WEBVTT - Special Teams: The Last Browns Playoff Game 0:00:00.120 --> 0:00:03.520 Welcome to Special Teams, a production of I Heart Radio. 0:00:20.040 --> 0:00:23.159 Greetings and welcome inside another episode of Special Teams with 0:00:23.280 --> 0:00:25.720 Jason Smith and Mike Harmon, a podcast where we look 0:00:25.800 --> 0:00:29.080 back at special teams and special years in the history 0:00:29.120 --> 0:00:33.000 of sports and what made these teams special. Really enjoying 0:00:33.040 --> 0:00:34.760 the run we're on right now where we are looking 0:00:34.760 --> 0:00:36.680 back at the special teams taking place in some of 0:00:36.680 --> 0:00:40.800 the biggest games and football, baseball, basketball history. And we 0:00:40.840 --> 0:00:44.080 have another big NFL playoff game to break down today, 0:00:44.120 --> 0:00:45.640 and one with a name on it. Well, it doesn't 0:00:45.640 --> 0:00:47.360 really have a name, but you can title it. When 0:00:47.400 --> 0:00:49.440 you can title a playoff game, it's a big deal. 0:00:49.880 --> 0:00:53.480 And we're gonna look back at the most recent Browns 0:00:53.760 --> 0:00:57.840 playoff game, which of course was in two thousand and three. 0:00:58.600 --> 0:01:01.960 But it is that the uh colon, it's been a minute, 0:01:02.400 --> 0:01:04.560 it's been a bit been but well I haven't seen you. 0:01:04.600 --> 0:01:06.959 How you doing. Oh well, you know, I moved away 0:01:07.000 --> 0:01:09.440 after college and won the lottery and got married and 0:01:09.560 --> 0:01:13.040 uh uh that look well, you look like you put 0:01:13.040 --> 0:01:15.039 on a little bit of weight. You still got the 0:01:15.080 --> 0:01:18.360 Brown helmets. You've done nothing about that. Now it's Brenda 0:01:18.360 --> 0:01:20.640 and Nettie getting together at the scenes from an Italian 0:01:20.640 --> 0:01:28.040 restaurant after all those years. But this game was legendary, 0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:30.679 a game in which the Steelers hold on to beat 0:01:30.720 --> 0:01:35.560 the Browns thirty six thirty three. Both teams quarterbacks did 0:01:35.600 --> 0:01:39.800 not have long tenures. Uh. It was full of incredible 0:01:39.840 --> 0:01:43.840 twists and turns, and the Browns nearly pulled off a 0:01:44.040 --> 0:01:47.720 huge upset. Potentially you could say they just needed one 0:01:47.800 --> 0:01:51.520 more second on the clock. Two thousand and three the 0:01:51.720 --> 0:01:57.400 Steelers and the Browns January five, Hines Field start time 0:01:57.960 --> 0:02:00.920 one oh one pm. But before we get to this, 0:02:01.480 --> 0:02:04.680 how did both of these teams get to this point 0:02:05.240 --> 0:02:08.639 of the season. For the Pittsburgh Steelers, you're thinking, oh, 0:02:08.800 --> 0:02:12.960 was that roethlisbritt No, this was pre Ben Roethlisberger, in 0:02:13.000 --> 0:02:16.880 which the Steelers two years before, in two thousand and two, 0:02:16.919 --> 0:02:20.600 in their draft had a huge draft. You would think, okay, right, no, no, no. 0:02:21.200 --> 0:02:25.360 In this draft Antoine Randall, l Chris Hope, Brett Keisel. 0:02:25.680 --> 0:02:29.720 They signed James Harrison as an undrafted free agent. These 0:02:29.760 --> 0:02:32.200 are players who would go on to be building box 0:02:32.280 --> 0:02:36.040 and lynchpins of great Steelers teams of the future. I mean, 0:02:36.120 --> 0:02:39.000 I would love the Larry Foot to otherwise White's gonna 0:02:39.040 --> 0:02:41.640 come get you. No, that's okay. Anytime I bring up 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:44.160 Michigan football, now whether she's just kind of blows it 0:02:44.200 --> 0:02:46.280 off because they can't beat Ohio State, so you know, 0:02:46.360 --> 0:02:47.919 she's kind of just okay, Well, do you just walk 0:02:48.000 --> 0:02:49.840 in and throw khaki pants at or now just to 0:02:49.919 --> 0:02:52.600 torture no words. Yeah, I need those good khaki pants 0:02:52.600 --> 0:02:54.440 and Lulu lemon, all right, so get those for me 0:02:54.480 --> 0:02:58.640 because those all where they're like bucks. Uh, Christmas is coming. 0:02:59.400 --> 0:03:03.560 But this situation at quarterback for the Steelers coming into 0:03:03.600 --> 0:03:07.240 the year was it was Cordel Stewart's team, all right. 0:03:07.560 --> 0:03:12.880 Cordel Stewart was the dual option quarterback of the millennium. 0:03:13.040 --> 0:03:16.360 Now every team wants a player like Cordell Stewart, but 0:03:16.840 --> 0:03:19.560 he was the guy. He and Randall Cunningham were credit 0:03:19.639 --> 0:03:21.720 as being the quarterbacks to show everybody, Hey, you know 0:03:21.760 --> 0:03:24.600 what these guys can do a lot. Don't worry about 0:03:24.639 --> 0:03:27.040 them being one dimensional. They can throw the football, they 0:03:27.040 --> 0:03:30.200 can make plays with their legs. That's who Cordel Stewart was. 0:03:30.600 --> 0:03:33.440 Cordel Stewart was fantastic. He was the Offensive player of 0:03:33.480 --> 0:03:36.640 the Year in two thousand and one. But since he 0:03:36.680 --> 0:03:38.960 came into the league as slash, because he came in 0:03:39.040 --> 0:03:40.520 all right, maybe he's not a quarterback that you can 0:03:40.560 --> 0:03:43.480 play wide receiver, running back. He made his mark being 0:03:43.520 --> 0:03:45.600 able to do all of these things in the late nineties. 0:03:45.640 --> 0:03:47.120 He could throw the football once in a while, but 0:03:47.160 --> 0:03:49.640 he's a good wide receiver. Finally, the Steelers said we're 0:03:49.680 --> 0:03:53.200 gonna put him at quarterback, and Cordel Stewart was terrific. 0:03:53.560 --> 0:03:56.160 But it was a roller coaster ride. Some years he 0:03:56.240 --> 0:03:58.160 was really good. Some games he was really good, but 0:03:58.200 --> 0:04:01.120 still he made too many mistakes. He had been on 0:04:01.160 --> 0:04:05.480 this ride with Cordel Stewart since seven In fact, one 0:04:05.560 --> 0:04:08.120 year he lost a job to Kent Graham before he 0:04:08.160 --> 0:04:10.960 got it back, but his talent allowed him to stay 0:04:10.960 --> 0:04:13.760 around a long time, and he goes into this season 0:04:13.880 --> 0:04:18.000 as the starting quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, against 0:04:18.120 --> 0:04:22.200 Cleveland in Week four, he throws a really bad pick 0:04:22.240 --> 0:04:24.440 in the double coverage into the end zone, and for 0:04:24.520 --> 0:04:27.599 Bill Kauer, this was the last straw. This was I'm 0:04:27.640 --> 0:04:31.680 done and we are going to Tommy Maddox at quarterback. Maddox, 0:04:31.720 --> 0:04:33.800 who would come into this year with a lot of 0:04:33.880 --> 0:04:36.080 hype behind him. He hadn't thrown a pass in the 0:04:36.160 --> 0:04:40.880 NFL since n but resurrected his career with big season 0:04:40.960 --> 0:04:43.320 the XFL and two thousand and one. Hey, maybe this 0:04:43.360 --> 0:04:47.000 guy can play well. He was someone who Steelers fans 0:04:47.040 --> 0:04:49.680 were always itching to see, can this guy play quarterback? 0:04:49.720 --> 0:04:51.600 You know, Cordel Stewart, the turnovers. I want to pull 0:04:51.640 --> 0:04:54.640 my hair out. Let's see if Tommy Maddox can play again, 0:04:55.000 --> 0:04:56.880 a guy who hadn't thrown a pass in the NFL 0:04:57.120 --> 0:05:01.360 since and Steelers fans are saying, boy, really hope Tommy 0:05:01.400 --> 0:05:04.000 Maddis can get it done for us? Well, you always 0:05:04.040 --> 0:05:08.159 love an underdog story. I mean he got you a xfluh. 0:05:08.760 --> 0:05:11.960 He did Fantasy Time XFL Fantasy title him and Joe 0:05:12.000 --> 0:05:15.159 Asca and Jose Cortez. I still remember a lot of 0:05:15.160 --> 0:05:18.720 the good players on my Cortes was automatic. But but 0:05:18.920 --> 0:05:22.200 we look at the way this roster was constructed, and 0:05:22.200 --> 0:05:25.640 certainly for Tommy Maddox, Cordell Stewart, and you look at 0:05:25.640 --> 0:05:28.719 the schedule, man, no, no favors that you have a 0:05:28.760 --> 0:05:33.400 week three by like, that's just stupid. But that was 0:05:33.520 --> 0:05:36.200 the schedule that they had here. They eke out that 0:05:36.320 --> 0:05:39.799 narrow win against the Browns at home in Week four 0:05:41.000 --> 0:05:44.640 and just shift trying to see if you can jump 0:05:44.720 --> 0:05:49.240 start the offense. Right. You mentioned the arrival of Antoine 0:05:49.320 --> 0:05:52.640 Randall l You know, knowing that you now have a 0:05:52.760 --> 0:05:57.039 guy with with great aptitude and YAK potential, you gotta 0:05:57.080 --> 0:05:59.600 figure out how to get the ball in his hands, 0:06:00.320 --> 0:06:03.440 get creative and you're still knowing Bill Cower want to 0:06:03.480 --> 0:06:07.160 have that power running game working and find that balance. 