Super Bowl XXVI - 2nd Half

Richie Petitbon, Redskins assistant head coach for defense, said after the game that defensive coordinator Larry Peccatiello came up with the finishing touch to the defensive game plan on the team's bus ride to the Metrodome.
"Why don't we blitz up the middle?"
Petitbon immediately recognized the suggestion as what one writer called "a sudden flash of light on a gray winter day."
"We never practiced it," he said after the game.
They designed the route for LB Andre Collins at halftime.
"They were bringing me on blitzes in the first half," Collins said after the game, "but when I dogged, I had to cover Thurman Thomas if he slipped out of the backfield. At halftime, they took that responsibility away and gave Thomas to a defensive end. We gambled."
Meanwhile, the Bills limped into their locker room trailing by 17 points. The team with the high-powered offense had failed to score in the first 30 minutes.
"It makes you change your game plan," Coach Levy said. "You get behind, and your offense doesn't balance up as well. I keep saying that the most important thing in making a quarterback great is a good defense. If you don't have a good defense, he has to play catch up. He's predictable, and he gets blitzed."

Quarter 3

If millions of fans had not changed the channel by halftime, many of them did so less than 30 seconds into the second half.

After a touchback, the Bills started at their 20.
Petitbon unleashed the revised game plan on the first play. With unblocked LB Andre Collins blitzing up the middle in his face, Kelly's pass intended for McKeller was intercepted by LB Kurt Gouveia and returned 23y to the two.
Riggs pranced through a gaping hole into the end zone on the first play.
Lohmiller kicked the extra point.
Redskins 24 Bills 0
Gouveia said, "I don't think that sealed it (the victory), but it certainly helped our momentum."
Petitbon said it was the single biggest play in a game of big plays by his defense. "That was strictly [Peccatiello's] doing, and it was a stroke of genius. If we don't make that play to start the second half, it might have been a different football game."

L: Brad Edwards (27) falls over Keith McKeller as Andre Collins comes to assist.
R: Fred Stokes celebrates after sacking Kelly.

The Bills finally put points on the board after a drive that consissted of 10 Kelly passes.

From the 20, completions to Thomas for 8y and Reed for 4y got them started.
After two incompletions, Kelly hit Lofton for 14y and a first down at the Buffalo 46.
Following another incompletion, Kelly escaped the pocket to his right and looped a throw on the run to Beebe for 43y to the 11.
Jim then threw to Thomas for 8y to the three.
But two misfires into the end zone made it fourth and goal.
So the Bills settled for Scott Norwood's 21y field goal.
Redskins 24 Bills 3 (11:59)

The Bills' defense did their job by limiting the Redskins to one first down before forcing a punt.

Byner gained four, then six, to move the chains.
After he was stopped for no gain, Rypien threw to Monk for 9y.
Desperately needing a stop, Talley broke through and nailed Byner for a 3y loss.
So Goodburn punted 30y to the Buffalo 44.

The Bills drove to their initial touchdown.

Kelly found Lofton for 11 and Beebe for 9y to the Washington 36.
Thomas gained six on first down.
Kelly threw long down the right side to Lofton incomplete, but a questionable pass interference penalty on Mayhew put the ball on the 1.
It took three plays before the Bills scored as the Redskins stuffed Thomas and then Davis for no gain as they tried to dive over the top.
Finally, Thomas scored off the left side behind the devastating block by FB Carwell Gardner on Collins.
Redskins 24 Bills 10 (5:58)
"You start feeling good about yourself," said Kelly. "It's a 60-minute game. We'd been in games where we'd come back and won."
Rypien: "We knew we had to score again. We knew how good those guys were and what they could do in a short period of time. We had to put the accelerator to the ground and do what we had to do."

For the first time, the Redskins had to get the momentum back.

Brian Mitchell returned the kickoff 16y to the 21.
Rypien threw twice to Clark, the first one complete for 6y, the second incomplete.
The Bills needed a third-down stop but didn't get it because Rypian found Clark again for 10y to the 37.
Ervins gained 6 before Clark caught a pass for 14 and another first down at the Buffalo 43.
Ervins ran twice more for 8y and 1y.
Again, the Bills defense had a chance to get off the field, but Riggs gained 4y on third-and-one to keep the drive alive.
After incompletions to Sanders and Clark, Rypien connected with Clark in stride sprinting down the right side into the end zone for a 30y touchdown.
Redskins 31 Bills 10 (5:58)
Rypien: "We used a no-huddle until a third-down play. That play was signaled in, and it was a touchdown to Gary. It was a corner route where he got man-to-man coverage. They came with a safety blitz, which they hadn't done a lot of. I dropped back, the protection was great, and just laid the ball out for him."

Could the Bills answer back?

Kelly started with a 10y throw to Lofton for a first down at the 30.
Then he completed a pass to himself for a loss of 8y as Fred Stokes batted the ball back to Kelly.
DB Alvoid Mays not only prevented a first down by blitzing off the right side and sacking Kelly, but he hit his arm, causing a fumble that Stokes recovered on the 14 for the Redskins.
Replay upheld the call on the field since Kelly's arm wasn't going forward.

The Redskins ran three plays before the quarter ended.

Byner swept right end for 9y, but a holding penalty moved Washington back to the 20.
After an incompletion intended for Byner on a screen pass, Rypien thew to Monk for 17y to make it third-and-3 from the 7.

Quarter 4

The Redskins had to settle for a field goal.

Rypien's pass intended for Byner was knocked down.
So Lohmiller kicked a 25y field goal.
Redskins 34 Bills 10 (14:54)

The Bills went three and out.

