to add a touch of zing to their togs. The Patriots, in standard dark blue with silver on the helmet and pants with bits of red trim, is the hallmark of playoff unis for roughly the past decade. A good matchup, but not the best.
I rank these as: 2) BAL-NE 1) SF-ATL
Before we get to Super Bowl XLVII on February 3rd at New Orleans, we do have (what very well could be the last) Pro Bowl this Sunday in Honolulu. This year, the Pro Bowl unis have been kept under wraps, and now, even only 3 days before the AFC-NFC tilit itself, we don't have a clear idea of what they will really look like.
Still. we will eventually know, and post them on the GUD, and I will review them, just like the previous 20 weeks. We don't want to miss the possible swan song of the Pro Bowl, y'know??
Anyway, check in with us for our take on the PB unis right here.
Today we bring you a retro-style preview of today's NFC and AFC Championship Games. For that, we send you to New York and CBS Control and Brent Musburger. (cue theme music)
"You are looking live at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, where in about 35 minutes the Atlanta Falcons will be hosting the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game for the right to go to New Orleans and play in Super Bowl XLVII. Hello everybody, I'm Brent Musburger, and I want to thank the Gridiron Uniform Database for the wonderful introduction. I'm joined as usual by Irv Cross, Phyllis George and Jimmy the Greek Snyder, who will have his picks later on. Jack Whitaker will also join us later from chilly Foxboro where he's trying to stay warm getting ready for Baltimore and New England battling tonight in the AFC Championship."
Now some highlights, the Atlanta Falcons defeated the Seattle Seahawks last week in a thrilling game, the Seahawks came from 20 points down and scored in the final minute to take the lead on this one yard run, but in the final seconds Matty Ice, Matt Ryan got the Falcons into field goal range and Matt Bryant kicked the game winner and a 30 to 28 victory for the Falcons. Irv, tell us about this Falcon team, is this finally going to be their year?"
Irv: "Well, you know, Brent, the big knock on the Falcons was they couldn't win a playoff game. Three years ago they lost to Arizona, two years ago they were also the number one seed that year and were blown out by Aaron Rogers and the Packers. And last year they lost 24 to 2 to the Giants. So now that they got that playoff monkey off their back, maybe now it's their time, they have a fantastic quarterback in Matt Ryan, and a couple great wide receivers in Julio Jones and Roddy White, I think this could be their year, but they will face a tough San Francisco team."
Brent: "And speaking of that San Francisco team, last Saturday night they defeated the Green Bay Packers behind the amazing Colin Kaepernick... take a look at this 70 yard run, he goes around right end and just like that he is gone! The 49ers defeated the Green Bay Packers 45 to 31. Jimmy, how about this Forty-Niner team?"
Jimmy the Greek: "I'll tell you what, Brent, I look at this 49ers team, they were a fumbled punt return away from going to the Super Bowl last year, they got a great quarterback in Alex Smith, they were, what were they, 6-2? And Smith gets hurt and Jim Harbaugh puts in this kid from Nevada, and let me tell you something, I saw this kid Kaperakick... Kapernack, whats' his name?
Brent: "Kapernick, Colin Kapernick."
Greek: "Yeah, Kapernick, I saw this kid he had the 70 yard run the other night, he had a run just like that in the preseason against Minnesota, he went 80 yards. And you know everyone said that Harbaugh was crazy for taking Alex Smith out after he got hurt and now everyone's like, Alex Smith who? I ain't never seen nothing like this kid, he's got an arm like Marino and he can run like Deion Sanders. Everybody is talking about the rookies, the Griffith kid in Washington, and Andrew Luck and the kid in Seattle, but this Caperknack guy, I tell you what he's the real deal."
Musburger: "He had an NFL record 181 yards rushing against the Packers, that's a league record for yards rushing by a QB in a game, not just in the preseason, in any game, folks. Now let's bring in our reporter Jack Whitaker who is in Foxboro via Satellite to preview tonight's AFC tilt. Jack are you there?
Whitaker: Thanks, Brent, I'm here at Gillette Stadium where the Patriots will attempt to go to their 2nd consecutive Super Bowl, and their sixth in twelve years tonight against the Ravens. Last year it was these same two teams, and the Ravens appeared to have a game winning touchdown in the final minute, but it slipped through the receiver's hands and then kicker Billy Cundiff missed a chance to send it to overtime, and the Patriots went to Super Bowl XLVI. Tom Brady led the Patriots over Houston last week in the divisional round, and Baltimore upset Peyton Manning and the Broncos at Mile High in double overtime. Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis announced he would retire at the season's end, and his team has been playing at an emotional high the last two weeks in wins over the Colts and Broncos. Will the Ravens upset the Patriots and keep the Ray Lewis retirement party on ice for another two weeks? We'll find out later tonight when these two teams meet in the AFC Championship.
