Non-football Football Sunday Bills at Browns Div. Round Playoff ‘89

[Chandler#81]

The birth of the ‘Keith (killer) McKeller Gun’ offense.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_McKeller

 

click on attached link

Edited March 27, 2022 by Chandler#81

[gomper]

Ah yes, the great Charlie Jones on the call.

[RobbRiddick]

41 minutes ago, gomper said:

Ah yes, the great Charlie Jones on the call.

 

He really was great. You never hear him talked about like some of the other old school announcers but he was one of my favorites. He also did the comeback game and did a great job

[macnmotion]

I was at that game, sat in the Dog Pound during the drive. Looking back it's a good thing Harmon dropped the pass, I might have been killed.

[stinky finger]

32 minutes ago, macnmotion said:

I was at that game, sat in the Dog Pound during the drive. Looking back it's a good thing Harmon dropped the pass, I might have been killed.

Consequences 

[Billsatlastin2018]

42 minutes ago, macnmotion said:

I was at that game, sat in the Dog Pound during the drive. Looking back it's a good thing Harmon dropped the pass, I might have been killed.

Yep!

 

As we all put into the Bills folklore that day: 

 

“Ronnie ***** Harmon” 

[Rocket94]

3 hours ago, Chandler#81 said:

The birth of the ‘Keith (killer) McKeller Gun’ offense.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_McKeller

 

click on attached link

Sunday was different then’ 1:00 games! But Ronnie Harmon!

[Milano]

1 hour ago, macnmotion said:

I was at that game, sat in the Dog Pound during the drive. Looking back it's a good thing Harmon dropped the pass, I might have been killed.

 

9 minutes ago, Rocket94 said:

Sunday was different then’ 1:00 games! But Ronnie Harmon!

 

27 minutes ago, Billsatlastin2018 said:

Yep!

 

As we all put into the Bills folklore that day: 

 

“Ronnie ***** Harmon” 

Dude, that's amazing. One of the best playoff games ever, for some reason doesn't get much attention, should be replayed in its entirety. K Gun resulted from this game. F'ing heartbreaker.

[ALLEN1QB]

31 minutes ago, Billsatlastin2018 said:

Yep!

 

As we all put into the Bills folklore that day: 

 

“Ronnie ***** Harmon” 

Sure needed Diggs that day.

[CSBill]

I watched that game with a bunch of Browns fans. It was a sad day. But it kind of reminds me of the feelings I had at the end of the Chiefs game this season: this team is right there, and it is ready to break out next year.

 

Harmon drop = 13 Seconds

[Billsatlastin2018]

23 minutes ago, ALLEN1QB said:

Sure needed Diggs that day.

 

There is extensive historical back and forth about the Pass. Harmon threw Kelly under the Bus, for it being too high. Kelly, never a shy flower, fired back. Thurman ORIGINALLY supported his fellow RB, then changed his tune. My opinion was and is, that it was an easy catch for a top flight Receiver!
 

It was the original salvo in the Bickering Bills era.That shite had to end to go forward and eventually, it did, after the Ballard incident.

 

All in all, Ronnie got sent packing the next year and a HOFer took his place! It is easily in the Top 5 of bitter Bills’ losses. (Weallknow#1)🙄 A great game that started up the invention of the ‘K Gun’, never seen before in the NFL.

[Billsatlastin2018]

21 minutes ago, CSBill said:

I watched that game with a bunch of Browns fans. It was a sad day. But it kind of reminds me of the feelings I had at the end of the Chiefs game this season: this team is right there, and it is ready to break out next year.

 

Harmon drop = 13 Seconds

uh, uh!👎🏻

 

‘13 seconds’ was way, way, way, way, way worse! It was a multiple HCing FUBAR of unprecedented proportions in NFL history!
 

That clown Harmon simply dropped a Pass.

[CSBill]

8 minutes ago, Billsatlastin2018 said:

uh, uh!👎🏻

 

‘13 seconds’ was way, way, way, way, way worse! It was a multiple HCing FUBAR of unprecedented proportions in NFL history!
 

That clown Harmon simply dropped a Pass.

 

I see your point. My point is that hopefully it becomes a catalyst or defining moment that pushes the franchise forward. Two things come from the Harmon drop (and symbolically, both games in question): (1) They could walk away from that game knowing they could play with and beat anyone. And, (2) It sparked a motivation and determination to come back better next year!--and for years to come. Time will tell if that is the result of 13 seconds. Based on the off-season moves, I would say it has so far.

[Billsatlastin2018]

7 minutes ago, CSBill said:

 

I see your point. My point is that hopefully it becomes a catalyst or defining moment that pushes the franchise forward. I would say it has so far.

Well said.

 

But sorry.

 

For me, it was such a short series of cataclysmically bad Coaching decisions, that in the minds of most of us- it cost the Bills their first SB.

 

I can’t remove it until they do!   

