November 12, 1990: The Body Bag Game

Byron Evans knocks Stan Humphries out of the game.

Jerome Brown looks on.

November 12, 1990, 30 years ago: ABC Monday Night Football broadcasts a game from Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Washington Redskins, 28-14. Judging by the score, it does not look to a current eye like a particularly notable game.

But it was. It was "The Body Bag Game."

The Redskins, coached by Joe Gibbs, still had a few of the players who had helped them win Super Bowl XVII 8 seasons earlier, and many of the players who had helped them win Super Bowl XXII just 3 seasons earlier. But they were also in something of a transition. Most notably, Doug Williams, the quarterback who was named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XXII, had been cut in a cost-saving measure.

The 3 quarterbacks on the Redskins' roster at this point were Jeff Rutledge, who had led the University of Alabama to a National Championship in 1978, but whose pro career had turned out to be a bust; Stan Humphries, who would one day take the San Diego Chargers to their only Super Bowl, but had thrown all of 10 passes in regular-season NFL games going into this season; and Mark Rypien, who was in his 3rd season as the team's starter, and would go on to lead the Redskins to victory in Super Bowl XXVI and win that game's MVP.

The Eagles were coached by James David "Buddy" Ryan. Once the defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears, designer of the "46 Defense" that was key to their win in Super Bowl XX, and before that the coach of the New York Jets' defensive line that was a big reason why they won Super Bowl III, he was beloved by his defensive players. But the offensive players on his teams never fully trusted him. The Eagles' quarterback was Randall Cunningham, an incredibly versatile player whose nickname was "The Ultimate Weapon." Ryan didn't have a clue as to how to use him.

But Ryan built a devastating defense in South Philly. Ends Reggie White and Clyde Simmons. Tackles Jerome Brown and Mike Golic. Linebackers Seth Joyner and Byron Evans. Cornerbacks Eric Allen, Izel Jenkins and William Frizzell. Safeties Terry Hoage, Wes Hopkins and Andre Waters. They were good, and they were mean.

How mean were they? In the days leading up to the game, Ryan told reporters the Eagles would beat the Redskins so badly, "they'll have to be carted off in body bags." Big talk, given that, just 3 weeks earlier, in Washington, the Redskins beat the Eagles, 13-7. The Eagles came into this game 4-4, the Redskins 5-3.

It should be noted that Rypien was already injured, and did not play in the game. So Rutledge started for the Redskins. The Eagles knocked him out of the game. Humphries came in. Later on, the Eagles knocked him out, too.

The Redskins were down to just 1 healthy player who had ever played the position of quarterback at any level: Brian Mitchell, a rookie running back who had played quarterback at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now named simply the University of Louisiana). Pressed into emergency duty, he attempted 6 passes, and completed 3 of them, for 40 yards, and also ran a 1-yard play for a touchdown.

By that point, the Eagles were already up 28-7, with Mitchell's score making the scoreboard at least look respectable. The Eagles got offensive touchdowns on a pass from Cunningham to Heath Sherman and an option pass from Keith Byars to Sherman; and "defensive touchdowns" on a fumble return by Simmons and an interception return by Frizzell.

All told, 9 Redskin players had to leave the game due to injury, and none returned. Did the Eagles play dirty? Well, they were called for 11 penalties, totaling 88 yards. However, I didn't watch the game, even though it was nationally televised, in my case on WABC-Channel 7. So I can't remember what specific penalty calls were made; and I can't find a record with a breakdown of those penalties. But I've also never seen a record of the Redskins, their coaches, or their fans claiming that the Eagles were dirty that night. It's not like they were their South Philadelphia neighbors, the NHL's Flyers.

Both teams ended up winning 5 of their last 7 games to make the Playoffs, and the Redskins returned to The Vet and beat the Eagles, 20-6. The Redskins used the experience to motivate themselves to win the Super Bowl the following season, completing a 9-year run where they went to 4 Super Bowls, winning 3.

Ryan never got the Eagles very far. That loss to the Redskins was his 3rd Playoff game as an NFL head coach, and he lost them all. He was fired after the season, and later coached the Arizona Cardinals for 2 years, without getting them into the Playoffs, and never got another head coaching job. Like so many before him, and a few after him, he proved that a great defensive coordinator does not necessarily make a good head coach.

It would take the Eagles another 14 seasons to reach the Super Bowl, and another 27 seasons to win one.

For the 1991 season, with what became known as "The Body Bag Game" in mind, the NFL instituted the Third Quarterback Rule: If an NFL team went into a game with only 2 healthy quarterbacks, it could dress a 3rd quarterback who was not on the 45-man game-day roster. The catch was that, if he entered the game before the 4th quarter, no other quarterback could return to the game.

There's one more oddity to this game: After 10 seasons with the Redskins, including a Super Bowl XXVI ring and a 1995 Pro Bowl berth, Brian Mitchell played 3 seasons (2000-02) with the Eagles, and became much admired by the hard-to-please Eagle fans. He played 1 last season in 2003, with the New York Giants, and retired with more yards on kick and punt returns, 19,013, than any player in NFL history. His 23,330 career total yards are 2nd all-time, behind only Jerry Rice. He is eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but is not in it.

For all the talent on their roster, Reggie White is the only Eagle from the Body Bag Game who is in the Hall of Fame. So are Redskins Art Monk (receiver), Russ Grimm (guard) and Darrell Green (cornerback), as well as head coach Joe Gibbs. Jerome Brown was killed in a car crash shortly before preparations for the 1992 season began, having played only 5 seasons. Had he lived, he probably would have made the Hall.

Eagle fans love this game, even though it came to nothing. They like to think of themselves, and their city, as a lot tougher than the pretty boys in the nation's capital of Washington, or fashionable New York, or glitzy Sun Belt cities like Miami, Dallas and Los Angeles.

But ask them now: Which game means more to you, the Body Bag Game, or Super Bowl LII? Even the most posturing of self-proclaimed tough guys will take the Super Bowl win.