Musburger: "Thanks, Jack, and that game will be seen over on the other network tonight after our game from Atlanta. In a moment after this commercial break, we'll be back with the Greek's picks, but first some sad news. The world of baseball lost two Hall of Famers yesterday, as the St. Louis Cardinals' great Stan Musial died of natural causes at the age of 92. Musial retired in 1963 with 3630 hits, which was second only to Ty Cobb at the time of his retirement, and is still good enough for fourth best all time behind Pete Rose, Cobb and Hank Aaron. Also dying yesterday was the great manager of the Baltimore Orioles, Earl Weaver. Earl led the Orioles for seventeen seasons, including the 1970 World Championship, he was 82 and died of a heart attack on a team-sponsored Orioles cruise yesterday in the Caribbean. We'll be back after this."
Brent Musburger: "Welcome back to the NFL Today. They are getting ready for kickoff at the Georgia Dome, and in a moment we will send it to Pat Summerall for the player introductions. But first, we bring back in Jimmy 'The Greek' Snyder for his analysis and picks for today's games.
The Greek: "I go down my list here I give a check mark to Atlanta, I give a check mark to San Francisco, these two teams are very evenly matched... Atlanta gets the check mark for kicking because, the kicker for San Francisco has struggled, they even brought the kid in from Baltimore that missed the kick last year, but they're going to stick with the lefty.
Brent: "David Akers"
Greek: "Yeah, Akers from Philly. Atlanta gets a check mark for having the home field advantage. And intangibles, you know uh, Gonzalez, he might retire, but it's just not the same like Ray Lewis for the Ravens. The Falcons finally won a playoff game, I think that the 49ers are just the more well-rounded team, and this Capermash kid, he's the real X-factor, if the Falcons don't keep a spy in the box, he's going to run for 200 yards on that turf down there in the Georgia Dome, and he might anyway, even if they do."
Musburger: "So you're going with the Forty-Niners?"
Greek: "Yeah, they should've gone to the Super Bowl last year, and this year they're even better."
Musburger: "Do you have a score?"
Greek: "Uh... I'll go San Francisco 27, Atlanta 20"
Musburger: "And in the AFC, it's the Ravens, and the Patriots."
Greek: "Well, I gotta give the check mark for quarterback to Brady, I mean, Flacco is playing great, that great win in Denver, but Brady is going for four rings.... On defense, the Ravens aren't the same Ravens defense like they used to be, but they are still very good... uh team speed, Welker and the other guy, as a the team the Patriots are fast. Gronkowski is out, but they got Hernandez from Florida, that's another big TE, and coaching wise, a couple of really well-coached teams, you know, but this guy Belicheck might be the best coach of all time.
Musburger: "The Greek likes the hoodie?"
Greek: "The Greek does like the hoodie, Brent, this is a good team, but you know it's just hard to believe this Patriots team we think of as this dynasty, they haven't won a Super Bowl in eight years. Last year they should have lost to Baltimore, Brady played a terrible game, it just came down to one play and then the kicker missed the chip shot. But forget about last year, do you remember, Brent, when they played the previous time in the playoffs, a few years ago, Ray Rice and the Ravens just ran right through the Patriots.
Brent: "So you like Baltimore?"
Greek: "I think it comes down to intangibles. It's hey diddle diddle Ray Rice up the middle, and with Ray Lewis going out, he wants to get another ring, I know Brady wants to tie Bradshaw and Montana with four, but this is Ray Lewis's last chance and that whole team over there on the Baltimore sideline is behind him, it's about worth three check marks in the intangibles right now."
Brent: "And a score for that game?"
Greek: "I think it's going to be low scoring, it's going to be Baltimore 20, New England 16."
Brent: "So 20 to 16 Baltimore, so you're picking an all-Harbaugh Super Bowl. Okay, well they're just about getting ready to kick off down in Atlanta, so we'll send it to Pat and John in a minute. You're watching the NFL Today on CBS..."
Here we are with Round 2 of the 2012 NFL Playoffs, where we separate the men from the boys, the Divisional Round.
Ravens-Broncos: BAL in white/black, DEN in orange/white. As stated often this season, it is so good to see the Broncos back in orange. And this was a great time to see them in the fiery hue on such a cold day in Denver. The Ravens added the favor by going to the black pants. As such, this was indeed the best possible uni matchup for this affair. Nice trim colors of gold, purple, dark blue made this one a pleasure to watch.
