The Fumble
- This article is about "The Fumble" in the history of the Cleveland Browns. For "The Fumble," in New York Giants lore, see The Miracle at the Meadowlands.
The Fumble refers to a specific incident in the January 17, 1988 AFC Championship Game between the Cleveland Browns and the Denver Broncos.
During the game, the Broncos jumped to a 21-3 halftime lead, but Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar led them back with 4 second-half touchdowns. By the middle of the fourth quarter, the game was tied 31-31. The Broncos then took the lead on a long drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown pass from quarterback John Elway to running back Sammy Winder, making the score 38-31 with 5 minutes left in the game. Cleveland responded by advancing the ball down to Denver's 2-yard line 1:12 left, setting the stage for the play that would make this game one of the most famous games in NFL Lore.
Browns running back Earnest Byner took a handoff and appeared to be on his way to score the game-tying touchdown. But he was stripped of the ball by Broncos defensive back Jeremiah Castille, and fumbled at the 3-yard line. The Broncos recovered the ball, gave the Browns an intentional safety, and went on to win 38-33. While Byner took a lot of heat from Browns fans and the media for his fumble, what is often overlooked is that he was one of the main reasons Cleveland came so close to winning the game. He had a superb performance with 67 rushing yards, 7 receptions for 120 yards, and 2 touchdowns.
Despite being primarily remembered for "The Fumble," Byner actually went on to have an extremely successful career after the 1987 season in which it happened. After spending another year with the Browns, he was traded to the Washington Redskins prior to the start of 1989 season for running back Mike Oliphant. In his five seasons with Washington, Byner was selected to play in the Pro Bowl twice (1990, 1991) and won a Super Bowl ring with the team in the 1991 season. In that season's Super Bowl XXVI, in 1992, he caught a touchdown pass in the first quarter, and the Redskins won, giving him the NFL Championship ring he could not win with the Browns.
He ended up going back to Cleveland for two more years, and then finished his career in 1998, after spending two years with the transplanted Baltimore Ravens. In his 14 NFL seasons, Byner rushed for 8,261 yards, caught 512 passes for 4,605 yards, and scored 72 total touchdowns (56 rushing, 15 receiving, 1 fumble recovery). At the time of his retirement, Byner ranked within the NFL's top 30 all-time leaders in rushing attempts, rushing touchdowns, rushing yards, and total yards.
[edit] References
- Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (ISBN 0-06-270174-6)
