NFL playoffs, 1991–92

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The NFL playoffs following the 1991 NFL season led up to Super Bowl XXVI.

Playoff seeds
Seed AFC NFC
1 Buffalo Bills (East winner) Washington Redskins (East winner)
2 Denver Broncos (West winner) Detroit Lions (Central winner)
3 Houston Oilers (Central winner) New Orleans Saints (West winner)
4 Kansas City Chiefs Chicago Bears
5 Los Angeles Raiders Dallas Cowboys
6 New York Jets Atlanta Falcons

Contents

[edit] Wild Card playoffs

[edit] December 28, 1991

[edit] AFC: Kansas City Chiefs 10, Los Angeles Raiders 6

1 2 3 4 Total
Raiders 0 3 3 0 6
Chiefs 0 7 0 3 10

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Quarterback Steve DeBerg's 11-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Fred Jones in the second quarter became the difference as the Chiefs only allowed two Raiders field goals and running back Barry Word rushed for 133 yards.. Los Angeles quarterback Todd Marinovich threw 4 interceptions, including the first one to Kansas City defensive back Deron Cherry that set up DeBerg's touchdown. After Raiders kicker Jeff Jaeger cut the lead 7-6 with his two field goals, Chiefs kicker Nick Lowery made one from 18 yards out in the fourth period. Los Angeles advanced to the Kansas City 24-yard line in the closing minutes before linebacker Lonnie Marts' sealed the victory for the Chiefs with an interception.

  • Scoring
    • KC - Jones 11 pass from DeBerg (Lowery kick) KC 7-0
    • RAI - field goal Jaeger 32 KC 7-3
    • RAI - field goal Jaeger 26 KC 7-6
    • KC - field goal Lowery 18 KC 10-6

[edit] NFC: Atlanta Falcons 27, New Orleans Saints 20

1 2 3 4 Total
Falcons 0 10 7 10 27
Saints 7 6 0 7 20

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Falcons quarterback Chris Miller completed the game-winning 61-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Michael Haynes with 2:41 left in the contest. Miller completed 18 out of 30 passes for 291 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Saints jumped to a 10-0 with quarterback Bobby Hebert's 26-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Floyd Turner and kicker Morten Andersen's 45-yard field goal. But the Atlanta tied the game with wide receiver Andre Rison's 24-yard touchdown reception from Miller and a 44-yard field goal by Norm Johnson. The score was later tied 20-20 late in the final period as the teams traded scores: Andersen and Johnson each added another field goal, Miller threw a 20-yard touchdown to Haynes, and New Orleans running back Dalton Hilliard rushed for a 1-yard touchdown. After Haynes scored the winning touchdown for the Falcons, the Saints reached the Atlanta 35-yard line before Hebert threw an interception to Falcons defensive back Tim McKyer to clinch the victory.

  • Scoring
    • NO - Turner 26 pass from Hebert (Andersen kick) NO 7-0
    • NO - field goal Andersen 45 NO 10-0
    • ATL - Rison 24 pass from Miller (Johnson kick) NO 10-7
    • ATL - field goal Johnson 44 Tie 10-10
    • NO - field goal Andersen 35 NO 13-10
    • ATL - Haynes 20 pass from Miller (Johnson kick) ATL 17-13
    • NO - Hilliard 1 run (Andersen kick) NO 20-17
    • ATL - field goal Johnson 36 Tie 20-20
    • ATL - Haynes 61 pass from Miller (Johnson kick) ATL 27-20

[edit] December 29, 1991

[edit] NFC: Dallas Cowboys 17, Chicago Bears 13

1 2 3 4 Total
Cowboys 10 0 7 0 17
Bears 0 3 3 7 13

at Soldier Field, Chicago

The Cowboys jumped to a 10-0 first quarter lead and held on to win their first playoff game in nine years. Dallas' first score was a 27-yard field goal by Ken Willis. Then Cowboys linebacker Darrick Brownlow blocked a punt that was recovered by linebacker Ken Norton Jr, setting up a 1-yard touchdown by running back Emmitt Smith, who finished the game with 105 rushing yards. Bears kicker Kevin Butler kicked two field goals to cut the score 10-6 by the third period. However, Dallas responded by marching 75 yards to score on quarterback Steve Beuerlein's 3-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jay Novacek. With 2:42 left in the game, Chicago wide receiver Tom Waddle scored on a 6-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Jim Harbaugh, but the Bears could not score again.