Packers-49ers: GB in white/yellow, SF in red/gold. This uni match is another one that makes watching football in HD color a treat. The white jerseys actually make the bright yellow Packer helmets and pants even more sunshiny. Then add in the bright red jerseys on the Niners augmented by the lush gold helmets and pants and you simply can't go wrong even if you tried. Lovely!
Seahawks-Falcons: SEA in all white, ATL in red/white. Well, not quite the nice matchup as I would have liked. The Seahawks, I guess trying to ride the all white karma from last week's victory in Washington, stayed with their rare all white combo. Not good. They should have definitely worn at the very least the gray pants or better yet, the navy pants against the Falcons' sharp red jerseys and white pants. As such, it was not the best uni matchup of the weekend. Nowhere near it.
Texans-Patriots: HOU in all white, NE in dark blue/silver. Now here is where all white works. The Texans, who normally only wear all white for their regular season home opener, do it here. And it's perfect. because these two teams are very similar in their color schematic (except for the Pats' additional silver). Had the Texans gone with their normal blue pants, it would have seemed almost like a little bit of an intra-swuad scrimmage. But the all white look adds a stark and strong contrast to the very familiar (especially at this time of year) Patriots dark blue and silver.
So, the ranking for this weekend's games go like: 4) SEA-ATL 3) BAL-DEN 2) HOU-NE 1) GB-SF
As we move closer to the Big Game, we'll critique Championship Sunday next time.
With the NFL down to the final four teams, we can preview what Super Bowl matchups we may see. This year the AFC Champion will be the road team, and the NFC Champion will be the home team. This season the Falcons and 49ers are pretty standard with what they wear at home, and the Patriots have a single road look. The Ravens are the only team of the final four with some room for mystery, sometimes going mono-white on the road, and sometimes going with white-over-black.
Therefore that leaves us (barring some unexplained circumstances, like the Falcons wearing their throwbacks or bringing back black pants they haven't worn since 2008, or the NFC Champion choosing to go 'white at home') only six possible combinations to expect to see in Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans on February 3.
Basing this more on which combos you find most aesthetically pleasing, rather than solely on which teams you think will win Sunday (although that can play a part too), which uniform matchup do you expect or hope to see in Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans?
This is a nice look -- contrasting pants, I could see this matchup, Brady going for his fifth ring vs. Tony Gonzalez looking to go out on top.
This is also a nice classic look (even though the Patriots have only looked like this for a dozen or so years) -- this matchup screams Super Bowl. Brady going for his fourth ring vs SF trying to tie Pittsburgh with six rings and cap a remarkable rise for Kaepernick going from backup QB to the sport's newest biggest star.
This is a matchup that screams indoor contest, and with the game in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, it'll look right at home. It'll be all white-pants as Ray Lewis and Tony Gonzalez battle to see who will end their career with a Lombardi.
The Ravens also went mono-white in Super Bowl XXXV, but that seems like a generation ago. The Niners wearing their red home jerseys in New Orleans would be the opposite of 23 years ago when Montana and company wore road whites for Super Bowl XXIV against Denver.
If CBS' dreams come true and they do get the fantastic story lines of dueling warriors going out on top (the man who some still think got away with murder in the city the other team is from versus the wholesome vegan all-time best TE who up until a week ago had never won a playoff game) -- it'll look better in this uni matchup. The black Ravens pants make this a contrasting pants matchup, and much better than both teams wearing white "britches". (That's for you, Jedi Knight)
And finally, this may be the best combo of all. The Ravens in their white-over-black versus the classic Niners home look. I could see Ray Lewis going for his second ring head to head with phenom QB Colin Kaepernick. What a great matchup that would be!
Again, all bets are off if either team decides to go 'White At Home' like the Cowboys or the 2005 Steelers. But considering that Seattle lost, and they would have been the only team of the final eight that could've won three road playoff games, that's probably unlikely.
So we are now in postseason mode at the GUD and here are the rankings for the first weekend of playoff action.
Bengals-Texans: CIN in white/black, HOU in all dark blue.Rather pleased and surprised that both teams opened the 2012 playoffs in dark pants. This game was a rematch of last year's Wild Card Game. The difference being that both clubs wore white pants!. It might have been better if say, the Bengals wore black pans while the Texans would have checked in with white trousers. But the Texans pulled off the surprise with the all navy look. I liked it because it is a rarely seen encounter and gives it a nice color boost.
Vikings-Packers: MIN in all white, GB in green/yellow. Same matchup as worn in Week 13. And liked this then and I like it now. Somehow, the Packers green/yellow brings out the best in any uni matchup. Here, it makes the minimal purple on the Vikings (clad in white) pop with sparkle and not a purple haze. The design elements of the Vikings' unis may be one thing, but the shade of purple is rich and right.
