reporters and analysts review the Washington game

Rams romp to another shutout win

• BY JIM THOMAS

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/rams-romp-to-another-shutout-win/article_c5f163df-c4b0-57b7-963e-c01816596bc5.html

LANDOVER, Md. • For those keeping score, it’s now 76-0 Rams in the last two Sundays. They have scored back-to-back victories for the first time since Games 15 and 16 of last season after Sunday’s 24-0 blanking of Washington at FedEx Field.

A victory this Thursday night at home against Arizona will put them at a place rarely seen this late in the season for the Rams — .500.

After a first half in which the Rams seemed to take a step backward for every step forward, they dominated Washington in the second half with aggressive defense, some Jared Cook, and lots of excitement from Tavon Austin.

Cook scored two touchdowns, including one in the second half. Austin had a 78-yard punt return to seal the deal in third quarter. The Rams are now 6-7; Washington falls to 3-10.

The St. Louis defense registered back-to-back shutouts for the first time since they were the Cleveland Rams in 1945. For the second game in a row and the third time in four games, the opposing offense did not reach the red zone.

The Rams had all kinds of chances to bury Washington in the first half. But penalties, sacks and a major case of the yips by place-kicker Greg Zuerlein left them with only a 6-0 lead at the intermission.

Zuerlein missed the first extra point of his NFL career after a 39-yard touchdown pass from Shaun Hill to tight end Cook early in the second quarter. Zuerlein had made all 91 of his career extra points before that one went wide right.

OK, chalk that up as a fluke, right? Well, Zuerlein then missed two field goals before the half was out. He was wide right on a 28-yard field goal attempt with 5:32 to go in the first half. Until then, Zuerlein had been 16-for-16 on attempts of less than 30 yards in his three-year pro career.

And as time expired in the second quarter, Zuerlein missed from 38 yards. Again, it was wide right. It was only his fourth miss in the 30-39 range in his career. So instead of having a 13-0 lead at the half, the Rams had only the six points from the Cook reception.

After the Rams won the coin toss but deferred, Washington drove to the St. Louis 32 on its opening possession. But free safety Rodney McLeod ended that threat with his second interception of the season, coming on an overthrown pass from Colt McCoy intended for Washington wide receiver Ryan Grant.

The Rams then drove to the Washington 22, but an illegal hands to face penalty against center Scott Wells and an offensive pass interference penalty on fullback Cory Harkey on back-to-back plays pushed the ball back to the 42. The Rams had to punt.

In the second quarter, a 37-yard punt return for Austin, his second-longest return of the season at that point, went for naught on Zuerlein’s first missed field goal. The Rams had a first-and-goal from the 6, but back-to-back sacks forced them to kick a field goal. Or make that try a field goal.

On the Rams’ next possession, a 41-yard completion from a scrambling Hill to Kenny Britt gave St. Louis a first down at the Washington 38. But a second sack by Ryan Kerrigan forced the Rams to punt.

A 28-yard punt return by Austin gave the Rams possession at the Washington 47 on their next series. But that led to Zuerlein’s second miss at the end of the half.

But the Rams got going in the third quarter. After taking the kickoff to start the third quarter, they finally got a field goal from Zuerlein, who squeezed in a 34-yarder to make it 9-0 Rams after a drive that lasted nearly 7½ minutes.

After what looked like a 3-and-out by the Rams’ defense, Washington tried a fake punt on 4th-and-5 from its own 33. But punter Tress Way was stopped after only a two-yard gain, and the Rams took over at the Washington 35 with 6:07 left in the third quarter.

After a holding penalty on Harkey set the Rams back 10 yards, a 36-yard catch-and-run by Stedman Bailey on third-and-12 gave them a first down at the Washington 1. On the next play, Hill connected with Cook in the back of the end zone for Cook’s second TD of the day.

Instead of having Zuerlein kick the extra point, holder Johnny Hekker took the snap, raised up and threw a 2-point conversion pass to Harkey to give St. Louis a 17-0 lead.

Hekker is now six for seven as a passer in his career with two touchdowns.

Then Austin, who has flirted with a punt return TD on several occasions this season, put the capper on the day with a 78-yard return for a score with 1:36 left in the third quarter. This time, Zuerlein kicked the extra point and the Rams were up 24-0.