0:06:07.600 --> 0:06:09.760 But what's the best way and to really get that 0:06:10.160 --> 0:06:12.400 off is to have a little more efficiency from the 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:15.359 QB position. This is a guy who was drafted in 0:06:17.279 --> 0:06:21.000 where Joe Thiseman. Other analysts said, oh my goodness, we 0:06:21.080 --> 0:06:22.960 we you know, why are you drafting this kid? He's 0:06:22.960 --> 0:06:25.200 not ready out of U c l A. Jimmy Johnson 0:06:25.240 --> 0:06:26.680 did a bit where he said in college, we would 0:06:26.680 --> 0:06:29.000 call him turn over Tommy. You know you always get 0:06:29.080 --> 0:06:30.919 him to throw the football. T I mean, this is 0:06:30.920 --> 0:06:33.000 a guy who came in and he's drafted in ninety 0:06:33.000 --> 0:06:34.960 two by the Broncos to be the air apparent to 0:06:35.040 --> 0:06:38.359 John Elway. Of course that doesn't work out. He leaves 0:06:38.400 --> 0:06:41.440 the NFL to be an insurance salesman. He left. He 0:06:41.520 --> 0:06:43.320 was done in the NFL. He's done, he wasn't gonna 0:06:43.320 --> 0:06:45.800 do anymore. But when he got asked to play in 0:06:45.839 --> 0:06:48.919 the Arena Football League just before the XFL started, he 0:06:49.040 --> 0:06:51.719 sells his insurance business and says, I'm gonna get football 0:06:51.720 --> 0:06:55.000 another shot. And he gets back in and he by 0:06:55.440 --> 0:06:59.560 crazy circumstances meaning Cordell Stewart being unable to stop throwing 0:06:59.560 --> 0:07:02.480 your studs, he gets the starting job with the Steelers, 0:07:02.520 --> 0:07:05.240 and he goes on a big run and the Steelers 0:07:06.200 --> 0:07:08.600 go to the playoffs and they wind up with eleven 0:07:08.680 --> 0:07:10.880 five and one record. After it's all said and done, 0:07:11.320 --> 0:07:14.640 Maddox has a big year and suddenly Maddox is the guy. 0:07:14.760 --> 0:07:17.440 After a journey in which it took him eleven years 0:07:17.440 --> 0:07:20.360 to get to this point, he winds up being the quarterback. 0:07:20.400 --> 0:07:23.840 In fact, they believed in him so much that Maddox 0:07:23.880 --> 0:07:26.400 got hurt late in this year before they get to 0:07:26.440 --> 0:07:30.120 the playoffs, he misses two games. Cordel Stewart comes in 0:07:30.160 --> 0:07:32.520 and wins both of them, and he plays really well, 0:07:32.600 --> 0:07:34.840 and you're like, Okay, well, Cordel Stewart's gonna get the 0:07:34.880 --> 0:07:37.960 job back because it was his job. Nope, Bill Coward says, thanks, Cordell, 0:07:38.440 --> 0:07:40.720 you're on the bench, and Tommy Maddox is our guy. 0:07:40.960 --> 0:07:43.440 So much so they kept Maddox and they waved Cordel 0:07:43.480 --> 0:07:46.200 Stewart after the season. That's how much they were stuck 0:07:46.280 --> 0:07:49.280 on making that move to Tommy Maddox, who after eleven 0:07:49.320 --> 0:07:53.239 short years suddenly becomes a household name. Well, I wanted 0:07:53.320 --> 0:07:55.440 him to stick around, and while he was there for 0:07:55.480 --> 0:08:02.560 another three years in some capacity. Yeah, just a curious Uh, 0:08:02.720 --> 0:08:04.480 that's one of those let's stand out with Bill Cower 0:08:04.520 --> 0:08:07.600 and let's talk about those times, right, because he was 0:08:07.640 --> 0:08:12.000 even there when Roethlisberger comes into the league and as 0:08:12.080 --> 0:08:14.600 their first round pick in two thousand four and touchdown, 0:08:14.640 --> 0:08:19.400 Tommy's still there. Tommy Maddox was in again. I mean really, 0:08:19.560 --> 0:08:22.320 he was like Ryan Fitzpatrick. Accept it took him even 0:08:22.360 --> 0:08:24.720 longer to get the starting job again, but that that's 0:08:24.760 --> 0:08:27.320 that's kind of who Tommy Maddox was. He but he 0:08:27.360 --> 0:08:29.880 gets to stick around, right, two thousand two goes seven, 0:08:29.960 --> 0:08:32.719 three and one, but the touchdown the interception ratio is 0:08:32.760 --> 0:08:38.240 twenty to sixteen. Yeah, yeah, yeah, And then the following 0:08:38.320 --> 0:08:40.400 year they go six and ten, showing how this works. 0:08:40.640 --> 0:08:44.480 Eighteen and seventeen is the touchdown the interception, right, thus 0:08:44.480 --> 0:08:48.319 prompting the drafting of Roethlisberger, but still just showing they 0:08:48.320 --> 0:08:50.520 had a lot of faith that he was still gonna 0:08:50.520 --> 0:08:53.680 bail him out. They win the a f C North, 0:08:53.679 --> 0:08:56.040 which is brand new that year as first a f 0:08:56.120 --> 0:08:58.840 C North. So they win at ten five and one. 0:08:58.880 --> 0:09:03.320 They go to the playoffs, where right, it was, okay, 0:09:03.320 --> 0:09:05.400 how is this gonna work out? Now? And look, I 0:09:05.440 --> 0:09:07.320 was glad to get the Indianapolis Colts out of the 0:09:07.320 --> 0:09:09.560 division because I'm like, I don't want Peyton Manning beating 0:09:09.559 --> 0:09:11.800 the crap out of us for all these years. Uh. 0:09:11.840 --> 0:09:15.080 And they faced the Cleveland Browns, still to this day 0:09:15.120 --> 0:09:19.200 their most recent playoff appearance. Butch Davis is the head coach, 0:09:19.800 --> 0:09:22.280 and the season started for them and ended for them 0:09:22.360 --> 0:09:25.040 in well, the way the season started should have told 0:09:25.040 --> 0:09:27.400 you how the season was gonna end, because it began 0:09:27.520 --> 0:09:30.520 with what a big famous play in Brown's history where 0:09:30.720 --> 0:09:34.280 Morton Anderson is kicking for the Chiefs and he misses 0:09:34.320 --> 0:09:37.120 a field goal that would win the game for them, 0:09:37.240 --> 0:09:40.079 So the Browns are gonna win. Dwayne Rudd, who was 0:09:40.120 --> 0:09:42.880 a linebacker for the Browns, took his helmet off on 0:09:42.920 --> 0:09:45.559 the field after the missfield goal to celebrate. This is 0:09:45.600 --> 0:09:47.600 back when taking your helmet off on the field was 0:09:47.600 --> 0:09:51.480 a penalty that they enforced very strictly. So Dwayne Rudd 0:09:51.480 --> 0:09:53.920 takes his helmet off. It's a fifteen yard penalty, so 0:09:54.040 --> 0:09:56.520 Morton Anderson gets a much easier chance. He makes the 0:09:56.559 --> 0:09:59.520 field goal, and they win the game for nine. You 0:09:59.520 --> 0:10:01.520 should have own this is the kind of year we're 0:10:01.520 --> 0:10:03.280 gonna be in for with the Cleveland Browns after the 0:10:03.320 --> 0:10:06.000 season started that way. It's never boring with the Browns. 0:10:06.000 --> 0:10:10.480 I mean it never has been. There's always some curiosity, uh, 0:10:10.559 --> 0:10:12.880 to keep us guessing because I mean, here, here's a 0:10:12.880 --> 0:10:14.920 couple of random stats for you to kind of frame 0:10:14.960 --> 0:10:17.960 what we're talking about here and how important this playoff 0:10:18.040 --> 0:10:21.480 run was for the Cleveland Browns. Uh. Since two thousand three, 0:10:21.559 --> 0:10:26.000 there have been ten head coaches since Butch Davis welcome 0:10:26.040 --> 0:10:29.960 in Kevin Stefanski. Uh. Twenty quarterbacks have started a game 0:10:30.240 --> 0:10:36.600 since that year. Forget about Yeah, it's just unbelievable. Uh 0:10:36.640 --> 0:10:40.160 So this year, though, the Browns kind of become the 0:10:40.160 --> 0:10:42.640 new Cardiac kids. This was such a roller coach of 0:10:42.720 --> 0:10:47.760 season and they won five games in the final two minutes. 0:10:47.920 --> 0:10:52.120 This was Tim Couch's best season as a Browns quarterback. 0:10:52.440 --> 0:10:56.880 Eighteen touchdowns, eighteen picks, the best year. Well, everybody in 0:10:56.920 --> 0:10:59.319 this episode is on the was a former Bear. Cordial 0:10:59.320 --> 0:11:03.600 Stewart was on Bears everybod. No, no, look, I've told 0:11:03.600 --> 0:11:06.080 you that Cordell Stewart's story. I told it to him once. 0:11:07.000 --> 0:11:10.199 When my uncle passed away. We found out that it 0:11:10.280 --> 0:11:14.280 might have been after a particularly excruciating loss to the Vikings, 0:11:14.640 --> 0:11:17.600 and my cousin in the funeral services attributed it to 0:11:17.640 --> 0:11:22.400 Cordell Stewart. Wow, yeah, you told him that story. Yeah, 0:11:22.640 --> 0:11:27.800 Oh my god, he didn't hit, you know, Oh my goodness. 0:11:27.640 --> 0:11:30.040 Well you gotta frame it right. Yeah, no, I know, 0:11:30.240 --> 0:11:32.360 but still, hey, you know he got and he blamed 0:11:32.559 --> 0:11:34.480 and I did it. I did it the concise way. 0:11:34.600 --> 0:11:38.320 Here for Odd Special Teams podcast. This was not on air. 0:11:38.520 --> 0:11:42.079 This was I was doing bits with him, and uh, 0:11:42.360 --> 0:11:47.960 you know, but good humor. Yeah, I'm glad he did. 0:11:48.120 --> 0:11:50.640 I'm glad for you that he did, because I didn't 0:11:50.640 --> 0:11:53.439 start cursing in the other my fist day. I don't 0:11:53.440 --> 0:11:55.520 want but I wouldn't want to hear that story. If 0:11:55.559 --> 0:11:58.120 I would want to hear that, Oh, come on, it's 0:11:58.160 --> 0:12:02.000 kind of funny. But for Tim Couch, I mean, this 0:12:02.080 --> 0:12:03.960 is what I mean by being the CARDI yeat kids. 0:12:04.360 --> 0:12:07.679 Couch never lived up to expectations at all. He beats 0:12:07.760 --> 0:12:10.360 Jacksonville with a hail Mary pass. Right, he beats the 0:12:10.440 --> 0:12:12.840 Jets with a touchdown pass and a two point conversion, 0:12:12.840 --> 0:12:15.520 the craziest two point conversion in the final minute that 0:12:15.520 --> 0:12:16.920 I shook my head going, oh my god, we just 0:12:16.960 --> 0:12:19.920 lost to the Browns in that way. Um. They actually 0:12:19.960 --> 0:12:22.320 dedicated that game to Al Learner, the team owner, who 0:12:22.360 --> 0:12:24.920 died very suddenly in the middle of the season. I 0:12:24.920 --> 0:12:27.200 remember Tim Couch grabbing the football and all the players 0:12:27.160 --> 0:12:29.040 stood in the middle of the field and held fingers 0:12:29.080 --> 0:12:31.120 up to the sky. They dedicate that win to him. 0:12:31.800 --> 0:12:35.840 But despite all this excitement, Tim Couch like, like I said, 0:12:35.880 --> 0:12:38.240 this was his best season. But still it was eighteen touchdowns, 0:12:38.280 --> 0:12:41.800 eighteen picks. He gets booed because he just wasn't the 0:12:41.880 --> 0:12:44.839 quarterback you expect a guy drafted number one overall to 0:12:44.920 --> 0:12:47.559 b He had had injury problems, he had never been 0:12:47.559 --> 0:12:50.640 productive enough. In fact, this season, here's how it started 0:12:50.679 --> 0:12:53.720 for Tim Couch. And the Browns. Couch hurches elbow, so 0:12:53.760 --> 0:12:56.840 he can't play the first two games. So backup Kelly Holcom, 0:12:57.040 --> 0:12:59.040 who comes into this podcast in a large way in 0:12:59.080 --> 0:13:01.920 a couple of minutes, winds up starting the first two games. 