Captain Comeback: Best and worst of Week 2
Cold, Hard Football Facts for Sep 21, 2011
By Scott Kacsmar
Cold, Hard Football Facts Comeback King
The second week of the 2011 season provided some of the exciting comebacks we’re used to seeing from NFL Sundays. Though there was only one extra game with a comeback opportunity compared to last week (10 vs. 9), the quality of this week’s games was better.
We understand there was a problem with hyperlinks in last week’s edition, so here are the links to all the past articles on comebacks and game-winning drives, which you’ll want to read for the full historical perspective.
Quarterbacks and fourth quarter comebacks, Part I
Quarterbacks and fourth quarter comebacks, Part II
Quarterbacks and fourth quarter comebacks, Part III
Chronology of the Fourth Quarter Comebacks and Game-Winning Drives Records
What John Elway Really Did Forty-Seven Times in His Career (personal favorite)
Buffalo Bills vs. Oakland Raiders
Type: 4QC/GWD
Largest Deficit: 4 (35-31)
Quarterback: Ryan Fitzpatrick (4 4QC, 5 GWD – table)
Watching a Buffalo game circa 2000-2010 is like watching The English Patient (with commercials): it’s an over three-hour affair that you wish you never started, as you’ll be left bored to tears and disappointed in the end. They haven’t made the playoffs since 1999. They rarely have a 300-yard passer, they rarely score a lot of points, and they rarely have comeback wins or wins over quality teams.
Watching the Raiders since 2003 isn’t any better, so who would have imagined an Oakland/Buffalo romp would be the most exciting game of the young season? It especially didn’t look that way when Oakland opened up a 21-3 lead in the first half. Who says West Coast teams can’t play early games on the east?
Buffalo missed a field goal just before halftime, and Oakland still had the 21-3 lead. Whatever Buffalo did at halftime, Chan Gailey might want to remember for their next game.
Buffalo used their running game and a big fumble by Darren McFadden to close the gap to 21-17 to start the fourth quarter. That’s when things got crazy, and we watched the first of five straight go-ahead touchdown drives, none of them shorter than 69 yards.
Oakland answered a Fred Jackson touchdown run with a touchdown pass from Jason Campbell to McFadden. Ryan Fitzpatrick responded with a touchdown pass to Scott Chandler with 4:48 left (Buffalo led 31-28). Denarius Moore made an excellent catch in double coverage for a 50-yard touchdown to put Oakland back up, 35-31 with 3:41 left.
That’s when Buffalo went on the Drive of the Week.
Starting at their own 20 with 3:41 left, Fitzpatrick led the Bills deep into Oakland territory. With just over a minute left Buffalo faced a 4th and 3 at the OAK 24. Donald Jones caught a slant to convert the play, as Oakland was unable to finish them off.
Then with a 4th and 1 at the OAK 6 and 0:18 left, the Bills had the perfect play call as Jones was wide open for the game-winning touchdown pass with 0:14 left (38-35).
Oakland wasn’t finished. Jason Campbell, who played very well, completed a 24-yard pass to Moore to set up a Hail Mary attempt on the game’s final play. It was even caught in the end zone, a rarity, but unfortunately for the Raiders it was Bills’ rookie Da'Norris Searcy that intercepted the pass to end the game.
Buffalo scored a touchdown on all five of their second half possessions.
We’re not sure where these teams are headed in 2011, but for one afternoon, they were must-see TV for NFL fans around the nation.
Fitzpatrick’s NFL debut was a wild comeback win. On November 27, 2005, Fitzpatrick replaced Jamie Martin for the Rams, as they trailed Houston 24-3 at halftime. Fitzpatrick would throw for 310 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Rams trailed 27-17 with 0:34 left, and faced a 4th and 6 at the Houston 43. That’s right. They were down 10 points with just 0:34 left, before Fitzpatrick threw a 43-yard touchdown to Isaac Bruce, the Rams recovered the onside kick, and Fitzpatrick completed a 19-yard pass to Torry Holt to force overtime after a successful field goal. There he would throw the 56-yard winning touchdown pass to Kevin Curtis for one of the most improbable comebacks in NFL history.
Last season at Cincinnati, the Bills trailed 28-7 in the first half. Buffalo would score five touchdowns in the second half (sound familiar?) to win 49-31. Fitzpatrick passed for 316 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Then there was Sunday against Oakland, with Fitzpatrick producing the third comeback from an 18+ point deficit in his career.
Believe it or not, as a freshman in his first college start, Fitzpatrick overcame a 21-0 halftime deficit to beat Dartmouth. It was the biggest comeback in Harvard’s history at the time.
There’s something to be said about guys that have pulled off a major comeback once before being able to do it again in their careers.
Buffalo fans are just hoping they finally have a franchise quarterback again. Fitzpatrick will play the biggest game of his career in week three when the Patriots come to Buffalo for a possible (probable?) shootout.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Minnesota Vikings
Type: 4QC/GWD
Largest Deficit: 10 (20-10)
Quarterback: Josh Freeman (8 4QC, 8 GWD – table)
For the second week in a row the Vikings opened up a double-digit lead, and for the second week in a row they lost the game late. This time it was Tampa Bay making the comeback, an already familiar situation for quarterback Josh Freeman.
