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Nfl Playoffs, 1985-86




Because the Jets and Giants both used Giants Stadium as their home field, the two wild card playoff games were held on different days.
  AFC 1 Los Angeles Raiders
  AFC 1 Div West
  AFC 2 Miami Dolphins
  AFC 2 Div East
  AFC 3 Cleveland Browns
  AFC 3 Div Central
  AFC 4 New York Jets
  AFC 5 New England Patriots
  NFC 1 Chicago Bears
  NFC 1 Div Central
  NFC 2 Los Angeles Rams
  NFC 2 Div West
  NFC 3 Dallas Cowboys
  NFC 3 Div East
  NFC 4 New York Giants
  NFC 5 San Francisco 49ers




WILD CARD PLAYOFFS


December 28 1985


AFC: New England Patriots 26, New York Jets 14

  Road '''Patriots'''
  R1 3
  R2 10
  R3 10
  R4 3
  RT 26
  Home Jets
  H1 0
  H2 7
  H3 7
  H4 0
  HT 14



''at Giants Stadium , East Rutherford, New Jersey ''


The Patiots dominated the Jets by forcing 4 turnovers and 5 sacks. New England jumped to 3-0 lead in the first quarter after Tony Franklin made a 33-yard field goal. Then after New York scored on quarterback Ken O'Brien 's 11-yard touchdown pass to running back Johnny Hector, Franklin kicked his second field goal for 41 yards. Late in the second quarter, safety Fred Marion intercepted a pass from O'Brien to set up Tony Eason 's 36-yard touchdown pass to Stanley Morgan, giving New England a 13-7 lead before halftime. In the third period, Franklin made a 20-yard field goal. On the ensuing kickoff, Hector was stripped by Johnny Rembert, who then picked up the fumble and returned it 15 yards for a touchdown. Franklin later made his fourth field goal of the game, a 26-yarder, during the final period.

  • Scoring

  • ---NE - FG Franklin 33

  • ---NYJ - Hector 11 pass from O'Brien (Leahy kick)

  • ---NE - FG Franklin 41

  • ---NE - Morgan 36 pass from Eason (Franklin kick)

  • ---NE - FG Franklin 20

  • ---NE - Rembert 15 fumble return (Franklin kick)

  • ---NYJ - Schuler 12 pass from Ryan (Leahy kick)

  • ---NE - FG Franklin 26



December 29 1985


NFC: New York Giants 17, San Francisco 49ers 3

  Road 49ers
  R1 0
  R2 3
  R3 0
  R4 0
  RT 3
  Home '''Giants'''
  H1 3
  H2 7
  H3 7
  H4 0
  HT 17



''at Giants Stadium , East Rutherford, New Jersey ''


Even though the 49ers recorded 362 yards of total offense, the Giants limited San Francisco to only one field goal. Meanwhile, New York running back Joe Morris rushed for 141 yards. The Giants scored on their opening possession of the game with kicker Eric Schubert's 47-yard field goal. Then in the second quarter, New York defensive back Terry Kinard intercepted a pass from 49ers quarterback Joe Montana to set up Phil Simms ' 18-yard touchdown pass to tight end Mark Bavaro . A 77-yard drive in the third quarter was capped by Simms' 3-yard touchdown pass to tight end Don Hasselbeck . San Francisco's lone 21-yard field goal by Ray Wersching was made in the second period after an 85-yard drive.

  • Scoring

  • ---NYG - FG Schubert 47

  • ---NYG - Bavaro 18 pass from Simms (Schubert kick)

  • ---SF - FG Wersching 21

  • ---NYG - Hasselbeck 3 pass from Simms (Schubert kick)



DIVISIONAL PLAYOFFS


January 4 1986


AFC: Miami Dolphins 24, Cleveland Browns 21

  Road Browns
  R1 7
  R2 7
  R3 7
  R4 0
  RT 21
  Home '''Dolphins'''
  H1 3
  H2 0
  H3 14
  H4 7
  HT 24



''at Miami Orange Bowl , Miami, Florida ''


The Browns jumped to a 21-3 lead midway through the third period, but the Dolphins then scored 21 unanswered points -- the final touchdown with 1:57 left to play. Miami scored on their first drive with a 51-field goal by Fuad Reveiz . Cleveland later marched 82 yard to score on quarterback Bernie Kosar 's 16-yard pass to tight end Ozzie Newsome . In the second quarter, Browns defensive back Don Rogers intercepted Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino , setting up a 21-yard rushing touchdown by running back Earnest Byner . Byner then ran for a 66-yard touchdown in the third quarter to give Cleveland a 21-3 lead. However, Miami then controlled the rest of the game. A 74-yard drive was capped by Marino's 6-yard touchdown pass to Nat Moore. Then running back Ron Davenport scored on a 31-yard touchdown. Davenport's winning touchdown, a 1-yard run with 1:57 remaining in the game, capped a 73-yard possession.