0:13:01.960 --> 0:13:05.960 But Kelly Holcomb breaks his leg, so then Couch takes over. 0:13:06.280 --> 0:13:08.480 Couch plays well enough throughout the course of the season 0:13:08.480 --> 0:13:11.440 to keep the Browns in playoff contention, but he breaks 0:13:11.520 --> 0:13:14.600 his leg in the final game. Cleveland still wins thanks 0:13:14.600 --> 0:13:17.160 to a huge touchdown run from William Green, which is 0:13:17.200 --> 0:13:19.280 a big run in Brown's history. The play by play 0:13:19.320 --> 0:13:22.800 called run William Run helps them win this game and 0:13:23.720 --> 0:13:26.280 potentially get into the playoffs. So you add a season 0:13:26.280 --> 0:13:28.360 that was started by Holcomb because of an injury to Couch. 0:13:28.640 --> 0:13:31.760 Couch plays, Okay, he gets hurt. Now here comes Kelly 0:13:31.800 --> 0:13:34.160 Holcomb and the Browns win a game. You think, ok, 0:13:34.400 --> 0:13:38.200 nine and seven, they make the playoffs. But this was 0:13:38.320 --> 0:13:41.280 that year where there were so many dominoes that had 0:13:41.320 --> 0:13:42.920 the fall in the final week for the Browns to 0:13:42.920 --> 0:13:45.040 make the playoffs. Because nothing's easy for the brownch Right, 0:13:45.040 --> 0:13:47.800 they can't just win the final week and make the playoffs, right, 0:13:47.840 --> 0:13:51.160 they win, they lose their quarterback. They still had to 0:13:51.240 --> 0:13:54.559 hope that New England would beat Miami in the final 0:13:54.640 --> 0:13:58.440 week and the Jets would beat Green Bay. If that happened, 0:13:58.640 --> 0:14:02.400 the Browns make the playoffs. Well, New England beats Miami 0:14:02.480 --> 0:14:05.440 with a field goal and the Jets just route Green Bay, 0:14:05.840 --> 0:14:08.600 and so the Browns make the playoffs. And this is 0:14:08.640 --> 0:14:12.040 how we needed to beat them to make it. And 0:14:12.080 --> 0:14:14.680 the Jets needed New England to beat Miami the final 0:14:14.720 --> 0:14:17.079 week two. And this wasn't like oh, the Patriots in 0:14:17.080 --> 0:14:18.760 the middle of the Super Bowl run there, No, this 0:14:18.840 --> 0:14:21.880 was boy Miami. They should win this game. And the 0:14:21.960 --> 0:14:25.160 Jets were losing the Green Bay early in the first quarter, 0:14:25.400 --> 0:14:28.920 and everybody in the stands was watching this game between 0:14:28.960 --> 0:14:31.360 New England and Miami. And New England kicks the field 0:14:31.400 --> 0:14:34.600 goal to win. The entire crowd goes crazy. And it 0:14:34.680 --> 0:14:37.120 was during a penalty announcement on the Jets, like a 0:14:37.160 --> 0:14:39.320 fifteen yard penally on the Jets, and you hear the 0:14:39.320 --> 0:14:43.200 the the referee go, we have personal foul on the play, 0:14:43.560 --> 0:14:46.080 fifteen yards on the defense, and you hear this huge 0:14:46.200 --> 0:14:48.760 roar go up in the stadium and Jets players after 0:14:48.760 --> 0:14:50.240 the game said, we didn't know what was going on, like, 0:14:50.480 --> 0:14:52.520 why are they cheering a big penalty for us? Then 0:14:52.520 --> 0:14:56.120 they all got it, Oh, Miami must have lost New England. 0:14:56.400 --> 0:14:58.960 We win this game, we make the playoffs. And from 0:14:58.960 --> 0:15:01.600 that potan it was a different game and my signal 0:15:01.720 --> 0:15:04.720 unleashed and the Jets just blow out the Packers. The 0:15:04.840 --> 0:15:07.800 Jets make the playoffs. This is Chad Pennington in his 0:15:07.880 --> 0:15:10.080 two thousand two year, which was he was like a 0:15:10.160 --> 0:15:12.280 video game. Wound up losing the Raiders in the playoffs 0:15:12.280 --> 0:15:14.280 that year, but it was like a video game that Jets, 0:15:14.280 --> 0:15:16.480 and it was so exciting. And oh, by the way, 0:15:16.680 --> 0:15:18.960 the Browns make the playoffs as a result of both 0:15:18.960 --> 0:15:22.280 of these finishes going this way. So typical. This is 0:15:22.280 --> 0:15:27.560 how the Browns get in the playoffs. Fantastic finishes, Jets 0:15:27.560 --> 0:15:30.880 beating the Packers, I know, and we beat him pretty 0:15:30.880 --> 0:15:35.760 bad to h yeah, we it was awesome. Uh. And 0:15:35.800 --> 0:15:38.320 so now the Browns going to the playoffs with Kelly 0:15:38.360 --> 0:15:41.320 holp them as their quarterback. Now Browns fans aren't so 0:15:41.440 --> 0:15:45.000 bummed because Holcom was always someone who was intrigued by 0:15:45.040 --> 0:15:48.200 Cleveland fans because in Spurts and Small Chances he played 0:15:48.240 --> 0:15:50.560 pretty well in the two games he started in two 0:15:50.640 --> 0:15:53.200 thousand and two, he threw for eight touchdowns in almost 0:15:53.200 --> 0:15:55.800 eight hundred yards. So this was a guy that the 0:15:55.840 --> 0:15:57.920 fans and the team thought, we know he can give 0:15:58.000 --> 0:16:00.840 us offense. They were excited to have this guy out 0:16:00.840 --> 0:16:03.800 there to go play. So it's Kelly Holcomb and Tommy 0:16:03.840 --> 0:16:07.600 Maddox as we get set for a playoff game. That 0:16:07.720 --> 0:16:10.240 was the last time the Browns visited the postseason. How 0:16:10.280 --> 0:16:12.680 did it go? How did it unfold? We had heroes, 0:16:12.760 --> 0:16:15.600 we had goats, We had a hero turn into a goat. 0:16:16.120 --> 0:16:36.720 All coming up next right here on special teams. So 0:16:36.800 --> 0:16:39.920 we arrive at the a f C Wildcard game between 0:16:39.960 --> 0:16:44.200 the Browns and the Steelers in thrilling fashion, both teams 0:16:44.240 --> 0:16:48.640 taking different journeys to the postseason, both teams starting quarterbacks. 0:16:48.680 --> 0:16:51.920 They didn't think we're gonna be starting for them all. 0:16:52.120 --> 0:16:54.080 This is where you had two guys who were Jags. 0:16:54.080 --> 0:16:56.480 They were just guys, and now suddenly here they are 0:16:56.480 --> 0:16:59.880 starting playoffs games. And what a playoff game. Both of 0:16:59.880 --> 0:17:02.880 the these guys had h The game starts with Joey 0:17:02.920 --> 0:17:06.440 Porter getting separated from Cleveland players pregame for joining, which 0:17:06.480 --> 0:17:08.760 you know that's Joey Porter. That's his act. That sounds 0:17:08.800 --> 0:17:11.639 about right, But it was Cleveland who came out big. 0:17:11.880 --> 0:17:15.600 Holcomb is slinging it early on. Kevin Johnson has a 0:17:15.680 --> 0:17:19.360 huge day, hundred yards receiving. Uh. There's a long completion 0:17:19.400 --> 0:17:21.879 of Dennis north Cut to set up a touchdown. More on, 0:17:21.960 --> 0:17:25.200 Dennis north Cut coming up, Uh, touchdown past and north 0:17:25.240 --> 0:17:29.280 Cut made it fourteen nothing. It was all Cleveland. Tommy 0:17:29.320 --> 0:17:32.119 Maddox had thrown a couple of picks. Pittsburgh had no 0:17:32.280 --> 0:17:35.520 momentum at all until Antoine Randall l returns a punt 0:17:35.520 --> 0:17:38.600 for a touchdown to make it fourteen seven. But clearly 0:17:39.119 --> 0:17:41.600 this was a game that not many people thought was 0:17:41.640 --> 0:17:43.760 gonna go this way, because look, Pittsburgh it's still won 0:17:44.160 --> 0:17:46.280 you know, ten games. The brown squeaked in at nine 0:17:46.280 --> 0:17:49.080 and seven, and here's Kelly Holcomb just throwing the ball 0:17:49.160 --> 0:17:51.560 all over the field early on. It's what are the 0:17:51.600 --> 0:17:53.800 Steelers doing? How are you getting torn up by Kelly 0:17:53.840 --> 0:17:57.120 Holcomb in this game? Well, and that's always the wild 0:17:57.160 --> 0:17:59.520 card because you look at the two games during the 0:17:59.520 --> 0:18:03.600 regular season, Steelers wins both by three points UH and 0:18:03.720 --> 0:18:08.720 both low scoring affairs sixteen thirteen and then, which by 0:18:08.840 --> 0:18:12.480 NFL standards these days, Bah, that's an old, grinded out 0:18:12.520 --> 0:18:14.400 three yards in a cloud of dust kind of game 0:18:14.480 --> 0:18:17.520 with some of the pinball scoring we see these days. 0:18:17.560 --> 0:18:21.200 But but certainly, uh, a little bit different, right playing 0:18:21.359 --> 0:18:26.120 Holcombe and seeing how they operated the offense versus perhaps 0:18:26.840 --> 0:18:29.560 well what you've seen from Tim Couch in the past, 0:18:30.160 --> 0:18:33.520 So maybe just a little bit of a split there. 0:18:33.560 --> 0:18:37.000 And then you know, big plays right off the jump. 0:18:37.040 --> 0:18:40.600 I mean your guy out of Syracuse, Kevin Johnson making 0:18:40.640 --> 0:18:43.280 the huge play on that opening possession, really kind of 0:18:43.320 --> 0:18:45.800 a punch in the face to the Steelers. Yeah, this 0:18:45.960 --> 0:18:49.639 was this was unexpected. And after the Steelers get the 0:18:49.640 --> 0:18:52.040 punt return for a touchdown by Randall l you think, okay, 0:18:52.040 --> 0:18:54.560 maybe they'll settle back in the game. No, this is 0:18:54.640 --> 0:18:58.119 more attacking by the Browns. Uh. North Cut has a 0:18:58.160 --> 0:19:01.720 big sixty yard punt return, sets up a touchdown past 0:19:01.840 --> 0:19:05.879 to him twenty four seven. The Browns get out to 0:19:05.960 --> 0:19:08.840 this lead and north Cut has a huge day. He 0:19:08.920 --> 0:19:12.680 goes for six nine, two and two touchdowns. Kind of 0:19:12.680 --> 0:19:14.760 stick a pinning that for now, because Dennis north Good 0:19:14.760 --> 0:19:16.800 comes back in a way that Browns fans here his 0:19:16.920 --> 0:19:21.040 name and go Dennis north Cut. But Holcom is incredible. 