The Vikings led 17-0 at halftime and were dominating the game with a 284-62 advantage in yards. It didn’t take long for Donovan McNabb to surpass 39 yards passing this week (he finished with 228).
After finally getting on the board with a LeGarrette Blount touchdown, Tampa Bay successfully recovered an onsides kick. However, Freeman threw an interception in the red zone.
The Vikings led 17-10 to start the fourth quarter and added a field goal to that margin. Josh Freeman had 9:41 left and was down 20-10. No stranger to the situation at this early stage of his career, Freeman immediately went to work with an 80-yard touchdown drive, capped off by his 25-yard touchdown pass to Arrelious Benn.
Minnesota had to punt, and the stage was set for Freeman: 4:12 left at his own 39. After converting a 3rd and 4 at the MIN 10, Tampa let the clock roll down before Blount scored on a 4-yard game-winning touchdown run with 0:31 left. Freeman was 15/21 for 191 yards and a touchdown in the second half.
The Vikings only had time for a lateral attempt, and Percy Harvin fumbled it at midfield to end the game.
Josh Freeman became the youngest quarterback (23 years, 248 days) to reach 8 comeback wins, doing so in just his 28th game and 27th start.
Only Marc Bulger was also able to lead 8 comeback wins in his first 28 games (including the playoffs). Jay Schroeder did it in the fewest starts (26), and he was also the fastest to 9 comebacks (35). Schroeder is probably best known as the quarterback replaced by Doug Williams on the Redskins for their 1987 Super Bowl season. He did go 61-38 as a starter in the regular season, and with 16 comebacks in his career, you can start to see why. He was one of those quarterbacks that wasn’t very good, but for whatever reason, he would get involved in a lot of comeback situations, and took advantage.
Josh Freeman is 8-8 in comeback opportunities for his career, which is a great percentage for such a young player, but maybe the real question is why does Tampa Bay find themselves behind in so many games? That’s 16 of 27 (59.3%) starts in Freeman’s career where they needed a comeback from a one-score deficit, a very high percentage. There are various ways these situations arise, so maybe a detailed analysis of Freeman’s career is in order should this trend continue.
What we do know is that Tampa Bay is a young team, and they were not a good team when Freeman took over, so it’s a good sign he has been able to keep them competitive in so many games, and even better that they are able to win.
Washington Redskins vs. Arizona Cardinals
Type: 4QC/GWD
Largest Deficit: 8 (21-13)
Quarterback: Rex Grossman (6 4QC, 9 GWD – table)
With both teams looking for a surprising 2-0 start, the Redskins trailed 14-10 to start the fourth quarter, but had good field position. They settled for a field goal to cut the lead to 14-13.
Kevin Kolb found Larry Fitzgerald open down the field, and he took it 73 yards for a touchdown to put Arizona up 21-13. Good Rex showed up, converting a 4th and 3 with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Santana Moss. However, the two-point pass to Moss failed, and Washington still trailed, 21-19, with 5:17 left.
Arizona went three and out, unable to burn even a full minute off the clock. The Redskins drove 48 yards, and settled for a Graham Gano 34-yard field goal with 1:45 left and a 22-21 lead.
Kolb was looking for his second straight comeback win, and only needed a field goal to do it. That attempt backfired quickly, as Chansi Stuckey fumbled after a 12-yard gain to the ARZ 32. Washington was able to run out most of the clock, with the game ending on a 29-yard punt return by Patrick Peterson. No winning punt return touchdown for the rookie this week.
Captain Comeback History Lesson: The Associated Press reports for this game state that this is Grossman’s first comeback win since 2007. That’s not correct. Grossman led a comeback win against the Lions on 11/2/2008. Down 23-20, Grossman led a 54-yard drive, ending with his 1-yard touchdown sneak with 5:36 left. Kyle Orton started the game, but that’s immaterial to the fourth quarter, as Grossman played the entire second half.
Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers
Type: 4QC/GWD
Largest Deficit: 10 (24-14)
Quarterback: Tony Romo (10 4QC, 11 GWD – table)
Just who would have seen this one coming? After all the hyperbolic “choker” talk about Tony Romo after week one, he comes right back with one of the best comeback performances of his career.
Romo left the game early with a fractured rib, and later we found out a punctured lung, but returned at the end of the third quarter. The 49ers had just taken a 21-14 lead. Romo’s first drive back was an unsuccessful three and out, but he was just warming up.
San Francisco added a controversial 55-yard field goal by David Akers to the lead. As the field goal was good, Dallas’ Keith Brooking was flagged for leverage, a 15-yard penalty should coach Jim Harbaugh accept it. He declined, and kept the points on the board for a 24-14 lead with 11:12 left.
