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PACKERS LOSE TO STEELERS
posted 11/10/98
THE WEEK PAST: In arrears 27-0 to the Steelers in the third quarter, the Packers found that imposing differential too big a mountain to climb. But, in the final analysis, not by much.
With two minutes remaining in the game and the Steelers facing a third-and-5 situation at the Green Bay 36-yard line, an outside chance remained. But, just seconds later, all hopes they might have entertained of getting the football back and having quarterback Brett Favre preside over a typically miraculous finish evaporated when Steelers running back Jerome Bettis swept left end for a 12-yard gain and a first down, permitting Pittsburgh to run out the clock.
That development put an end to one of the most memorable comebacks in recent Packers history. It was launched under highly inauspicious circumstances, which found the Steelers leading 27-3, in possession of the football at the Packers' 4-yard line and poised for the kill.
Pittsburgh had substituted Mike Tomczak for starter Kordell Stewart at quarterback, presumably with the intention of having Tomczak throw a scoring pass to Stewart, a highly versatile athlete. Defensive ends Reggie White and Keith McKenzie combined to thwart that plan, however. The "Minister of Defense" burst through to sack Tomczak, forcing a fumble, and McKenzie, picking up the loose ball, cantered 88 yards for a record-breaking touchdown - the longest run with a fumble in the Packers' 78-year NFL history.
An attempt at a two-point conversion was unproductive when Favre's pass, intended for Robert Brooks in the end zone, was incomplete.
The defense then took a strong hand in the proceedings, quickly forcing the Steelers to punt following the kickoff. Here Favre found his rhythm and proceeded to direct a 10-play, 74-yard scoring drive capped by Raymont Harris' 2-yard run into the left corner of the end zone. This time the two-point conversion was successful, Favre finding wide receiver Antonio Freeman in the end zone and suddenly the Packers had narrowed it to 27-17.
The Green and Gold next pulled off a successful onside kick, Longwell deftly executing the maneuver, which found Jeff Thomason recovering the football at the Green Bay 39-yard line. Favre put together another profitable drive, a 42-yard push that led to a 37-yard Longwell field goal.
And now, with 2:40 remaining to play, it was 27-20.
As expected, the Packers essayed another onside kick. But this time, the Steelers recovered the leather at the Green Bay 41-yard line. On first down, nose tackle Gilbert Brown held the Steelers' bulky Jerome Bettis to a three-yard gain. And, on second down, Reggie White limited him to a two-yard advance.
On third-and-five, however, Bettis swept around the Packers' right flank for a 12-yard gain and, with only 1:14 left, Stewart proceeded to run out the clock in two plays and seal Green Bay's fate.
Overall, Favre completed 22 of 39 passes for 234 yards, with one interception. Because they trailed throughout, the Packers could ill afford to run the football as much as they would have liked and closed out the evening with a modest 39 yards rushing in 19 attempts.
The Steelers set a brisk offensive pace early, driving 85 yards in 9 plays to score following the kickoff, Stewart hitting wideout Charles Johnson with an 8-yard strike.
They subsequently were up 14-0 at the end of the first quarter, Stewart scoring on a one-yard run up the middle, capping a 59-yard drive, then padded their advantage to 24-0 at halftime by way of a 45-yard Norm Johnson field goal and a 5-yard scoring run by Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala.
COACH HOLMGREN'S POSTGAME COMMENTS:
(on how disappointing the loss was, following 'the big victory over San Francisco') "We're very disappointed. We have not played well on Monday night this season. Prior to this time, we had. Really, against a good team like Pittsburgh, when you play the first half like we played, it's almost over. It's a credit to the Packers that we came back and made it a little interesting at the end. But you can't play like we did in the first half and expect to win many games."
(on Kordell Stewart's performance) "Very impressive...very, very impressive outing. You try to tell the players - they're not robots. As much as I tried to tell our team this young man is capable of great things, they looked at that he has struggled a little bit this season. And he had a good game against us. He's capable of doing that each week. And to get them to believe that - to believe you - sometimes is difficult."
(on the Steelers' third down proficiency) "He (Stewart) played a great game. Obviously, if you do that on third down, you're having and exceptional night."
(on 'why Stewart was allowed to stay in the pocket so much') "He threw the ball quickly sometimes. He has great maneuverability. I think when you play him, you have to be a little careful on staying in your rush lanes and that's an advantage he has when you play him. And his offensive line did a good job."
