Week 11 Results [GFL]

'74 Cardinals vs. '05 Seattle

The Seahawks entertained the faithful fans at Qwest Stadium with a huge victory over the Cardinals. Scoring 17 unanswered points in the first quarter alone, Hasselbeck and Alexander moved the ball easily against the usually tough St. Louis defense. The Cardinals would get their first break early in the 2nd quarter, scoring a TD on a 2 yard Anderson run. But by half time, the 'Hawks led 24-10 after another Hasselbeck TD.

Seattle's defense continued to hold the Cardinals off in the 2nd half, and Shaun Alexander continued to be an unstoppable force. With 31 carries for 178 yards and 3 rushing TD's, he helped propel the Seahawks to a 31-10 final win. Hasselbeck completed 72.5% of his throws for 247 yards.

'93 Oilers vs. '06 Ravens

The Oilers and Ravens met at M&T Bank Stadium for a classic matchup. The Oilers, a strong passing team went against the Ravens, a strong defense. Despite their different places in the league right now, only 2 wins separate the teams.

The first half would see several 3-and-outs on each side, but it was Baltimore that would find a way to grab a pair of scores and lead 10-0. The Oilers would get their first FG in the 3rd quarter, but no sooner than it seemed they had a shot, the Ravens stormed the game. Scoring 4 times without answer, McNair's air game was on fire and the Ravens easily found themselves flying on top 34-3. Houston would grab a late TD before the game's end, but it would be too little too late for a Moon that's struggled all to shine all season. Ravens win 34-10.

Both teams racked up close to 300 yards offense. In 50 attempts, Moon completed over half for 227 yards but had trouble scoring. McNair had fewer yards and completed just 15/32, but with yards-after catch, had 3 TD's.  Heap was his main target, with 7 of those 15 completions for over 110 yards. Jamal Lewis had just 92 yards in 17 carries.

'70 Detroit vs. '08 Carolina

The Panthers met the Lions at Bank of America stadium for a battle of the ferocious felines. And for the first half, the Lions stood proud with 10-8 lead. But in the second half, the Panthers would show themselves as the true "king" of the jungle. Shutting out the Lions, they continued to score 17 points of their own with a pair of Williams TD runs. In the end, the Panthers trounced the Lions 25-10. 

Williams carried 18 times for 80 yards, lending to the team's 171 yards total rushing. Stewart carried most of the remainder. Delhomme was a cool 19-26 as well, with 1 TD to match his 171 yards. Despite throwing for over 200 yards himself, Munson had nothing but 4 INT's to show for his efforts, much of that leading to the several Carolina opportunities.   

'81 Cincinnati vs. '83 Washington

The Redskins hosted a Bengals team that has been showing some decline lately, in a chance to move closer to 50% or higher wins for Washington. Almost 60,000 screaming fans showed up at RFK Stadium, and for the first half they would see their local 'Skins run rampant over the Bengals. The Bengals would put up 2 Anderson TD throws on the board, but with each rusher for Washington getting a running TD of their own, it was clear which offense was in charge.

Down 24-14 in the 2nd half, the Bengals appeared to struggle even more to muster their offense, having little more than another FG to show for it. The Skins, on the other hand, ended more drives in FG attempts. But with Mosely hitting 3/4 on the day, it kept the game in Washington's favor. The Redskins would win 37-17.

Despite several Redskin runners grabbing TD's, the star of the show was none other than the unstoppable John Riggins, who carried the ball a whopping 36 times for 177 yards. along with several large gains from Wonsley, the Skins totaled over 280 yards rushing! Riggins wasn't the only one who had a great day, however. Theismann completed 22-31 for 281 yards, helping to setup for most scoring efforts for Washington. For the Bengals, Anderson simply had a rough day  with just 45% pass completion. On top of a run game that struggled against the Red and Gold, the Bengals just couldn't threaten Washington.

'04 Pittsburgh vs. '05 Jacksonville

The Steelers traveled to Jacksonville to see if they could put further distance between themselves and other AFC North competitors. But at the same time they made some significant distance against their opponent, the Jaguars. Despite over 100 yards rushing, Jacksonville struggled to score against Pittsburgh. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh had no trouble putting points on the board each quarter. Steelers fans rejoiced as Big Ben and company win 30-3.

Roethlisberger threw for 351 yards in the air, setting up for as many Bettis rushing TDs as Reed FG's. Plaxico Burress and Antoine Randle El both had over 100 yards receiving, averaging well over 20 yards per catch.