Practically every offense in the league would want the penalty, which would set up a 1st and 10 at the Dallas 22. Perhaps you make a different decision when Alex Smith is your quarterback. Perhaps Harbaugh had Akers as his fantasy kicker and didn’t want to pass up five points for three. It was a weird call.
Dallas took advantage of the time and Romo went to work. With a 4th and 5 at the SF 34, Romo hit Jason Witten with a 9-yard pass to convert. He followed that up with a 25-yard touchdown pass to Miles Austin to make it 24-21 with 6:55 left.
DeMarcus Ware made a big sack of Alex Smith, and Dallas got the ball back with 4:03 left. Romo completed 5/6 passes for 37 yards to set up Dan Bailey for a 48-yard game-tying field goal to force overtime.
Alex Smith’s clutch fourth quarter drives often end without a first down, and often with a Smith interception or fumble. That’s not an exaggeration. Exactly half (22/44) of his drives have ended that way in his career.
This time he did something different, but the result was four plays for 11 yards and a punt.
On the first snap of overtime for Dallas, Romo found new receiver Jesse Holley over the middle for a 77-yard completion down to the one-yard line. Dallas kicked the winning field goal on first down and Romo picked up the 10th comeback and 11th game-winning drive of his career.
Romo passed for 345 yards in the game and had no turnovers. In the fourth quarter and overtime, Romo was 12/15 for 201 yards and a touchdown.
This is the third time Romo led a fourth quarter comeback win from a deficit of 10+ points. How many did Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach have? Two each. How many did Danny White have? Five. Isn’t history interesting?
What a difference a week makes. It may not have been Staubach off the bench in the 1972 playoffs against the 49ers, but it was exactly the kind of game Romo needed: a mistake-free win where he had to overcome adversity. We’ll have to wait and see how long Romo’s redemption lasts from this win.
Atlanta Falcons vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Type: 4QC/GWD
Largest Deficit: 10 (31-21)
Quarterback: Matt Ryan (9 4QC, 14 GWD – table)
Before Sunday was over, we were treated to the third comeback of the day from a 10-point deficit. Atlanta especially needed this one to avoid starting 0-2, and losing its third straight overall after a 13-3 regular season in 2010.
This is the kind of game that defined the 2010 Falcons, who had five comebacks in the fourth quarter. Matt Ryan needed this kind of performance on primetime TV. Due to all their turnovers and an injury, it wasn’t quite the quarterback showdown between Ryan and Michael Vick as the game was built up to showcase.
The game was hard-hitting (too hard at times when Dunta Robinson decided to act the fool again), and Vick left with a concussion. He pointed to the scoreboard as he was leaving. It would have been interesting to see if he could still locate the scoreboard after the game ended.
Philadelphia led 31-21 to start the fourth quarter. A big completion from Ryan to Tony Gonzalez on 3rd and 12 on the first play of the quarter kept Atlanta in it. Ryan finished off the 80-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Ovie Mughelli.
With Michael Vick spitting up blood and an injured Vince Young watching over his shoulder for an impersonator, Mike Kafka made his NFL debut.
Captain Comeback Calls Timeout for a Rant: Can we all just pause for a moment and point out how terrible of a signing Vince Young was? There’s always some silly drama with this guy, whether it’s him disappearing mysteriously because he’s depressed, his Wonderlic score, when he can’t handle booing or being benched, or now this new story about an impersonator. All of this is hiding the truth: he’s not a good quarterback. The Eagles are going to have the “Dream Team” tag follow them all year thanks to him, and when they needed him like on Sunday night, he can’t play. And you know Vick needs a backup behind him. Guaranteed Kafka will take over the backup job. Back to the game.
Kafka completed his first two passes, but they were both unsuccessful plays, and the Eagles had to punt. Michael Turner found a nice hole and gained 61 yards on the ground. Ryan converted another third down to Gonzalez, and two plays later Turner went in for the 3-yard game-winning touchdown run with 4:48 left.
The Eagles needed a touchdown, and had to go 91 yards behind their inexperienced quarterback. He made a great pass to Jeremy Maclin for a 43-yard gain. Later, on 4th nd 4 with 1:45 left at the ATL 22, Kafka threw a perfect pass to Maclin, but he inexplicably dropped it. Atlanta took three knees and punted, giving Kafka a Hail Mary chance from the 45. It was batted away and the Falcons won 35-31.
This was the seventh time the Eagles lost a game under Andy Reid when entering the fourth quarter with a 10+ point lead. That is the most in the NFL since 1999.
5. Cam Newton, Carolina QB – While it’s crazy how many yards Newton has thrown for his first two games (854 and at 10.3 YPA), for the second week in a row he came up a yard short on a fourth-down play deep in the red zone when his team needed a late touchdown. Rookie or not, it’s not asking too much for that one extra, all-important yard. Comebacks were a huge part of Auburn’s championship season last year, so we know Newton can get it done. He just hasn’t in his first two NFL attempts.