  • Scoring
    • DAL - field goal Willis 27 DAL 3-0
    • DAL - E. Smith 1 run (Willis kick) DAL 10-0
    • CHI - field goal Butler 19 DAL 10-3
    • CHI - field goal Butler 43 DAL 10-6
    • DAL - Novacek 3 pass from Beuerlein (Willis kick) DAL 17-6
    • CHI - Waddle 6 pass from Harbaugh (Butler kick) DAL 17-13

[edit] AFC: Houston Oilers 17, New York Jets 10

1 2 3 4 Total
Jets 0 10 0 0 10
Oilers 7 7 0 3 17

at Astrodome, Houston, Texas

After leading 14-10 at halftime, the Oilers stopped the Jets twice inside the 5-yard line in the second half to preserve the victory. Houston quarterback Warren Moon threw two touchdowns in the first half, both to Ernest Givins for 5 and 20 yards. For New York, wide receiver Al Toon recorded a 10-yard touchdown reception from Ken O'Brien and kicker Raul Allegre made a 33-yard field goal. The Jets then took the opening kickoff of the second half and marched to the Houston 8-yard line, but O'Brien threw an interception to Oilers defensive back Bubba McDowell. Then after Oilers kicker Al Del Greco made a 53-yard field goal, New York faced fourth down and inches at the Houston 3-yard line. Rather than attempt a field goal, running back Freeman McNeil tried to advance the ball but was tackled for no gain. Late in the game, the Jets has another chance to score after recovering a fumble by Moon at the Houston 26-yard line, but turned it over on downs again.

  • Scoring
    • HOU - Givins 5 pass from Moon (Del Greco kick) HOU 7-0
    • NYJ - Toon 10 pass from O'Brien (Allegre kick) Tie 7-7
    • HOU - Givins 20 pass from Moon (Del Greco kick) HOU 14-7
    • NYJ - field goal Allegre 33 HOU 14-10
    • HOU - field goal Del Greco 53 HOU 17-10

[edit] Byes

[edit] Divisional playoffs

[edit] January 4, 1992

[edit] NFC: Washington Redskins 24, Atlanta Falcons 7

1 2 3 4 Total
Falcons 0 7 0 0 7
Redskins 0 14 3 7 24

at RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.

During their regular season meeting, Washington defeated Atlanta 56-17, with quarterback Mark Rypien throwing for 446 yards and 6 touchdowns. In this game the score was closer, but the result was still the same.

Under rainy and muddy conditions, the Redskins forced 6 turnovers, held the ball for over 36 minutes, and scored two touchdowns in a span of 3:11 in the second quarter. Washington scored first by driving 81-yards to score on running back Ricky Ervins' 17-yard rushing touchdown. Then, Redskins defensive lineman James "Jumpy" Geathers recovered a fumble to set up running back Gerald Riggs' 2-yard touchdown. In the second half, Kicker Chip Lohmiller scored a 24-yard field goal and Riggs added a 1-yard touchdown, prompting the fans in attendance to shower the field with the yellow seat cushions that were given out to fans before the game.[1] The Falcons lone touchdown was a 1-yard run by running back Tracy Johnson.

  • Scoring
    • WAS - Ervins 17 run (Lohmiller kick) WAS 7-0
    • WAS - Riggs 2 run (Lohmiller kick) WAS 14-0
    • ATL - T. Johnson 1 run (Johnson kick) WAS 14-7
    • WAS - field goal Lohmiller 24 WAS 17-7
    • WAS - Riggs 1 run (Lohmiller kick) WAS 24-7

[edit] AFC: Denver Broncos 26, Houston Oilers 24

1 2 3 4 Total
Oilers 14 7 0 3 24
Broncos 6 7 3 10 26

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

Trailing 24-23 with 2:07 left in the game, quarterback John Elway led the Broncos from their own 2-yard line to the winning 28-yard field goal with 16 seconds remaining. On the drive, he converted on two fourth downs. On fourth down and 6 from the Denver 28, he rushed for 7 yards. Then on fourth down and 10, he completed a 44-yard pass to wide receiver Vance Johnson.

The Oilers jumped to a 14-0 lead with quarterback Warren Moon's two touchdown passes to wide receivers Haywood Jeffires and Drew Hill for 15 and 9 yards, respectively. Elway then completed a 10-yard touchdown to Johnson, but kicker David Treadwell missed the extra point. Moon responded by throwing a 6-yard touchdown to wide receiver Curtis Duncan to give Houston a 21-6 lead, but Denver running back Greg Lewis scored a 1-yard touchdown before halftime. In the second half, the Oilers were limited to only a 25-yard field goal by kicker Al Del Greco, which gave Houston a 24-16 lead in the fourth quarter. The Broncos then marched 80 yards to score on Lewis' 1-yard touchdown run to cut the deficit to 24-23.

Elway's comeback is now known solely as The Drive II.