(on the Steelers' defensive performance) "Well, we actually didn't do very well on offense. And they play good defense anyway. It was as much their good play and our inept play on offense. I wasn't very pleased with how we executed tonight."
(on the Packers' short-yardage 'game') "It's horrible, it's horrible. It's been horrible all season for us. And we've been able to dodge the bullet a couple times and still win. But tonight we couldn't. But it's something we have not done very well all season. And we have to figure how to do it better because, right now, we stink doing it."
(on whether Ryan Longwell's miss of a 51-yard field goal attempt indicates the distance was a little out of his range) "I think he's capable. I don't think he hit that one the way he wanted to hit it. He's very capable - the distance, I think, is fine. The opening kickoff he kind of miss-hit just a little bit as well. So it happens. He's a good placekicker. He just missed that one."
(on whether that miss might have changed the momentum in the game) "We were down there. Actually, we hurt ourselves. We ran the reverse and Carnell Lake makes the play and we lose about 8-10 yards on the play and wind up having to kick the ball. And, yeah, you kind of sag a little bit when you have a chance to score..."
(on whether there were breakdowns when the Steelers converted on third-and-long situations in the first half) "I don't know. I don't think they were missed assignments. I just think it was their guys executing and making plays. I don't think we tackled particularly well. As far as throwing and catching it, I think they did a good job of that."
(on the Packers' secondary dropping potential interceptions) "We had a chance. Rod (Smith) and Craig (Newsome) had chances to make interceptions and make big plays. That happens to a defensive back. I always said corners usually would be wide receivers if they could catch. We'll keep working at it, but those would have been big plays tonight. No question about it."
(on 'the importance of this game for the Steelers') "It was an important game for us, too. I mean it was an important game for both teams. I knew we had to match their intensity here. They're awfully good on Monday night here. They play good football and you'd better be ready. We weren't ready in the first half. I don't know why. After talking about it all week, we tried to match their intensity. I wanted to match their intensity, and we did not do that."
(on the Packers' late comeback) "This team has no quit in it. They were battling right up to the end. And we were hoping to get that other onside kick and maybe get the ball back...and stop them right at the end. We missed a couple plays down in there before the field goal. But you know really, that's asking a lot of your team - to come back and win a game like that. But I was pleased with the fact that they hung in there and they battled after being so poor in the fist half. We weren't very good in the first half."
(on whether he still feels like the Packers 'have a chance at the division') Oh, heck. After we play 16 games, we'll see who's there."
THE PLAYER PERSPECTIVE:
Brett Favre: "It was very disappointing, very disappointing. I don't know how much more you can say. You expect to win games like this. We knew it was going to be a tough battle - and it was. It was everything we thought it was going to be, and then some.
"But it's disappointing because we had a big win last week. And it was not a letdown. People may say, 'Well, they had a big win and they let down.' How can you let down against a Super Bowl caliber team? They played as good a football as they could play. I bet it's the best football they've played all year. And we didn't match that."
(on how frustrating is to have the short yardage problems the Packers have been having) "Well, if you don't make 'em, it's frustrating. But that's not the only area of the game that needs to improve. We need to improve in a lot of areas. That's one of 'em. It just so happens that that continuously happens, week in and week out. But we came out the second half and played hard and scored some points. It was just too late against a good football team like that. Same thing next week against the Giants. You've got to play four quarters of football. And if you don't, you're going to get beat. Second-and-one...that's part of it. Third-and-long, that's part of it. I think their third-down conversion rate was like 70 percent. And that's an area of the football game that's important. So we've got a lot of areas that we've got to improve on.
"We still have a lot of games left. It's not over. We've got to look up. We got beat by a good football team. We played hard the second half...We'll see what happens."
(on the team's second half comeback) "I think that's a good thing. If you get anything out of a ball game like this, it's that we fought hard. We were down 27-nothing, I think, at one point and we had a shot at the end of the game. If we get that (second) onside kick, I think we would have gone down and scored. So that's a positive thing. We shouldn't have been in that situation. So there's a lot of ups and a lot of downs.
"The thing is, we don't have much time to get ready for the Giants. You've just got to forget it (the loss to the Steelers) and go on."
