FAKE RONJAN!!Box Score Monday: Texans @ Steelers, 12/8/2002
All of us have hundreds of game memories floating around in our heads. Maybe they were crucial games for our teams, maybe they were just wacky or crazy to watch, or maybe they set some kind of obscure record. But for whatever reason, they're there, taking up valuable brain real-estate. We're going to try out a new mini-segment, Box Score Monday, where we share a game result with a quick blurb on why it sticks out in our mind.
I'm going to lead off with this game from 2002: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/200212080pit.htm
The Pittsburgh Steelers (7-4-1) welcomed the expansion Houston Texans (3-9) to Heinz Field for what was expected to be a double-digit victory (Vegas set the line at 14 points). The Steelers had started the season 1-3 -- resulting in Kordell Stewart losing his job as the starting QB to XFL-MVP Tommy Maddox -- but they had largely righted the ship in time for the David Carr-led Texans.
So what happened in the game? As predicted, Pittsburgh out-gained Houston 422 to 47. And they lost, 24-6.
The Texans ran 26 times for 37 yards and completed only 3 passes for the day. Tommy Maddox passed for over 300 yards and four Steelers had at least 75 yards of offense. But the Steelers turned the ball over on their first three drives and the Texans ended up scoring three defensive touchdowns, and that was it!
It's already rare for a two-touchdown favorite to lose at all -- it happens roughly 12% of the time. But this was the worst loss sustained by a two-touchdown favorite in history. And they out-gained the competition 9-to-1. Crazy!
I was in college in Pittsburgh at the time, and the game led to city-wide panic. Looking back, had the Steelers won this game, they would have owned home field advantage throughout the playoffs. A costly, costly loss.
-rj