'01 Green Bay vs. '07 Indianapolis

The Colts hosted the Packers in what many were expecting to be a Manning-Favre shootout, but in reality would be a much more balanced contest of 2 historic teams. Both teams put up a FG on their opening drives, but it would be Indianapolis scoring  the first TD early in the 2nd quarter. Green Bay would answer on their next possession, but the Colts still took the lead into halftime with a Manning TD throw.

In the 2nd half, the Packers cut that lead to 4 with a FG, but Manning tossed another TD throw to increase the lead to 11. The Packers and Colts would trade scoring efforts again, leaving the Packers 5 minutes to cover an 11-point deficit. They would have no such luck. Colts 31, Packers 20.

In perhaps the most surprising twist, Green Bay had 155 yards on the ground for the day - 57 being from Favre himself. Addai had an even more monumental day with 22 carries for 153 yards for the Colts. Bradford was the only receiver with more than 100 yards. As far as the QB competition goes, however, Manning was 27/37 for 273 yards and 2 TDs, surpassing Favre's 58.8% completion and 195 yards. 

'80 Philadelphia vs. '87 Cleveland

The Browns hosted the Eagles at Cleveland Stadium, with both teams looking to keep their losses at just 6. Of course, that could only happen for one team. After each team scoring in the 1st quarter, however, it wasn't clear who that would be.

As the 2nd quarter rolled on, the Browns would take an early lead on a Jaeger FG. Philadelphia would quickly return the favor, and both teams would struggle from there. Just before half, Jaworski would find Henry open for a 34 yard TD to go up at half.

After a silent 3rd quarter, however, it would be Jaworski and the Eagles who would have trouble finding their voice, or their place on the scoreboard. The Browns would quickly go up 27-17 after Kosar started picking apart the Eagles with 2 TD passes. Jaworski made a great comeback effort, scoring 6 points just inside the 2-minute warning. But time was out - and so were timeouts - for the Eagles. The Browns win 27-23.

The Eagles had over 336 yards offense but the Browns almost picked that up in the air alone. To top that off, Mack and Byner combined for over 100 yards rushing. Webster Slaughter caught just 5 passes for over 100 yards. Kosar and Jaworski both managed 3 TDs and just 1 INT, and both were about 51% completion.

'16 Patriots vs. '18 Texans

Brady and crew travelled to Houston to take on young DeShaun Watson in his territory. And the Texans would hold their ground against New England well in the first quarter of the game. Watson would not only complete a TD throw to Coutee, but after Brady matched the effort, he showed himself at least the faster athlete. In a shocking 3rd-down play, he sped past scrimmage when nobody was open. But he quickly found himself speeding past defenders as well, going 82 yards for a score,

Up 14-7, the excitement would soon turn to shock in the 2nd quarter. The Patriots would stun Watson all quarter, but worse damage was done than that for Texas. Brady would throw not 1, not 2, but 3 TD passes to Bennett within 6 minutes of gameplay. The Patriots were up 35-14 at the half.

The Texans would fare better at slowing Brady down in the 2nd half, but struggled just as much to score on their own. Watson would find Hopkins open for a 21 yard throw, but it was all that would go Houston's way. The Patriots win 35-21. 

Brady, ever the machine, threw for over 400 yards with just 26 completions. Adding 4 TD's and 0 INTs to that, he stood well above Watson, who had just under 200 yards passing.

'10 Atlanta vs. '92 New Orleans

The Superdome was home to a battle between the top 2 teams in the NFC South. With Atlanta just barely on top, a victory would solidify their position as the season comes closer to a close. Unfortunately for fans, there was not any spectacular shows of offense - but they did get a close game.

The Falcons were slow to score in the 1st quarter, but also the only team to score. Not only then, but also in the 2nd quarter. Leading by 10 points at half, the Saints simply just missed several opportunities to make something happen. But by 3rd quarter, their efforts would pay off, as Heyward rushed for a TD to put the Saints within 3. 

With both legendary defenses in action, it would be the last score of the game. Atlanta would come up on top, just 10-7. They would do it with just over 200 yards offense as well. Ryan was just 15-24, but both teams put a significant effort into their rushing games. This would be one reason for the low score, as no particular rusher averaged more than 2.9 yards / carry (Hilliard). So offense was simply slow and methodical on both sides.    