0:19:21.680 --> 0:19:24.040 He is He is just throwing the ball all over 0:19:24.040 --> 0:19:27.680 the field and the Steelers don't have a prayer stopping him. 0:19:27.840 --> 0:19:29.600 You know, you watched the tape of this game, and 0:19:29.640 --> 0:19:32.040 watching this game after as we're getting ready to this podcast, 0:19:32.080 --> 0:19:34.920 I'm going, boy, the Steelers really laid off in coverage. 0:19:35.200 --> 0:19:37.360 You know, they they found you know, Holcom was able 0:19:37.400 --> 0:19:39.760 to find spots and and find and he was accurate 0:19:39.800 --> 0:19:41.920 as hell that day. He was great. But I felt 0:19:41.960 --> 0:19:44.879 like the Steelers could have been much more aggressive and 0:19:44.920 --> 0:19:47.000 gone after him, especially when you see, this is how 0:19:47.000 --> 0:19:49.199 we're gonna win the game. We're not gonna win by 0:19:49.280 --> 0:19:51.760 running the football. And I thought maybe they could have 0:19:51.840 --> 0:19:54.200 dialed things up a little bit better and made life 0:19:54.200 --> 0:19:56.919 more difficult for him. But it didn't matter. He's comfortable, 0:19:56.960 --> 0:19:59.520 he's throwing the football and and and the Browns can 0:19:59.560 --> 0:20:02.720 do no at this point. Well, and that's I mean, 0:20:02.760 --> 0:20:05.280 that was the hallmark of those Steeler defenses still is 0:20:05.440 --> 0:20:08.920 right there, usually among the league leaders in sacks. Here, 0:20:08.920 --> 0:20:11.600 they got the Holcom once. I mean that that's a 0:20:11.640 --> 0:20:14.479 pretty big deal. When he drops back forty three times 0:20:14.640 --> 0:20:17.439 and you're only able to register one sack, and really 0:20:17.520 --> 0:20:21.399 pressure was not consistent at all. He had time to 0:20:21.520 --> 0:20:25.840 work down field and find the creases for for Northcut 0:20:25.880 --> 0:20:28.600 to have himself a game. Andre Davis with a big 0:20:28.680 --> 0:20:31.439 catch as well a little bit of yak and already 0:20:31.440 --> 0:20:34.800 mentioned you know Kevin Johnson with that early catchy. I 0:20:34.800 --> 0:20:37.560 mean he finished with a hundred forty yards himself on 0:20:37.720 --> 0:20:40.280 four big plays. So I mean you're you're looking at 0:20:40.280 --> 0:20:42.720 work in the ball down field. Normally you don't have 0:20:42.760 --> 0:20:47.280 time against the Pittsburgh defense. So credit the Cleveland offensive 0:20:47.400 --> 0:20:49.600 line for being able to hold up and let him 0:20:49.600 --> 0:20:51.760 stand tall. Yeah. So here the Dealers who are an 0:20:51.760 --> 0:20:54.320 eight point favorite, and suddenly now with the numbers, you're 0:20:54.320 --> 0:20:56.960 gonna man, I'm up thirty three seven. I'm feeling pretty good. Yeah, 0:20:57.000 --> 0:20:59.440 you're feeling pretty good about that, aren't you. One thing 0:20:59.480 --> 0:21:03.240 about this game the field was really torn up and 0:21:03.600 --> 0:21:06.320 it was to the point where you could see players 0:21:06.359 --> 0:21:10.879 having struggling to find purchase and find footing. That never 0:21:11.080 --> 0:21:13.640 bodes well for a defense, never bodes well for really 0:21:13.680 --> 0:21:16.159 trying to run the football. Either. It bodes well for 0:21:16.200 --> 0:21:20.200 the passing game because the old adages the offense knows 0:21:20.200 --> 0:21:22.239 where the ball is going, the defense doesn't, and this 0:21:22.320 --> 0:21:25.560 is why you had huge games from both Maddox and 0:21:25.720 --> 0:21:29.360 Kelly holkm But here's where things changed, and the Browns, 0:21:29.400 --> 0:21:32.520 with all kinds of momentum, driving for what likely would 0:21:32.520 --> 0:21:35.800 have been the final nail in the Coffin touchdown. It's 0:21:35.840 --> 0:21:38.119 too big a lead. The Steelers are not gonna come back. 0:21:38.640 --> 0:21:42.400 Kelly Holcom throws a pick in Pittsburgh territory, and this 0:21:42.480 --> 0:21:45.399 is where Tommy Maddox heats up. You talked about the 0:21:45.400 --> 0:21:48.159 Browns protecting hold them the way they did in the 0:21:48.200 --> 0:21:50.520 first half into the second half of this game, this 0:21:50.640 --> 0:21:54.440 is where things changed for the Steelers. As Tommy Maddox, 0:21:54.800 --> 0:21:57.080 I don't think the Browns were able to sniff him 0:21:57.160 --> 0:21:59.440 during the second half of this game. They tried blitzing in, 0:21:59.560 --> 0:22:01.920 they tried laying off, they tried putting guys in coverage. 0:22:02.200 --> 0:22:05.040 It didn't matter. Maddox had all kinds of time to 0:22:05.119 --> 0:22:08.840 make all kinds of throws. Whether it was Plaxico, Burris Hines, 0:22:08.920 --> 0:22:13.040 Ward Randall l it didn't matter. Slowly, but surely Maddox 0:22:13.080 --> 0:22:16.080 would maneuver his way down the field and the Steelers 0:22:16.119 --> 0:22:19.000 get back in this game. And I am again watching 0:22:19.000 --> 0:22:21.120 this game. You go, man, that Brown just couldn't figure 0:22:21.160 --> 0:22:23.480 out a way. Neither defense really figured out a way 0:22:23.480 --> 0:22:25.680 how to stop the other offense. But it was more 0:22:25.720 --> 0:22:28.000 pronounced in the second half of the Steelers because Tommy 0:22:28.040 --> 0:22:31.000 Maddox was just throwing darts all over the field started 0:22:31.040 --> 0:22:33.439 to find his stride to put a little bow on 0:22:33.520 --> 0:22:36.919 the Steelers. Uh. Stat total, they were third in the 0:22:37.040 --> 0:22:40.960 NFL with fifty sacks that year. Yet Kelly Holcombe stood 0:22:41.080 --> 0:22:44.920 tall here in this playoff game. Now from there, we 0:22:45.040 --> 0:22:47.800 look at that drive right the seven of eight seventy 0:22:47.880 --> 0:22:52.160 yards they had one running play to Amos zero way. 0:22:52.760 --> 0:22:57.160 Uh yeah, we'll get him in later. We'll find out 0:22:57.160 --> 0:23:01.120 what he's up to. But Maddox toward to Jeremy Tuman too, 0:23:01.440 --> 0:23:05.159 Randall l spreading it around, finally burst with the touchdown 0:23:05.440 --> 0:23:07.359 a sudden you know, you get a little bit of 0:23:07.800 --> 0:23:09.520 in Cleveland, you go, wait a minute, we've had a 0:23:09.520 --> 0:23:12.520 good run. Uh and now you've you're down four minutes 0:23:12.920 --> 0:23:16.480 remaining in the third quarter, and suddenly there's a little 0:23:16.480 --> 0:23:20.160 bit more of the pressure to get out and make plays. 0:23:20.560 --> 0:23:24.440 Showing also you know how long ago this is. But uh, 0:23:24.840 --> 0:23:27.480 showing the longevity of kickers. If you can do your job. 0:23:27.520 --> 0:23:31.000 When you can see Phil Dawson's uh in the box score. 0:23:31.280 --> 0:23:33.920 He went to went to school in Texas, was a 0:23:34.200 --> 0:23:37.320 you know, a guy that they had great, great hope 0:23:37.359 --> 0:23:41.120 for because well he was automatic. Just let Phil come 0:23:41.160 --> 0:23:43.359 and do it. Uh. And there he was for Cleveland 0:23:43.359 --> 0:23:46.200 for all those years. No matter what the Browns did, 0:23:46.240 --> 0:23:48.439 they couldn't stem the tide of the Steelers. All right. 0:23:48.480 --> 0:23:52.800 Burris catches that touchdown, makes Browns kick a field goal. 0:23:53.320 --> 0:23:56.520 Tuman catches a touchdown pass from Tommy Maddox, the Browns 0:23:56.520 --> 0:23:59.360 get a touchdown pass from Holcombe to Andre Davis. It's 0:23:59.400 --> 0:24:02.040 thirty three twenty one, and the Browns are thinking, Okay, 0:24:02.080 --> 0:24:04.600 we've done enough, we're putting them away. But no, this 0:24:04.760 --> 0:24:07.800 Dealers get down the field and Maddox strews a touchdown 0:24:07.840 --> 0:24:10.440 past the Hines Ward that cuts it to thirty three 0:24:11.400 --> 0:24:13.840 with three minutes left in the game. Now, if you're 0:24:13.840 --> 0:24:17.080 the Browns, okay, you've given this lead away. You can't 0:24:17.080 --> 0:24:19.280 stop Tommy Maddocks. You gotta hold on to the football 0:24:19.600 --> 0:24:21.360 and not give it back. This is how you're gonna 0:24:21.400 --> 0:24:24.800 win the game. This is what comes down to what 0:24:25.000 --> 0:24:27.840 is commonly known as the most famous drop pass in 0:24:27.920 --> 0:24:32.159 Cleveland Brown's history. There's two forty nine left on the 0:24:32.200 --> 0:24:35.200 clock and the Browns couldn't run the football all day. 0:24:35.240 --> 0:24:36.720 All right, just let me just give let me give 0:24:36.720 --> 0:24:39.359 you this before we set up Dennis north cutt William Green, 0:24:39.440 --> 0:24:41.160 who was the number one running back on the team. 0:24:41.200 --> 0:24:42.879 We had the big touchdown run we told you in 0:24:42.880 --> 0:24:46.359 the final week of the regular season. His stats on 0:24:46.400 --> 0:24:53.240 the day were twenty five carries for thirty yards. Five 0:24:53.400 --> 0:24:57.200 carries for thirty yards. Here's the best part. He had 0:24:57.200 --> 0:25:01.080 a twenty three yard carry, so that meetings his other 0:25:01.160 --> 0:25:06.600 twenty four carries amounted seven yards seven yards. He had 0:25:06.600 --> 0:25:09.400 a twenty three yard run, but the other twenty four 0:25:09.480 --> 0:25:11.960 carries went for seven yards. Now, you're trying to grind 0:25:12.040 --> 0:25:14.440 a lot of clocks, Smith, Yeah, but at some point, 0:25:14.480 --> 0:25:17.240 don't you realize, Okay, we're just we're just giving plays away. 0:25:17.560 --> 0:25:20.520 Don't we're just giving plays away? Hey, holkm you just 0:25:20.640 --> 0:25:22.119 run it straight in the line. You can get more 0:25:22.160 --> 0:25:24.040 than the one eighth of a yard that William Green 0:25:24.119 --> 0:25:26.199 is getting. So you like to think that maybe they 0:25:26.280 --> 0:25:29.240 knew we have to outscore Pittsburgh. Right, we we can't 0:25:29.240 --> 0:25:31.880 just keep running the football and grinding clock. At some point, 0:25:31.880 --> 0:25:33.719 you would think they would disband the run. I'd say, 0:25:33.720 --> 0:25:35.720 all right, it's just it's really just not gonna happen 0:25:35.760 --> 0:25:38.760 for it today. It really isn't. But no, they kept 0:25:38.760 --> 0:25:40.960 giving the ball to William Green and and and maybe 0:25:41.000 --> 0:25:43.080 this could have been a game where if they don't 0:25:43.119 --> 0:25:45.720 commit to the run that much, we talk about Kelly 0:25:45.720 --> 0:25:49.040 Holcom and his six touchdowns and the Browns three win 0:25:49.200 --> 0:25:51.800 over the Steelers, but instead we're talking about a thirty six, 0:25:51.880 --> 0:25:53.920 thirty three loss. You're looking for one of those Derrick 0:25:53.960 --> 0:25:57.760 Anderson uh crazy games from two thousand seven. That was 0:25:57.800 --> 0:26:00.359 a couple of years later he and Braylon and words 0:26:00.400 --> 0:26:03.280 against Cincinnati. But not it went for nothing. Big thing 0:26:03.320 --> 0:26:05.800 the circle out of the box score here is that 0:26:05.920 --> 0:26:09.760 William Green, for all his touches, had two receptions. Right, 0:26:09.840 --> 0:26:12.679 Jamal White had five catches out of the backfield. But 0:26:12.760 --> 0:26:15.439 this is where if you're starting tailback and catch the 0:26:15.440 --> 0:26:17.640 ball at all, you know you can at least open 0:26:17.680 --> 0:26:20.040 it up and maybe get him a little running room 0:26:20.200 --> 0:26:24.119 at another time, But not so fast here. So thirty 0:26:24.160 --> 0:26:28.080 three on the road Cleveland needs a first down to 0:26:28.160 --> 0:26:32.320 basically run out the clock again to forty nine on 0:26:32.400 --> 0:26:36.080 the clock. It's third and twelve. Holcomb, who has been 0:26:36.119 --> 0:26:39.560 throwing the football incredibly well. He winds up with a 0:26:39.560 --> 0:26:43.840 four yard day throwing the football find Dennis north Cut 0:26:44.200 --> 0:26:47.520 wide open. This is when Dennis north Cut was on 0:26:47.560 --> 0:26:49.840 the cusp of potential becoming one of the great game 0:26:49.840 --> 0:26:53.240 breakers in the NFL. Because he was fast, he was 0:26:53.320 --> 0:26:56.399 able to get separation on the football. He looked like 0:26:56.440 --> 0:26:59.840 he could become one of the great weapons. There's no 0:27:00.040 --> 0:27:04.600 one behind him, no one behind Dennis north Cut, who 0:27:04.640 --> 0:27:06.840 cuts from the middle of the field towards the sideline, 0:27:07.800 --> 0:27:10.640 but he turns around a little too quickly, like he's 0:27:10.680 --> 0:27:13.800 expecting to get hit. Holcomb puts the football right where 0:27:13.800 --> 0:27:16.879 he has to. It's a perfect pass and north Cut's 0:27:16.920 --> 0:27:19.360 gonna catch this pass, turn it up feeling another ten 0:27:19.400 --> 0:27:22.240 or fifteen yards. So suddenly the game is basically over 0:27:22.320 --> 0:27:25.199 because they're gonna be well on the Steelers side of 0:27:25.240 --> 0:27:27.920 the fifty yard line with the first down, getting down 0:27:27.920 --> 0:27:30.359 to the two minute warning. Except because he turns a 0:27:30.400 --> 0:27:32.560 little bit too fast, like he's expecting to get hit, 0:27:33.119 --> 0:27:36.000 he drops the football it falls right through his arms 0:27:36.320 --> 0:27:39.560 and the Browns have to punt on fourth down. It 0:27:39.640 --> 0:27:42.600 was like the life gut breathed back into Hindes Field. 0:27:42.960 --> 0:27:46.200 Maddox slices the Browns up and down the field for 0:27:46.240 --> 0:27:49.000 a go ahead touchdown, a two point conversion, and they 0:27:49.040 --> 0:27:52.400 take a thirty six thirty three lead with just under 0:27:52.400 --> 0:27:56.280 a minute left to go. Chris Fumatu ma Fala, it 0:27:56.320 --> 0:27:59.399 would always say, he's a bad mom falla uh takes 0:27:59.400 --> 0:28:02.600 the touchdown on in for the lead, and then Jeremy 0:28:02.640 --> 0:28:05.800 Tuman actually catches a pass from Randall L. Remember this 0:28:05.840 --> 0:28:08.040 is a big play for this. They would always have 0:28:08.160 --> 0:28:10.760 Randall L, who was a college quarterback in Indiana throw 0:28:10.840 --> 0:28:14.159 passes through a very famous touchdown pass in the Super Bowl. 0:28:14.600 --> 0:28:17.600 And Randall L throws the two point conversion of Jeremy Tumans. 0:28:17.640 --> 0:28:20.280 So it's a three point lead from Pittsburgh with just 0:28:20.520 --> 0:28:23.399 under a minute left to go, but the Browns are 0:28:23.400 --> 0:28:26.040 getting the football back. I want to circle back to 0:28:26.080 --> 0:28:29.359 that possession for the Browns though, with the just under 0:28:29.400 --> 0:28:33.240 three minutes remaining, you had a play before the north 0:28:33.359 --> 0:28:37.480 cut play where Quincy Morrigan waiting forever for the ball 0:28:37.520 --> 0:28:39.320 to get there. Washington is able to get a hand 0:28:39.360 --> 0:28:42.840 in and separate him. Ball gets out the quicker from 0:28:42.920 --> 0:28:46.080 Kelly Holcomb. You got a big play and the Steelers 0:28:46.080 --> 0:28:50.440 are in trouble following play. Yeah, obviously they're looking around 0:28:50.440 --> 0:28:53.200 in the old let me start pumping my fists looking 0:28:53.240 --> 0:28:58.120 for a flag that never comes. Holcomb incredulous, staring down 0:28:58.200 --> 0:29:01.160 the official and kind of staring blankly into the Steeler crowd, 0:29:01.200 --> 0:29:04.480 which now whipped into a frenzy. And you go to 0:29:04.600 --> 0:29:14.280 the Alcoa Fantastic finishes here ALCA presents fantastic finishes. Nah, yeah, 0:29:14.880 --> 0:29:17.480 so you know, and in television presented you make the call. 0:29:17.760 --> 0:29:20.760 I mean all our our childhood wrapped up here in 0:29:20.800 --> 0:29:24.400 the excitement of a playoff game that involves the Cleveland Browns. 0:29:24.960 --> 0:29:29.040 But yes, the opportunity inside of a minute down three 0:29:29.920 --> 0:29:34.080 and a crowd that was dormant for much of the game. 0:29:34.160 --> 0:29:37.080 It's cold, it's miserable, and now it's all on the 0:29:37.160 --> 0:29:40.040 arm and Kelly home. This is where you'd expect. Okay, 0:29:40.080 --> 0:29:42.360 the Browns are gonna fold. This is where it just 0:29:42.400 --> 0:29:44.320 got too much for them. They couldn't make the playce no, no, 0:29:44.600 --> 0:29:47.600 In true Browns fashion, We're gonna get you even closer 0:29:47.960 --> 0:29:50.200 to the end before we break your heart again. Because 0:29:50.240 --> 0:29:53.440 it turns out the Browns maybe just needed one more 0:29:53.600 --> 0:29:57.240 second on the clock to potentially win this game. Holcomb 0:29:57.320 --> 0:30:00.120 takes the Browns down the field, takes a little a 0:30:00.120 --> 0:30:03.240 bit of time to uh snap the ball after the 0:30:03.280 --> 0:30:05.880 Browns get a first down with thirty one seconds left, 0:30:06.120 --> 0:30:09.320 So there's twelve seconds go by from the Browns first 0:30:09.360 --> 0:30:11.600 down until Holcomb snaps the ball. Now, they could have 0:30:11.640 --> 0:30:14.120 spiked the ball, could have anything. But Holcomb calls for 0:30:14.160 --> 0:30:17.840 a play and completes a pass. Northcutt makes a big 0:30:17.840 --> 0:30:21.240 play and they have the ball at Pittsburgh's forty six 0:30:21.320 --> 0:30:24.760 yard line with seven seconds left. Right now, it's too 0:30:24.760 --> 0:30:27.120 far for a field goal, even for Phil Dawson on 0:30:27.160 --> 0:30:29.000 this field, so they have to try to get a 0:30:29.040 --> 0:30:32.040 little bit closer and get out of bounds. This is 0:30:32.040 --> 0:30:35.640 what I mean by one more second, seven seconds left. 0:30:35.960 --> 0:30:39.680 Holcomb fades back and he throws a pass to Andre King, 0:30:40.120 --> 0:30:44.640 who catches the ball near the sideline Pittsburgh's thirty yard line. 0:30:45.880 --> 0:30:49.320 This is typical Browns and this is the Browns franchise 0:30:49.320 --> 0:30:52.200 in a nutshell. Holcomb completes the pass and Andre King 0:30:52.280 --> 0:30:55.560 is open, but King has to stop. He can't keep 0:30:55.600 --> 0:30:58.080 going because it's an out pattern towards the sidelines. He 0:30:58.160 --> 0:31:00.520 has to stop for the football and as a result, 0:31:00.760 --> 0:31:03.040 he loses his footing, so he goes down on one 0:31:03.080 --> 0:31:05.680 knee to catch the ball. So now he's got to 0:31:05.720 --> 0:31:08.400 get up and run out of bounds because that's where 0:31:08.440 --> 0:31:11.600 the ball was. So Holcomb throws him the pass, but 0:31:11.680 --> 0:31:14.240 he can't catch it in stride or catch it standing up, 0:31:14.280 --> 0:31:16.480 where he could maybe get out of bounds a little 0:31:16.480 --> 0:31:19.360 bit faster. So he's got to get up. He dives 0:31:19.400 --> 0:31:22.600 towards the sideline, doesn't get there in time. Clearly he 0:31:22.640 --> 0:31:25.240 doesn't get there, so even though it's a first down, 0:31:25.560 --> 0:31:28.680 the clock runs out. The Steelers win the game thirty 0:31:28.720 --> 0:31:31.520 six thirty three. They go on in the playoffs. Had 0:31:31.560 --> 0:31:34.239 the Browns had one more second on the clock, he 0:31:34.320 --> 0:31:36.320 dives out of bounds and Phil Dawson's trying to kick 0:31:36.320 --> 0:31:38.280 a forty seven yard field goal to send the game 0:31:38.280 --> 0:31:41.720 to overtime. Had Holcim been able to throw the ball 0:31:41.760 --> 0:31:44.560 a little bit towards the sideline and Andre King not slip, 0:31:44.880 --> 0:31:46.880 they get out of bounds, maybe they're kicking a field goal. 0:31:47.160 --> 0:31:49.520 That's how close it was for the Browns. But instead 0:31:49.920 --> 0:31:52.040 they go out with a thirty six thirty three loss, 0:31:52.240 --> 0:31:56.800 despite Holcomb having a game of games four nine yards 0:31:56.840 --> 0:31:59.400 and three touchdowns. It was a big game for Tommy 0:31:59.440 --> 0:32:02.600 Maddox as well. Maddox is over three hundred yards. He 0:32:02.640 --> 0:32:05.360 throws for three forty three. It was up and down, 0:32:05.440 --> 0:32:08.080 an aerial show, and the stealers just had enough and 0:32:08.120 --> 0:32:10.800 the Browns losing. You know what has been Brown's fashion 0:32:10.840 --> 0:32:13.840 now over the past few years. Oftentimes you can't win 0:32:13.960 --> 0:32:16.520 that third game against the team, right, they beat him 0:32:16.560 --> 0:32:19.800 twice around, No, they beat him three times during the season, 0:32:20.640 --> 0:32:23.160 each a three point win. I mean that is the 0:32:23.520 --> 0:32:28.880 ultimate in flipping off a divisional bones as you roll through. 