Let’s Remember the Worst Opening Day Loss in NFL History

Also in Traina Thoughts: Fox’s college football problem; PGA Tour cameraman deserves a raise; WWE and NFL team up for title belts and more.

1. When NFL fans woke up this morning, we came to the wonderful realization that this is our last week without football. The preseason ended Sunday night, and we just have to get through this week before the season officially begins.

In honor of this significant occasion, I thought it would be fun to take a trip down memory lane. 

With social media being what it is, we are all prisoners of the moment and love to label everything as “the best ever” or “the worst ever.” And events that took place before 2006, when Twitter was invented, don’t seem to count.

So I want to bring you back to 2002 and what has to be the single-worst loss on an opening NFL Sunday of all time.

Let me set the stage for you guys: Week 1, Chiefs at Browns on CBS with the great Ian Eagle on play-by-play and Dan Dierdorf handling color commentary. Dick. Vermeil is leading Kansas City, while Butch Davis is the head coach of Cleveland. The Chiefs have a 37-36 lead with 33 seconds left. Browns kicker Phil Dawson comes on to attempt a 40-yard field goal. 

Here’s everything that happened after that.

• Field goal is good. Browns take 39–37 lead with 29 seconds remaining.

• The HOLDER gets called for a 15-yard taunting penalty, so the Browns have to kick from their own 15-yard line.

• The Chiefs run the kickoff back to their 35 with 21 seconds left and no timeouts.

• On first down, Kansas City quarterback Trent Green scrambles to his own 47.

• Green spikes the ball on second down with 4 seconds left in regulation.

• Dierdorf explains the Chiefs need a touchdown or penalty.

• On third down, as Green is being taken down for a sack, he flips the ball backward to an offensive lineman who runs it to the Browns’ 25-yard line as time expires.

• Cleveland’s Dwayne Rudd gets called for a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, because he thought Green was sacked and threw his helmet while the play was going on.

• With no time on the clock, Morten Anderson kicks a 30-yard field, and the Chiefs win 40–39.

In addition to just being a completely bonkers ending, what really stood out here was how Eagle and Dierdorf were on top of everything as the surreal sequence unfolded.

I reached out to Eagle to see what year this was for him calling the NFL on CBS since it took place 21 years ago. It turns out, it wasn’t even supposed to be Eagle’s game.

“It was my fifth year at CBS. Dick Enberg was working the U.S. Open, so I filled in on that crew. The sequence of events in the fourth quarter were mind-boggling, and Dierdorf was all over every aspect of them.”

If this doesn’t whet your appetite for the NFL season, I don’t know what will.

Here’s the CBS version of the final seconds.

And here is the NFL Primetime recap with Chris Berman and Tom Jackson.

2. I can’t explain in words why a sports network’s score bug is important, but it just is. And the new score bug that FS1 debuted this week, which will also be used on Fox college football games, is absolutely atrocious. The thing takes up one-third of the screen. It’s mind-boggling that networks still don’t understand that less is more. I just hope Fox doesn’t use this eyesore on NFL games this season.

3. You might not have seen it Saturday since the game was on the Pac-12 Network, but USC’s Caleb Williams showed why he’s the Heisman front-runner with this ridiculous play.

4. The most impressive athletic feat of the weekend came from this PGA Tour cameraman.

5. The WWE and the NFL have partnered up to offer fans championship belts for all 32 teams. Getting the title will cost you, though. The belts run $550 each.

6. The latest SI Media With Jimmy Traina podcast features the first appearance of Charles Barkley on the show. Barkley gave me 90 minutes of his time, and we covered a lot of ground. Among the topics we discussed:

• The Rock

• His future on television

• Would he work for another network if Turner loses NBA?

• New NBA TV deals

• A rule that would prevent NBA owners from raising ticket prices

• Sports needs to penalize teams that suck

• Betting Saturday’s Notre Dame–Navy game

• How serious was he about going to LIV?

• Turning down an offer to call Monday Night Football

• Would he call an NFL game today?

• Wanting to call a game with Dick Vitale

• His opinion on ESPN’s firing Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson

• Wanting Jeff Van Gundy to join Turner

• Hating sports media people who make things personal

• Is he sick of talking about his fallout with Michael Jordan?

• How many times has he been in the same room with Michael Jordan in the past 25 years?

• Turner putting an end to his “Big San Antonio Women” bit

• Is he cancel-proof?

• His love of College GameDay

• Issues when Shaq first joined Inside the NBA

• How he preps for the NCAA tournament

• Losing 70 pounds

• His all-time worst gambling loss

• His love of Scott Van Pelt’s “Bad Beats”

• NFL Future bets he likes

• Why he’s rooting for the Lions this season

• Going to Las Vegas with friends every two to three weeks during the NBA season

• Why he thinks sports gambling has gotten out of hand

• College football is ruined

• Funniest people in sports media

• Will he be remembered more for his playing career or broadcasting?

• Why nurses are the best

• Why LeBron’s story is the greatest story in sports history

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.

You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on YouTube.

7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: What a run for Bob Barker, who passed away Saturday at 99 years old. Back in 2009, the legendary host even appeared on Monday Night Raw to host a WWE edition of The Price Is Right.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.