Many Washington fans headed for the exit after that score, and many of those who stayed started chanting for now backup quarterback Robert Griffin III to come off the bench.

RGIII did get in on the final possession of the day for Washington, which ended with an incomplete pass by Griffin.

BURWELL TRIBUTE

There was a seat set aside for late Post-Dispatch columnist Bryan Burwell in the press box Sunday at FedEx Field, with a vase of flowers and a photo placard that read: The Washington Redskins honor the life, work, and spirit of Bryan Burwell.

Several media members stopped by to look at the tribute, say a prayer, and take a photo. There will be a moment of silence in honor of Burwell prior to kickoff.

Redskins hit bottom with embarrassing shutout loss to Rams

By Tom Schad – The Washington Times

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/dec/7/washington-redskins-shut-out-st-louis-rams-embarra/

All season, rock bottom has eluded the Washington Redskins. So all season, they have continued to sink, lower and lower, in an apparent effort to find it.

At a chilly, half-empty FedEx Field on Sunday afternoon, they appeared to come close. There was a failed fake punt and a punt returned for a touchdown. There were St. Louis Rams receivers running wide open toward and through the end zone. There were interceptions, dropped passes, missed blocking assignments, penalties, sacks and chants of “R-G-3! R-G-3!” ringing through the stands in the third quarter.

The Redskins lost again on Sunday, 24-0, the most recent embarrassing performance in a season filled with them. Quarterback Colt McCoy was generally inaccurate in his third start of the season, throwing two interceptions before leaving the game with a neck strain at the two-minute warning. He completed 20 of 32 passes for 199 yards.

Upon his exit, the chanting fans got their wish. Robert Griffin III, the former face of the franchise who was benched by coach Jay Gruden last month, took the field and completed three passes. On fourth down, he overthrew tight end Jordan Reed and trotted back to the sideline, flipping his helmet to an attendant on the way out.

The Redskins fell to 3-10 for the second consecutive season and left the field to a chorus of boos.

Alfred Morris finished with eight carries for six yards. Meanwhile, Shaun Hill threw two touchdown passes for the Rams and Tavon Austin returned a punt 78 yards for a score of his own.

The first half was forgettable at best for both teams. But it began with a promising first drive by the Redskins.

All week, Washington’s coaches had stressed the importance of getting wide receiver Pierre Garcon more involved in the offense, and in the first seven plays, they succeeded. Garcon caught McCoy’s first pass for a 10-yard gain and had three catches for 44 yards in the first seven plays alone.

The drive unraveled when McCoy appeared to overthrow intended receiver Ryan Grant, who didn’t help matters by slipping on the route. Rodney McLeod dove for the interception, stopping Washington’s opening drive just outside the red zone.

And it was all downhill from there.

Facing a Redskins defense without two of its starters — linebacker Keenan Robinson and safety Brandon Meriweather — the Rams moved the ball at will for much of the first half. They got on the board midway through the first quarter, when Hill found tight end Jared Cook running open down the middle of the field from 35 yards out, a play reminiscent of last week’s frequent blown coverages in Indianapolis.

Fortunately for Washington, Rams kicker Greg Zuerlein missed the extra point. For the rest of the first half, in fact, his inaccuracy was all that prevented St. Louis from widening the gap. He missed two field goals, each a chip shot, allowing the Redskins to escape the first 30 minutes with only a 6-0 deficit.

However, there was still one more half to play, 30 more excruciating minutes for those in the half-empty stadium, new lowly depths for the Redskins to discover.

Rams defense earning all ‘A’s’ right now

By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/14421/rams-defense-earning-all-as-right-now

EARTH CITY, Mo. — After his team pitched a shutout for the second consecutive week Sunday against the Washington Redskins, St. Louis Rams defensive end Chris Long sounded like a hard man to impress.

The Rams’ 24-0 win against Washington was their second shutout victory in as many weeks, a feat only the 1945 Rams accomplished. For perspective, the Rams played in Cleveland then.

“I don’t think you’ll find anyone in here who is shocked by it,” Long said. “We’re pleased by it but we’re not shocked. There’s still things we could do better. That’s the crazy part. I don’t feel like we even played our best game on defense today.”