Colts-Ravens: IND in all white, BAL in purple/black. The Colts, in their stark whites against the Ravens in two-toned dark, the purple jerseys and the black pants. his was the best possible uni matchup for this game and it wins high marks from me. Had the Ravens gone all black, it would have been overpowering. Had the Ravens rocked white pants, it would dulled my senses with too much white. But this was the right mix. The Colts blue trim actually complimented the Ravens kit. Very nicely done, guys.
Seahawks-Redskins: SEA in all white, WSH in burgundy/yellow. Seahawks with a mild surprise by deciding to go all vanilla while the Skins appeared to junk the white pants. Good thing they did go with yellow pants for this one, with the Hawks in all white. I think given the choice between the white, gray or navy pants, Seattle would have been best off with the gray pants, a good half way compromise for this encounter. This was good. It could have been better, but then again, it could have worse.
So, in a tight race with no real stinkers in the lot, this is how I rank these games:
4) SEA-WSH 3) MIN-GB 2) IND-BAL 1) CIN-HOU
Please check in next week as we critique the Divisional Round.
This is the final installment of the series that will determine once and for all whether or not we were treated to the best-looking "Super Sunday" given the teams we were dealt. 2006 (XLI) - Indianapolis (AFC) vs. Chicago (NFC)
ACTUAL: Great to see the Bears in navy but even as a Bears fan, this game would have looked much better had...
ALTERNATE: ...the Colts been in blue.
EDGE: ALTERNATE
2007 (XLII) - New York Giants (NFC) vs. New England (AFC)
ACTUAL: Undefeated New England against the 'upstart' Giants. This is how this game needed to look.
ALTERNATE: This just wouldn't have been right.
EDGE: ACTUAL
2008 (XLIII) - Pittsburgh (AFC) vs. Arizona (NFC)
ACTUAL: A very good looking pairing with red being prominent for one of the few times in the game's history.
ALTERNATE: A tease of red just isn't enough in the comparison.
EDGE: ACTUAL
2009 (XLIV) - New Orleans (NFC) vs. Indianapolis (AFC)
ACTUAL: If only New Orleans would have their pants a little more gold and a lot less pale. Still enough to win this matchup, though.
ALTERNATE: Much like the Cowboys' mis-matched blues and silvers, this Saints' black jerseys/gold pants combo has four different shades of gold (helmet, collar, numbers, & pants). The ACTUAL pairing with the Saints in white jerseys saves us.
EDGE: ACTUAL
2010 (XLV) - Pittsburgh (AFC) vs. Green Bay (NFC)
ACTUAL: So do we go with a lot of yellow (NOT GOLD!) and some green or...
ALTERNATE: ...a lot of yellow and some black?
EDGE: ACTUAL
2011 (XLVI) - New York Giants (NFC) vs. New England (AFC)
ACTUAL: I'm having the strangest feeling of deja vu...all over again.
ALTERNATE: Just so that this game isn't confused with the one four years ago, I'd have like to have seen a different pairing.
EDGE: ALTERNATE
Forty-six years of history tells me that, with a 4-2 ACTUAL edge in these last six games, the ACTUAL pairings that we saw were right 29 out of 46 times or 63% of the time. Roughly two of every three games were the 'right' uniform pairings.
Upon this series' completion, I will go to the voting mechanisms and see whether or not all of you out there in GUD-land agreed with my analysis more often than not.
The series is done (for now) but the number-crunching is yet to begin!
Sorry for the delay, fans. Life gets in the way sometimes...
#16. Jets-Bills: NYJ in all white, BUF in blue/white. Another
invasion of the whites. Only the Bills in blue jerseys and socks saves
this from a total whiteout. I could have stood at least green pants on
the Jets and/or possibly an all blue look for the Bills that would have
catapulted this game to the upper ranks, No, bottom feeder matchup.
#15. Jaguars-Titans: JAX in white/black, TEN in light blue/dark
blue. I know I've come down hard on the Jags for the switch from teal
to black. And, rightfully so. Here, they did the only right thing by
going with black pants instead of white. It still doesn't help much. The
Titans in two-tone blue saves this still mediocre matchup.
#14. Raiders-Chargers: OAK in white/silver, SD in navy/white.
West Coast rivals since 1960, the unis here offer no surprises. Powder
blue by the Chargers would have been a spicy mix, but the Bolts already
met their quota with those earlier. As such, can't really move this up
the Brulia scale that much.
#13. Ravens-Bengals: BAL in all white, CIN in black/white. Lots of white when there could have been lots of black. I would have preferred a more even split of b&w. In particular, the Ravens in black pants. A little purple, some orange, a bit of black and a bunch of white. Meh.
#12. Dolphins-Patriots: MIA in all white, NE in navy/silver.
