Checkdowns: Biggest turnarounds
Posted by Chase Stuart on January 15, 2011
The Patriots beat the Jets 45-3 on a Monday Night massacre in Foxboro just six weeks ago. Sixty-one times in league history has a team lost by 30+ points and then later beat that same opponent in a rematch that season. It's only happened 12 times, though, where the first defeat came by 40 or more points. The full list of 61, below:
| year | Team | Opp | Game 1 | Diff | Game 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | KAN | DEN | 44-13 (Dec. 6) | 31 | 44-24 (Jan. 3) |
| 2009 | TAM | NOR | 38-7 (Nov. 22) | 31 | 20-17 (Dec. 27) |
| 2008 | CHI | GNB | 37-3 (Nov. 16) | 34 | 20-17 (Dec. 22) |
| 2007 | BAL | PIT | 38-7 (Nov. 5) | 31 | 27-21 (Dec. 30) |
| 2005 | WAS | NYG | 36-0 (Oct. 30) | 36 | 35-20 (Dec. 24) |
| 2003 | NWE | BUF | 31-0 (Sep. 7) | 31 | 31-0 (Dec. 27) |
| 2002 | NYJ | NWE | 44-7 (Sep. 15) | 37 | 30-17 (Dec. 22) |
| 2000 | SDG | KAN | 42-10 (Sep. 17) | 32 | 17-16 (Nov. 26) |
| 2000 | CHI | TAM | 41-0 (Sep. 10) | 41 | 13-10 (Nov. 19) |
| 1999 | CLE | PIT | 43-0 (Sep. 12) | 43 | 16-15 (Nov. 14) |
| 1998 | IND | NYJ | 44-6 (Sep. 20) | 38 | 24-23 (Nov. 15) |
| 1995 | NYJ | MIA | 52-14 (Sep. 3) | 38 | 17-16 (Oct. 22) |
| 1995 | ATL | SFO | 41-10 (Sep. 10) | 31 | 28-27 (Dec. 24) |
| 1993 | RAM | NOR | 37-6 (Oct. 3) | 31 | 23-20 (Dec. 12) |
| 1992 | IND | BUF | 38-0 (Sep. 20) | 38 | 16-13 (Nov. 29) |
| 1990 | CIN | HOU | 48-17 (Oct. 14) | 31 | 40-20 (Dec. 23) |
| 1989 | PIT | CLE | 51-0 (Sep. 10) | 51 | 17-7 (Oct. 15) |
| 1989 | MIN | CHI | 38-7 (Sep. 17) | 31 | 27-16 (Dec. 3) |
| 1987 | BUF | IND | 47-6 (Oct. 4) | 41 | 27-3 (Dec. 13) |
| 1985 | BUF | IND | 49-17 (Oct. 6) | 32 | 21-9 (Oct. 20) |
| 1984 | KAN | SEA | 45-0 (Nov. 4) | 45 | 34-7 (Dec. 9) |
| 1984 | DET | GNB | 41-9 (Oct. 28) | 32 | 31-28 (Nov. 22) |
| 1982 | NOR | ATL | 35-0 (Dec. 12) | 35 | 35-6 (Jan. 2) |
| 1981 | NYJ | BUF | 31-0 (Sep. 6) | 31 | 33-14 (Oct. 18) |
| 1980 | MIA | NWE | 34-0 (Oct. 12) | 34 | 16-13 (Dec. 8) |
| 1979 | NYJ | NWE | 56-3 (Sep. 9) | 53 | 27-26 (Dec. 9) |
| 1979 | HOU | PIT | 38-7 (Sep. 9) | 31 | 20-17 (Dec. 10) |
| 1977 | MIN | RAM | 35-3 (Oct. 24) | 32 | 14-7 (Dec. 26) |
| 1976 | OAK | NWE | 48-17 (Oct. 3) | 31 | 24-21 (Dec. 18) |
| 1975 | OAK | KAN | 42-10 (Oct. 12) | 32 | 28-20 (Dec. 21) |
| 1973 | BAL | MIA | 44-0 (Nov. 11) | 44 | 16-3 (Dec. 9) |
| 1973 | NOR | SFO | 40-0 (Oct. 21) | 40 | 16-10 (Dec. 9) |
| 1973 | ATL | RAM | 31-0 (Sep. 23) | 31 | 15-13 (Nov. 4) |
| 1971 | NWE | MIA | 41-3 (Oct. 17) | 38 | 34-13 (Dec. 5) |
| 1970 | BOS | BUF | 45-10 (Nov. 1) | 35 | 14-10 (Nov. 29) |
| 1970 | MIA | BAL | 35-0 (Nov. 1) | 35 | 34-17 (Nov. 22) |
| 1967 | MIA | BOS | 41-10 (Oct. 15) | 31 | 41-32 (Dec. 17) |
| 1966 | PHI | DAL | 56-7 (Oct. 9) | 49 | 24-23 (Nov. 6) |
| 1966 | HOU | NYJ | 52-13 (Sep. 18) | 39 | 24-0 (Oct. 16) |
| 1966 | DEN | HOU | 45-7 (Sep. 3) | 38 | 40-38 (Oct. 2) |
| 1966 | DET | BAL | 45-14 (Oct. 16) | 31 | 20-14 (Nov. 20) |
| 1966 | PIT | CLE | 41-10 (Oct. 8) | 31 | 16-6 (Nov. 6) |
| 1966 | SFO | RAM | 34-3 (Sep. 30) | 31 | 21-13 (Nov. 6) |
| 1966 | OAK | HOU | 31-0 (Sep. 10) | 31 | 38-23 (Nov. 6) |
| 1965 | CLE | STL | 49-13 (Sep. 26) | 36 | 27-24 (Dec. 19) |
| 1964 | DET | BAL | 34-0 (Oct. 25) | 34 | 31-14 (Dec. 6) |
| 1963 | NYG | PIT | 31-0 (Sep. 22) | 31 | 33-17 (Dec. 15) |
| 1961 | BAL | GNB | 45-7 (Oct. 8) | 38 | 45-21 (Nov. 5) |
| 1961 | RAM | SFO | 35-0 (Oct. 8) | 35 | 17-7 (Nov. 12) |