OK, well, how about the fact that for the second time in as many weeks and the third time in the past four games, coordinator Gregg Williams’ defense didn’t allow an opponent to run a single play from inside their 20-yard line?

“Now that right there is pretty cool,” Long said. “It doesn’t surprise me that we can shut two people out in a row, that red zone stat is pretty cool. Coach Williams is a doing a great job, the defense is doing a great job playing team defense, buying in.”

Call it buy-in, call it adapting to the scheme, regardless of your chosen platitude, you won’t find a defense in the NFL playing better than the Rams right now. Including Sunday’s domination of the Redskins, the Rams have now gone 128 minutes and 20 seconds without allowing an opponent to score. According to ESPN Stats and Information, the Rams are the first team since the 2009 Dallas Cowboys to have consecutive shutouts and the fifth to do it since 2000.

The Rams limited Washington to 206 yards of total offense, coming up with seven sacks and a pair of interceptions in the process. Redskins running back Alfred Morris finished with 6 yards on eight carries and was hit in the backfield on five of those eight rushing attempts.

That the Rams are playing good defense right now isn’t really breaking news. Since setting the NFL record for futility in sacks over the first six weeks, the Rams have become the pass rushing tour de force many expected them to be entering the season. Since week 7, the Rams now have 34 sacks, that’s the most in the league in that time.

The differences are many, including improved health at every level of the defense but perhaps nothing is more instructive than the Rams’ ability to adapt to the defense and spend more time identifying what the offense is doing rather than worrying about individual jobs from down to down. Nowhere is that more evident than when the Rams blitz.

To the surprise of no one, Williams is the most blitz happy coordinator in the league but now his group is starting to get home. He dialed up 22 blitzes against Washington quarterback Colt McCoy, bringing the heat on exactly half of Washington’s drop backs. The Rams, led by middle linebacker James Laurinaitis, got five of their seven sacks on those blitzes. That matches the five they had when bringing the heat last week.

And it’s not just a function of bringing the blitz but where it’s coming from. The Rams have been making a habit of attacking the “A” gaps (the space between the center and guard) with greater frequency in the past seven weeks, creating pressure up the middle which allows ends like Robert Quinn, Chris Long, Eugene Sims and William Hayes to run free to the quarterback.

“We knew with a guy like Colt McCoy, he’s a smaller guy so we said ‘Hey, you have to attack the A and B [gaps],’” Laurinaitis said. “When you do that you flush him out to your ends. You attack the A gaps, the quarterback will escape out and they escape out to Chris and Will and Eugene and Rob.”

Laurinaitis, who makes all of the defensive checks at the line of scrimmage, has even found a niche. He has three and a half sacks in the past six games after setting a career high of the same number in 2013.

“I love blitzing, I love it,” Laurinaitis said. “The good thing about blitzing is you don’t have enough time to think, you just go. A lot of times you let your instincts kind of take over. We’re working really well right now as a unit of showing one thing, doing another. Showing blitz, playing coverage and just understanding the whole defense. I think that’s our youth growing up in the back end and like I said getting guys healthy. Now we’ve got to continue to do it.”

Bernie Bytes: Rams love that winning feeling

Bernie Miklasz

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/bernie-miklasz/bernie-bytes-rams-love-that-winning-feeling/article_7b5066a9-5c8c-52fd-9c22-d1a43bc4a038.html

LANDOVER, Md. – Some notes on my flip card following the Rams’ 24-0 victory over the Redskins on Sunday afternoon at FedEx Field. And pardon my typos:

* I realize the Rams have pounded a couple of dysfunctional teams over the last two weeks. We’re talking about the Raiders and Redskins here, two of the lesser NFL outfits. I get it; the Rams didn’t trigger back-to-back wins over the Patriots and Packers. But really, I don’t care about that.

The Rams have been stuck in a depressing cycle of losing for such a long time, I’m not going to sit here and shrug like it’s no big deal to see them demolish the Raiders 52-0, and follow up with a 24-0 smothering of the Redskins. Two shutout wins by a combined score of 76-0? The first consecutive shutouts for the franchise since the CLEVELAND Rams did it in 1945? Are you kidding me? That’s just crazy – and in a good way, for a change.

* Coach Jeff Fisher and his players something going now, and it’s almost surreal to enter a happy Rams’ locker room. Smiling, bright-eyed players slinging good-natured insults at each other. You can feel the energy. And the team’s increased confidence is obvious.

