General

Game-Winning Drives That Weren’t

Oct 12, 2008, 8:40 PM UTC

â†µYou’d have to see Kyle Orton’s two-minute drill to believe â†µit. Atlanta’s Jason Elam could have clinched victory with a â†µ33-yard kick, but his four good FGs on this afternoon have â†µrendered his prehistoric foot exhausted. Chicago â†µball.
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â†µIn between plays, with defeat ticking ever closer, Orton â†µlooks like a lost camp counselor trying to get drunken â†µhummingbirds to sit down in a semi-circle for storytime. â†µHis facial expression is something between panic and â†µindigestion. But as the snap finally comes -- each play â†µtakes something like 25-30 seconds to get off -- Orton â†µcomposes himself and zips inspirational balls all over the â†µfield, the coup de grace a pinpoint strike to â†µRashied Davis in the corner of the end zone with 11 seconds â†µleft. With an extra point, Chicago leads 20-19. Orton still â†µlooks panicked and lost, but hey, he’s going to win this â†µgame.
â†µ
â†µ...
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â†µChicago squibs it. Atlanta ball at its own 45, six seconds â†µleft. Matt Ryan hits Michael Jenkins on the sideline at the â†µChicago 30 with one second on the clock. Elam steps in for â†µa 48-yarder, and it’s ... good. Falcons win. Orton cries â†µtonight.
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â†µSame story, a little bit worse (given the stakes): down 16â†µ-10 to the hapless St. Louis Rams, Washington marches â†µthrough the swamp to take a 17-16 lead on a short Clinton â†µPortis run with less than four minutes left. The Rams â†µoffense, insultingly bad this season, makes its way to the â†µD.C. red zone. But a crushing unsportsmanlike conduct â†µpenalty by STL lineman Richie Incognito set the Rams back. â†µInstead of a 34-yarder for the win, Josh Brown steps up for â†µa 49-yard attempt. And it’s good. The Daniel Synder â†µSpirit-o-meter flatlines.â†µ

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.

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