Find something that excites you as much as Cris Collinsworth loved the possibility of the Steelers missing the playoffs due to a tie.
The Chargers and Raiders almost played to the improbable result Sunday night, with Los Angeles storming back from a 14-point fourth quarter deficit to send the game into overtime, where the two clubs traded field goals until the end of the period. That’s when Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson drilled a 47-yard field goal to send Las Vegas to only its second postseason in 20 years.
Carlson’s boot brought the Steelers into the playoffs as well. Due to an incredible scheduling quirk, the Chargers and Raiders would’ve both qualified for the playoffs if they tied Sunday. That result would’ve left the Steelers, who beat the Ravens in their own overtime thriller, on the outside of the postseason picture.
Collinsworth just couldn’t get enough of it. The NBC analyst brought up the potential for a tie seemingly at the end of every play, especially when time was winding down.
“If this thing were to go into overtime, you get down to the last two minutes of the game, and now decisions, right?,” Collinsworth asked with two minutes left in regulation, well before the Chargers tied it up. “Are you going to be willing to sort of sit there and play for a tie? I think it’s within your means to do so.”
Al Michaels, who heard Collinsworth babble about the tie all night, shot his partner down as a “conspiracy theorist.”
Much to Collinsworth’s apparent chagrin, neither team played for the tie in overtime. The victorious Raiders will now avoid the Chiefs in the first round, which apparently served as enough motivation for them to play until the end. (They also got a nice assist from Chargers coach Brandon Staley, who inexplicably called a timeout with 38 seconds left in OT, giving the Raiders time to set up Carlson’s field goal.)
When Carlson lined up for the big kick, Pittsburgh was on Collinsworth’s mind.
“What do you think Ben Roethlosberger is thinking right now?,” Collinsworth asked. “His career could be over based on what happens in the next four minutes, or he’s in the playoffs, in a remarkable comeback.”
Collinsworth fit in one more fantasy before Carlson booted the ball. “Biggest kick of the year for the Pittsburgh Steelers,” Collinsworth said.
It was also the biggest kick of the year for the Raiders, who again, are heading to the playoffs for only the second time in two decades. But never mind them.
Apparently, the idea of the Steelers getting screwed was more exciting for Collinsworth than anything that happened during the primetime game he was actually calling.