[PonyBoy]

Yikes! The Don Beebe head bounce 😨

[JaCrispy]

This is the first Bills game I ever saw...The game that gave birth to a new fan...👍

[george c]

I was at that game. 
‘The Browns fan base is just the worst in the world. Wearing Bills gear, We literally felt like a mob was going to kill us leaving that stadium.  I take great solace in every single franchise destroying mistake they make. From every bad QB, to Haslam as the owner, to OBJ, from Manziel to Mayfield to Couch, they got it coming…

[Chandler#81]

1 hour ago, Milano said:

 

 

Dude, that's amazing. One of the best playoff games ever, for some reason doesn't get much attention, should be replayed in its entirety. K Gun resulted from this game. F'ing heartbreaker.

Whachootalkin’bout, Willis? 😳 It’s IS replayed in its entirety.

[mushypeaches]

To this day, this is the only playoff loss that I have ever had the stomach or inclination to re-watch.  Probably because it was such a great game and spurred the team to the successes of the next few years.

[SoMAn]

5 Bills playoff games with defeat snatched from the jaws of what could have been victories. 
About 6 or 7 plays total decided the outcomes of these 5 playoff games:

Browns ‘89

Titans ‘92

Giants ‘90

Texans ‘19

Chiefs ‘21

 

observations watching vintage game film…

the officials appear much older and  less fit than today’s crews. 

QB hits were brutal. The rule changes protecting quarterbacks are some of the best changes in recent times. Originally the rule was scoffed at, and jokes were made about quarterbacks in skirts, but so much of the team’s cap is dedicated to that position and those are the marquee names that increase viewership = $$$.

Good rule. 
Personal note-

That Browns Game was memorable for me as I watched the first half at a local sports bar with my fellow Bills fans, then had to see the ending in hospital after breaking my ankle in three places at halftime playing parking lot football.  
32 years later I can still feel it. 

 

 

 

 

[Chandler#81]

12 minutes ago, SoMAn said:

5 Bills playoff games with defeat snatched from the jaws of what could have been victories. 
About 6 or 7 plays total decided the outcomes of these 5 playoff games:

Browns ‘89

Titans ‘92

Giants ‘90

Texans ‘19

Chiefs ‘21

 

observations watching vintage game film…

the officials appear much older and  less fit than today’s crews. 

QB hits were brutal. The rule changes protecting quarterbacks are some of the best changes in recent times. Originally the rule was scoffed at, and jokes were made about quarterbacks in skirts, but so much of the team’s cap is dedicated to that position and those are the marquee names that increase viewership = $$$.

Good rule. 
Personal note-

That Browns Game was memorable for me as I watched the first half at a local sports bar with my fellow Bills fans, then had to see the ending in hospital after breaking my ankle in three places at halftime playing parking lot football.  
32 years later I can still feel it. 

 

 

 

 

Great post. 1 counterpoint; EVERY game is decided by 6-7 plays.🤷‍♂️

[JohnNord]

7 hours ago, Chandler#81 said:

The birth of the ‘Keith (killer) McKeller Gun’ offense.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_McKeller

 

click on attached link

This was a fun game to watch.  This was the season before I started watching football but I’ve watched this game several times since it was posted on YouTube.  
 

- The actually game looked so much more physical compared to today.  The players look bigger in their bulky shoulder pads, giant face masks, and cowboy collars.  So many tackles/hits would be penalties in today’s game.

 

- Kelly’s offensive game gave him a TON of time to pass.  On the last drive alone he had so much time to be patient and find his receivers.  

 

- Thurman had such a burst back In 1989. 
 

- Harmon’s drop was pretty bad.  He should have made that catch even by 1989 standards.   His specialty was as a pass receiving back and that was a catch he should have made.  
 

- Kelly’s INT to Matthews was a really bad decision 

[SoMAn]

52 minutes ago, Chandler#81 said:

Great post. 1 counterpoint; EVERY game is decided by 6-7 plays.🤷‍♂️

I didn’t mean six or seven plays for a single game.  I was referring to 5 playoff games (all losses) that were collectively decided by 6 or 7 plays.  300 minutes (+ OT) of football decided by that handful of plays.  A dropped pass in the end zone, wide right, special teams screwup with seconds remaining, amazing escape from a certain sack by Deshaun Watson, and 13 seconds of either poor coaching or missed assignments.  6 or 7 plays that may well have changed the outcome of all 5 postseason games.
 

Edited March 27, 2022 by SoMAn

[Let's Go Buffalo]

This was the first game that I can remember tearing up over! I was just a kid back then, and I remember going to my room after I watched the game on TV, and thinking what in the **** just happened! 

[Paup 1995MVP]

6 hours ago, Billsatlastin2018 said:

uh, uh!👎🏻

 

‘13 seconds’ was way, way, way, way, way worse! It was a multiple HCing FUBAR of unprecedented proportions in NFL history!
 

That clown Harmon simply dropped a Pass.

Back in January 1990 when Harmon dropped that pass, it felt just as bad as when we blew the lead to KC.  32 years later not so much.  But at the time it was certainly heartbreaking.  