| 1961 | SFO | CHI | 31-0 (Oct. 22) | 31 | 41-31 (Nov. 19) |
| 1960 | LAC | BOS | 35-0 (Oct. 8) | 35 | 45-16 (Oct. 28) |
| 1959 | GNB | RAM | 45-6 (Oct. 18) | 39 | 38-20 (Dec. 6) |
| 1957 | PIT | NYG | 35-0 (Oct. 20) | 35 | 21-10 (Dec. 7) |
| 1956 | RAM | BAL | 56-21 (Nov. 25) | 35 | 31-7 (Dec. 9) |
| 1956 | CHI | DET | 42-10 (Dec. 2) | 32 | 38-21 (Dec. 16) |
| 1954 | BAL | RAM | 48-0 (Sep. 26) | 48 | 22-21 (Dec. 4) |
| 1952 | PHI | CLE | 49-7 (Oct. 19) | 42 | 28-20 (Nov. 23) |
| 1950 | CRD | PHI | 45-7 (Sep. 24) | 38 | 14-10 (Nov. 19) |
| 1948 | BOS | PHI | 45-0 (Nov. 14) | 45 | 37-14 (Dec. 5) |
| 1947 | BOS | PHI | 32-0 (Nov. 16) | 32 | 21-14 (Nov. 23) |
| 1945 | DET | GNB | 57-21 (Oct. 7) | 36 | 14-3 (Dec. 2) |
If you like irony, the single biggest turnaround in league history came in 1979. The Jets got obliterated by the Patriots 56-3 in week two, behind a monster five-touchdown game by Steve Grogan. In the second to last game of the season, New York squeaked by New England 27-26, in a game that might have been decided differently under today's two-point conversion rules.
Would be interesting to know, though, how many of the rematch games came at the end of the year when the first winner had already clinched and was resting for a playoff run. Look how many of those rematches are late December.
Two playoff games on there - Raiders-Pats in '76 and Vikings-Rams in '77.
On a related note-Matty Ice could have pulled off one great comeback yesterday if... I think someone should have waited to see Matt Ryan play a couple of more playoff games before giving him that nickname. A nickname like that has to be earned in the playoffs, and not in the reg. season. Aaron Rogers is approaching the playoffs the same way Kurt Warner did-come out throwing and keep on throwing.
61 is more than I thought but it would be nice to know how many times a team played a team that beat them by 30+ or 40+ so we know what % of the time it happened.
I was actually hoping you'd have listed the combined turnaround. For example, the Pats losing to the Bills by 31 and beating them by 31 later would be a 62-point turnaround, etc. The bigger the number, the more impressive the turnaround. Which would make the Saints-Falcons turnaround in '82 and the Seahawks-Chiefs turnaround in '84 all the more impressive.
Bob S, I think Matt Ryan earned that nickname in college (fairly or not - I'm not sure).
Richie, you are exactly correct. Ryan started and named his college site Mattieice in his senior year at BC. Now if he could only live up to it in the NFL. He certainly has not so far in the playoffs. But there are those on here that would rank him high as long as he continues to lead his team to enough wins in the reg. season.
6 & 7 - Actually you're both wrong according to Ryan. In a Fox interview w/Terry Bradshaw, he claimed the nickname started in high school and just stuck.
Regardless of where it came from, he needs to play better in the playoffs...and needs a better nickname.
Bob S. you still ignorantly call brady a winner even though he's clearly just like marino in the playoffs. Except he has an actual team.
Team sport, watch your mouth before you run it dude. By the way the nfc has weaker defenses, It is a common theme that football-outsiders addresses.
Jeremy, my info. came from the Matt Ryan Wikipedia site-be it right or wrong. HK, yes, Brady is just like Marino in the playoffs-they both played quarterback. That's pretty much where the comparisons end in the playoffs.