4. Steve Spagnuolo, St. Louis HC – No coach should ever punt the ball in the last two minutes when their team is down by two scores. This is raising the white flag. This is giving up. This hasn’t been done since Brad Childress a few years ago. Which coach wants to be compared to Chilly?
The Rams trailed 28-16, faced a 4th and 28 from their own 15 with 1:41 left, and they punted the ball. Why? Did you want to work on your kneel-down defense? You’re not playing Bill Belichick. Tom Coughlin wouldn’t run up the score after you failed to convert. Spagnuolo gave up. He punted on the previous drive when he had a 4th and 6 at his own 24 with 6:35 left. Again, why are you punting? Give the offense a chance to convert. You still need to your defense to make a stop. You still need to score two (unlikely) touchdowns. Giving up a field goal only means you have to make a two-point conversion. Big deal. They punted, the Giants were able to run off over four minutes, and Spagnuolo followed one bad punt with another.
You know Jaws was thinking, “S---, you have to just go for it here.”
3. Kerry Collins, Indianapolis QB – We’re used to seeing the Colts pull off comeback wins with regularity. We’ll be lucky to see a Colts win of any type at this rate without Peyton Manning. They had a chance this week against Cleveland, trailing by just one score. Kerry Collins went 0/5 with an interception in the fourth quarter before Cleveland pushed the lead to 24-12. Then Collins lost his third fumble of the season. Peyton Manning’s career high in lost fumbles for a season is three. Kerry on.
2. Jeremy Maclin, Philadelphia WR – Maclin was rocked by Dunta Robinson, but returned to the game anyway. He caught 13 out of 15 targets for 171 yards and 2 touchdowns, a career night. The problem is he didn’t catch his last pass: a 4th-and-4 attempt at the ATL 22 with 1:45 left. The pass was perfect, Maclin was wide open, but he flat out dropped the ball.
1. Mike Tolbert, San Diego RB – Even though Maclin’s play was more crushing to the outcome of the game, there was no play this week that reeked of failure to seize the moment more than Mike Tolbert’s backwards run and fumble against the Patriots. The Chargers finally got the ball with a 20-14 deficit, they moved it into New England territory, and Tolbert decides to pass up a hole in the middle to go backwards, fumbles the ball and New England goes on to push the lead back to 14. Tolbert had a nice day receiving (8 catches for 73 yards), but he had just 9 carries for 10 yards on the ground, and this silly backwards run and fumble was the worst of them.
Scott Kacsmar is a football researcher/writer who has contributed large quantities of data to Pro-Football-Reference.com, including the only standardized database of fourth quarter comebacks and game-winning drives. He truly does not like Vince Young. You can send any questions or comments to Scott at smk_42@yahoo.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @CaptainComeback.
Cold, Hard Football Facts Comeback King
The second week of the 2011 season provided some of the exciting comebacks we’re used to seeing from NFL Sundays. Though there was only one extra game with a comeback opportunity compared to last week (10 vs. 9), the quality of this week’s games was better.
- We had two teams from the AFL that haven’t had a winning record in the same season since 1993 provide the biggest fourth-quarter shootout of the week, and that was only after one came back from a 21-3 deficit.
- The Vikings followed up last year’s collapse of the Metrodome roof with a second-half collapse after a 17-0 lead.
- Dallas and Atlanta avoided 0-2 starts with signature wins for their quarterbacks, while Arizona fumbled away a 2-0 start, seized by Washington and their Sex Cannon at quarterback.
We understand there was a problem with hyperlinks in last week’s edition, so here are the links to all the past articles on comebacks and game-winning drives, which you’ll want to read for the full historical perspective.
Quarterbacks and fourth quarter comebacks, Part I
Quarterbacks and fourth quarter comebacks, Part II
Quarterbacks and fourth quarter comebacks, Part III
Chronology of the Fourth Quarter Comebacks and Game-Winning Drives Records
What John Elway Really Did Forty-Seven Times in His Career (personal favorite)
Drive of the Week
Buffalo Bills vs. Oakland Raiders
Winner: Buffalo (38-35)
Type: 4QC/GWDLargest Deficit: 4 (35-31)
Quarterback: Ryan Fitzpatrick (4 4QC, 5 GWD – table)
Watching a Buffalo game circa 2000-2010 is like watching The English Patient (with commercials): it’s an over three-hour affair that you wish you never started, as you’ll be left bored to tears and disappointed in the end. They haven’t made the playoffs since 1999. They rarely have a 300-yard passer, they rarely score a lot of points, and they rarely have comeback wins or wins over quality teams.Watching the Raiders since 2003 isn’t any better, so who would have imagined an Oakland/Buffalo romp would be the most exciting game of the young season? It especially didn’t look that way when Oakland opened up a 21-3 lead in the first half. Who says West Coast teams can’t play early games on the east?
Buffalo missed a field goal just before halftime, and Oakland still had the 21-3 lead. Whatever Buffalo did at halftime, Chan Gailey might want to remember for their next game.
Buffalo used their running game and a big fumble by Darren McFadden to close the gap to 21-17 to start the fourth quarter. That’s when things got crazy, and we watched the first of five straight go-ahead touchdown drives, none of them shorter than 69 yards.
