Okay, I will admit it. As a Giants fan, I threw my arms up and jumped in celebration when Scott Norwood's kick sailed just wide, securing the back and forth contest in favor of the Giants. Game, set, match, and championship to the Giants.
At the time, it was all that I wanted, all that I could think of as a fan of the Giants for my entire life.
At the time, in fact, I recorded the game and would watch that historical moment, as well as the postgame interviews. And yes, a smile emerged on my face when Norwood's interview came up, and it was a mean-spirited smile that I am not proud of.
It's no excuse, but I was just a dumb, sixteen year old kid who was a little too happy that my favorite team won the Super Bowl. In retrospect, I can admit that, in large part, it was because not much else was going on in my life. I was a miserable high school student without a rich social life, and without a girlfriend. So, the 1990 football season, which was admittedly an unusually intense and entertaining one (at least for fans of the Giants, Bills, and 49ers), took on an unusual degree of importance in my life at the time. In the weeks that followed, I probably watched that game three or four times, and still got a bit nervous each time Norwood lined up to take the field goal, as if this time, he was destined to make it.
But he will always be remembered for missing that kick of a lifetime.
I grew up. Finally did some things to make my life more interesting. The Giants became less interesting as a result, although perhaps this was made easier by the fact that they were nowhere near as good as they had been. No longer was I religiously in front of the television, watching football games on Sundays. I still follow it, and sometimes catch parts of games, and always watch the playoffs and Super Bowl. But no longer am I what you would call a devoted fan glued to my television set whenever the Giants appear.
Yet, the memories still resonate for me. I still think of that game, that kick, and how much it meant to me. How happy it made me. Admittedly, I kind of look at that with some measure of distaste now, because I know that it should not have made me as happy as it ultimately did. In particular, I think back to how I was trying hard not to laugh during Norwood's postgame interview, because I knew that was wrong (even though no one was there to watch me).
The thing is, he seems like a decent guy. I really had nothing against him, and realize that it could just as easily have sailed through, and he would be remembered forever as the hero.
I think the reason that my reaction was so negative, despite my team having won in glorious, memorable, and exciting fashion that postseason not once, but twice, is that it was so close. The Giants could easily have lost that game. Hell, they could easily have lost the NFC Championship Game, for that matter. But they barely pulled off both games, and won an unlikely championship.
Yes, I said it. It was an unlikely championship because, admittedly, the Giants were probably not the best team in the league that season. The Bills were. It took me a long time to come to terms with that. But there came a point, as an adult, when I will admit that I felt at that time, and still feel now (yes, despite New York's victory in the big game) that Buffalo had the better football team that season.
Their offense was incredible and in sync. Their defense was loaded with talent, and disciplined. They caught fire at some point that season and, yes, they looked like the team of destiny. I do not know this for sure, but my suspicions are that they would have beaten the 49ers had San Francisco been in that Super Bowl. They almost beat the Giants instead.
Almost, but not quite. The Giants brought their A-game, and played a very physical (some might suggest boring, if they are not fans) style that wore the Bills out. Remember, that was a Buffalo team that had put up 44 points against Miami and tore the Raiders up 51-3 in the AFC Championship Game. The Giants had to keep that offense off the field, and they did, keeping possession of the ball for over 40 minutes, which still remains a Super Bowl record.
Still, they scraped by for the win. Had the time of possession been a bit more even, the Bills would have won. Hell, if there had not been a miracle play with Ingram's third and 13 conversion, breaking several tackles along the way, Buffalo likely would have won. If Hostetler had not tucked the ball in on the Buffalo safety, which could have been a touchdown, the Bills win. If Lofton takes that long bomb in for the TD, the Bills win. And even after all of that, even after less than 20 minutes of possession time total (at one point, the Bills offense had barely touched the ball for roughly one hour in real time), the Bills could have won with a field goal. Had it been a little closer, they likely would have won. had it been a bit longer, according to Frank Reich (the backup QB and placekicker on the play for the Bills), the kick likely would have gone through, and the Bills would have won.
Instead, the kick sailed wide right, by about two feet.
It was a moment in time that would live on for me for quite some time, but there was something that felt wrong about it.