“There’s nothing like this feeling right here, after a win, in an NFL locker room,” Rams linebacker James Laurinaitis said. “It’s addicting.”

* The Rams have won two consecutive games for the first time since taking Games No. 14 (New Orleans) and No. 15 (Tampa Bay) on their 2013 schedule. But this has been brewing for a while now. After starting the season 1-4, the Rams are 5-3. And they’ve gone 3-1 since Fisher reinstalled quarterback Shaun Hill in the starting role. Were it not for Hill’s unfortunate interception at the end of the game in San Diego, the Rams would be taking a four-game winning streak into Thursday night’s home game against Arizona. The Rams are playing their best all-around ball since Fisher became coach in 2012.

* The Rams (6-7) can reach .500 by defeating Arizona. And I won’t be a phony here; I thought this team was burnt pie after losing the heartbreaker in San Diego. The painful loss left the Rams dragging with a 4-7 record, and there was nothing to get revved up about. But Fisher and his staff and the players wouldn’t give in to the frustration, and the Rams worked hard, sharpened their focus and bounced back by wiping out the Raiders and the Redskins. This team’s competitiveness should never be questioned. The Rams make too many mistakes, and they’ve given some games away, but it’s never been because of a lack of intensity. Unlike, say, the Redskins … the Rams’ effort is always there.

* Hill was 16 of 22 for 213 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions Sunday. Hill has a 96.0 passer rating in his four starts since the benching of Austin Davis. In the three victories, Hill has completed 67 percent of his passes, averaged a healthy 8.4 yards per attempt, and passed for five touchdowns without an INT. The passer rating in the three wins is 116.0. And Hill’s veteran leadership has become a positive factor. After the Rams made a mess of mistakes in Sunday’s first half – taking a too-small 6-0 lead to the locker room – Hill had a few things to say. He challenged the offense to clean it up and do better.

“He’s taken charge of that offense,” Fisher said. “He was really adamant about their play, and he took charge at halftime with the guys … that’s just his nature. He’s really into it.”

* The Rams out-rushed the Redskins 131 yards to 27. Ballgame. Without a running game Sunday the Redskins had no chance. Quarterback Colt McCoy was stalked and hounded all afternoon, with the Rams diving in fr seven sacks and two interceptions. The Redskins went 3 for 15 in converting third and fourth downs.

* Over the last six games, the Rams are 4-2, and the defense has absolutely led the way. In this disruptive six-game stretch, the Rams’ defense has allowed six touchdowns from scrimmage … and an average of only nine points per game from scrimmage … and has 29 sacks and 15 takeaways … and has given up a mere 3.2 yards per rushing attempt … and has allowed opponents to convert only 29.6 percent of their third downs. The Gregg Williams system: working.

“It’s just everyone getting comfortable and playing faster and not thinking so much,” Laurinaitis said.

“Guys are out there having fun, selling out, making plays, and creating turnovers,” defensive end Robert Quinn said. “Guys are playing lights out right now. And hopefully we can keep going.”

* Wideout Tavon Austin had 203 all-purpose yards for the Rams here Sunday, with 143 coming on punt returns, and that included his 78-yard runback for a TD. Austin was very effective as a runner, with five carries for 46 yards. In other words: this is what Fisher and GM Les Snead envisioned when they traded up to select Austin No. 8 overall in the 2013 draft.

“I think you saw him today, how special he is,” Fisher said.

* Rams tight end Jared Cook was at the center of controversy last week. Cook and four teammates set off a firestorm of debate and indignation with their “Hands Up” gesture in support of Ferguson. The five Rams had plenty of support for choosing to exercise their first amendment rights. But they drew heavy criticism. Cook became the designated spokesman for his teammates, which left him exposed to even more criticism. But as we saw Sunday, the controversy did not distract Cook or any of the Rams. They went back to work to prepare for the Redskins. And they dominated the game, with Cook contributing two touchdown catches in Sunday’s win.

“Once we get on the practice field, it’s all about business,” Cook said. “And that’s what you’ve got to do. No matter what’s going on, you’ve got to handle your business. That’s what you do as a man.”