  • Scoring

  • ---MIA - FG Reveiz 51

  • ---CLE - Newsome 16 pass from Kosar (Bahr kick)

  • ---CLE - Byner 21 run (Bahr kick)

  • ---CLE - Byner 66 run (Bahr kick)

  • ---MIA - Moore 6 pass from Marino (Reveiz kick)

  • ---MIA - Davenport 31 run (Reveiz kick)

  • ---MIA - Davenport 1 run (Reveiz kick)



NFC: Los Angeles Rams 20, Dallas Cowboys 0

  Road Cowboys
  R1 0
  R2 0
  R3 0
  R4 0
  RT 0
  Home '''Rams'''
  H1 3
  H2 0
  H3 10
  H4 7
  HT 20



''at Anaheim Stadium , Anaheim, California ''


Running back Eric Dickerson led the Rams to a victory by scoring two touchdowns and recording a playoff record 248 rushing yards. After the first half ended with a 3-0 Los Angeles lead, Dickerson scored on a 55-yard touchdown run early in the third period. On the ensuing kickoff, Kenny Duckett fumbled, and the ball was recovered by Vince Newsome to set up kicker Mike Lansford's second field goal. In the fourth period, Tony Hunter recovered a fumbled punt to set up Dickerson's 40-yard rushing touchdown.

  • Scoring

  • ---RAMS - FG Lansford 33

  • ---RAMS - Dickerson 55 run (Lansford kick)

  • ---RAMS - FG Lansford 34

  • ---RAMS - Dickerson 40 run (Lansford kick)



January 5 1986


NFC: Chicago Bears 21, New York Giants 0

  Road Giants
  R1 0
  R2 0
  R3 0
  R4 0
  RT 0
  Home '''Bears'''
  H1 7
  H2 0
  H3 14
  H4 0
  HT 21



''at Soldier Field , Chicago ''

  • Game time: 12:30 pm

  • '''TV announcers ( and John Madden


The Bears defense dominated the game by allowing only 32 rushing yards and sacked Giants quarterbacks for 60 yards. Chicago's first touchdown resulted on a New York punt attempt from their own 12-yard line. The wind caught the ball just enough for punter Sean Landeta to completely miss it, and Shaun Gayle picked it up and ran 5 yards for a touchdown. Bears quarterback Jim McMahon later threw two touchdown passes in the third period, both to Dennis McKinnon.

  • Scoring

  • ---CHI - Gayle 5 punt return (Butler kick)

  • ---CHI - McKinnon 23 pass from McMahon (Butler kick)

  • ---CHI - McKinnon 20 pass from McMahon (Butler kick)



AFC: New England Patriots 27, Los Angeles Raiders 20

  Road '''Patriots'''
  R1 7
  R2 10
  R3 10
  R4 0
  RT 27
  Home Raiders
  H1 3
  H2 17
  H3 0
  H4 0
  HT 20



''at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum , Los Angeles ''


The Patriots converted 6 Raiders turnovers into 17 points. In the first quarter, a fumble by Raiders punt returner Fulton Walker set up Patriots tight end Lin Dawson's 13-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Tony Eason. Los Angeles then scored 17 unanswered points: a 29-field goal by Chris Bahr, a 16-yard touchdown reception by Jimmy Hester, and Marcus Allen 's 11-yard rushing touchdown. New England then scored with running back Craig James ' 2-yard run, and later tied the game, 17-17, after Ronnie Lippett's interception set up Tony Franklin's 45-yard field goal. But Bahr kicked a 32-yard field goal with 6 second left in the half to give the Raiders a 20-17 lead. In the third period, Franklin made a 32-yard field goal to tie the game. On the ensuing kickoff, Sam Seale fumbled and Jim Bowman recovered the loose ball in the end zone for the game-clinching touchdown.

  • Scoring

  • ---NE - Dawson 13 pass from Eason (Franklin kick)

  • ---RAI - FG Bahr 29

  • ---RAI - Hester 16 pass from Wilson (Bahr kick)

  • ---RAI - Allen 11 run (Bahr kick)

  • ---NE - James 2 run (Bahr kick)

  • ---NE - FG Franklin 45

  • ---RAI - FG Bahr 32

  • ---NE - FG Franklin 32

  • ---NE - Bowman recovered fumble in end zone (Franklin kick)



CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS


January 12 1986


NFC: Chicago Bears 24, Los Angeles Rams 0

  Road Rams
  R1 0
  R2 0
  R3 0
  R4 0
  RT 0
  Home '''Bears'''
  H1 10
  H2 0
  H3 7
  H4 7
  HT 24



''at Soldier Field , Chicago ''

  • Game time: 12:30 pm

  • '''TV announcers ( and John Madden

  • Referee: Jim Tunney


The Bears defense dominated the game by limiting Rams running back Eric Dickerson to 46 yards, and holding quarterback Dieter Brock to 10 out of 31 completions for 66 passing yards. Los Angeles only gained 130 yards of total offense. Chicago quarterback Jim McMahon scored on a 16-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, and later threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Willie Gault in the third quarter. Kicker Kevin Butler kicked a 34-yard field goal in the first period. In the fourth quarter, defensive lineman Richard Dent forced Brock to fumble, and linebacker Wilber Marshall picked up the loose ball and returned it 52 yards for a touchdown.

