UPGRADE!!! 1978 Steelers 15 vs Browns 9 OT (Flea Flicker game)

[mcmillenandwife]

> 1978 Steelers 15 vs Browns 9 OT

UPGRADE! The famous "flea-flicker" OT game! Pittsburgh wins this hard-hitting defensive battle on a play dubbed "High School Right" (officially named "fake 84 reverse-gadget pass"). On the play, Bradshaw hands off to Bleier, who hands off to Swann, who pitches the ball back to Bradshaw, who throws a picture-perfect bomb to a wide-open Bennie Cunningham for the game-winning TD.

While this play is a highlight reel-favorite and one of the most famous plays in Steeler history, there are plenty of other memorable moments. Jack Lambert is ferocious, capping an afternoon of excellence by making the biggest defensive play of the game when he DESTROYS Mike Pruitt for a loss in the final seconds of regulation, knocking Cleveland out of FG range. L.C. Greenwood, Donnie Shell and Dwight White also shine on a day in which the defense, emulating Lambert's "kill 'em all" attitude, is flagged for 4 personal fouls.

While Pittsburgh's offense generally struggles, Lynn Swann dazzles with 6 catches for 83 yds, five of which come after Swannie absorbs one of the most vicious shots you will EVER see at the 39:45 mark). While breaking toward the sideline, Swann reaches out to snare a pass when suddenly... BAM!!! Ron Bolton leaves his feet and demolishes Swann with a shoulder to the head at full speed. Swann's entire body snaps backward, his feet fly up in the air and he hits the ground with a sickening thud. NBC announcers Enberg and Olsen gasp in horror and the crowd let's out a collective "Ooohhh!" Such a hit would've resulted in a flag, a fine and a suspension in today's NFL. But Swannie bounces up, adjusts his face mask and returns the the huddle without missing a play, a testament to his toughness.

Chuck Noll is full of surprises in this game. Roy Gerela recovers his own perfectly executed (and totally unexpected) onside kick in the 4th quarter, and even though the drive ends without points, the Steelers soon get the ball back and Gerela connects on a 36-yd FG to tie the game. Even the final play of regulation is crazy when Tony Dungy intercepts Sipe's Hail Mary in the end zone and nearly weaves his way coast-to-coast with no time on the clock.

In overtime, the infamous "Three Rivers Jinx" finally rears its head to preserve the win for Pittsburgh. On the OT kickoff, Larry Anderson stumbles, falls to one knee (but is not touched), gets back up and fumbles the ball. The Browns recover and the Cleveland offense trots on the field, but the officials incorrectly rule Anderson is down by contact and the Steelers retain possession. Bradshaw hits Cunningham on "High School Right" a few plays later and the rest is history.

[Guest]

How about that pick and runback by Dungy? For a moment, I thought he was going to go all the way!

[JimmyCooper49]

This was a typical Browns vs the Three Rivers Jinx game. Steelers always seemed to blow the Browns off the field in Cleveland but the Browns always seemed to play very tough in Pittsburgh and lose stupidly. I'd say as far as bad blood rivalries go Browns Steelers was 2nd only to Raiders Steelers as far as completely mean brutal football goes.

[mcmillenandwife]

This was a typical Browns vs the Three Rivers Jinx game.  Steelers always seemed to blow the Browns off the field in Cleveland but the Browns always seemed to play very tough in Pittsburgh and lose stupidly. I'd say as far as bad blood rivalries go Browns Steelers was 2nd only to Raiders Steelers as far as completely mean brutal football goes.

Yes, next to Steelers/Raiders, this was it. As a Steeler fan growing up in Ohio, I absolutely DESPISED the Browns. Ultimately, it kinda carried over to Steelers/Ravens. But I miss the true Steelers/Browns rivalry pre-Model move.

[Garrett Garlits]

Don't forget, there are bonus highlights from This Week in Pro Football on the left side of the game description!

[Vaughn_Doofus]

Questionable call on the OT kickoff. I didn't remember that.

[mcmillenandwife]

Questionable call on the OT kickoff.  I didn't remember that.

  Yes, beyond questionable. I get why the officials might've thought Anderson was down, but they blew it. We caught a huge break there. 

Gotta love The Jinx! 

[mcmillenandwife]

Major upgrade!!! Thanks to Steve Burkhart for providing us with the new version of this game!!!

[Garrett Garlits]

Is the upgrade available? I just clicked on it and got a black screen.

