No, I am not trying to belabor the point. Yes, I already wrote about the Vikings stunning, historic comeback win yesterday against the Colts. And yes, I am writing about it again. But it truly was newsworthy, as far as such things go.
Yet, strangely, it feels nowhere near as exhilarating or even magical to me as the memorable comeback win that the Buffalo Bills had against the Houston Oilers early in January of 1993. First of all, I watched that game live, and back then, I was still really, really into sports. Watching a game not only was not a problem, but a usual part of my routine. And I watched that, at first stunned by both how well the Oilers were playing, and conversely, how poorly the Bills were playing. When Buffalo started that comeback, I actually half expected them to make a game of it, and even to win it. And when they came closer and closer, I really got into that game, pacing the floor at my grandparent's house in Liberty, New York, during commercial breaks. By that point, I really wanted the Buffalo Bills to make history, to achieve the "Greatest Comeback in NFL History." Which they did.
Also, it was a playoff game. The Bills had made it to the prior two Super Bowls, and had pretty well established themselves as one of the elite teams in the league, and particularly the AFC. That was why it was so shocking when they fell behind so badly. Then, it seemed equally as unlikely that they would actually storm back and then ultimately win that game. I remember it seemed that everyone was talking about it, including the newscasts and newspapers the next day. It was a really big deal.
By contrast, I did not watch this game. In fact, when I woke up from my afternoon/evening sleep before my overnight shift, I checked the scores, and was surprised that the Colts had fought hard and tested the Vikings after merely checking the score. My expectations was for the Vikings to win, and fairly handily. There was nothing about a historic comeback at that point. That I would learn later.
Perhaps that was the reason this one felt a bit anticlimactic. Or, perhaps it is that I am now older. It was a bit like the Giants winning the Super Bowl when I was an adult, versus when they won it while I was a kid. When they did it while I was a kid (twice), it was an absolute thrill, even making my year in 1991. By contrast, when they won it (twice) in my adulthood, it was just another thing. Yes, I was happy, and could get into the games. Yes, I watched the Super Bowl with some intense reactions. But after the game was done, I knew that I had to go to bed and get some sleep, because work and everyday responsibilities awaited the next day. Back in 1987 and 1991, the first two times they won it, I was a kid, and it still felt heavenly for a few days, which was not the case for me as an adult.
Don't get me wrong. This was a dramatic win. But I still feel that the Bills comeback was somehow more impressive. Again, it was an elimination game for both teams involved. The winner would advance to the next round, and the loser would have all offseason to think about what had happened, what had gone wrong. Can't get much higher stakes than that. You could say the same thing about the other epic collapse that a Matt Ryan team had, when the Atlanta Falcons blew that 28-3 third quarter lead to lose Super Bowl LI to the New England Patriots. Here, both the Vikings and Colts will continue to play their remaining games this season. Neither team was necessarily going to get eliminated with this loss.
Also, Buffalo had that comeback without the benefit of the two-point conversion, which was a couple of seasons away from being instituted in the NFL by that point. So while the Vikings, at least in theory, could have won this one with four touchdowns with successful two-point conversions, and a field goal, the Bills needed five touchdowns, because four touchdowns and a field goal would not be enough in any scenario at the time. And at the time, no team had overcome a 30+ point deficit to actually win. Ironically, my New York Giants earlier that season had come somewhat close. They had promptly fallen behind 34-0 to the eventual Super Bowl champion Dallas Cowboys, then scored 28 unanswered points, and had the ball late in the game, with a chance to complete what would have been then - and still would be now - the greatest comeback in NFL history, had they actually completed it. But the drive stalled, and I remember feeling immensely disappointed. When the Bills managed that comeback a few months later, it felt like I watched them make the history that I had hoped the Giants would make in that game against the Cowboys. I still sometimes wonder how that would have affected the two teams, and if Dallas would have recovered from that and still gone on to win the Super Bowl that season, or if that would have possibly derailed their season. Interesting to speculate, and surely, head coach Jimmy Johnson would have done what he could to get them back on track. But for the Houston Oilers, losing in that fashion basically led to disaster, and the team itself ceased to exist, at least as the Houston Oilers. The owner scrapped that very talented team after giving them the ultimatum of Super Bowl championship or bust the following season. Shortly after that, they left town just a few seasons later, moving to Tennessee. A few seasons after that, they changed their names and logos, and became the Tennessee Titans. Houston eventually got their own NFL team again, as well. So it seems like nobody really misses the Houston Oilers. That's how devastating that loss was.
For the Bills, it got them back on track, and they qualified for a record third straight trip to the Super Bowl just a couple of weeks later. The next season, they would reach a fourth straight Super Bowl. Yes, they lost all four, so that is part of their legacy. But to me, they were a great team, and reaching four straight Super Bowls, plus earning what was, until yesterday, the greatest comeback in NFL history added to their legacy immeasurably.
The other epic comeback that yesterday's game conjures up was the New England Patriots overcoming a 28-3 deficit in the Super Bowl - that biggest of all games - to win the championship. They denied the Atlanta Falcons that rare chance at a Super Bowl title, and the Falcons, while not leaving town, nevertheless have yet to really recover from that devastating loss. The Patriots earned their second Super Bowl title in three seasons, and became the leading candidate to win "Team of the Decade" honors because of that win. They would become the third team to reach three straight Super Bowls, losing to the Eagles in the next Super Bowl, but then beating the Rams in the Super Bowl after that, for a third title, becoming the first NFL franchise to win back-to-back "Team of the Decade" honors.
How will the Vikings and Colts react to this game? Well, let me just make this prediction: I am not sure that this win will catapult them as far as the comeback wins by the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots got from those wins. I have a tough time seeing them beating either the San Francisco 49ers or the Philadelphia Eagles in the playoffs, should they meet. Maybe home field advantage would help, if they stay ahead of the 49ers. But they seem like a long short to represent the NFC in this coming Super Bowl. As for the Colts, they still have to finish this season. So as unpleasant as this dubious distinction surely must be, they can at least focus on next week, the next game. And the game after that, and still one more after that. No, they surely will not qualify for the postseason, but they likely would not have qualified even had they won. So I doubt that this will be as devastating to them as the historic collapses by the Oilers and Falcons affected both of those teams. It is doubtful that they will leave town, as the Oilers did. And I do not believe that it will affect their legacy quite as much as the Falcons losing that huge lead in the biggest of all stages - the Super Bowl - did for Atlanta.
Surely, this would have been more exciting had I actually watched this game live. Like Super Bowl LI, when the Patriots were mounting that incredible comeback, and it all reminded me so much of that Bills-Oilers Wildcard game, which I feel was one of the top ten games that I ever saw. Reading about it after the fact was...well, rather anticlimactic, frankly. Ditto with watching the highlights, again after the fact. So yeah, maybe watching it would have made it feel different. But as awesome an accomplishment as this was, I still feel that the Bills comeback was bigger and even better, if marginally, and yes, admittedly, arguably. Ditto with the Patriots comeback a few years ago in the Super Bowl. That is not to detract from Minnesota's win yesterday. They overcame an improbable margin, and won the division title in the process. So it was a huge game. But it was not an elimination game, like that Bills game, or obviously, the Super Bowl. Both teams will likely dwell on this game today, and then prepare for their next opponent tomorrow. And that, too, feels a bit anticlimactic.
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