  • Scoring

  • ---CHI - McMahon 16 run (Butler kick)

  • ---CHI - FG Butler 34

  • ---CHI - Gault 22 pass from McMahon (Butler kick)

  • ---CHI - Marshall 52 fumble return (Butler kick)



AFC: New England Patriots 31, Miami Dolphins 14

  Road '''Patriots'''
  R1 3
  R2 14
  R3 7
  R4 7
  RT 31
  Home Dolphins
  H1 0
  H2 7
  H3 0
  H4 7
  HT 14



''at Miami Orange Bowl , Miami, Florida ''

  • Game time: 4:00 pm EST

  • '''TV announcers ( and Merlin Olsen

  • Referee: Gene Barth


In an upset, the Patriots converted 6 Dolphins turnovers into 24 points. On Miami's first offensive play, running back Tony Nathan fumbled, and Patriots defensive end Garin Veris recovered the ball to set up Tony Franklin's 23-yard field goal. The Dolphins then marched on an 80-yard drive to score on quarterback Dan Marino's 11-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dan Johnson. But New England responded on a 66-yard possession to score on quarterback Tony Eason's 4-yard touchdown to Tony Collins. A fumble by Marino then led to Eason's 1-yard touchdown to Derrick Ramsey to give the Patriots a 17-7 lead before halftime. Miami's Lorenzo Hampton then lost a fumble on the opening kickoff of the second half, and Eason converted the turnover into a 2-yard touchdown pass to running back Robert Weathers. The Dolphins finally scored again in the final period with Nathan's 10-yard touchdown reception to cut the deficit to 24-14, but New England's Mosi Tatupu later recorded a 1-yard touchdown to close out the scoring.

  • Scoring

  • ---NE - FG Franklin 23

  • ---MIA - Johnson 11 pass from Marino (Reveiz kick)

  • ---NE - Collins 4 pass from Eason (Franklin kick)

  • ---NE - Ramsey 1 pass from Eason (Franklin kick)

  • ---NE - Weathers 2 pass from Eason (Franklin kick)

  • ---MIA - Nathan 10 pass from Marino (Reveiz kick)

  • ---NE - Tatupu 1 run (Franklin kick)



BRACKET

  RD2 Divisional Playoffs
  RD3 Conference Championships
  RD4 Super Bowl XX
  Group1 '''NFC'''
  Group2 '''AFC'''
  RD1-seed05 5
  RD1-team05 49ers
  RD1-score05 3
  RD1-seed06 4
  RD1-team06 '''Giants'''
  RD1-score06 '''17'''
  RD1-seed09 5
  RD1-team09 '''Patriots'''
  RD1-score09 '''26'''
  RD1-seed10 4
  RD1-team10 Jets
  RD1-score10 14
  RD2-seed01 3
  RD2-team01 Cowboys
  RD2-score01 0
  RD2-seed02 2
  RD2-team02 '''Rams'''
  RD2-score02 '''20'''
  RD2-seed03 4
  RD2-team03 Giants
  RD2-score03 0
  RD2-seed04 1
  RD2-team04 '''Bears'''
  RD2-score04 '''21'''
  RD2-seed05 5
  RD2-team05 '''Patriots'''
  RD2-score05 '''27'''
  RD2-seed06 1
  RD2-team06 Raiders
  RD2-score06 20
  RD2-seed07 3
  RD2-team07 Browns
  RD2-score07 21
  RD2-seed08 2
  RD2-team08 '''Dolphins'''
  RD2-score08 '''24'''
  RD3-seed01 2
  RD3-team01 Rams
  RD3-score01 0
  RD3-seed02 1
  RD3-team02 '''Bears'''
  RD3-score02 '''24'''
  RD3-seed03 5
  RD3-team03 '''Patriots'''
  RD3-score03 '''31'''
  RD3-seed04 2
  RD3-team04 Dolphins
  RD3-score04 14
  RD4-seed01 N1
  RD4-team01 '''Bears'''
  RD4-score01 '''46'''
  RD4-seed02 A5
  RD4-team02 Patriots
  RD4-score02 10




SUPER BOWL


Chicago Bears (NFC) 46, New England Patriots (AFC) 10, at Louisiana Superdome , New Orleans, Louisiana


REFERENCES

  • ''Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League'' (ISBN 0062701746)

  • ''The Sporting News Complete Super Bowl Book 1995'' (ISBN 089204523X)



  Title NFL Playoffs
  Years 1985-86
  Before NFL Playoffs, 1984-85
  After NFL Playoffs, 1986-87