Ironically, the moment that I remember best from that championship season was the week before, when the Giants, wearing my favorite road white jerseys, beat the "Team of the Decade" 49ers in San Francisco, because Matt Bahr managed to kick the field goal through the uprights to win the game, in a situation very similar to the one that Norwood would be in the next week. It felt right because that kick won it for the Giants, while Norwood's miss lost it for the Bills. To that point, despite all of the things that went wrong for them in that game, they still were dictating play and in a position to earn the win.
Instead, the kick sailed wide right, by about two feet.
In time, that mean-spirited joy over someone else's pain withered, and I thought about Norwood himself from time to time. I was pulling for the Bills the next few years, when they returned to the Super Bowl, and was disheartened when they lost. I remember pulling for Scott Norwood in particular in 1991, and wondering where he was after the 1991 season ended. Buffalo had a new placekicker for 1992, and no one picked up Norwood otherwise.
I felt bad, but life goes on.
Then, I met some Bills fans, and they spoke about that Super Bowl, and how much they hated my Giants. Some suggested that the Bills were the better team, and when I thought about it, found myself actually agreeing. Remember, the Bills had beaten the Giants at the Meadowlands only about one month and change before the two teams would meet in Tampa for Super Bowl XXV.
Had that been the first meeting between the two teams that season (in other words, had that been Super Bowl XXV), then Buffalo would likely have won that Super Bowl.
Instead, the kick sailed wide right, by about two feet.
At the time, I could not have been more thrilled.
As the years went by, I began to think a little bit differently about it. When I met those Bills fans, and when I went to the city of Buffalo, I thought more deeply about it. Every now and then, I looked up Scott Norwood online, to see what was going on in his life now, where he was all of these years later.
Buffalo is a relatively nice city. It has character, and there are certainly nice parts of the city. I love the cities right along a big body of water, like one of the Great Lakes, and Buffalo has that, obviously. It also is in close proximity to Niagara Falls, and has some wonderful countryside in the surrounding area that provides pristine rural, pastoral scenes.
Plus, Buffalo has an interesting architectural history that a former girlfriend of mine awoke me to. She took me to the old rail line terminal, and pointed out some buildings of historical and architectural interests during a visit to the city, and she even contemplated a move up to Buffalo.
Unfortunately, Buffalo is too often overlooked. Niagara Falls is nearby, but it is not Buffalo itself. The city is pretty big, yet more overlooked in New York State (and for reasons that should be obvious) than similar cities are in other states, such as Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Cincinnati. And, of course, in terms of sports, this is the city that seems to come close to winning championships, but never quite gets there. The Sabres have gone to the Stanley Cup Finals twice, but failed to win. And the Bills went to those four straight Super Bowls, which really is a remarkable feat that sets this franchise apart. Yet, all that people harp on is that they lost them all.
The Buffalo Bills were robbed of their stature of greatness by those four losses. From 1988 until 1993, the Bills were right next to being the winningest team in the NFL. They went 12-4 in 1988, 9-7 in 1989, 13-3 in 1990, 13-3 in 1991, 11-5 in 1992, and 12-4 in 1993. Put that all together, and they enjoyed a 70-26 mark. That is second next to San Francisco's 72-24 mark during that time, but the Bills had 10 postseason wins to add to that, while the 49ers had nine. Both won five division titles during that stretch, but the Bills made it to the playoffs in each of those years, which San Francisco cannot claim. The Niners won two Super Bowls, however, while the Bills won none. But Buffalo came within a few feet of seeing that field goal attempt go through the uprights, and who knows how things would have turned out differently then? The Bills of the early 90's deserve to be recognized as one of the most successful teams. Four straight Super Bowls, and do not forget about the greatest come back in NFL history!
Yet, all that people remember is that the Bills lost those four Super Bowls, like the Broncos and Vikings had at that time before them (Denver has since won two Super Bowls). It is most unfortunate that such a great Bills team should be remembered in such a negative, pessimistic way.
One Bills fan that I met (a particularly immature one for someone over thirty years old, I might add) said that if Norwood walked through the door at any given moment, he would punch him right in the face. I reject such a stupid and unforgiving sentiment.
Ridiculous.
As I already mentioned, the guy seems like a really decent guy. Here is a clip from a few years ago showing Norwood receiving some official distinction for his charity work behind the scenes:
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