* The Rams close with games against Arizona (home), the NY Giants (home) and Seattle (away.) The best they can do is finish 9-7 for their first winning season since 2003. If the Rams win two of three, then it’s an 8-8 record … and their first .500 finish since 2006.

A closer look at Greg Zuerlein’s missed kicks

By Nick Wagoner | ESPN.com

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/14449/a-closer-look-at-greg-zuerleins-missed-kicks

WASHINGTON, D.C. — St. Louis Rams kicker Greg Zuerlein has had some rough days in the NFL. There haven’t been many but none worse than what took place in the first half of the team’s 24-0 win against the Washington Redskins on Sunday.

In those first 30 minutes, Zuerlein missed an extra point and field goal attempts of 28 and 38 yards. Entering the game, Zuerlein had never missed an extra point or a field goal attempt inside 30 yards in his nearly three year career in the NFL.

Earlier this season, Zuerlein had a rough day against Kansas City, missing a 38-yard field goal and mis-hitting a kickoff that led to a 99-yard return for a touchdown by the Chiefs Knile Davis.

But something was clearly off Sunday as Zuerlein pushed all of his misses to the right. Even when he course corrected a bit in the second half, his kicks were still moving to the right.

So what, exactly, was the problem? Was it just a case of the yips?

“Yeah, I think so,” coach Jeff Fisher said. “It happens every once in awhile. He had a great week. He spent a lot of time outside on the grass in the weather and outside and he just had something wrong with the mechanics and the swing.”

I didn’t get a chance to catch up with Zuerlein after the game because the visitors locker room divides the offense and defense and I was spending most of my time catching up with defensive players after their second consecutive shutout. By the time I got back to the offensive side, Zuerlein was gone. To be clear, Zuerlein didn’t avoid anything and he never has. He’s always been a standup guy.

So we turned to quarterback Shaun Hill to get his perspective on if there was anything he could offer that might further explain Zuerlein’s struggles.

“The elements probably didn’t look that bad out there but the grass was long and the field was soft, the wind was blowing,” Hill said. “It’s a rough place to kick today out there for him and really a tough place to throw at times, too.”

That might just sound like a team captain doing what he should and sticking up for a teammate but I can actually vouch for Hill’s assessment of the field conditions. Redskins reporter John Keim and I walked on the field after to shoot our game balls video and it was obvious that the field was in horrible shape.

That’s not really an excuse for Zuerlein, who still has to at least make extra points and there’s little doubt that the first miss probably led to some mental block that led to the others. But it’s still worth noting.

For what it’s worth, Fisher expressed confidence in Zuerlein during and after the game.

“I told him we were going to need him and probably need him to win this game for us,” Fisher said. “So forget what happened and just hit it between those two poles that are at the end of the field. You want to hit them between them, you don’t want to hit them outside.”

Zuerlein’s job appears safe for now but if his problems continue Thursday night against Arizona, the Rams will have no choice but to take a closer look.

Rams the team no one wants to play

By BARRY WILNER

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/rams-team-no-one-wants-play-202437292–nfl.html

The end of the NFL season can be like the climax of a horror film. Many postseason contenders look at their December schedule, see an opponent and say: ”Not Them!”

That team to avoid this year is St. Louis.

Sure, the Rams (6-7) have a minuscule chance to still make the playoffs, even though they’d probably run away with the NFC South. Naturally, making the playoffs should still be their goal, despite the long odds.

But the reality is that the Rams are making it very uncomfortable for anyone they line up against. And in two of the next three weeks, they will line up against the Cardinals and Seahawks, the teams vying for the NFC West title – and potentially home-field advantage throughout the conference playoffs.

St. Louis comes off consecutive shutouts. Yes, the Rams blanked Oakland and Washington, and these are not quite the John Madden Raiders or Joe Gibbs Redskins.

But the defense has become, to use a once-familiar adjective for the franchise, fearsome. The previous time the Rams shut out two straight opponents was 1945. Not even their Deacon Jones-led Fearsome Foursome managed that feat.

”1945? We’re about to shut out three!” defensive tackle Michael Brockers said. ”When’s the last time we shut out three?”

Never.

But as Arizona comes calling on Thursday night – that would be banged-up Arizona now without its top running back, Andre Ellington – who’s to say the Rams won’t make history?