  • Scoring
  • HOU - Jeffires 15 pass from Moon (Del Greco kick) HOU 7-0
  • HOU - Hill 9 pass from Moon (Del Greco kick) HOU 14-0
  • DEN - V. Johnson 10 pass from Elway (kick failed) HOU 14-6
  • HOU - Duncan 6 pass from Moon (Del Greco kick) HOU 21-6
  • DEN - Lewis 1 run (Treadwell kick) HOU 21-13
  • DEN - field goal Treadwell 49 HOU 21-16
  • HOU - field goal Del Greco 25 HOU 24-16
  • DEN - Lewis 1 run (Treadwell kick)HOU 24-23
  • DEN - field goal Treadwell 28 DEN 26-24

[edit] January 5, 1992

[edit] AFC: Buffalo Bills 37, Kansas City Chiefs 14

1 2 3 4 Total
Chiefs 0 0 7 7 14
Bills 7 10 7 13 37

at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York

Buffalo avenged their 33-6 loss to Kansas City during the regular season by eliminating them from the playoffs with a dominating 37-14 win. The Bills crushed the Chiefs by jumping to a 24-0 lead in the third quarter. Buffalo quarterback Jim Kelly threw 3 touchdown passes: a 25-yarder to wide receiver Andre Reed, a 53-yard one to Reed, and a 10-yarder to wide receiver James Lofton. Bills kicker Scott Norwood added 3 field goals, running back Kenneth Davis scored a touchdown on a 5-yard run, Reed finished with 4 receptions for 100 yards and 2 touchdowns, and running back Thurman Thomas recorded 100 rushing yards. Meanwhile, Chiefs starting quarterback Steve DeBerg was knocked out of the game in the second period with a sprained thumb, and backup quarterback Mark Vlasic threw 4 interceptions. Although Kansas City running back Barry Word scored on a 3-yard touchdown, he was held to 50 rushing yards. The Chiefs only other score was Vlasic's 10-yard touchdown completion to wide receiver Fred Jones.

This was Thomas' fourth consecutive postseason game with at least 100 rushing yards, the second longest streak in NFL history (behind John Riggins' 6)

  • Scoring
    • BUF - Reed 25 pass from Kelly (Norwood kick) BUF 7-0
    • BUF - Reed 53 pass from Kelly (Norwood kick) BUF 14-0
    • BUF - field goal Norwood 33 BUF 17-0
    • BUF - Lofton 10 pass from Kelly (Norwood kick) BUF 24-0
    • KC - Word 3 run (Lowery kick) BUF 24-7
    • BUF - field goal Norwood 20 BUF 27-7
    • BUF - field goal Norwood 47 BUF 30-7
    • BUF - Davis 5 run (Norwood kick) BUF 37-7
    • KC - F. Jones 10 pass from Vlasic (Lowery kick) BUF 37-14

[edit] NFC: Detroit Lions 38, Dallas Cowboys 6

1 2 3 4 Total
Cowboys 3 3 0 0 6
Lions 7 10 14 7 38

at Pontiac Silverdome, Pontiac, Michigan

Quarterback Erik Kramer led the Lions to their first postseason victory since 1957 by completing 29 out of 38 passes for 341 yards and 3 touchdowns. Kramer completed a 31-yard score to wide receiver Willie Green, a 6-yarder to Green, and a 7-yarder to wide receiver Herman Moore. Detroit defensive back Melvin Jenkins returned an interception 41-yard for a touchdown, kicker Eddie Murray added a 36-yard field goal, and running back Barry Sanders rushed for a 47-yard touchdown. The Cowboys' only scores were two 28-yard field goals by kicker Ken Willis. Dallas quarterback Steve Beuerlein was held to just 7 of 13 completions for 91 yards, with 1 interception.

  • Scoring
    • DET - Green 31 pass from Kramer (Murray kick) DET 7-0
    • DAL - field goal Willis 28 DET 7-3
    • DET - Jenkins 41 interception return (Murray kick) DET 14-3
    • DAL - field goal Willis 28 DET 14-6
    • DET - field goal Murray 36 DET 17-6
    • DET - Green 6 pass from Kramer (Murray kick) DET 24-6
    • DET - Moore 7 pass from Kramer (Murray kick) DET 31-6
    • DET - Sanders 47 run (Murray kick) DET 38-6

[edit] Conference Championships

[edit] January 12, 1992

[edit] AFC: Buffalo Bills 10, Denver Broncos 7

1 2 3 4 Total
Broncos 0 0 0 7 7
Bills 0 0 7 3 10

at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York

Buffalo relied on missed field goals by Denver and some key plays from their defense to narrowly defeat the Broncos in a tough defensive struggle. Although the first half was scoreless, the Broncos advanced into Buffalo territory on all five of their possessions in the first half. However, Denver kicker David Treadwell missed 3 field goals, hitting the goal posts twice and driving the other attempt wide right.