Oakland answered a Fred Jackson touchdown run with a touchdown pass from Jason Campbell to McFadden. Ryan Fitzpatrick responded with a touchdown pass to Scott Chandler with 4:48 left (Buffalo led 31-28). Denarius Moore made an excellent catch in double coverage for a 50-yard touchdown to put Oakland back up, 35-31 with 3:41 left.
That’s when Buffalo went on the Drive of the Week.
Starting at their own 20 with 3:41 left, Fitzpatrick led the Bills deep into Oakland territory. With just over a minute left Buffalo faced a 4th and 3 at the OAK 24. Donald Jones caught a slant to convert the play, as Oakland was unable to finish them off.
Then with a 4th and 1 at the OAK 6 and 0:18 left, the Bills had the perfect play call as Jones was wide open for the game-winning touchdown pass with 0:14 left (38-35).
Oakland wasn’t finished. Jason Campbell, who played very well, completed a 24-yard pass to Moore to set up a Hail Mary attempt on the game’s final play. It was even caught in the end zone, a rarity, but unfortunately for the Raiders it was Bills’ rookie Da'Norris Searcy that intercepted the pass to end the game.
Buffalo scored a touchdown on all five of their second half possessions.
We’re not sure where these teams are headed in 2011, but for one afternoon, they were must-see TV for NFL fans around the nation.
Ivy League Comeback Legend
At this point in time, Ryan Fitzpatrick’s NFL career should be remembered for two things: he’s the only NFL quarterback to graduate from Harvard, and he’s led some of the most exciting comeback wins you’ll ever see.Fitzpatrick’s NFL debut was a wild comeback win. On November 27, 2005, Fitzpatrick replaced Jamie Martin for the Rams, as they trailed Houston 24-3 at halftime. Fitzpatrick would throw for 310 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Rams trailed 27-17 with 0:34 left, and faced a 4th and 6 at the Houston 43. That’s right. They were down 10 points with just 0:34 left, before Fitzpatrick threw a 43-yard touchdown to Isaac Bruce, the Rams recovered the onside kick, and Fitzpatrick completed a 19-yard pass to Torry Holt to force overtime after a successful field goal. There he would throw the 56-yard winning touchdown pass to Kevin Curtis for one of the most improbable comebacks in NFL history.
Last season at Cincinnati, the Bills trailed 28-7 in the first half. Buffalo would score five touchdowns in the second half (sound familiar?) to win 49-31. Fitzpatrick passed for 316 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Then there was Sunday against Oakland, with Fitzpatrick producing the third comeback from an 18+ point deficit in his career.
Believe it or not, as a freshman in his first college start, Fitzpatrick overcame a 21-0 halftime deficit to beat Dartmouth. It was the biggest comeback in Harvard’s history at the time.
There’s something to be said about guys that have pulled off a major comeback once before being able to do it again in their careers.
- Former Buffalo quarterback Frank Reich once held the record for the biggest comeback win in college (31 points) and the NFL (32 points) at the same time. He wasn’t even the team’s intended starting quarterback either time.
- Joe Montana erased a 34-12 deficit in the 1979 Cotton Bowl against Houston in his final college game, before embarking on a NFL career full of excellent comeback wins, including the regular-season record 28 point comeback against the Saints in 1980.
- Peyton Manning holds the NFL record with 6 comeback wins from a 17+ point deficit, including the biggest comeback in a championship game (21-3; 2006 AFC Championship vs. New England)
Buffalo fans are just hoping they finally have a franchise quarterback again. Fitzpatrick will play the biggest game of his career in week three when the Patriots come to Buffalo for a possible (probable?) shootout.
The Other Paths to Victory
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Minnesota Vikings
Winner: Tampa Bay (24-20)
Type: 4QC/GWDLargest Deficit: 10 (20-10)
Quarterback: Josh Freeman (8 4QC, 8 GWD – table)
For the second week in a row the Vikings opened up a double-digit lead, and for the second week in a row they lost the game late. This time it was Tampa Bay making the comeback, an already familiar situation for quarterback Josh Freeman.The Vikings led 17-0 at halftime and were dominating the game with a 284-62 advantage in yards. It didn’t take long for Donovan McNabb to surpass 39 yards passing this week (he finished with 228).
After finally getting on the board with a LeGarrette Blount touchdown, Tampa Bay successfully recovered an onsides kick. However, Freeman threw an interception in the red zone.
The Vikings led 17-10 to start the fourth quarter and added a field goal to that margin. Josh Freeman had 9:41 left and was down 20-10. No stranger to the situation at this early stage of his career, Freeman immediately went to work with an 80-yard touchdown drive, capped off by his 25-yard touchdown pass to Arrelious Benn.
Minnesota had to punt, and the stage was set for Freeman: 4:12 left at his own 39. After converting a 3rd and 4 at the MIN 10, Tampa let the clock roll down before Blount scored on a 4-yard game-winning touchdown run with 0:31 left. Freeman was 15/21 for 191 yards and a touchdown in the second half.