0:32:29.000 --> 0:32:31.200 But you know, one of those could you have communicated 0:32:31.240 --> 0:32:33.000 with the referee that I'm gonna catch it in the 0:32:33.000 --> 0:32:35.080 middle of the field and give myself up, so blow 0:32:35.120 --> 0:32:38.080 the whistle. Well it doesn't matter because the clock is 0:32:38.120 --> 0:32:41.520 gonna start with another second anyway. Yeah, it's more just 0:32:41.560 --> 0:32:44.720 the philosophical All right, what can we do here? Uh? 0:32:44.840 --> 0:32:47.440 To try to buy ourselves sometime I don't know, he's broken, 0:32:47.960 --> 0:32:53.760 uh and run Dawson out there. But yeah, the field 0:32:53.800 --> 0:32:56.680 was an absolute quagmire. It looked like they'd had lollapalooza 0:32:57.360 --> 0:33:00.800 out there on Hines Field before the game. But just 0:33:01.520 --> 0:33:05.479 an amazing effort from two quarterbacks that are, you know, 0:33:05.760 --> 0:33:09.280 footnotes into history and in a lot of ways, right, 0:33:09.360 --> 0:33:12.000 I mean Kelly holk Ms right now, the the answer 0:33:12.080 --> 0:33:15.320 to a trivia question in Cleveland Baker Mayfield hoping to 0:33:15.400 --> 0:33:19.520 take that mantle from him as a playoff quarterback. Uh 0:33:19.640 --> 0:33:24.360 for Kevin Stefanski and company. And and Tommy Maddox, Oh, 0:33:24.400 --> 0:33:26.400 he's not just the guy that won you a lot 0:33:26.400 --> 0:33:29.840 of money in the XFL. So how did it go 0:33:30.040 --> 0:33:32.200 for Tommy Maddox and Kelly holk m both of them 0:33:32.240 --> 0:33:35.000 at the tops of their professions. Well, coming up next, 0:33:35.000 --> 0:33:37.240 we'll tell you why moments in the sun can be 0:33:37.280 --> 0:33:40.800 a year, a month, or even one game. What happened 0:33:40.840 --> 0:33:43.880 next to both of these teams and both of these quarterbacks. 0:33:44.200 --> 0:34:03.360 That's next on special teams. What was now next for 0:34:03.440 --> 0:34:06.760 both of these teams after this legendary playoff game. Well, 0:34:06.800 --> 0:34:10.000 for the Steelers, they lost the Titans the next week. 0:34:10.160 --> 0:34:14.320 They were eliminated from the playoffs thirty one. But Maddox 0:34:14.360 --> 0:34:17.239 played really well again. So now the Steelers, after all 0:34:17.280 --> 0:34:20.279 these years and Tommy Maddox being forty seven years old, 0:34:20.320 --> 0:34:22.560 finally he feels like he's the answer to the Steelers 0:34:22.800 --> 0:34:26.160 prayers at quarterback. But in two thousand three it fell 0:34:26.200 --> 0:34:29.600 apart form. Pittsburgh finished just six and ten. It was 0:34:29.640 --> 0:34:32.560 their first losing season at Hines Field. In fact, it 0:34:32.600 --> 0:34:36.040 was the most recent losing season by Pittsburgh up until 0:34:36.160 --> 0:34:38.879 current times. All Right, that's amazing run when you say 0:34:38.920 --> 0:34:41.400 we don't have a losing season back to two thousand 0:34:41.400 --> 0:34:45.160 and three. But but yeah, but you match it up 0:34:45.160 --> 0:34:47.960 with the Browns, they don't get back to the Steelers 0:34:48.000 --> 0:34:50.440 don't have another losing Yeah, I know exactly. Yeah, I 0:34:50.480 --> 0:34:52.960 mean that. That's that. That was, that's kind of where um. 0:34:53.680 --> 0:34:56.400 But so after that, even though Maddox was okay in 0:34:56.440 --> 0:34:59.239 two thousand and three, Pittsburgh knew, all right, we need 0:34:59.280 --> 0:35:01.640 to change, we need we need to get something else 0:35:01.680 --> 0:35:05.920 going on here on offense. So they draft Ben Roethlisberger 0:35:06.239 --> 0:35:09.800 in the first round of two thousand and four. Tommy 0:35:09.840 --> 0:35:14.120 Maddox wasn't happy, but they renegotiated his contract before week 0:35:14.160 --> 0:35:16.080 one because you can tell, all right, Roethlisberger is gonna 0:35:16.080 --> 0:35:17.960 be the future out of Miami of Ohio. But is 0:35:18.000 --> 0:35:21.520 he ready? He's young, he's raw. Maddox still played pretty 0:35:21.520 --> 0:35:24.480 well last year, but Pittsburgh ofference was only right twenty 0:35:24.520 --> 0:35:26.200 two in the league, so the dealers knew we needed 0:35:26.200 --> 0:35:29.880 a change. Maddox starts the season but hurts his elbow 0:35:29.960 --> 0:35:33.359 in the second game. Ben Roethlisberger comes in and well, 0:35:33.760 --> 0:35:36.840 he hasn't given up the job since he leads Pittsburgh 0:35:36.880 --> 0:35:39.680 to the a f C Championship against New England as 0:35:39.719 --> 0:35:43.120 a rookie. Maddox would then back up Roethlisberger in two 0:35:43.120 --> 0:35:45.080 thousand five and got to play a little bit. But 0:35:45.160 --> 0:35:48.040 Bill Cower really wasn't a fan of maddox is anymore. 0:35:48.239 --> 0:35:50.040 In fact, at one point he got devoted to third 0:35:50.080 --> 0:35:53.520 string behind Charlie Batch. Uh. Pittsburgh didn't win the Super 0:35:53.520 --> 0:35:57.759 Bowl over Seattle, but it's Roethlisberger at quarterback. Maddox who 0:35:57.760 --> 0:36:00.120 wins a Super Bowl, ring decides to not go to 0:36:00.120 --> 0:36:02.640 the White House with his teammates and never played in 0:36:02.640 --> 0:36:05.719 the NFL again. That's how it ended in a whirlwind 0:36:06.040 --> 0:36:09.239 for Tommy Maddox. You think he's the future right now? 0:36:09.360 --> 0:36:12.439 A year later, you'll lose your job to Ben Roethlisberger, 0:36:12.480 --> 0:36:14.480 you wind up with a super Bowl ring, and suddenly 0:36:14.680 --> 0:36:17.040 you never play in the NFL again after that. I 0:36:17.040 --> 0:36:21.319 mean that, that's that's the NFL for you drafted in leaves. 0:36:21.360 --> 0:36:25.480 The league comes back is an insurance salesman has incredible highs. 0:36:25.719 --> 0:36:28.000 Then they draft another guy to replace you. You get 0:36:28.040 --> 0:36:30.360 money in a contract renegotiation, and then you're out of 0:36:30.360 --> 0:36:32.160 the league. I mean, that's some kind of journey. You 0:36:32.200 --> 0:36:34.120 had a good run man to be able to come 0:36:34.120 --> 0:36:35.880 back a couple of times. I mean, that's one of 0:36:35.920 --> 0:36:41.320 those feel good stories of redemption and reclaiming, uh the 0:36:41.480 --> 0:36:44.239 career you never had in Denver. That's not too bad. 0:36:44.680 --> 0:36:47.520 And let's face it, you can sign super Bowl champion 0:36:48.160 --> 0:36:52.160 uh name forever. That's it's weak for him. Hey what 0:36:52.200 --> 0:36:54.719 do you play that year? Get bent? Get bent, get 0:36:54.719 --> 0:36:58.200 out of here. I mean that the Tommy Maddox, I 0:36:58.200 --> 0:37:00.680 mean begat. Ben Roethlisberg where taking this guy in the 0:37:00.719 --> 0:37:02.520 first round. And you know, you got to give the 0:37:02.560 --> 0:37:05.880 Steelers credit because they knew when to pull the plug 0:37:05.920 --> 0:37:08.560 on Cordell, because Cordell never really went on to do 0:37:08.600 --> 0:37:10.399 anything else in the NFL. They knew when to pull 0:37:10.400 --> 0:37:13.239 the plug on Tommy Maddox because they got Ben Roethlisberger 0:37:13.280 --> 0:37:16.160 in here. They are no losing seasons since Tommy Maddocks 0:37:16.200 --> 0:37:18.640 was the quarterback. That's the triviar question. He's gonna aswer 0:37:18.640 --> 0:37:20.880 to who was the starting quarterback the last losing season 0:37:20.880 --> 0:37:24.399 the Steelers. Oh that's Tommy Maddox. Oh alright, great, so 0:37:24.600 --> 0:37:27.880 you know the Steelers knew when to make those moves. Meanwhile, 0:37:27.960 --> 0:37:31.000 for the Browns, things went a little bit differently because 0:37:31.040 --> 0:37:33.319 they had a lot of excitement. Look, they lose this game, 0:37:33.360 --> 0:37:36.080 but like, hey, the Browns are back and maybe Kelly 0:37:36.120 --> 0:37:40.040 Holcom is the next Dan Marino and open competition the 0:37:40.080 --> 0:37:44.480 following year for the starting quarterback job in Cleveland. Holcomb 0:37:44.520 --> 0:37:47.120 wins it, but he winds up getting hurt and that 0:37:47.280 --> 0:37:49.920 lets Tim Couch start some games. But it really didn't 0:37:49.960 --> 0:37:53.040 matter because Tim Couch at that point goes from number 0:37:53.040 --> 0:37:55.960 one overall picking the draft to having his NFL career 0:37:56.080 --> 0:37:58.839 the end of it staring him in the face. He 0:37:58.920 --> 0:38:01.680 was waived after the following year due to arm injuries, 0:38:01.719 --> 0:38:04.600 and he never played in the NFL again. Now, partly 0:38:04.640 --> 0:38:06.360 for Tim Couch, boy you think, boy, if he was 0:38:06.400 --> 0:38:08.759 able to stay healthy, but still he had a long 0:38:08.800 --> 0:38:11.520 time to establish