”I am really excited for the guys. Back-to-back shutouts are pretty impressive. I’ve been told it hasn’t happened since the ’40s in our organization,” said coach Jeff Fisher, who also should be excited for himself and his staff.

Fisher’s nearly three decades of NFL coaching have been highlighted by several rebuilding projects. He’s in Year 3 with the Rams, and things looked bleak early in the schedule.

Indeed, there were critics who believed Fisher was on the hot seat when St. Louis was 1-4.

The truth is, he hasn’t had his full roster for nearly his entire tenure in St. Loo. Fisher still doesn’t know who will be his quarterback going forward in the league’s best division.

What he does know, and what the rest of the league is recognizing, is that the former defensive back with the great Chicago Bears of the 1980s has a defense to avoid.

”It has a lot to do with the health and familiarity of the guys,” Fisher said after Sunday’s win at Washington. ”Guys are maturing and we are getting a lot of positive plays out of a lot of guys. The secondary is playing well and they are challenging people. When you are getting sacks and takeaways and you aren’t giving away the ball on offense, you have a chance to win a lot of games.”

The Cardinals and Seahawks are very aware of that. They also might shudder when they hear Fisher add: ”I look at this saying, ‘We can play better.’ ”

On defense, that’s difficult to imagine. They had seven sacks among six players against the Redskins, and tend to get pressure from everyone in the rotation, led, of course, by Robert Quinn.

After a horrendous start, with no sacks in his first five games, he has 10 1-2. The fourth-year defensive end, along with fellow DE Chris Long, tackles Brockers and rookie Aaron Donald, and linebacker James Laurinaitis, form the youthful foundation of a formidable unit.

That unit is getting the hang of intense coordinator Gregg Williams’ schemes, making it almost a match for the other strong defenses in the division. It might already be better than injury-damaged San Francisco’s D.

Fisher’s teams always have had standout running games, and he’s searched for the right ball carriers since Steven Jackson left in 2013. It appears they have the answer in big-play rookie Tre Mason.

It all might add up to only a .500 season or worse this year for the Rams. But it makes them Public Enemy No. 1 for the Cardinals and Seahawks, division rivals with big aspirations that Fisher’s ”guys” just might deflate.

I do believe Schottenheimer is putting Tavon outside more, and that is better for his game. But I also think he is looking better because he has gone against weaker defenses that don’t have discipline. Austin is exactly the kind of player that can maximize damage against an undisciplined defense.

But I still don’t think he will ever amount to much against disciplined defenses. Tavon Austin against a tough defense like the turn of the century Bucs or Ravens would just git kilt. He will be a good regular season player, and disappear in the playoffs. Except, maybe, as a returner.

Zooey wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>wv wrote:</div>
“..Titans turned that trick…as did the two best defenses of the last 45 years, the 1985 Bears and the 2000 Ravens. Notably the two teams to record THREE straight shutouts are the 1970 St. Louis Cardinals and the 1976 Pittsburgh Steelers. This defense appears to have turned the corner toward living up to its hype….”

The Cardinals
had a great Defense??

I dont remember that.

w
v

I don’t either. But statistical anomalies happen. And it was a low-scoring era.

I saw on the list of back-to-back shutouts the 1974 49ers, and that caught my eye because my memory is that the 49ers were not a good football team in the 70s. I looked them up, and they finished 6-8 in 1974. That isn’t the 76 Steelers.

But then…neither are the 14 Rams.

I look up the 74 season…

RAMS pitched 2 shuts that year, vs Saints and Falcons, (not back-to-back)

SF, pitched back-to-back shut outs to Bears and Falcons that year, ironically, SF was shut out the following week 7-0 in Cleveland. 7 points allowed over 3 games is not bad.

SF’s defense was getting old but were decent back then…. also, they needed a QB to replace Brodie…..didn’t happen until Montana got there in 79.

Rams defense was great back then, very underrated.

They pitched at least 1 shut out every year from 1973 to 1979.

1973 2 shut outs
1974 2 shut outs
1975 1 shut out
1976 1 shut out
1977 3 shut outs
1978 1 shut out
1979 3 shut outs, the 3rd in the NFC Championship game.

they didn’t hold anyone scoreless again until 1985, when they did it twice, to KC and Dallas, unfortunately they got skunked against the Bears in the NFC Championship.