[mcmillenandwife]

Is the upgrade available? I just clicked on it and got a black screen.

It's there (see screen capture below). The old version is still in your cache, so until your computer refreshes (or you delete cookies and your history), the new version won't show up. Google Chrome is especially stubborn this way.

If you go to "incognito mode" or use a different browser (Firefox, IE), you'll be able to see the new version.

[Garrett Garlits]

First, the good news: I just tried the Steelers-Browns game again, and it works perfectly. I didn't have time to watch more than a few seconds, but the video quality is pristine. Thanks for bringing it to us!

Now for the bad news: Your other upload (the Oilers-Dolphins Wild Card game) doesn't even have a screen; when I click on it, there's only a message that your domain has just been registered.

[mcmillenandwife]

Now for the bad news: Your other upload (the Oilers-Dolphins Wild Card game) doesn't even have a screen; when I click on it, there's only  a message that your domain has just been registered.

D'oh!!!    It's fixed now. Thanks for the heads up!

[Rollers]

just watched the Brown's game. I'm spending way to much time watching these games

[Rollers]

I just went back to watch the end of that game again and couldn't get it to play

[Krunch]

Awesome game. Dirt Dungy with that interception! I don't remember Bradshaw playing so fast - he was a maniac.

[mcmillenandwife]

A few other observations about this game.

First... Donnie Shell -- who was just beginning to emerge in '78 -- is a BEAST in this game. An INT on the first play of the game, a sack, multiple tackles for loss, consistently excellent coverage and multiple passes defensed. 

Second... Lynn Swann's toughness is on full display in this game. 

Former Raider cheap-shot artist George Atkinson is full of shit about many things, most of all when it comes to Lynn Swann supposedly being "soft." As mentioned in the game comments, Swann takes one of the most brutal shots you will ever see  at 39:45. Had this happened in the modern era, it would've resulted in flags, fines and a likely suspension. But Swann simply bounces up, adjusts his facemask and continues to fearlessly go across the middle for the rest of the game, making 5 of his game-leading 6 catches after the hit, all of them in traffic.  

Again, it's not just that he took the shot and got up; it's that he took that shot and continued to go over the middle and make big catches. Not only did he not hear footsteps, he went on to catch 5 more to lead all receivers.

I think I'm going to put together a video highlighting Swann's play in this game. It's a concise resume of his toughness, which has been obscured over the years by the mythology of George Atkinson, who is one of the biggest douche bags to ever play the game. 

Third... Larry Anderson tries awfully damn hard to give this game away with his kickoff fumbles. Beyond the bullet he dodged in OT thanks to blind officials, he fumbled a kick return away in the first half that set Cleveland up at the Steeler 14. The defense steps up and forces a FG, but my goodness... 

Fourth... in addition to Jack Lambert and Donnie Shell playing dominating games, rookie CB Ron Johnson plays a nearly flawless game (other than a bogus PI call at end of 3rd). L.C. Greenwood is a game changer. Multiple times, the Browns are in the midst of a solid drive when Greenwood steps up with a big play to disrupt the flow. Dwight White plays an excellent game, too, although a stupid late hit overturns an LC Greenwood sack in the 3rd.

Fifth... the penalties in this game on Pittsburgh are ridiculous. Admittedly, many of them valid. But many are not. By the end of 3rd quarter, the penalty count is 5 for 50 vs 11 for 118 for Pittsburgh (who has only 153 yds of total offense t that point). Lots a lots of bad calls by the officials in this one. And while Cleveland is the victim of the most egregious bad call, Pittsburgh is badly hurt as well.

Sixth... tHe Gerela onside kick early in the 4th quarter was a flippin' brilliant call by Chuck Noll. Perfectly timed and executed. Unfortunately, it didn't result in points for Pittsburgh. But it as one of many excellent and out of character calls by Noll in this game.

Lastly... there's a cool "eyes in back of his head" run by Bradshaw at 2:01:45. He somehow feels the pressure right behind him without seeing it. Fun to watch.

[mcmillenandwife]

Awesome game.  Dirt Dungy with that interception!  I don't remember Bradshaw playing so fast - he was a maniac.

This wasn't a great game overall for Terry, but he had plenty of great "moments." His pocket presence by this point in his career was outstanding, and he demonstrates it repeatedly in this game.

[Rollers]

I guess I have to let the game stay open a while before playing it. I left it up by accident and when I came back to the computer it played just fine. Don't know why that is