himself in the National Football League. Could 0:38:11.600 --> 0:38:13.040 he have hung on as a backup for a lot 0:38:13.080 --> 0:38:14.640 of years, Yeah, he could have done that because he 0:38:14.640 --> 0:38:16.480 played well enough as it started to say, okay, you 0:38:16.480 --> 0:38:18.279 get a guy with starting experience who can stay in 0:38:18.280 --> 0:38:21.560 the NFL's a backup, but those arm injuries. Tim Couch 0:38:21.719 --> 0:38:24.239 was the present, the future. Then he was out and 0:38:24.280 --> 0:38:26.759 suddenly the Browns wanted to turn to Kelly Holcomb and 0:38:27.000 --> 0:38:29.000 it didn't work out for Holcom, which we're gonna get to, 0:38:29.080 --> 0:38:31.879 but for Tim Couch it was Boy, this was the 0:38:32.040 --> 0:38:35.040 ride for him out of the National Football League where 0:38:35.640 --> 0:38:37.640 you look back and go it wasn't that long ago. 0:38:38.080 --> 0:38:41.319 He was the face of our franchise and in a 0:38:41.400 --> 0:38:44.280 year that he really got us to the playoffs. Because 0:38:44.520 --> 0:38:47.239 it's not like Kelly Holkm was phenomenal all season long. 0:38:47.480 --> 0:38:50.760 I mean the Browns the teeth of the season. Tim 0:38:50.800 --> 0:38:53.400 Couch played well enough to get the Browns to the 0:38:53.440 --> 0:38:56.000 cusp of the playoffs and and they wind up getting 0:38:56.040 --> 0:38:58.839 in and you think, Okay, finally it's here for the guy. 0:38:59.160 --> 0:39:01.439 His moment is here now, and it just never even 0:39:01.440 --> 0:39:03.439 happened for him. He couldn't even win the job going 0:39:03.480 --> 0:39:05.560 into the next year. Yeah, I mean you look at 0:39:05.640 --> 0:39:09.600 his career post Roy for the return of football to Cleveland, 0:39:10.000 --> 0:39:14.120 all the hype, right, so much excitement UH in branding 0:39:14.160 --> 0:39:17.880 around him, and then you you look at the overall 0:39:18.000 --> 0:39:22.080 career marks UH sixty four, touchdown sixty seven I n 0:39:22.120 --> 0:39:26.279 t s, a number of comeback attempts, UH, including a 0:39:26.600 --> 0:39:30.640 cup of coffee with the Jaguars as a practice squad guy. 0:39:30.760 --> 0:39:34.960 The Packers had a tryout with the Bears. Just go 0:39:35.040 --> 0:39:36.880 on down the line. It was the al right, he 0:39:36.920 --> 0:39:38.800 was the number one overall pick. One of us is 0:39:38.840 --> 0:39:40.520 going to be able to figure out what's what the 0:39:40.560 --> 0:39:46.080 deal is, right, workouts in Miami, Pittsburgh, Houston, and Tennessee. 0:39:46.960 --> 0:39:49.719 May just think about that. The number of looks the 0:39:50.160 --> 0:39:54.000 Bengals UH going all the way through because you had 0:39:54.080 --> 0:39:56.200 John Kitten and whether he was gonna come back or 0:39:56.239 --> 0:40:00.000 not at that point, and then eventually with the philadel 0:40:00.000 --> 0:40:02.840 Alfhia soul hanging out with Jon bon Jovi. So, I 0:40:02.840 --> 0:40:06.720 mean a lot of different things on the career owing 0:40:06.760 --> 0:40:08.680 to the fact that if you're a guy selected that 0:40:08.800 --> 0:40:11.759 high and there's always that curiosity of is it is 0:40:11.800 --> 0:40:13.840 it a mental thing? Is it a system thing? Is 0:40:13.880 --> 0:40:16.520 it a communication thing? Who's going to be the guy 0:40:16.960 --> 0:40:19.319 and everybody thinks you're the smartest guy in the room, 0:40:19.360 --> 0:40:21.960 that they're going to figure out what that missing pieces, 0:40:22.480 --> 0:40:24.960 uh and give him the career based on what you 0:40:25.000 --> 0:40:29.879 saw those years ago at Kentucky. But for Kelly Holcum, 0:40:30.000 --> 0:40:32.160 that was as good as it was gonna get. He 0:40:32.239 --> 0:40:35.839 goes into two thousand three, thirty year old starting quarterback 0:40:35.960 --> 0:40:39.000 and Cleveland fans are expecting all kinds of great things. 0:40:39.360 --> 0:40:42.320 This from a guy who, after his first year in 0:40:42.360 --> 0:40:45.719 the NFL and with the Cults, was out of the 0:40:45.800 --> 0:40:48.440 league until the Browns brought him back in two thousand 0:40:48.440 --> 0:40:50.480 and one. So he kind of had the same kind 0:40:50.520 --> 0:40:54.360 of Tommy Maddock's journey to the NFL. But hey, maybe 0:40:54.360 --> 0:40:56.040 he's got it. Maybe just took him a little bit 0:40:56.040 --> 0:40:57.680 of time. He hadn't played a lot in the NFL, 0:40:58.120 --> 0:41:00.960 but he really underwhelmed. In two thousand and three. He 0:41:01.040 --> 0:41:03.880 started eight games, As we said, he had injury problems, 0:41:04.200 --> 0:41:08.279 ten touchdowns, twelve picks, and his moment in the sun 0:41:08.719 --> 0:41:11.040 had ended. He went on to start a handful of 0:41:11.040 --> 0:41:13.759 games for the Bills and the Minnesota Vikings a couple 0:41:13.760 --> 0:41:16.160 of years later, but was out of the league in 0:41:16.200 --> 0:41:18.719 two thousand and seven. This is what I mean by 0:41:18.880 --> 0:41:21.680 sometimes your moment in the sun as a quarterback can 0:41:21.719 --> 0:41:24.080 be a year, it can be a month, it can 0:41:24.120 --> 0:41:27.120 be a game. But that hype behind Kelly Holcom, hey, 0:41:27.400 --> 0:41:30.200 he's he lives forever in Cleveland because of what he 0:41:30.239 --> 0:41:32.800 did being that quarterback. No one blames him for the loss. 0:41:32.800 --> 0:41:34.880 He played as well as you could possibly play as 0:41:34.920 --> 0:41:37.080 a quarterback in the playoff. But this is how it 0:41:37.080 --> 0:41:39.680 goes sometimes, and sometimes guys are backups for a reason. 0:41:39.920 --> 0:41:41.799 Sometimes guys never get a chance and they show you 0:41:41.840 --> 0:41:44.439 how good they can be. But here's Kelly Holcom. It's 0:41:44.520 --> 0:41:47.680 like his whole career built towards this game, and then 0:41:47.760 --> 0:41:50.080 after this game it's slowly just built away, kind of 0:41:50.080 --> 0:41:52.080 like one of those curves where it gets all the 0:41:52.120 --> 0:41:54.040 way up to the middle and then it slowly comes 0:41:54.040 --> 0:41:56.279 down like a mountain curve. Because that's really what Kelly 0:41:56.320 --> 0:41:59.359 holkms was. He didn't have no zero highlights after this game, 0:41:59.600 --> 0:42:02.239 but ill it wasn't nearly what it was, and he 0:42:02.320 --> 0:42:05.200 was slowly the downward trajectory to the end of his career. Yeah, 0:42:05.200 --> 0:42:07.480 but he gets to have the wall of jerseys, including 0:42:07.520 --> 0:42:10.319 the Barcelona Dragons in the world page. I mean, right, 0:42:10.920 --> 0:42:14.960 he got that, the Bucks, the Colts, the Browns, the Bills, 0:42:15.239 --> 0:42:17.120 he never played for him, but he can add an 0:42:17.120 --> 0:42:19.839 Eagles one when he got traded there. He got the 0:42:19.960 --> 0:42:23.279 Vikings and eventually retires. I mean, that's a pretty good run. 0:42:23.960 --> 0:42:26.279 That's not a bad run at all for a guy 0:42:26.640 --> 0:42:31.520 out of Middle Tennessee State, right who for his career, 0:42:31.560 --> 0:42:35.120 I mean, here's his senior year ready, fifty four yards, 0:42:35.120 --> 0:42:39.399 fifteen touchdowns, nine interceptions. Is he finding the NFL at 0:42:39.440 --> 0:42:43.120 any point at this point in time with those kind 0:42:43.160 --> 0:42:48.080 of stats. No, his junior year seven touchdowns, six picks, 0:42:48.160 --> 0:42:52.919 and seventeen hundred yards, nine touchdowns, six picks, hundred yards 0:42:52.960 --> 0:42:56.320 as a sophomore, no chance he's ever getting a sniff. 0:42:56.360 --> 0:42:59.879 But here was able to be in the league with 0:43:00.520 --> 0:43:05.080 you know, career yards, thirty nine touchdowns, thirty eight picks 0:43:05.239 --> 0:43:09.239 and over the course of twelve thirteen years, cup of 0:43:09.239 --> 0:43:12.200 coffee and a number of stops, and still holding the 0:43:12.239 --> 0:43:16.759 distinction as being the last Cleveland Playoffs quarterback. I'll take 0:43:16.800 --> 0:43:21.160 it now. Normally we finished with where are they now? 0:43:21.200 --> 0:43:22.880 But Mike has already told you about what happened to 0:43:22.920 --> 0:43:25.960 some of the players. And this really should be the 0:43:26.080 --> 0:43:28.839 coda to this story for the Cleveland Browns, because as 0:43:28.880 --> 0:43:31.239 the Browns now are looking for answers at quarterback in 0:43:31.239 --> 0:43:35.879 different positions across the board. Butch Davis, who also holds 0:43:35.880 --> 0:43:38.399 the distinction as the most recent head coach to take 0:43:38.440 --> 0:43:40.279 the Browns of the playoffs because of this game in 0:43:40.280 --> 0:43:44.200 two thousand and three, was out as Brown's head coach 0:43:44.680 --> 0:43:47.799 during the two thousand and four season. Butch Davis, who 0:43:47.800 --> 0:43:51.719 had succeeded greatly at Miami and did great things to 0:43:51.760 --> 0:43:54.480 get the Browns to the playoffs in two thousand and two, 0:43:55.239 --> 0:43:57.520 just a short year and a half later, he is 0:43:57.600 --> 0:44:01.439 out as he resigns following a fifty eight forty eight 0:44:01.440 --> 0:44:04.359 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Right there, the offense plays well, 0:44:04.360 --> 0:44:07.920 the defense just gets uh rooked up and down the field, 0:44:08.239 --> 0:44:12.960 so he resigns. There's a bit of a discrepancy over 0:44:13.560 --> 0:44:17.640 whose idea it was. Was it Butch Davis resigning under pressure? 