'06 San Diego vs. '15 Denver

The Chargers flew into mile high for a run at the Broncos, and with both a stellar show on defense and an unstoppable performance from Tomlinson, would go home with a W. Manning was only able to manage 1 TD throw, while the Chargers were consistent in scoring every quarter. Included in that effort was a 77 yard punt return by Parker. Chargers win  24-10.

Both Rivers and Manning were well matched, each completing over 20 of their 30 throws. Manning threw for 299 yards, but with 3 INTs, put his team at more risk than Rivers. Rivers threw for just 257 yards. Tomlinson, the real star of the day, cranked up 121 yards.

'77 Dallas vs. '98 Minnesota

The Cowboys, who have struggled to win despite several good performances this year, take on the near 50% Vikings in a showdown that Minnesota needs to stay relevant in their division. But they were not very relevant in the first quarter of the game, as over 62,000 fans watched Dallas score the first (and only) TD of the first quarter. Staubach would find Hill for 18 yards. The Vikings would retaliate early in the 2nd quarter on a Cunningham TD pass, but Staubach was not moved. After a long drive down field, he would connect with Pearson on another TD throw. Dallas would lead 14-10 at the half.

 Staubach would continue to have a good day in the 3rd quarter, connecting with Pearson on yet another TD pass. The Dallas D would continue to frustrate Cunningham, until halfway through the 4th quarter. Cunningham would find Reed for a 25 yard throw. Down just 24-17 with 8 minutes of time left, overtime was still within Minnesota's reach. But sadly for the home team, it wasn't meant to be. Dallas picks up the road win 24-17.

Not only did Staubach have a great day - completing 22/32 for 287 yards and 3 TDs - the Cowboys offense ran for 172 yards. The Vikings fought for just over 240 yards total offense.

'19 Kansas City vs. '00 Oakland

The Chiefs and Raiders faced off in an important divisional matchup, with each team fighting for top spot in the AFC West. So as the Raiders fell short of scoring for the 1st quarter, the 60,000 fans in Oakland also fell silent. Mahomes however would fire off 2 TD passes for the Chiefs against the Raiders D. With some help from Wheatley, Oakland would get moving in the 2nd quarter, giving them their first TD. Mahomes still seemed unstoppable, firing off a 3rd TD throw to Pringle. 

After some back and forth on both sides, Ganon would get in a TD throw just inside the 2-minute warning. The Raiders would trail just 24-14 at halftime. As things continued, however, Kansas City would increase their lead further before Oakland was able to score. But by this point, the Chiefs were still able to trade TD's with the Chiefs, maintaining a near 17 point lead. Chiefs win 44-28. 

Both teams had almost 150 yards rushing a piece, but no particular runner had a standout day. Gannon passed for over 300 yards with 61% completion and 2 TD's, but no receiver had more than 3-4 catches. Mahomes completed 30/41 for a whopping 414 yards with 3 TD's. Kelce had 8 catches and Hill had 6, both exceeding 100 yards on the day.

'99 Rams vs. '79 Buccaneers

The Rams, the only team with just 1 loss, stand as the greatest team in the league at the moment. As the schedule would have it, they travel to Tampa Bay, one of just 2 teams with that only have 1 win. The outcome might of the game might be predictable, but it's not to say the Buccaneers didn't put up a good effort.

In fact, the Bucs would open the game and score a FG on their first drive. But once the Rams got the ball, they did a fantastic job of keeping it, and getting it back from Tampa. With 2 TD's on offense and 1 after a fumble return, they would go to halftime up 21-3. As the 3rd quarter got underway, Williams would hit Hagins for a TD pass. But Faulk, who had a fantastic day, would keep running over Tampa, picking up his 2nd TD on the day.

Up 28-10, the Rams offense did show signs of slowing down, as Tampa's picked up, and the teams would trade scores in the 4th quarter. But this left the Bucs with an 11-point deficit. Rams win 35-24. 

Faulk, who would carry the ball just 17 times, averaged over 7 yards per carry for a stellar 122 yards total. Given 3 of these carries were TD runs, it's clear why Tampa Bay scrambled, unsuccessfully, to stop the Rams from scoring. Of course, Bell fared well for Tampa with 19 carries for 111 yards. Bruce was the only receiver to run for over 100 yards in just 7 catches for St. Louis. Behind the pocket, neither QB did better than 57% completion, but Williams actually threw for 321 yards and 2 TD's. It was his accuracy, however, with 3 INT's, that would be one of the largest factors in his loss.