Chargers epic ’82 playoff win in Miami

Friday, Jan 18, 2002
By NFL Properties, Inc.

The 1981 AFC Divisional Playoff Game between the San Diego Chargers and Miami Dolphins had everything: wacky plays, heroic performances, endless drama, and countless momentum swings in the humid South Florida heat. No wonder many consider it the greatest game in pro football history, the 1958 NFL Championship Game notwithstanding. 

With a trip to the AFC title game on the line, the Chargers jumped to a 24-0 first-quarter lead. That forced the Dolphins to abandon their conservative game plan and bring in veteran quarterback Don Strock. Passing on almost every down, Strock led the Dolphins to 10 points while the Chargers’ high-powered offense stalled. Still, San Diego had a 24-10 advantage as halftime neared—until Miami produced lightning.

The Dolphins, without much time (six seconds) or much hope of getting another score before intermission (they were at the Chargers’ 40), called a play that usually only works on the sandlot, then executed it to perfection. Strock fired a pass to Duriel Harris on the right side at San Diego’s 25. As Chargers defenders hurried to make the tackle and end the half, Harris lateraled the ball to Tony Nathan, who streaked past the San Diego’s stunned defense to complete a 40-yard touchdown. 

The “Hook and Ladder” play made it 24-17, and sent the Dolphins into the locker room on an emotional high that carried over into the second half. Strock, who passed for 403 yards and four touchdowns, led Miami on scoring drives of 74 and 83 yards. In between, Dan Fouts guided the Chargers on a 60-yard march. The teams were tied 31-31 as the third quarter wound down.

But not for long. An interception late in the period gave Miami the ball at San Diego’s 15, and on the first play of the fourth quarter, Nathan scored on a 12-yard run. The Dolphins, once on the verge of being blown out, had their first lead.

They almost put the game away with a seven-minute drive, but momentum swung again when San Diego’s Willie Shaw recovered a fumble at the Chargers’ 18 with 4:39 left. Fouts then completed seven of eight passes for 75 yards, including a 9-yard touchdown to James Brooks that tied the game 38-38 with 58 seconds left. 

Back came Strock, who led Miami to the Chargers’ 25 with four seconds left. But Kellen Winslow, San Diego’s 6-foot 5-inch tight end, tipped Uwe von Schamann’s attempt at a winning 43-yard field goal and the teams went to overtime.

In overtime, after each team missed a potential winning field goal (von Schamann had another kick blocked), Fouts, who completed 33 of 53 passes for 433 yards and three touchdowns, found Charlie Joiner for a 39-yard pass. The play capped a 74-yard drive and set up Rolf Benirschke’s 29-yard field goal to end the game after 13:52 of overtime, sending both teams, and their fans, home emotionally drained but with the memories from one of the greatest games in NFL history.