The Vikings only had time for a lateral attempt, and Percy Harvin fumbled it at midfield to end the game.
Josh Freeman became the youngest quarterback (23 years, 248 days) to reach 8 comeback wins, doing so in just his 28th game and 27th start.
| QB | Games to 8th 4QC | Age | Date | Games to 9th 4QCC |
| Josh Freeman | 28 | 23-248 | 9/18/2011 | ? |
| Marc Bulger | 28 | 27-188 | 10/10/2004 | 39 |
| Jake Plummer | 29 | 24-267 | 9/12/1999 | 36 |
| Jay Schroeder | 30 | 26-119 | 10/25/1987 | 35 |
| Jake Delhomme | 35 | 29-309 | 11/14/2004 | 47 |
| Johnny Unitas | 35 | 25-235 | 12/28/1958 | 38 |
| Peyton Manning | 37 | 24-191 | 10/1/2000 | 40 |
| Tommy Kramer | 40 | 25-282 | 12/14/1980 | 43 |
| Ben Roethlisberger | 41 | 24-262 | 11/19/2006 | 47 |
| Doug Williams | 41 | 25-113 | 11/30/1980 | 48 |
| John Elway | 43 | 25-169 | 12/14/1985 | 44 |
| Matt Ryan | 43 | 25-202 | 12/5/2010 | 50 |
Only Marc Bulger was also able to lead 8 comeback wins in his first 28 games (including the playoffs). Jay Schroeder did it in the fewest starts (26), and he was also the fastest to 9 comebacks (35). Schroeder is probably best known as the quarterback replaced by Doug Williams on the Redskins for their 1987 Super Bowl season. He did go 61-38 as a starter in the regular season, and with 16 comebacks in his career, you can start to see why. He was one of those quarterbacks that wasn’t very good, but for whatever reason, he would get involved in a lot of comeback situations, and took advantage.
Josh Freeman is 8-8 in comeback opportunities for his career, which is a great percentage for such a young player, but maybe the real question is why does Tampa Bay find themselves behind in so many games? That’s 16 of 27 (59.3%) starts in Freeman’s career where they needed a comeback from a one-score deficit, a very high percentage. There are various ways these situations arise, so maybe a detailed analysis of Freeman’s career is in order should this trend continue.
What we do know is that Tampa Bay is a young team, and they were not a good team when Freeman took over, so it’s a good sign he has been able to keep them competitive in so many games, and even better that they are able to win.
Washington Redskins vs. Arizona Cardinals
Winner: Washington (22-21)
Type: 4QC/GWDLargest Deficit: 8 (21-13)
Quarterback: Rex Grossman (6 4QC, 9 GWD – table)
With both teams looking for a surprising 2-0 start, the Redskins trailed 14-10 to start the fourth quarter, but had good field position. They settled for a field goal to cut the lead to 14-13.
Kevin Kolb found Larry Fitzgerald open down the field, and he took it 73 yards for a touchdown to put Arizona up 21-13. Good Rex showed up, converting a 4th and 3 with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Santana Moss. However, the two-point pass to Moss failed, and Washington still trailed, 21-19, with 5:17 left.
Arizona went three and out, unable to burn even a full minute off the clock. The Redskins drove 48 yards, and settled for a Graham Gano 34-yard field goal with 1:45 left and a 22-21 lead.
Kolb was looking for his second straight comeback win, and only needed a field goal to do it. That attempt backfired quickly, as Chansi Stuckey fumbled after a 12-yard gain to the ARZ 32. Washington was able to run out most of the clock, with the game ending on a 29-yard punt return by Patrick Peterson. No winning punt return touchdown for the rookie this week.
Captain Comeback History Lesson: The Associated Press reports for this game state that this is Grossman’s first comeback win since 2007. That’s not correct. Grossman led a comeback win against the Lions on 11/2/2008. Down 23-20, Grossman led a 54-yard drive, ending with his 1-yard touchdown sneak with 5:36 left. Kyle Orton started the game, but that’s immaterial to the fourth quarter, as Grossman played the entire second half.
Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers
Winner: Dallas (27-24 OT)
Type: 4QC/GWDLargest Deficit: 10 (24-14)
Quarterback: Tony Romo (10 4QC, 11 GWD – table)
Just who would have seen this one coming? After all the hyperbolic “choker” talk about Tony Romo after week one, he comes right back with one of the best comeback performances of his career.
Romo left the game early with a fractured rib, and later we found out a punctured lung, but returned at the end of the third quarter. The 49ers had just taken a 21-14 lead. Romo’s first drive back was an unsuccessful three and out, but he was just warming up.
San Francisco added a controversial 55-yard field goal by David Akers to the lead. As the field goal was good, Dallas’ Keith Brooking was flagged for leverage, a 15-yard penalty should coach Jim Harbaugh accept it. He declined, and kept the points on the board for a 24-14 lead with 11:12 left.