Another team which kept its dark pants in hiding for 2012, and the
Dolphins really could have used the aqua pants here. But alas, their
unis - like their team - got pounded in this matchup. Pats make the
traditional (at least in the Belichick era) uniform stand up here.
#11. Texans-Colts: HOU in white/dark blue, IND in blue/white.
Lot of blue, straight (IND) and dark (HOU), punctuated by the Texans
bright red numerals. Otherwise, this would have been a rather dull
matchup. #10. Panthers-Saints: CAR in all white, NO in all black. Apparently last week's sighting of the Saints in gold pants was a fluke. Would have preferred the gold britches here, but a solid black against a solid white was a little monotone for me.
#9. Rams-Seahawks: STL in all white, SEA in all navy. OK. Not
much could go here. Rams made the right move by going with white pants
as opposed to navy, cuz that would have made for too much deep blue. So,
that scored a few points with me. Seahawks could have made this nicer
with gray pants, but seem determined to make the all navy look THE home
look for 2012.
#8. Browns-Steelers: CLE in all white, PIT in black/yellow. A
matchup worn very frequently since 1968 or so, it hearkens to tradition
and rivalry. It continues here. With orange dominating the Browns via
the helmet and a heavy dose of black on the Steelers, you think of hard,
tough games. And a nice matchup to boot.
#7. Eagles-Giants: PHI in white/green, NYG in blue/gray. No
surprises here, nor should there be. The Eagles, who had flirted with an
all white look a couple of times this season, go back to the right
choice, the green pants. Giants, in their traditional look, make this
one a beauty.
#6. Cardinals-49ers: ARZ in all white, SF in red/gold. For
only the second season since 1989 (2008 being the other) the Cardinals
keep the red pants in the dark. And I think for this particular game, it
was a good move. It would have been too much red. And the Niners red
shirts coupled with the gold pants ratchets up the list on its own.
#5. Cowboys-Redskins: DAL in white/mint, WSH in
burgundy/yellow. If I'm not mistaken, I think the Skins were supposed to
go with the throwback burgundy/khaki uni for this matchup. But with a
winner-take-all event against their arch-rival on the line, I guess
Coach Mike Shanahan wanted the Skins in more contemporary attire. And
this was the right call. The throwbacks would have been eye appealing,
but I certainly understand the motive. Cowboys? Pretty much what we've
said for 14 out of 16 games this season!
#4. Buccaneers-Falcons: TB in white/pewter, ATL in red/white.
The Bucs, kept the white pants in the closet for the full regular season
(excluding the throwbacks, which doesn't really count), and at least
for this game, it was the right move. Paired with the Falcons sweet red
jerseys, this is a boffo matchup.
#3. Bears-Lions: CHI in white/navy, DET in honolulu blue/silver. Nice shades of blue and not too much. Silver helmets and pants. A taste of sweet orange and this, though quite traditional, rings out the year nicely for these two.
#2. Packers-Vikings: GB in whie/yellow, MIN in purple/white. Dang it, I like this baby. Purple in the right dose, Packer green and yellow as perfect trim colors and the right serving of yellow on the Vikes and this is a holiday delight!
#1. Chiefs-Broncos: KC in white/red, DEN in orange/white. Was fearful of a couple of things here...KC in all white, DEN in all navy. Fortunately, very fortunately, neither happened. Chiefs wore the all white only once this season (once too many for me), and the Broncos switch back to orange full-time this season shows what a shame it was for all these years (since 1997) to wear blue instead of orange. So, this was the best possible matchup and it was indeed, a very good thing.
That wraps up the regular season, matchup wise. We'll be back for Wild Card Weekend. See you then!
We are now getting into the most recent decade of title games. Let's Go! 2001 (XXXVI) - St. Louis (NFC) vs. New England (AFC)
ACTUAL: This game had a nice balance of navy and silver paired with the gold of the Rams. It would have looked even better had the Rams not ditched the royal blue and yellow colors for the previous season.
ALTERNATE: OK but the doubling-up on the navy blue comes in second place to the ACTUAL combination.
EDGE: ACTUAL
2002 (XXXVII) - Oakland (AFC) vs. Tampa Bay (NFC)
ACTUAL: If ever there was a game in which the outcome formulated my opinion of the uniform pairing, this may be it. Tampa Bay's red looked great. I can't imagine them winning and not wearing this combo.
ALTERNATE: Likewise, had Oakland won, I would have hoped they'd have been in black. Red wins out here.
EDGE: ACTUAL
2003 (XXXVIII) - Carolina (NFC) vs. New England (AFC)
ACTUAL: I know some will question this but Carolina's mono-white combo may be the lamest uniform worn in a title game.
