Sept 8 in Jet History: Jets Top Bills in Bledsoe Return
Sept 8, 2015 5:47:46 GMT -5
thebigragu and jetfrantik like this
Post by Lithfan on Sept 8, 2015 5:47:46 GMT -5
September 8, 2002
The date was September 8, 2002, and the Bills were hosting the Jets in Rich Stadium in Orchard park, NY.
Just under a year earlier, 9/23/01, Drew Bledsoe was quarterbacking the New England Patriots in a week 2 matchup against the Jets in Foxboro. The Pats were trailing 10-3 with about 5 minutes left on the clock. They had a 3rd and 10 at their own 19. Bledsoe dropped to pass, and with no receiver open, he took off to run towards his right trying to pick up the first down. The Jets Mo Lewis would hit Bledsoe and knock him out of bounds after an 8-yard pick up. It looked like a routine hit, but Bledsoe suffered internal injuries and would miss the rest of the regular season (he did return in one playoff game). He was traded to Buffalo in the offseason and opened the 2002 campaign against the same Jets team that ended his season and effectively ended his Patriots career.
The Bills dominated on the stat sheet, but not on the scoreboard. Buffalo jumped out to a 10-0 lead early in the 2nd quarter on a Travis Henry 10-yard run. Henry would finish with 149 yards and 3 TDs on the day, but it was a Jets special teamer who stole the show.
After the Henry TD, Jets return man Chad Morton took the following kickoff 98 yards to make it a 10-7 game. Bledsoe would be picked off deep in his own territory by Donnie Abraham on the Bills next drive, setting the Jets up in the red zone. 3 plays later, Vinny Testaverde would hit Anthony Becht for a 1 yard TD and the Jets had a 14-10 lead. The Bills would answer with Travis Henry’s 2nd TD run to take a 17-14 halftime lead.
The Jets regained the lead, converting a blocked punt into 3, and taking advantage of a defensive pass interference penalty that nullified a Bills interception. On the very next play, Testaverde hit Wayne Chrebet for an 18-yard TD and a 31-24 lead with less than 5 minutes remaining. Bledsoe connected with Eric Moulds for a 29-yard TD with 34 seconds remaining to force OT.
Video above is a Top 10 plays from 2002 season. The first play shown is the Morton kick return in OT.
#5 on the list is a pretty nifty move by Pennington.
It was a short overtime, as the Jets won the toss and took the ball. Chad Morton took his 2nd kick return all the way going 96 yards for the game winning TD. The Jets only held the ball for about 20 minutes, but big plays: 2 kick return TDs, a blocked punt, and 2 interceptions were enough for the Jets to escape Buffalo with a 37-31 victory. Morton's two kick returns are the only time in NFL history that a player returned two kicks for TDs including 1 in OT.
The date was September 8, 2002, and the Bills were hosting the Jets in Rich Stadium in Orchard park, NY.
Just under a year earlier, 9/23/01, Drew Bledsoe was quarterbacking the New England Patriots in a week 2 matchup against the Jets in Foxboro. The Pats were trailing 10-3 with about 5 minutes left on the clock. They had a 3rd and 10 at their own 19. Bledsoe dropped to pass, and with no receiver open, he took off to run towards his right trying to pick up the first down. The Jets Mo Lewis would hit Bledsoe and knock him out of bounds after an 8-yard pick up. It looked like a routine hit, but Bledsoe suffered internal injuries and would miss the rest of the regular season (he did return in one playoff game). He was traded to Buffalo in the offseason and opened the 2002 campaign against the same Jets team that ended his season and effectively ended his Patriots career.
The Bills dominated on the stat sheet, but not on the scoreboard. Buffalo jumped out to a 10-0 lead early in the 2nd quarter on a Travis Henry 10-yard run. Henry would finish with 149 yards and 3 TDs on the day, but it was a Jets special teamer who stole the show.
After the Henry TD, Jets return man Chad Morton took the following kickoff 98 yards to make it a 10-7 game. Bledsoe would be picked off deep in his own territory by Donnie Abraham on the Bills next drive, setting the Jets up in the red zone. 3 plays later, Vinny Testaverde would hit Anthony Becht for a 1 yard TD and the Jets had a 14-10 lead. The Bills would answer with Travis Henry’s 2nd TD run to take a 17-14 halftime lead.
The Jets regained the lead, converting a blocked punt into 3, and taking advantage of a defensive pass interference penalty that nullified a Bills interception. On the very next play, Testaverde hit Wayne Chrebet for an 18-yard TD and a 31-24 lead with less than 5 minutes remaining. Bledsoe connected with Eric Moulds for a 29-yard TD with 34 seconds remaining to force OT.
Video above is a Top 10 plays from 2002 season. The first play shown is the Morton kick return in OT.
#5 on the list is a pretty nifty move by Pennington.
It was a short overtime, as the Jets won the toss and took the ball. Chad Morton took his 2nd kick return all the way going 96 yards for the game winning TD. The Jets only held the ball for about 20 minutes, but big plays: 2 kick return TDs, a blocked punt, and 2 interceptions were enough for the Jets to escape Buffalo with a 37-31 victory. Morton's two kick returns are the only time in NFL history that a player returned two kicks for TDs including 1 in OT.