(on whether the Steelers had 'a great game plan') "I know that it seemed like everything we did, they were right on it. Now, they're a good football team. We knew coming in that Coach Cowher would have them ready to go - and that the intensity level would be high and we would have to match that.
"It was loud...Audibles were a factor...I changed a run from one side to another one particular time and a couple of our guys didn't hear it, which is not uncommon in a situation like that. But you've got to handle things like that. They press you...When they force you...it was just like we did with Young last week - and our fans saw what it was like to a quarterback to drop back and they press you in the face. Our offensive line played hard and they played tough and they're good. But in a loud place, if they get off a little late, those guys can get to you. And it creates some havoc in the passing game.
"When you get down, you can't run the ball. People will say, 'Well, they didn't run the ball.' We got down. You can't run the ball when you're down 27 points. So they played extremely well - as good a football as I've seen a team play against us."
(on 'how much pressure he feels to carry this offense') "You know, I've heard that week in and week out. Who doesn't expect me to carry this team? When I take the snap from center, I expect to do a lot of things. People expect a lot of things out of you. There's nothing wrong with that. I get paid a lot of money...that's my job - to win football games. So looking back over every week, people keep asking me, 'Are you trying to do too much?' Well, yeah, you know, I'm the guy with the ball and I've got to make plays. And that's the way I look at it. Everyone on that field should say, 'I'm going to make the plays tonight.' Not point at someone else and say, 'He's going to make the plays.' That's not the way it works in this game. You know, if you start pointing fingers, you won't be around very long. And I don't point a finger at anyone - I point it at myself. I've got to make the plays. I didn't make enough tonight. And I'm at the top of that list...So that's the way it goes."
Defensive end Keith McKenzie (on his record fumble return): "That was a big play. I credit Reggie (White). He hit the guy (Steeler quarterback Mike Tomczak) and the ball popped up. I did the easy part. I just picked it up and ran."
Linebacker Bernardo Harris (on if it is fair to characterize the Packers' first half as being flat): "I wouldn't say it was flat. It was a matter of us making plays on third down. That's the key. We came into the game knowing we had to go up the field on third downs...We just didn't do that."
NOTE-WORTHY:
-Despite Monday night's loss, the Packers still hold an 18-12 advantage over the Steelers in their 30-game, regular-season series.
-Head Coach Mike Holmgren also still owns an impressive career record against the American Football Conference, having led the Packers to 19 victories in 27 games against the AFC.
-The Packers now are an even .500 on ABC's "Monday Night Football" series with a record of 14 victories, 14 losses and one tie.
-Monday night's game marked the Packers' first regular-season appearance in Pittsburgh since 1986.
-Quarterback Brett Favre made his 102nd consecutive regular-season start, longest current streak by an NFL quarterback.
-Ryan Longwell's miss of a 51-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter ended a string of 13 consecutive successes for the second-year specialist.
-It was a personally historic night for defensive end Keith McKenzie. He not only set a record for the longest fumble run in Packers history but also recorded the first kickoff return of his three-year pro career, a 17-yard runback late in the second quarter.
McKenzie also sacked Stewart for a 2-yard loss in a third-and-6 situation at the Packers' 26-yard line in the third quarter, forcing the Steelers to settle for a 45-yard Norm Johnson field goal.
-In recognition of his record run, McKenzie was named the Packers' Miller Lite "Player of the Week."
-Reggie White's sack of Stewart, which set up McKenzie's record excursion, was his 12th of the season, giving pro football's all-time leader 188.5 for his 14-year career. White also recorded the 31st forced fumble of his career on the same play.
-Safety Pat Terrell also posted the first quarterback sack of his nine-year NFL career, felling Steelers quarterback Kordell Stewart for 5-yard loss on the first play of the fourth quarter.
-Raymont Harris' 2-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter was his first score as a Packer.
-Marco Rivera (offense), LeRoy Butler (defense) and Rob Davis (special teams) were the Packers' captains for Monday night's game.
-Packer inactives for the game were running back Dorsey Levens, wide receiver Derrick Mayes, offensive lineman Mike Wahle, defensive linemen Billy Lyon and Jonathan Brown, defensive backs Scott McGarrahan and Kerry Cooks and designated Third Quarterback Doug Pederson.
-Umpire Ed Coukart suffered a broke nose in the first quarter of the game and the officiating crew worked the remainder of the game with six officials, one shy of the normal complement.
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