Late in the third quarter, the Broncos faced second down and 10 at their own 19-yard line. Quarterback John Elway threw a shovel pass intended for running back Steve Sewell, but it was tipped by Bills defensive lineman Jeff Wright into the arms of linebacker Carlton Bailey, who returned the ball 11 yards for Buffalo's only touchdown of the game. Elway was then knocked out of the game after suffering a deep thigh bruise, and was replaced by backup Gary Kubiak. With 4:18 left in the game, Buffalo kicker Scott Norwood made a 44-yard field goal to increase the lead, 10-0. Kubiak, who was playing in his last NFL game before retiring, led the Broncos 85 yards in eight plays and scored a 3-yard touchdown run with 1:43 left. Denver then recovered the ensuing onside kick, but the Bills clinched the victory after defensive back Kirby Jackson forced and recovered a fumble from running back Steve Sewell.

Broncos receiver Vance Johnson finished the game with 8 receptions for 104 yards. Kubiak completed 11 of 12 passes for 136 yards and rushed for 22.

  • Scoring
    • BUF - Bailey 11 interception return (Norwood kick) BUF 7-0
    • BUF - field goal Norwood 44 BUF 10-0
    • DEN - Kubiak 3 run (Treadwell kick) BUF 10-7

[edit] NFC: Washington Redskins 41, Detroit Lions 10

1 2 3 4 Total
Lions 0 10 0 0 10
Redskins 10 7 10 14 41

at RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.

The Redskins crushed the Lions, 41-10, as quarterback Mark Rypien completed 12 out of 17 passes for 228 yards and 2 touchdowns. Detroit quarterback Erik Kramer was sacked 5 times, three of them by Washington linebacker Wilber Marshall. Lions future hall of fame running back Barry Sanders, who rushed for 1,548 yards during the season, was held to just 44 yards on 11 carries.

The Redskins forced 2 turnovers on the Lions' first two possessions, and jumped to a 10-0 lead with just 4:02 into the game. On Detroit's first play of the game, Washington defensive lineman Charles Mann forced Kramer to fumble, setting up running back Gerald Riggs' 2-yard touchdown. Then Redskins kicker Chip Lohmiller made a 20-yard field goal after linebacker Kurt Gouveia intercepted a pass and returned it 38 yards to the Detroit 10-yard line. In the second period, Kramer completed an 18-yard touchdown to wide receiver Willie Green, but it was countered by Riggs' 3-yard touchdown. Lions kicker Eddie Murray then made a 30-yard field goal and the Redskins only led 17-10 at halftime.

However, Washington scored 24 unanswered points in the second half. Lohmiller scored his second field goal of the game, a 28-yarder. Rypien threw a pair of touchdown passes for wide receivers Gary Clark and Art Monk for 45 and 21 yards, respectively. Cornerback Darrell Green also returned an interception 32 yards for a touchdown.

  • Scoring
    • WAS - Riggs 2 run (Lohmiller kick) WAS 7-0
    • WAS - field goal Lohmiller 20 WAS 10-0
    • DET - Green 18 pass from Kramer (Murray kick) WAS 10-7
    • WAS - Riggs 3 run (Lohmiller kick) WAS 17-7
    • DET - field goal Murray 30 WAS 17-10
    • WAS - field goal Lohmiller 28 WAS 20-10
    • WAS - Clark 45 pass from Rypien (Lohmiller kick) WAS 27-10
    • WAS - Monk 21 pass from Rypien (Lohmiller kick) WAS 34-10
    • WAS - Green 32 interception return (Lohmiller kick) WAS 41-10

[edit] Super Bowl

Further information: Super Bowl XXVI

Washington Redskins (NFC) 37, Buffalo Bills (AFC) 24, at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota

[edit] Bracket

  Wild Card Playoffs Divisional Playoffs Conference Championships Super Bowl XXVI
                                     
5  Dallas 17  
4  Chicago 13  
  5  Dallas 6  
    2  Detroit 38  
      
        
  2  Detroit 10  
NFC
  1  Washington 41  
6  Atlanta 27  
3  New Orleans 20  
  6  Atlanta 7
    1  Washington 24  
      
        
  N1  Washington 37
  A1  Buffalo 24
6  N.Y. Jets 10  
3  Houston 17  
  3  Houston 24
    2  Denver 26  
      
        
  2  Denver 7
AFC
  1  Buffalo 10  
5  L.A. Raiders 6  
4  Kansas City 10  
  4  Kansas City 14
    1  Buffalo 37  
      

[edit] References

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