Browns vs. Titans: 5 best games of all-time
By Thomas Moore
The stakes were clear when the Cleveland Browns and Houston Oilers took the field at Municipal Stadium on Dec. 18, 1988.
A win by the Browns and the two teams would have a rematch in six days in the Wild Card playoff game. Lose, and a season that had started with dreams of the Super Bowl would be over for the Browns.
Oh, and did we mention that the Browns were relying on 38-year-old quarterback Don Strock, forced into the starting lineup after Bernie Kosar injured his knee the week before against Miami?
Things got off in typical Cleveland fashion as Strock threw three interceptions (one a pick six by Houston cornerback Domingo Bryant) and lost a fumble in the first half. As the Oilers built a 23-7 lead midway through the third quarter, it seemed as if all hope was lost.
But as snow began to fall, the sun-kissed Strock – literally on a golf course when the Browns had called with a contract offer earlier in the season – heated up.
The 14-year veteran quarterback led a pair of scoring drives capped off by two-yard touchdown runs by Earnest Byner to cut the Oilers’ lead to 23-21.
Following a stop by the defense, Strock and the offense took over on Cleveland’s 11-yard line. Strock methodically led the Browns to the Houston 22-yard line after converting a fourth-and-three play. From there, Strock called an audible and hit Webster Slaughter threw the driving snow for what would turn out to be the game-winning touchdown.
The defense would hold and Strock would run out all but 20 seconds of the clock to secure one of the most-improbable wins in franchise history. In the second half, the veteran quarterback completed 16-of-22 passes for 212 yards, while leading the Browns to 21 points.
“This was a great game for the Cleveland Browns,” Strock said in Sundays in the Pound. “I’m glad I was part of it.”
It would prove to be the last game Strock would win as an NFL quarterback and the last win for Schottenheimer as coach of the Browns.