Strangely lopsided playoffs games

[MatthewToy]

1996 AFC Divisional round. Patriots 28 Steelers 3. The Steelers whipped the Colts 42-14 the week before. I still remember being at work the night before the game and everyone was talking Super Bowl after the Jaguars upset the Broncos. That night I had ESPN radio on and they were giving predictions for the games on Sunday and one guy goes "Steel-airs, Panth-airs." That was his delivery for whatever reason and I never forgot it. Well the Steelers came out flatter than a pancake. I remember Bettis playing hurt but they just couldn't get anything going up in foggy Foxboro that day.

[74_75_78_79_]

1996 AFC Divisional round. Patriots 28 Steelers 3. The Steelers whipped the Colts 42-14 the week before. I still remember being at work the night before the game and everyone was talking Super Bowl after the Jaguars upset the Broncos. That night I had ESPN radio on and they were giving predictions for the games on Sunday and one guy goes "Steel-airs, Panth-airs." That was his delivery for whatever reason and I never forgot it. Well the Steelers came out flatter than a pancake. I remember Bettis playing hurt but they just couldn't get anything going up in foggy Foxboro that day.

I was 'sure' that Steelers were going back to the Bowl after the Jags upset that Saturday night. I was praying for a rematch vs Dallas (Tomczac vs that Deion-led secondary? Careful what you wish for). I believe Parcells had the first 20 plays 'planned out' for that one. Just another example of his genius.

[7DnBrnc53]

1996 AFC Divisional round. Patriots 28 Steelers 3. The Steelers whipped the Colts 42-14 the week before. I still remember being at work the night before the game and everyone was talking Super Bowl after the Jaguars upset the Broncos. That night I had ESPN radio on and they were giving predictions for the games on Sunday and one guy goes "Steel-airs, Panth-airs." That was his delivery for whatever reason and I never forgot it. Well the Steelers came out flatter than a pancake. I remember Bettis playing hurt but they just couldn't get anything going up in foggy Foxboro that day.

I was 'sure' that Steelers were going back to the Bowl after the Jags upset that Saturday night. I was praying for a rematch vs Dallas (Tomczac vs that Deion-led secondary? Careful what you wish for). I believe Parcells had the first 20 plays 'planned out' for that one. Just another example of his genius.

I actually wasn't surprised when Pittsburgh lost in Foxboro. Tomczak wasn't the guy to get them anywhere. I don't know why they didn't give Jim Miller more of a chance instead of pulling him in Week 1 after one half (not that he would have done much better).

[conace21]

On the very first play, Drew Bledsoe dropped back and fired deep. Terry Glenn raced by Rod Woodson, caught Bledsoe's beautiful pass and raced down to the one, setting up a TD. He had a few nice passes on the next drive as well, which culminated in a 30+ yard screen pass to Keith Byars for a TD. Bledsoe threw two bad interceptions, but they came with the score 21-0 and Pittsburgh only got a combined 3 points off them. This was Drew's best postseason performance.

[nicefellow31]

Watching the Raiders destroy my Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII was an unforgettable experience. Washington had blown out the Rams 51-7 (hey what about that game) but I guess the warning signs were there when they had to hang on for dear life against the Niners. I can recall the local media and all of the D.C. area talking about Washington being on the same level as Green Bay, Pittsburgh, and Miami. To lose the game was one thing but to get blown out was another. My house was left speechless and for a Redskins fan, that was the longest game ever. I'm sure the 1940 Redskins fan would give me the side eye for the comment though.

[Gary Najman]

Watching the Raiders destroy my Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII was an unforgettable experience. Washington had blown out the Rams 51-7 (hey what about that game) but I guess the warning signs were there when they had to hang on for dear life against the Niners. I can recall the local media and all of the D.C. area talking about Washington being on the same level as Green Bay, Pittsburgh, and Miami. To lose the game was one thing but to get blown out was another. My house was left speechless and for a Redskins fan, that was the longest game ever. I'm sure the 1940 Redskins fan would give me the side eye for the comment though.

When they played earlier in the year, the Redskins prevailed 37-35 in a thriller, and many predicted also a closer game in the Super Bowl. Something that the Raiders also had in the game at RFK was the great play: Cliff Branch 99-yard td reception (the first since the merger) and. Greg Pruitt 97-yard td punt return (also the longest since the merger).

[Todd Pence]

The 1975 and 1978 NFC Title Games where the Cowboys pummeled the Rams have already been mentioned. You can add to that a third game where the Cowboys surprisingly routed the Rams, the 1980 Wild Card playoff. The Boys put up something ridiculous like 300+ rushing yards against the Ram defense and Danny White tossed three TDs in the 34-13 triumph. Just a couple of weeks earlier, the Rams had massacred the Cowboys 38-14.

[74_75_78_79_]

The 1975 and 1978 NFC Title Games where the Cowboys pummeled the Rams have already been mentioned. You can add to that a third game where the Cowboys surprisingly routed the Rams, the 1980 Wild Card playoff. The Boys put up something ridiculous like 300+ rushing yards against the Ram defense and Danny White tossed three TDs in the 34-13 triumph. Just a couple of weeks earlier, the Rams had massacred the Cowboys 38-14.

The way the Rams played that '80, especially fresh from a SB-berth the year prior (and giving Steelers all they could handle), they seemed no less likely than any of the other 11/12-win playoff teams to go all the way.

As for another example of a strangely lopsided playoff game, how about the '73 AFCC? As awesome as the Phins were, Oakland was the other elite team that always - as a rival should - played them well. They beat them Week #2 and the AFCC was 17-10 after 3 quarters before Miami pulled away in the 4th to make the final, 27-10. And Greise was 3 for 6 passing (0 TD, 1 INT)!