Practically every offense in the league would want the penalty, which would set up a 1st and 10 at the Dallas 22. Perhaps you make a different decision when Alex Smith is your quarterback. Perhaps Harbaugh had Akers as his fantasy kicker and didn’t want to pass up five points for three. It was a weird call.
Dallas took advantage of the time and Romo went to work. With a 4th and 5 at the SF 34, Romo hit Jason Witten with a 9-yard pass to convert. He followed that up with a 25-yard touchdown pass to Miles Austin to make it 24-21 with 6:55 left.
DeMarcus Ware made a big sack of Alex Smith, and Dallas got the ball back with 4:03 left. Romo completed 5/6 passes for 37 yards to set up Dan Bailey for a 48-yard game-tying field goal to force overtime.
Alex Smith’s clutch fourth quarter drives often end without a first down, and often with a Smith interception or fumble. That’s not an exaggeration. Exactly half (22/44) of his drives have ended that way in his career.
| Type | Drives |
| Total | 44 |
| 3 and out | 8 |
| 4 and out | 1 |
| Interception | 11 |
| Fumbles lost (QB) | 2 |
| Punt (no 3 and out) | 8 |
| Field Goal | 7 |
| Touchdown | 4 |
| Run out of time | 2 |
| Fumbles lost (Gore) | 1 |
This time he did something different, but the result was four plays for 11 yards and a punt.
On the first snap of overtime for Dallas, Romo found new receiver Jesse Holley over the middle for a 77-yard completion down to the one-yard line. Dallas kicked the winning field goal on first down and Romo picked up the 10th comeback and 11th game-winning drive of his career.
Romo passed for 345 yards in the game and had no turnovers. In the fourth quarter and overtime, Romo was 12/15 for 201 yards and a touchdown.
This is the third time Romo led a fourth quarter comeback win from a deficit of 10+ points. How many did Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach have? Two each. How many did Danny White have? Five. Isn’t history interesting?
What a difference a week makes. It may not have been Staubach off the bench in the 1972 playoffs against the 49ers, but it was exactly the kind of game Romo needed: a mistake-free win where he had to overcome adversity. We’ll have to wait and see how long Romo’s redemption lasts from this win.
Atlanta Falcons vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Winner: Atlanta (35-31)
Type: 4QC/GWDLargest Deficit: 10 (31-21)
Quarterback: Matt Ryan (9 4QC, 14 GWD – table)
Before Sunday was over, we were treated to the third comeback of the day from a 10-point deficit. Atlanta especially needed this one to avoid starting 0-2, and losing its third straight overall after a 13-3 regular season in 2010.
This is the kind of game that defined the 2010 Falcons, who had five comebacks in the fourth quarter. Matt Ryan needed this kind of performance on primetime TV. Due to all their turnovers and an injury, it wasn’t quite the quarterback showdown between Ryan and Michael Vick as the game was built up to showcase.
The game was hard-hitting (too hard at times when Dunta Robinson decided to act the fool again), and Vick left with a concussion. He pointed to the scoreboard as he was leaving. It would have been interesting to see if he could still locate the scoreboard after the game ended.
Philadelphia led 31-21 to start the fourth quarter. A big completion from Ryan to Tony Gonzalez on 3rd and 12 on the first play of the quarter kept Atlanta in it. Ryan finished off the 80-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Ovie Mughelli.
With Michael Vick spitting up blood and an injured Vince Young watching over his shoulder for an impersonator, Mike Kafka made his NFL debut.
Captain Comeback Calls Timeout for a Rant: Can we all just pause for a moment and point out how terrible of a signing Vince Young was? There’s always some silly drama with this guy, whether it’s him disappearing mysteriously because he’s depressed, his Wonderlic score, when he can’t handle booing or being benched, or now this new story about an impersonator. All of this is hiding the truth: he’s not a good quarterback. The Eagles are going to have the “Dream Team” tag follow them all year thanks to him, and when they needed him like on Sunday night, he can’t play. And you know Vick needs a backup behind him. Guaranteed Kafka will take over the backup job. Back to the game.
Kafka completed his first two passes, but they were both unsuccessful plays, and the Eagles had to punt. Michael Turner found a nice hole and gained 61 yards on the ground. Ryan converted another third down to Gonzalez, and two plays later Turner went in for the 3-yard game-winning touchdown run with 4:48 left.
The Eagles needed a touchdown, and had to go 91 yards behind their inexperienced quarterback. He made a great pass to Jeremy Maclin for a 43-yard gain. Later, on 4th nd 4 with 1:45 left at the ATL 22, Kafka threw a perfect pass to Maclin, but he inexplicably dropped it. Atlanta took three knees and punted, giving Kafka a Hail Mary chance from the 45. It was batted away and the Falcons won 35-31.
This was the seventh time the Eagles lost a game under Andy Reid when entering the fourth quarter with a 10+ point lead. That is the most in the NFL since 1999.
