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The NFL playoffs following the 2001 NFL season led up to Super Bowl XXXVI.

For the first time, the NFL scheduled prime time playoff games for the first two rounds in an attempt to attract more television viewers. Saturday wild card and divisional playoff games were moved from 12:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. North American Eastern Standard Time (EST) to 4:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., respectively. Thus, the league abandoned its practice of scheduling colder, northern playoff games for daylight hours only; any stadium, regardless of evening January temperatures, could host prime time playoff games.

Wild Card playoffs

Saturday January 12, 2002

NFC: Philadelphia Eagles 31, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9

at Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia

Eagles QB Donovan McNabb threw for 194 yards and a touchdown as Philadelphia dominated Tampa Bay from start to finish. Bucs quarterback Brad Johnson was intercepted four times, one of which was returned 59 yards by Damon Moore for a touchdown.

  • Scoring
    • TB - FG Gramatica 36
    • PHI - FG Akers 26
    • PHI - Lewis 16 pass from McNabb (Akers kick)
    • TB - FG Gramatica 32
    • PHI - Staley 23 pass from McNabb (Akers kick)
    • TB - FG Gramatica 27
    • PHI - Buckhalter 25 run (Akers kick)
    • PHI - Moore 59 interception return

AFC: Oakland Raiders 38, New York Jets 24

at Network Associates Coliseum, Oakland, California

Raiders wide receiver Jerry Rice was the hero, catching nine passes for 183 yards and a touchdown. Running back Charlie Garner ran eighty yards for a touchdown to clinch the game with 1:27 remaining.

  • Scoring
    • OAK - FG Janikowski 21
    • OAK - FG Janikowski 41
    • NYJ - FG Hall 45
    • OAK - FG Janikowski 45
    • OAK - Brown 2 pass from Gannon (Janikowski kick)
    • NYJ - Chrebet 17 pass from Testaverde (Hall kick)
    • OAK - Crockett 2 run (Garner run)
    • NYJ - Anderson 3 pass from Testaverde (Hall kick)
    • OAK - Rice 21 pass from Gannon (Janikowski kick)
    • NYJ - Chrebet 4 pass from Testaverde (Hall kick)
    • OAK - Garner 80 run (Garner run)

Sunday January 13, 2002

NFC: Green Bay Packers 25, San Francisco 49ers 15

at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin

After trailing 7-6 at halftime, the Packers exploded as Brett Favre threw for 226 yards in the second half. A late San Francisco comeback attempt was thwarted when a long Jeff Garcia pass was intercepted by Tyrone Williams late in the fourth quarter, and Ahman Green scored the clinching touchdown with 1:55 left.

  • Scoring
    • GB - Freeman 5 pass from Favre (kick blocked)
    • SF - Hearst 2 run (Cortez kick)
    • GB - FG Longwell 26
    • GB - Franks 19 pass from Favre (Two-point conversion failed)
    • SF - Streets 19 pass from Garcia (Streets pass from Garcia)
    • GB - FG Longwell 45
    • GB - Green 9 run (Longwell kick)

AFC: Baltimore Ravens 20, Miami Dolphins 3

at Pro Player Stadium, Miami, Florida

The Ravens recorded 226 rushing yards, while limited the Dolphins to 151 total yards and forcing three turnovers. Baltimore running back Terry Allen ran for 109 yards and a touchdown, while quarterback Elvis Grbac completed 12 of 18 passes for 133 yards and 1 touchdown. The Dolphins' only score was Olindo Mare's 33-yard field goal just two minutes into the game.

  • Scoring
    • MIA - FG Mare 33
    • BAL - Allen 4 run (Stover kick)
    • BAL - Taylor 4 pass from Grbac (Stover kick)
    • BAL - FG Stover 35
    • BAL - FG Stover 40

Byes

Divisional playoffs

Saturday January 19, 2002

NFC: Philadelphia Eagles 33, Chicago Bears 19

at Soldier Field, Chicago

The Bears surprised everyone by finishing atop the NFC Central with a 13-3 record behind quarterback Jim Miller. But after the Eagles jumped to a 6-0 lead, Miller was taken out of the last game in the second quarter with a separated shoulder. Although Miller's replacement, Shane Matthews, led the Bears to a touchdown (a 47 yard reverse by Ahmad Merritt), and Jerry Azumah's 39-yard interception return briefly put the Bears back in the lead early in the second half, the Eagles controlled most of the rest of the game. Matthews threw for only 66 yards and was intercepted twice. Meanwhile, Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb threw for 262 yards and 2 touchdowns, and ran for another touchdown.