ALTERNATE: This pairing isn't much better but it is still better.
EDGE: ALTERNATE
2004 (XXXIX) - New England (AFC) vs. Philadelphia (NFC)
ACTUAL: Not bad. But not the winner for two reasons. One - just not a fan of the Patriots' white uniform.
ALTERNATE: And two - I REALLLLLY like the green pants for Philly.
EDGE: ALTERNATE
2005 (XL) - Seattle (NFC) vs. Pittsburgh (AFC)
ACTUAL: The Steelers embraced their inner superstitions and opted to wear their 'away' combo in which they had won all three of their road playoff games leading up to XL. Most people complained about Seattle's mono-grey/mono-blue/mono-whatever-it-is. Still, this combination was better than their alternate.
ALTERNATE: For whatever reason, the navy on the sleeves of Seattle's home jersey just isn't as disturbing as the grey/blue/whatever-it-is on the sleeves of the white jersey.
EDGE: ACTUAL
The ACTUALs reclaim a bit of their lost mojo from last week's drubbing and eek out a 3-2 advantage that pushes their lead to 23-15. With only six games left, ACTUAL has gone past "dormie" and clinched the decision, but how close can ALTERNATE make the final tally?
Come back next week for the most recent six contests!
Dallas and Washington meet tonight in a winner-take-all match-up for the NFC East Division title. Although the Redskins can still qualify for a Wild Card entry to the post season tournament with a loss, for the Cowboys it is win or go home.
Dallas has the upper hand in the all time regular season win totals with a hefty 62-39 advantage. However, Washington has won both post season contests, coming in two NFC Championship Games at the venerable RFK Stadium.
This premier rivalry had humble beginnings however. Their first meeting was in Week 3 of the 1960 season. Washington won 26-14 on the strength of four takeaways and four field goals. It would be the only win for either team that year, as they both finished at the bottom of their respective divisions. Washington 1-9-2 in the NFL East and Dallas 0-11-1 in the NFL West.
Things began to heat up in the mid 1960's as free spirited quarterbacks Sonny Jurgensen and Don Meredith commanded a series of back-and-forth come-from-behind shootouts.
The 1966 Week 10 game in Washington saw Dallas open a 24-6 third quarter lead over the mistake prone Redskins - two of the touchdowns came from a fumble return and a blocked field goal return. Jurgensen lead touchdown drives that spanned the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth, reducing the deficit to 24-20. Meredith responded with a 53-yard scoring strike to Frank Clarke to pad the lead to 31-20. Jurgensen again led a scoring drive, finishing it off with a 10-yard touchdown toss to Bobby Mitchell, cutting the Dallas lead to four. The Redskin defense held and Washington took possession on their own 20-yard line with under two minutes on the clock. After a pass interference gave the Redskins a first down on their own 38, Jurgensen completed two passes that set up a first-and-goal on the Dallas 5-yard line at 1:20. His scoring pass to Angelo Coia came on the next play and Washington took their first lead of the game 34-31. The drive only took 37 seconds and Meredith had one more chance. He advanced to the Redskins 37 with 0:07 to play, but Danny Villaneuva's field goal attempt to tie (there was no overtime in regular season games until 1974) was blocked. Dallas and Washington finished second and fourth respectively in the NFL East with 7-7 and 6-8 records.
The 5-2-1 Cowboys visited the 5-4 Redskins in November the following year and the contest was just as thrilling. Meredith hit Bob Hayes on two long passes (including one that covered 95 yards) as Dallas again opened a wide margin early in the third quarter at 21-6. Jurgensen again led a furious comeback - three drives netted 17 points and Washington lead 23-21 entering the fourth quarter. Dan Reeves and Charley Taylor traded touchdowns and the Redskins lead 30-28 as Meredith took possession at his own 3-yard line and no timeouts. The Washington faithful watched in dread as the Redskins deployed a three-man rush and soft coverage. Meredith's first down pass was good for 26 yards and his next pass was good for 12. After in incompletion and one-yard pass, Meredtih converted the third down play at 0:48 with a 25-yard completion to the Redskin 38. The final blow came on first down as Meredith was hit out-of-bounds on a scramble, the personal foul at the end of the run placed the ball on the 12, where Villanueva booted the 20-yard field goal (the goal posts were on the goal line through 1973) for the 31-30 victory.