Top 5 Comeback Failures of the Week
While we like to celebrate the winners, it’s arguably more fun to highlight the losers. There were some players that did not seize the moment for their teams. This is not the list you want to be on.5. Cam Newton, Carolina QB – While it’s crazy how many yards Newton has thrown for his first two games (854 and at 10.3 YPA), for the second week in a row he came up a yard short on a fourth-down play deep in the red zone when his team needed a late touchdown. Rookie or not, it’s not asking too much for that one extra, all-important yard. Comebacks were a huge part of Auburn’s championship season last year, so we know Newton can get it done. He just hasn’t in his first two NFL attempts.
4. Steve Spagnuolo, St. Louis HC – No coach should ever punt the ball in the last two minutes when their team is down by two scores. This is raising the white flag. This is giving up. This hasn’t been done since Brad Childress a few years ago. Which coach wants to be compared to Chilly?
The Rams trailed 28-16, faced a 4th and 28 from their own 15 with 1:41 left, and they punted the ball. Why? Did you want to work on your kneel-down defense? You’re not playing Bill Belichick. Tom Coughlin wouldn’t run up the score after you failed to convert. Spagnuolo gave up. He punted on the previous drive when he had a 4th and 6 at his own 24 with 6:35 left. Again, why are you punting? Give the offense a chance to convert. You still need to your defense to make a stop. You still need to score two (unlikely) touchdowns. Giving up a field goal only means you have to make a two-point conversion. Big deal. They punted, the Giants were able to run off over four minutes, and Spagnuolo followed one bad punt with another.
You know Jaws was thinking, “S---, you have to just go for it here.”
3. Kerry Collins, Indianapolis QB – We’re used to seeing the Colts pull off comeback wins with regularity. We’ll be lucky to see a Colts win of any type at this rate without Peyton Manning. They had a chance this week against Cleveland, trailing by just one score. Kerry Collins went 0/5 with an interception in the fourth quarter before Cleveland pushed the lead to 24-12. Then Collins lost his third fumble of the season. Peyton Manning’s career high in lost fumbles for a season is three. Kerry on.
2. Jeremy Maclin, Philadelphia WR – Maclin was rocked by Dunta Robinson, but returned to the game anyway. He caught 13 out of 15 targets for 171 yards and 2 touchdowns, a career night. The problem is he didn’t catch his last pass: a 4th-and-4 attempt at the ATL 22 with 1:45 left. The pass was perfect, Maclin was wide open, but he flat out dropped the ball.
1. Mike Tolbert, San Diego RB – Even though Maclin’s play was more crushing to the outcome of the game, there was no play this week that reeked of failure to seize the moment more than Mike Tolbert’s backwards run and fumble against the Patriots. The Chargers finally got the ball with a 20-14 deficit, they moved it into New England territory, and Tolbert decides to pass up a hole in the middle to go backwards, fumbles the ball and New England goes on to push the lead back to 14. Tolbert had a nice day receiving (8 catches for 73 yards), but he had just 9 carries for 10 yards on the ground, and this silly backwards run and fumble was the worst of them.
Scott Kacsmar is a football researcher/writer who has contributed large quantities of data to Pro-Football-Reference.com, including the only standardized database of fourth quarter comebacks and game-winning drives. He truly does not like Vince Young. You can send any questions or comments to Scott at smk_42@yahoo.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @CaptainComeback.
Read more: Alex Smith, Buffalo Bills, Captain Comeback, Dallas Cowboys, Fourth Quarter Comebacks, Game-Winning Drives, Jeremy Maclin, Jim Harbaugh, Josh Freeman, Kerry Collins, Matt Ryan, Michael Vick, Mike Tolbert, Minnesota Vikings, NFL, Oakland Raiders, Rex Grossman, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tony Romo
Forearm Shiver: the CHFF Blog
- Hockey Announcer Gone Wild: You Want To Party (Maybe) With This Guy
- Best Pass Defense Ever: Ronde Barber And The 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Reese Witherspoon Arrest Video: Hot, Bothered And Handcuffed
- Sam Adams In A Can, Just In Time For Summer Drinking Season
- Live From Radio City: Reporter Punks NFL Draft Fans
Quick Outs
- The 5.0 Club: Best Rushing Teams in NFL History
- Sieves: The Worst Run Defenses In NFL History
- 2013 NFL Schedule: The Year Of The Denver Broncos
- Boston, Sports, Patriotism And Terror
- The 100 Stingiest Defenses In Football History
- NFL Crown Rule: Will It Dethrone Rushing King Adrian Peterson?
- Year Of The Offensive Tackle: Not Always The 'Safe' Draft Bet
- Draft Habits: NFL Teams Covet LBs, Duped By False Temptress WRs
- Big Tease: 2012 New England Patriots And NFL's History Of Offensive Failures
- Epic Fail: The Wide Receiver Draft Class Of 2012
Must See Videos
Philadelphia Eagles Draft Lane Johnson
Connect With Us
Sign up for our newsletter to recieve all the latest news and updates...
 |
 |
 |
RSS Feed
Follow @footballfacts
Follow us on Facebook