  • Scoring
    • PHI - FG Akers 34
    • PHI - FG Akers 23
    • CHI - Merritt 47 run (Edinger kick)
    • PHI - Martin 13 pass from McNabb (Akers kick)
    • CHI - Azumah 39 interception return (Edinger kick)
    • PHI - Staley 6 pass from McNabb (Akers kick)
    • CHI - FG Edinger 38
    • PHI - FG Akers 40
    • PHI - FG Akers 46
    • PHI - McNabb 5 run (Akers kick)
    • CHI - Safety, Landeta ran out of end zone

AFC: New England Patriots 16, Oakland Raiders 13 (OT)

at Foxboro Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

The game, the final one in the history of Foxboro Stadium, played in a heavy snowfall, will be remembered for a controversial call near the end of the game, in which the referees initially ruled that New England quarterback Tom Brady had fumbled on a pass attempt, with Oakland protecting a three-point lead. Invoking the "tuck rule", where a ball is ruled an incomplete pass after the quarterback starts any forward motion, the referee overturned the decision after reviewing the instant replay, calling the drop an incomplete pass rather than a fumble. The Patriots then tied the game on a 45-yard Adam Vinatieri field goal (a dramatic kick through heavy snowfall that barely cleared the crossbar) and subsequently won the game in overtime, again on a Vinatieri field goal.

  • Scoring
    • OAK - Jett 13 pass from Gannon (Janikowski kick)
    • NE - FG Vinatieri 23
    • OAK - FG Janikowski 38
    • OAK - FG Janikowski 45
    • NE - Brady 6 run (Vinatieri kick)
    • NE - FG Vinatieri 45
    • NE - FG Vinatieri 23

Sunday January 20, 2002

AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 27, Baltimore Ravens 10

at Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Steelers running back Jerome Bettis, sidelined for much of the regular season, was scheduled to make his return in the first playoff ever at their new home, Heinz Field, but he backed out at the last minute. It did not matter as the Pittsburgh defense limited the Ravens to 150 yards, forced 4 turnovers, and recorded 3 sacks. Bettis' replacement, Amos Zereoue, rushed for 2 touchdowns.

  • Scoring
    • PIT - FG Brown 21
    • PIT - Zereoue 1 run (Brown kick)
    • PIT - Zereoue 1 run (Brown kick)
    • PIT - FG Brown 46
    • BAL - FG Stover 26
    • BAL - Je. Lewis 88 punt return (Stover kick)
    • PIT - Burress 32 pass from Stewart (Brown kick)

NFC: St. Louis Rams 45, Green Bay Packers 17

at The Dome at America's Center, St. Louis, Missouri

The matchup between two of the league's highly-rated quarterbacks — the Packers' Brett Favre and the Rams Kurt Warner, became lopsided thanks to St. Louis' improved defense. Although Favre threw for 281 yards, he tied a playoff record by tossing six interceptions, including two that were returned by Aeneas Williams for touchdowns. The Packers generated most of their offense early in the contest, but the turnovers gave the Rams a 24-10 halftime lead. The Rams then returned two interceptions in the second half to put the game away.

  • Scoring
    • STL - Williams 29 interception return (Wilkins kick)
    • GB - Freeman 22 pass from Favre (Longwell kick)
    • STL - Holt 4 pass from Warner (Wilkins kick)
    • STL - Hodgins 4 pass from Warner (Wilkins kick)
    • GB - FG Longwell 28
    • STL - FG Wilkins 27
    • STL - Faulk 7 run (Wilkins kick)
    • STL - Polley 34 interception return (Wilkins kick)
    • STL - Williams 32 interception return (Wilkins kick)
    • GB - Freeman 8 pass from Favre (Longwell kick)

Conference Championships

Sunday January 27, 2002

AFC: New England Patriots 24, Pittsburgh Steelers 17

at Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Patriots' storybook season continued as Drew Bledsoe came into the game in the second quarter in place of an injured Tom Brady - who replaced Bledsoe himself early in the season when he suffered a sheared blood vessel. Bledsoe threw for an 11-yard touchdown to David Patten on his fifth play from scrimmage. A late Pittsburgh comeback was thwarted by two Kordell Stewart interceptions in the last three minutes.

  • Scoring
    • NE - Brown 55 punt return (Vinatieri kick)
    • PIT - FG Brown 30
    • NE - Patten 11 pass from Bledsoe (Vinatieri kick)
    • NE - Harris 45 lateral from Brown (Vinatieri kick)
    • PIT - Bettis 1 run (Brown kick)
    • PIT - Zereoue 11 run (Brown kick)
    • NE - FG Vinatieri 44

NFC: St. Louis Rams 29, Philadelphia Eagles 24

at Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri

The Eagles had a 17-13 lead at halftime, and had not allowed more than 21 points per game during the season and playoffs. But the Rams roared back thanks to Kurt Warner completing two-thirds of his passes for 212 yards and Marshall Faulk's 159 yards rushing and two touchdowns to earn their second trip to the Super Bowl in three years.

  • Scoring
    • STL - Bruce 5 pass from Warner (Wilkins kick)
    • PHI - FG Akers 46
    • STL - FG Wilkins 27
    • PHI - Staley 1 run (Akers kick)
    • STL - FG Wilkins 39
    • PHI - Pinkston 12 pass from McNabb (Akers kick)
    • STL - FG Wilkins 41
    • STL - Faulk 1 run (Two-point conversion failed)
    • STL - Faulk 1 run (Wilkins kick)
    • PHI - McNabb 3 run (Akers kick)

Super Bowl

New England Patriots (AFC) 20, St. Louis Rams (NFC) 17 at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Bracket

References

National Football League playoffs

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "NFL playoffs, 2001-02".

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