The teams met again at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas four weeks later, where the 6-6 Redskins looked to avenge their earlier loss to the 9-2-1 Cowboys. The score was tied 17-17 entering the fourth quarter and the teams traded touchdowns - Dallas with two scoring rushes and Washington with two Jurgensen passes. Washington took over at their own 46 with two minutes to play. A 30 yard A.D. Whitfield run set the Redskins up on the Cowboys 24. Jurgensen was conservative from here, calling two runs and running the clock. Charley Gogolak kicked the winning filed goal from 29-yards out for the 34-31 win. Washington finished the year 7-7 in 5th place in the NFL East. Dallas finished first at 10-3-1 but lost the NFL Championship game 34-27 to Green Bay in the Cotton Bowl.
The Cowboys visited Washington in October 1967 in a battle of two 2-1 teams. For a change, this game was a tense defensive battle. Washington lead 7-0 at the half and Dallas led 10-7 entering the fourth quarter. Jurgensen led the Redskins on a late drive to put his team ahead 14-10 with an eight-yard pass to Taylor with just over a minute to play. Dallas returned the kickoff to their 29 and Meredith had 70 seconds on the clock. Two completions moved Dallas across the 50-yard line to the Washington 42. Two incompletions and a short pass left Dallas with a fourth-and-four on Washington's 46. Meredith found Reeves on a circle-route who outran linebacker Chris Hanburger into the end zone, giving the Cowboys the lead 17-14. Washington had one last chance, and Jurgensen and Taylor nearly pulled the miraculous attempt off. Following the kickoff with 0:07 on the clock, Jungensen hit Taylor deep in Dallas territory, but Taylor was dragged down at the Cowboys 20 with open field ahead. Washington won in Dallas later in the year, but finished 5-6-3 in third place in the NFL Capital Division. Dallas won the division at 9-5, defeated Cleveland 52-14 in the new Divisional Round of the playoffs, then lost the famous Ice Bowl in Green Bay 21-17.
The defending Super Bowl champion Cowboys met George Allen's "Over The Hill Gang" Redskins three times in 1972. Each team won at home in the regular season. The Week 5 October meeting in RFK Stadium saw two 4-1 battle for NFC East Supremacy. Craig Morton stood in for the injured Roger Staubach for the Cowboys while Jurgensen received the nod from Coach Allen over Billy Kilmer. As in years past, Jurgensen led a fourth quarter drive for the win, 24-20. Washington rolled through their schedule and arrived in Dallas in Week 11-1 to meet the 9-3 Cowboys. Kilmer had assumed the role of full-time started by this point, and his conservative style gave the Redskins a ball-control style of offense. Dallas opened a 28-3 lead by halftime and held on for a 34-24 win.
The Redskins won the NFC East with an 11-3 record and Dallas finished second at 10-4, good for a Wild Card post season entry. Washington handled Green Bay 16-3 in their Divisional Round game, while Dallas won a wild game in San Francisco 30-28, after Coach Tom Landry replaced Morton with Staubach in the second quarter with a 21-3 deficit. Allen found a way to negate the visiting Cowboys momentum before the NFC Championship even started with a little gamesmanship. Allen held his team in the lockerrom through the introduction period. Feeling the anticipation building in the stadium, the crowd's impatience grew and their cheering grew louder and louder, resonating through the stadium, while the Cowboys stood and waited. The referee eventually went into the lockerrom and told Allen to take the field, where they were met with a thunderous ovation. The Washington defense was as intense as the crowd, yielding just eight first downs to Staubach's offense as they kept the Cowboys confined to their own side of the 50-yard line the entire second half. Kilmer was efficient for the Redskins with 14-18 passing. Taylor was his big play target with seven catches for 146 yards and two touchdowns, while Larry Brown churned out 88 yards rushing in the convincing 26-3 win. Washington went on to lose Super Bowl VII to the perfect Miami Dolphins two weeks later.
In Week 12 of the 1974 season, the 8-3 Redskins visited the 6-5 Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day. The Redskins had the opportunity to clinch the NFC East with a win, in part due to a win over their rivals only 10 days earlier in Washington. The game was certainly in their favor with just under 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter. They had a 16-3 lead and Staubach had just left the game with an injury after a hit by linebacker Dave Robinson. Rookie Clint Longley, seeing his first regular season action, promptly led the Cowboys down-field, and capped the drive with a 35-yard touchdown strike to tight end Billy Joe DuPree. The Cowboys defense held and Longley again moved his team into Redskin territory for another touchdown. Dallas led at the end of the third quarter 17-16. Washington regained the lead on a 19-yard rush by former Cowboy Duane Thomas, and had a chance to ice the game after recovering a Dallas fumble, but defender Ed "Too Tall" Jones blocked Mark Mosley's 19-yard field goal attempt. The Redskins recovered another fumble and had a chance to close the game, but three rushes could not gain a first down and they punted the ball back to Dallas with 1:45 on the clock and no time outs. Longley converted a fourth-and-six with a pass to Hayes at the 50. After an incompletion, Longley hit wide receiver Drew Pearson on a deep route at the four and he ran into the end zone for the stunning touchdown to complete the comeback 24-23. The Redskins rebounded to win the NFC East with a 10-4 record, but lost to the Rams in the Divisional Playoffs. Dallas finished in third place with an 8-4 record and out of the playoffs.