Edwards returned the kickoff 21y to the 24.
Stokes continued to wreak havoc, sacking Kelly for a loss of 9y.
Kelly threw twice in a row to Beebe. The first was incomplete, but the long second one was intercepted by Edwards and returned 35y to the Buffalo 33.

The Redskins added three points to their lead.

Ervins ran three straigt times for 14y and a first down, then for -3 as Bennett smothered him and no gain.
After a third down incompletion, Lohmiller nailed a 39y field goal.
Redskins 37 Bills 10 (11:36)

The Bills embarked on their longest drive of the game – 15 plays.

Edwards returned the kickoff to the 21.
Kelly scrambled for 9y. Mayhew hit Kelly as he slid, and Jim got up groggy because of a hit that today would earn a 15y unnecessary roughness penalty.
Kelly revealed after the game that he missed much of the fourth quarter even though he was in the game. When he was hit by Mayhew on the scramble, his head bounced off the artificial turf.
"They're calling it a mild concussion. They said I went out on my feet, and I was (yelling) at the referee. I don't remember that. I'm fuzzy."
Frank Reich came in and handed to Thomas, who gained 10 up the middle, but C Kent Hull was called for holding.
Kelly returned and threw incomplete for Lofton. Mays was flagged for a late hit on the receiver to move the ball to the 36.
Thomas made a one-handed grab of a pass in the right flat for 4y.
Kelly connected with Beebe for 5y.
Thomas leaped over the pile for 3y on the last running play of the possession. That gained a first down on the 48.
Kelly threw 10 straight passes, completing six to get the Bills in the end zone.
He hit Lofton for 17, Edwards for 11, Thomas for 7, Davis for 6 and then 9 to move to the two.
After an incompletion, Kelly connected with Metzelaars in the middle of the end zone for the touchdown.
Redskins 37 Bills 17 (5:59)

After a successful onside kick, the Bills made the final score more respectable..

LB Carlton Bailey recovered for the Bills on the 50.
Kelly threw to Davis across the middle for 12y.
Next came three incompletions in a row, but the third one was nullified by another pass interference penalty on Mays to make it first-and-10 on the 20.
Following another misfire, Davis carried twice for 13 and then 3y to the 4.
Two incompletions preceded the fourth-down touchdown pass to Beebe, who made a leaping catch in the back of the end zone.
Redskins 37 Bills 24 (3:55)

This time, Washington recovered the onside kick at midfield.

Ervins zipped for 21y to the Buffalo 29.
He ran three more times for 1, 7, and 2y for another first down.
Rypien took a knee four straight times.
Buffalo completed a pass as the clock ran out.
FINAL SCORE: REDSKINS 37 BILLS 24

Watch the game ...

Mark Rypien won Super Bowl MVP award.

Final statistics

Time of possession: Redskins 33:43 Bills 26:17
First downs: Redskins 24 Bills 25
Rushing: Redskins 40-125 Bills 18-43
Passing: Redskins 33-18-1/292 Bills 59-29-4/286
Return yardage: Redskins 5-85 Bills 6-114
Fumbles-Lost: Redskins 1-0 Bills 6-1
Penalties: Redskins 5-82 Bills 6-50
Punting average: Redskins 4-37.5 Bills 6-35.0
Attendance: 63,310

Postgame

Redskins Locker Room

Coach Gibbs addressed the rumors that he might retire. "I sure loved today. I have no thoughts about stepping away from this. We'll probably tee it up and try to do it again next year." He added, "We have a group of real classy guys. They seemed to have everything before I said anything to them. ... I really did feel that I had one of the best, most enjoyable coaching experiences because there wasn't any turmoil. I didn't have to get on people to motivate them. I didnt have to straighten out off the field problems. I really believe it was a well-balanced team with great team chemistry and great leadership."
Mark Rypien responded to the pressure of having to perform in the last season of his contract. "Now people can't say I didn't win the big game," he said. "Everybody talked about their no-huddle, but our no-huddle was very effective. It was very loud in there, but we used hand signals and came through with flying colors."
Richie Petitbon: "You have to put pressure on Kelly to be successful. We attacked the line of scrimmage and clogged up the running lanes before Thomas could get going."
LB Andre Collins: "We came a lot more than usual on blitzes. Usually, we're more conservative, especially when we get ahead. But we wanted to take away the run and put a lot of pressure on Kelly. They were leaving five guys to block six, so we gambled. Week in and week out, our coaches are creative. They never do the same thing twice."

Bills Locker Room

Coach Marv Levy was observed talking to an official as they left the field at halftime. Reading his lips, some writers interpreted what he said as, "Youve been bought." After the game, Levy said, "No way I'm going to comment on the officiating.
QB Jim Kelly revealed that he missed much of the fourth quarter even though he was in the game. He was hit by Martin Mayhew on a scramble, and his head bounced off the artificial turf. "They're calling it a mild concussion. They said I went out on my feet, and I was (yelling) at the referee. I don't remember that."
RB Thurman Thomas: "They blitzed us more than the amount of men we had. I felt we should have run more plays outside so we would have loosened them up. I don't know why or how our offensive coaches were thinking, but we didn't try to run the ball enough early in the game. I felt I should have been used more in the first half. If the running game is not working, we can't get away from it."
Defensive coordinator Walt Corey: "They just beat us at what we tried to do. When we thought we had good coverages, they beat us."
DE Bruce Smith: "I said before the game, 'We needed to go out and make history.' We did it the wrong damned way."
DE Leon Seals: "The key for us was to shake Rypien up, and we didn't. We kept hitting him, and he kept bouncing up."
LB Darryl Talley: "The big problem with them is that they have seven guys blocking, and you're rushing four. .... A lot of people seem to forget that Rypien has had a hell of a year. He's a great quarterback. They played an outstanding game of pitch and catch."