 

Our defense was not good enuf the past two seasons in clutch time.  Its that simple.  Our D line did not get key sacks, and we gave up big completions at inopportune times in both Chief playoff losses.  Hopefully the signings we have made the past couple weeks, (plus getting rid of Levi Wallace)  will get us over the top come playoff time next season.  (And for all you who think Levi Wallace did a good job.  I have news for you.  He was the weak link in our secondary.  Management new that.  That's why we didn't bring him back, and why Pittsburgh signed him on the cheap.)

[Rico]

9 hours ago, gomper said:

Ah yes, the great Charlie Jones on the call.

Seems to me that the Comeback playoff game against the Oilers was the 1st time he ever called a Bills win.

[RalphWilson'sNewWar]

I just love how the field in this game is falling apart and the fans are right on top of the field in the one end zone.

 

Thurman covered in mud.

 

The Brown’s head coach just ditching the headset.

 

art Modell going crazy on the game ending interception.

 

This game has more personality to me then maybe any game I’ve watched in five years

Edited March 27, 2022 by RalphWilson'sNewWar

[HankBulloughMellencamp]

23 hours ago, george c said:

I was at that game. 
‘The Browns fan base is just the worst in the world. Wearing Bills gear, We literally felt like a mob was going to kill us leaving that stadium.  I take great solace in every single franchise destroying mistake they make. From every bad QB, to Haslam as the owner, to OBJ, from Manziel to Mayfield to Couch, they got it coming…

 

(reposting this from a while back...)

 

Bills at Browns "Ronnie Harmon drop" game, back in January of 1990, pre-internet, and the days when 'tickets going on sale Saturday' meant physically waiting in line at AM&A's very early Saturday morning. Made the mistake of answering the question "which section would you like?" with a youthfully exuberant 'how about two down there in the Dawg Pound'. Drove down the 90 with three other buddies, fresh out of high school, two of whom had seats with other fellow Bills fans travelling via bus. Checked into the Stouffer Tower City Plaza down near Cleveland Municipal Stadium the night before, saw OJ in the lobby prepping for NBC work, no big deal, no problem, the Bills are going to win this one. My buddy and I dressed head-to-toe in red white and blue for the game, our outfits topped off with our new Bills shiny-red OSHA-approved hard helmets. Whooped it up in the hotel room before making the short walk to the stadium as game time approached, and with pre-game beverages running their course, felt quite invincible. Hello Cleveland!! Let's go!!! This is the playoffs, baby!

 

First sign of trouble occurred as we approached our entry gate near the Dawg Pound. A "Buffalo sucks!" chant was growing louder as we waited to have our tickets ripped, and we then slowly realized that all sets of eyes were focused squarely on us with our shiny new red helmets, nary another Bills supporter to be found. Have you ever had an angry mob chanting, pointing, and staring you down? It's a little unsettling. Recall thinking, 'OK, this might not have been the best idea'.

 

Got to our seats, the last two on the aisle about halfway up from field level, in mid-Dawg Pound. Faced a barrage of insults, jeers and threats ... which we were certainly opening ourselves up to with our choice of threads (and especially helmets). We vowed from that moment on to go Richie incognito to any and all future away games (like the two quiet, un-heckled Bills fans in front of us).

 

Amazing game, Beebe gets bounced off his head, and the Kelly-era Bills come of age and of course come up just short. Browns fans would get right up in our grills and threaten all manners of bodily harm. At one point someone came down the aisle from behind and in one motion ripped my buddy's helmet off and chucked it ten rows lower. A short time later, a Browns enthusiast came down the aisle and told my buddy that he was "... going to piss in that helmet ... and dump it on your head!!" He sure sounded like he meant business, but this thankfully never came to pass. I believe that it was broken into pieces and devoured by him and/or his fellow crazy denizens of the Dawg Pound as a sort of playoff biscuit.

 

Felt quite demoralized and borderline less than human afterwards, and on the long walk back to hotel, someone grabbed my helmet from behind and tossed it over a construction fence. Hadn't we been through enough, Cleveland? I climbed it to retrieve my precious headgear ... they weren't getting both of those helmets, dammit! I really don't blame Browns fans, we were young and stupid and pretty much asking for it. And come playoff time, I am certain that I have (verbally) treated neighboring fans of the opposition at the Ralph in ways that I am not proud of in retrospect, perhaps as payback for this day.

 

Went Richie incognito to Bills at Steelers playoff tilt at Three Rivers the next year, a nice Bills victory, and had a wonderful experience. Even if you are outed when you forego a high-five to a neighbor after an opposing score, you don't have to walk around the concourse sticking out like a sore thumb.

Edited March 28, 2022 by HankBulloughMellencamp

[george c]

We had no issues at all in Pittsburgh. Great time at the 91’/92’ playoff game. 
We’ve been to Gillette, and we’re treated to food and drinks by most Pats fans.

Jacksonville was awesome. Nice fans, great time.

Cleveland fans? Not all, but obviously it seems ok at their stadium to be beyond rude….I hope they have another two decades getting what they deserve.

[njbuff]

Well, if Ronnie Harmon catches that pass, the Bills would have went on to lose 5 SB's in a row. Ouch.