Week 16 of the 1979 season saw the 10-5 Redskins visit 10-5 Dallas in Staubach's last regular season game in Texas stadium in a winner-take-all battle for the NFC East crown. The Redskins had won the first game in Week 12 at RFK Stadium 34-20, and locked the teams with 8-4 records. Just like many of the games between these bitter rivals, they saved their best for last. Washington led 17-14 at the half, and Dallas scored the only touchdown of the third period to give them a 21-17 advantage entering the final quarter. The Redskins roared ahead with 17 unanswered points, the final seven coming on the legs of fullback John Riggins' 66-yard, tackle-shedding rumble. The 34-21 seemed safe, but the Dallas defense still had big plays left in them. First, defensive tackle Randy White recovered a Clarence Harmon third-down fumble on his own 41 with 3:49 on the clock, which ultimately set up a Staubach-to-Ron Springs 29-yard touchdown with 2:20 to play. An incomplete pass and eight-yard rush left Washington facing a thirds-and-two after the two minute warning. When a first down would've allowed the Redskins to run the clock down, linebacker Larry Cole threw Riggins for a two-yard loss, forcing a punt. It only took Staubach five plays to move Dallas from their own 25 to the Washington's eight yard-line. On second down, Staubach read the Redskins' blitz and tossed to Tony Hill, who made a finger-tip catch despite tight coverage and Dallas took the lead 35-34 with 0:39 on the clock. The Redskins were able to move the ball into Dallas territory after the kcikoff, but time ran out before Mark Mosely could attempt a 59-yard field goal. Making matters worse for Washington, a Chicago victory over St.Louis eliminated them from a Wild Card berth, sending them into the offseason with a 10-6 third-place record. Dallas finished first via tie breakers with Philadelphia, but was upset by Los Angeles in their Divisional Round Playoff 21-19.
The 1982 season was an unusual one. The NFL players strike shortened the regular season to nine games. Some of the consequences were the divisions were eliminated, and the top eight teams from each conference were invited into a single elimination tournament. Consider the fact that the Week 5 meeting between Dallas and Washington (their only one of the season, the game in Dallas had been wiped from the schedule) game of the season took place on December 5th! The Cowboys won convincingly, 24-10, for their sixth in a row over the Redksins. However, that was Washington's only loss of the season. They finished atop the reformatted NFC at 8-1 while Dallas was right behind them in second place at 6-3. Both teams won their first and second round playoff games at home, and set the stage for the NFC Title Game at RFK Stadium. The raucous crowd shook the stadium as Riggins and the Redskins rolled to a 14-3 lead halftime lead. Dallas had lost starting quarterback Danny White to a concussion, but backup Gary Hogeboom settled in and played well, throwing two touchdown passes around a Riggins score, closing the gap to 21-17 entering the fourth quarter. Early in the fourth quarter, Hogeboom lead the Cowboys into Redskins territory again, but kicker Raphiel Septien missed a 42-yard field goal attempt. The Dallas defense held and forced a punt, Washington made a break with an interception of a Hogeboom pass intended for Tony Hill on the sideline. The Cowboys defense held again, forcing the Redskins to settle for a Mosley field goal to open the lead to seven points, but the outcome was still in doubt. Following the kickoff, one first down from the 20, Hogeboom dropped back to set up a screen pass to Tony Dorsett. Defensive end Dexter Manley read the play, tipped the ball up where it was intercepted by defensive tackle Darryl Grant who caught the ball at the 10, broke a tackle at the 5, then scored for a 31-17 lead. Although 6:55 remained, the Cowboys never threatened again. Washington went on to defeat Maimi in Super Bowl XVII the following week for their first Super Bowl victory and first NFL Championship since the Sammy Baugh era.
Over the next thirty years, the Cowboys and Redskins would meet again, twice a year, but with never as much on the line as that NFC Championship tilt. In 1990, 1996, 2002 and earlier this year, they met in Dallas on Thanksgiving. A couple years ago they met in a memorable opening Sunday night game in September 2010 that came down to the final play.
Tonight's winner-take-all matchup certainly has the potential to recall many of these historic moments. Robert Griffin III and Tony Romo have the opportunity to join the likes of Jurgensen, Kilmer, Morton, Theisman and Staubach with a come-from-behind win and an NFC Eastern Division title, and keep their hopes alive for the ultimate goal, a trip to Super Bowl XLVII.