0:44:17.719 --> 0:44:19.880 Was he told to resign or was this Butch Davis 0:44:19.880 --> 0:44:22.720 saying listen, I am done I can't do this anymore 0:44:22.760 --> 0:44:25.960 because look, after the two thousand and two season, the 0:44:26.040 --> 0:44:28.600 Browns hadn't really played that well, and Butch Davis was 0:44:28.680 --> 0:44:30.400 in charge of the franchise and charge a lot of 0:44:30.400 --> 0:44:35.080 the personnel decisions, and things weren't going well. But it 0:44:35.160 --> 0:44:37.520 was still surprised that he resigned in the middle of 0:44:37.520 --> 0:44:40.759 the season with a three and eight record. The Browns 0:44:40.840 --> 0:44:43.640 will tell you that this was completely Butch Davis. Team 0:44:43.640 --> 0:44:48.240 president John Collins said, this was Butch's decision. I'm personally disappointed. 0:44:48.560 --> 0:44:51.640 But he had his agent called the Browns and say 0:44:51.719 --> 0:44:54.080 that there was a lot of pressure that he felt 0:44:54.760 --> 0:44:57.959 from the fans and the media. So wait a minute, 0:44:57.960 --> 0:45:00.279 Wait a minute, wait a minute. Was the brown tell 0:45:00.320 --> 0:45:02.160 him to resign and they're playing it off like it 0:45:02.239 --> 0:45:05.359 was his idea? Or was Butch Davis really under too 0:45:05.440 --> 0:45:10.120 much pressure from the fans and the media to continue 0:45:10.160 --> 0:45:13.120 on as Brown's head coach. Can you imagine that headline now, 0:45:13.239 --> 0:45:16.080 like a coach resigning the middle of the season. Why, well, 0:45:16.120 --> 0:45:17.920 the fans and the media on my case, so I'm 0:45:17.920 --> 0:45:21.480 stepping down. Oh my goodness, how would you spend that? 0:45:21.960 --> 0:45:24.239 Like if that's the story that gets out there's just 0:45:24.239 --> 0:45:27.640 no coming back from that. I don't think you could, right, 0:45:27.800 --> 0:45:30.200 I mean, because think about the time frame that we're 0:45:30.239 --> 0:45:32.920 at here. This is I mean, the internet is churning. 0:45:33.160 --> 0:45:35.600 I was in the middle of my run at Yahoo. 0:45:35.680 --> 0:45:37.920 Are starting to write full time and starting to do 0:45:38.000 --> 0:45:40.920 some video hits and and what have you. Maybe an 0:45:40.920 --> 0:45:45.239 occasional radio spot. But like it, it was nowhere near. 0:45:45.320 --> 0:45:48.640 We didn't have all these social media spheres where there's 0:45:48.760 --> 0:45:51.200 no chance you're able to pull that back. As soon 0:45:51.239 --> 0:45:54.279 as words like that gets out, forget about it. There's 0:45:54.320 --> 0:45:56.879 no one ringing that belt. He I mean, he's only 0:45:56.920 --> 0:46:00.640 coached at North Carolina and f i U since right, 0:46:00.719 --> 0:46:03.040 so never at the top of the game like he 0:46:03.239 --> 0:46:07.040 was in Miami and the collegiate ranks. But you're not 0:46:07.080 --> 0:46:11.840 getting another coaching job anywhere. Maybe you left because the 0:46:12.160 --> 0:46:15.479 fans were Meetnia. Come on, I mean, he sent his 0:46:15.480 --> 0:46:19.560 his wife and his kid back to Florida after he 0:46:19.840 --> 0:46:22.040 was booed off the field, like they lost the Jets. 0:46:22.239 --> 0:46:24.480 They lost the home game to the Jets. Ten course 0:46:24.480 --> 0:46:26.880 seven fact of the Jets, and it always does. Everything 0:46:26.880 --> 0:46:28.680 comes back to the Jets, and he had to send 0:46:28.719 --> 0:46:31.440 his family away. Listen, it's too it's too much right 0:46:31.480 --> 0:46:34.280 now with what's going on with with with the pressure 0:46:34.280 --> 0:46:36.719 on me. So he sends his family back to Florida 0:46:36.800 --> 0:46:39.640 because it was it was growing in Cleveland. What's gonna 0:46:39.640 --> 0:46:42.960 happen with Butch Davis? And maybe because he resigned the 0:46:43.000 --> 0:46:45.040 way he did, maybe because he needed a break. I mean, 0:46:45.040 --> 0:46:47.440 he doesn't coach again for another three years, and as 0:46:47.440 --> 0:46:50.360 you said, it's North Carolina where he returns to. I 0:46:50.440 --> 0:46:53.000 mean this this should have been, Hey, Butch Davis finishes 0:46:53.040 --> 0:46:55.920 the year, it's not working, he resigns or they fire him, 0:46:55.960 --> 0:46:57.960 and hey, I'm gonna go someplace big in coach. But 0:46:58.200 --> 0:47:00.959 he was out of the game for three years after this. Yeah, 0:47:01.120 --> 0:47:05.800 just curious, right of. I would love a little um. 0:47:05.840 --> 0:47:07.719 You don't need a full thirty minutes on it, but 0:47:07.800 --> 0:47:10.640 give me a segment. The hell happened? I mean, what 0:47:10.960 --> 0:47:13.920 really happened in that? I mean, it was was something 0:47:13.960 --> 0:47:16.680 brewing at home that you needed to attend to. Right. 0:47:16.760 --> 0:47:21.799 Did the booing of dad, you know, cause some some 0:47:21.920 --> 0:47:24.920 issues and and I mean what was there more than booing? 0:47:25.280 --> 0:47:28.400 I mean, we know fans can get a bit unruly. 0:47:28.960 --> 0:47:32.719 Now we have thick glass because of Cleveland fans reacting 0:47:32.840 --> 0:47:36.279 to some some words out of the studios that we 0:47:36.320 --> 0:47:39.480 work out of. So you know, there there's certainly, you 0:47:39.520 --> 0:47:42.280 know a lot more to that. But for Butch Davis, 0:47:42.320 --> 0:47:44.319 I mean, I'm sitting here, I've got a case of 0:47:44.360 --> 0:47:48.080 mini helmets from my days in Northern California in front 0:47:48.080 --> 0:47:50.080 of me where they had the East West Shrine Game 0:47:50.480 --> 0:47:52.799 all those years. You know, got a chance to meet 0:47:52.840 --> 0:47:55.960 Brady coming out of Michigan and you always had these 0:47:56.000 --> 0:47:59.680 great coaches and Butch Davis came one year, great conversation. 0:48:00.280 --> 0:48:03.600 Still have a nice beautiful mini helmet sun by him. 0:48:03.920 --> 0:48:07.640 That's part of the the archives of another lifetime ago. 0:48:08.400 --> 0:48:11.680 But always thought he'd be back on top somewhere. But 0:48:11.800 --> 0:48:15.320 the media and fan thing uh certainly puts the uh 0:48:15.600 --> 0:48:19.960 and smashes that down. So Butch Davis, the future was 0:48:20.000 --> 0:48:22.279 so bright for him in the Browns, and a year 0:48:22.320 --> 0:48:24.719 and a half later after a lot of his personalized 0:48:24.800 --> 0:48:28.920 draft picks that he made really underperformed, including we mentioned 0:48:28.960 --> 0:48:31.400 William Green, but there are other guys he picked two 0:48:31.760 --> 0:48:35.359 that just never really stepped up and and and made 0:48:35.400 --> 0:48:37.480 headway in the NFL. And you're gonna need that. You 0:48:37.520 --> 0:48:41.560 can't keep drafting guys early on that don't wind up progressing. 0:48:41.680 --> 0:48:44.080 They at least have to be contributors. Right. They don't 0:48:44.120 --> 0:48:46.680 have to be stars in every case, but you at 0:48:46.719 --> 0:48:49.520 least need guys, you know, in those middle rounds that 0:48:49.560 --> 0:48:53.439 are at least functional, rotational guys on the defensive side 0:48:53.440 --> 0:48:56.600 of things. Man, look at what happened in all those years. 0:48:56.719 --> 0:48:59.279 We talk about the Seahawks a lot as a benchmark 0:48:59.320 --> 0:49:02.080 of how in organization is to be run. Uh. And 0:49:02.160 --> 0:49:04.839 yes they got more stars, but you at least had 0:49:04.960 --> 0:49:08.520 most of the back end draft picks at least sticking 0:49:08.520 --> 0:49:11.960 on a roster. Here in Cleveland. It just became a 0:49:12.080 --> 0:49:14.919 yearly running joke of all right, we're gonna draft ten. 0:49:15.760 --> 0:49:18.520 What's the percentage to stick around this year? Right? And 0:49:18.920 --> 0:49:22.640 all the way through you finally have the quote unquote 0:49:22.640 --> 0:49:26.160 breakthrough and that's a seven eight and one season. This 0:49:26.320 --> 0:49:30.680 was the last Browns performance in the playoffs in team history. 0:49:30.760 --> 0:49:33.640 Performance typical Browns though, right, I mean this is this 0:49:33.719 --> 0:49:36.080 is Browns. It's typical Browns. I mean that takes you 0:49:36.160 --> 0:49:39.680 to the edge, think that you're about to get over, uh, 0:49:39.719 --> 0:49:42.080 and then have that rug taken out from underneath you 0:49:42.360 --> 0:49:46.759 absolutely so, that was it now? Baker Mayfield, good luck. 0:49:46.880 --> 0:49:48.400 This is what This is the season you have to 0:49:48.440 --> 0:49:52.000 live up to the Topsy Turvy two thousand three campaign 0:49:52.400 --> 0:49:55.040 for the Cleveland Browns. Uh. If you have an idea 0:49:55.120 --> 0:49:57.839 for a future episode of Special Teams, hey hit us 0:49:57.920 --> 0:50:00.359 up on Twitter at how about a Fresco or at 0:50:00.400 --> 0:50:03.800 Swollen Dome Jason Smith, Mike Harmon. Our show is heard 0:50:03.920 --> 0:50:07.239 every night radio show on Fox Sports Radio ten BM 0:50:07.239 --> 0:50:09.760 to two am on the East coast, seven to eleven 0:50:10.200 --> 0:50:12.080 on the West coast. If you like what you heard here, 0:50:12.280 --> 0:50:14.080 give us five stars. Make sure you rate us on 0:50:14.120 --> 0:50:15.960 your way out. We'll talk to you next week. You know. 0:50:16.080 --> 0:50:17.560 By the way, if he didn't like what we said, 0:50:17.560 --> 0:50:30.000 give us five stars. Anyway, before you go, rate and 0:50:30.040 --> 0:50:32.520 review the show. Whether you're listening on I Heart Radio, 0:50:32.760 --> 0:50:36.000 I Heart Radio apps, Apple, whatever it is, give us 0:50:36.000 --> 0:50:37.759 a rate, tell us you like it. We will love 0:50:37.800 --> 0:50:53.560 you forever and ever and ever. Special Teams is a 0:50:53.600 --> 0:50:56.279 production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my 0:50:56.400 --> 0:50:59.760 heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcast, 0:51:00.120 --> 0:51:02.160 or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.