Here’s how the historic game ended up.
The second half began with Washington having the ball (following a short kickoff) at their 30. A pass completion to tight end Jerry Smith gained 11 yeads, and the Redskins faced a 3rd-and-8 and converted on a 15-yard completion. The play moved the ball to the Dolphins 43–their best field position of the day.
A 15-yard completion, this time to Roy Jefferson, put the ball at the 28. Another 11 yards on two plays gave Washington another first down, but the drive ended with two incompletions and a sack by DT Manny Fernandez.
The ‘Skins then lined up for what looked to be a certain field goal, but kicker Curt Knight missed from 32-yards out.
Miami celebrated but couldn’t do much with the ensuing possession. But at least a good, high punt with good coverage backed up Washington to their 18-yard line. From there, a combination of runs and short passes drove the ball to the Miami 44. But rather than continuing what was working (running with short passes), the ‘Skins went long. Kilmer overthrew his receiver on that play and the play that followed, and then he threw high on third down. With that, a promising drive came to an end.
But at least the punt put Miami deep into its own territory. Starting at the 17, the Dolphins went to their running game. Mercury Morris gained six, Csonka gained twelve, and then Csonka broke off a 49-yard run, the best run of the day.
Two runs by Morris and one by Jim Kiick picked up another first down. It looked like Miami would score, but Brigg Owens intercepted Griese’s endzone pass.
Washington then matched Miami’s previous inability to take advantage of a break. It was a three-and-out, and, to make matters worse, Mike Bragg hit a poor punt, which set up the Dolphins at midfield.
There, the pattern of frustration continued. Another three-and-out and punt gave the ball back to the Redskins at their 11-yard-line. From there, Washington reverted to what had worked previously–short passes and runs–and the scheme worked. A short pass to Jefferson gained seven, a run by Larry Brown gained six, and a reverse to Smith gained another six. A pitchout to Brown gained twelve. Then, Kilmer avoided a pass rush to gain another nine yards.
Washington was on the move. Two runs by Charley Harraway gained thirteen, and that was followed by a five-yard gain by Brown. Washington faced a 3rd down and inches, and Brown converted by gaining four. The problem, though, is that the ‘Skins were using up a lot of time, and they trailed by two TDs.
Scott intercepts (photo courtesy of Phin Phanatic)
After making a five-yard reception, Taylor got out of bounds (to stop the clock), and Brown gained another four. Then, disaster struck. On 3rd-and-six. Jake Scott intercepted and ran it all the way to the Washington 48-yard-line.
Even though the Dolphins didn’t do much with the opportunity, runs by Csonka and Kiick gained enough to give Miami a chance to kick a 42-yard field goal. Little did anybody know at the time that the next play would become memorialized in NFL lore.
After Washington blocked the kick, kicker Garo Yepremian scooped up the ball. Rather than playing it safe by falling to the turf, he attempted to pass the ball. The ball slipped out of Yepremian’s hand. But instead of trying to knock the ball down, he batted it up in the air.
And those gaffes weren’t the worst of it. Mike Bass caught the ball and ran it all the way for a touchdown. Just like that, Washington had closed the gap to a TD and an extra point.
Garo’s gaffe (photo, Palm Beach Post)
But the clock now posed the biggest challenge. Even though there was only 2:07 left in the game, the ‘Skins elected to kick it deep. Miami took possession at their 15 with just 1:57 left on the clock. From there, the Dolphins made a first down on Warfield’s 10-yard catch. And even though three consecutive runs didn’t gain much, the Dolphins had accomplished two goals–keeping the clock moving and forcing the Redskins to use all of their timeouts.
Washington came close to blocking the ensuing punt, but Dolphins punter Larry Seiple kept his cool and booted the ball 41 yards.
Now at their own 30, Washington needed to score a TD and do it with only 1:14 left in the game.
The ‘Skins didn’t come close. Two incompletions made it 3rd-and 10, and defensive end Vern Den Herder’s strong pass rush forced Kilmer to dump the ball to Brown on a play that lost four yards. Facing 4th-and-14, Kilmer went back to pass as the strong Miami pass rush closed in.
Sack!
The game ended with Kilmer on his back (photo courtesy Bleacher Report)
It was a fitting end for a defense that had stymied the Redskins all day long. One player, in particular, defensive tackle Manny Fernandez, had harassed the Washington offense all day long. Some felt he should have been named MVP (teammate Jake Scott got the accolade).
But no doubt the biggest prize that day was capping off a perfect 17–0 season–a feat that has passed the test of time … 48 years and counting.
