Everyone knows about Rams vs Chiefs in 2018 or the 28-3 Patriots comeback vs the Falcons.
But have you ever heard of the 2009 matchup between the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions? Most likely not.
The 1-8 Detroit Lions hosted the 1-8 Cleveland Browns in a seemingly uninteresting matchup at Ford Field, but the game ended up being the complete opposite of uninteresting.
The Greatest NFL Game You Don’t Remember
First Quarter
A total of 34 points (24-10 Cleveland) in the first quarter, led by three Brady Quinn Touchdowns.
2nd Quarter
Two Matthew Stafford touchdowns in the second quarter including a 75-yard touchdown to Calvin Johnson, which brought the score to 27-24 Browns at the Half.
3rd Quarter
Stafford took the lead early in the third quarter to make it 31-27 Detroit, but an international grounding on Stafford in his endzone made it 31-29 Lions at the end of the third quarter.
A Michael Gaines two-yard Pass From Brady Quinn and a Jamal Lewis two-point conversion made the score 37-31 Cleveland, but late in the fourth, rookie quarterback Matthew Stafford made history, as shown below. At this point, he never had a game-winning drive as an NFL Starter.
Clinging to a 37-31 lead with nine seconds left, all the Browns had to do was knock down Stafford’s scrambling desperation pass. Instead, Poteat had Detroit receiver Bryant Johnson — not even the intended receiver of Stafford’s prayer — walled off in the back of the end zone. And, with the ball in the air, Poteat tried to push Johnson out of bounds.
Stafford couldn’t see the play unfold because he was in a fetal position in pain on the field. “I was content to lay there for a while,” Stafford said. “Then (center Dominic Raiola) grabbed me telling me that pass interference was called, and I was like, ‘Really?’ I need to figure out which ref called it because he’s a good man”
Matthew Stafford tied a team record and set a rookie record with his five touchdown passes. It was the first time since 1937 that a rookie threw five touchdown passes.
Copyright © 2024
Leave a Reply