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Someone made an interesting post on Reddit this week, charting video highlights of each NFL team’s biggest comeback in franchise history. For the Los Angeles Rams, that happened in 1992 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. You can watch the highlight of that game here at the 19:09 mark:
After an 81-yard touchdown pass by Vinny Testaverde and a 26-yard fumble return touchdown by Roger Jones, the Bucs led 20-0; the touchdowns came 13 seconds apart. They led 27-3 at halftime after another touchdown throw by Testaverde.
But the Rams didn’t let Tampa Bay score again.
LA quarterback Jim Everett threw two touchdowns in the third quarter and a rushing touchdown by David Lang made it 27-24. With 5:40 left on the clock Everett — one week after being benched by first-year head coach Chuck Knox — threw a third touchdown pass and put the Rams up 31-27, which was the final score.
As reported in the LA Times after the game:
The greatest comeback in Rams’ history began amid disaster Sunday night, and ended with Coach Chuck Knox practically dancing into the arms of Jim Everett, the quarterback he benched a week ago.
It was a game that threatened to gobble up any sense of pride the Rams had built through a season of tough competition, but ended with them roaring out of a 24-point halftime hole to claim an improbable 31-27 victory—the third-biggest comeback in NFL history—in front of a stunned Tampa Stadium crowd of 38,387.
It was a game that came on the heels of last week’s 14-point loss to the Minnesota Vikings, and ended with Everett, who was removed from that game in the third quarter, wondering about the dazzling turn of fate.
It was a game of high drama and low comedy, an amazing 21-point Ram third quarter, three second-half takeaways by the revived defense and bizarre blunders by both teams.
“I think it says something about the character (of the team),” Knox said, “(that) they stayed in there, made some plays. There wasn’t any quit in them.”
The LA Rams finished the year 6-10, but they did prove to have talent and with the third-largest comeback in NFL history (at the time), plenty of fight left when needed.
What do you remember about that game? That season? Those players? Or if you weren’t watching in 1992, what is the greatest Rams comeback in your memory?