In the aftermath of the 45-3 beatdown, I took a look at every SB-winning team to see what their worst loss during the regular season was. The worst were the'79 Steelers and '06 Colts, who both lost games by 27-28 points- in other words, championship caliber teams don't lose games by 40 points, so I figured the Jets were toast. But the '08 Cardinals lost to the Patriots by 40-plus and were a Santonio Holmes sideline catch away from winning it all, so there is a precedent of some kind. Whatever...Just a giddy Jet fan here trying to comprehend what the hell happened last night. Unbelievable.
Bob S - No worries. Only reason I saw it was because I was discussing it with a friend of mine (they are a falcons fan) and we stumbled on the interview when we googled it.
On a tangent about the turnarounds...if the Jets win against the Steelers, 9 of the 11 playoff games will be rematches from the regular season. The Jets played both Green Bay & Chicago in the regular season. The only non-rematches are the first round AFC games. Even if the Jets lose, that is still 8 of 11. That has to be one of the highest percentages in history, at least since they added the 6th team in each conference in 90.
I figured any team that loses to the Browns by 20 points can't be SB-caliber.
Does anybody else see the smiley faces?
Looking at the list above, the '76 Raiders and '03 Patriots lost games by 31 points and won the Super Bowl
#10
No fool, address the issue. Brady is a game manager playoff choker and you are ignorant for saying he's a winner. Adjusted for era his stats are barely better than Marino, and thus he's an overrated Marino who just choked in his prime seasons. 2007-2010
And in his first two superbowls he sucked, so watch your mouth dude. I'm going to expose you if you keep running your mouth, I'm so sick of your whining and crying in every damn post about winning. Shut your mouth already. Brady is Marino, and Marino was arguably the best QB, so it isn't an insult it just puts into perspective what a joke you are for complaining all the time.
Oh right I remember now. He's a winner because you say so. Yeah real sharp, go make your own website then and get out of here. This is for objective and real football discussion.
Re #15 you are correct Clark. I neglected to mention that when I did my original search I focused on teams who suffered their blowout losses later in the season, figuring it would make it that much more difficult to bounce back. The Raiders and Pats lost their games early in the year.
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/play-index/tiny/cCoaY
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/play-index/tiny/ARavY
Marino was better at the same age. Average AY/A in the 80's was 6.0, while in the 2000's it was 6.3.
HK, are you familiar with this site:The 10 Worst NFL Quarterbacks: Maricopa360.com ? The sub-title is:The 10 Biggest Underachievers in the Playoffs in NFL History. No. 1 is Craig Morton, 2 is Tarkenton, 3 is Fouts, and 4 is your man Marino. The summary for Marino is: "Had he valued the ball better, the Dolphins might have won a few more playoff games and may have been able to break through and win a S.B." He was obviously referring to Marino's PO Record of 10 games with at least 2 INT's., which resulted in 9 losses including 2 Conf. Champ. home games and his 1 and only S.B. game. I told this guy about your posts concerning Brady and Marino and then I asked him why Brady wasn't on his list. He called me a f...ing moron. Come to think of it, I guess he was calling you one too.
I just want to say I'm really disturbed by the tone of this thread and how similar it is to the immature insult-fests on every other internet site these days and how this is a direction I'd really rather not see this place go.
Re DolFan #21: Amen.
#21
Don't worry I want an intelligent discussion based on the Facts. Seriously if you're going to Spam every thread about "winner", "loser", and then his guy chokes and plays below Marino level consistently throughout his career, I'm going to call him out. I certainly don't respect his positions
Adjusted yards per pass attempt adjusted for league average is over many people's heads, His double standards are ridiculously amusing, I want him to address this .
#20
I guess you just don't get it do you? No matter how many interceptions Marino threw he was more efficiency than Brady in the post-season at the same age. Marino in 1994 and 1991 didn't win any rings and he owned Tom Brady that won those first two rings. The average QB rating in 2010 was 86.
Lol ok some random guy on his soap box gave you his opinion. Good for you I hope you're both friends now. I guess if you think Marino sucks that just reflects on how much of a talent Brady is.
*efficient, I meant.
I tried to keep it clean. 😉
HK, I went over those sites you posted in #19 and I think you are on to something. Now, post each guys (Marino and Brady) AV Ranking that this site came up with for both the Reg. and Post-season so we can compare them. They seem to be a lot closer than I originally thought.
@ #21
Anyone who has Tarkenton, Fouts and Marino in a list about the worst QBs in NFL history needs to never, ever even think about football again, let alone talk about it.
Alvaro, the fellows name was Maricopa, but you didn't read my post correctly. Their names were listed on a thread that was about "The 10 Biggest Underachievers in the Playoffs in NFL History." He went into details about each guys lack of achievements but I only wrote the summary that he had for Marino.
Bob, no I understood perfectly. I stand by my comment that anyone who has Tarkenton, Fouts and Marino in a list HE HIMSELF titled as "The 10 worst NFL Quarterbacks" is someone not worth listening to, I don't care what sub-title he stuck in there later.
Also, the website you cite leads to a city's web-site...