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AFC 31 NFC 28
February 11, 2007
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"With this much talent,
anybody could change the
game at any time," the
Cincinnati quarterback said.
"You've got to expect
something crazy to happen,
because it will."
Palmer's hunch proved
correct in the improbable
final minutes -- but thanks
to Palmer's poise and a
costly NFC penalty, the
AFC's Hawaiian vacation
ended with another win.
Nate Kaeding kicked a
21-yard field goal as time
expired to cap another
strong drive led by Palmer,
the MVP of the AFC's 31-28
victory Saturday in the 57th
edition of the NFL's
all-star game.
The NFC trailed 28-14 with 3
minutes to play before
injecting a little drama
into this normally mellow
exhibition. Steven Jackson
scored on a fourth-down TD
run, and Ronde Barber
recovered an onside kick to
set up Anquan Boldin's
47-yard TD catch from Tony
Romo with 1:48 left --
followed by a tying 2-point
conversion catch by
Carolina's Steve Smith.
Suddenly, the AFC's $40,000
bonuses for winning the game
were in doubt. But just as
quickly as the NFC's
playmakers got back in the
game, the AFC got it
together again.
"I had a feeling they were
going to have one more
shot," Jackson said. "These
games are all about who
lands the last punch, and
Carson is a great player."
Palmer, who passed for 190
yards and two touchdowns,
calmly got the AFC across
midfield -- and then
Arizona's Adrian Wilson,
mistakenly believing
Palmer's long pass had been
tipped, leveled Chad Johnson
at the goal line before the
throw reached them.
The 39-yard
pass-interference penalty
put the ball near the goal
line. San Diego's Kaeding
easily made his field goal,
setting off fireworks at
sold-out Aloha Stadium for
the talent-rich AFC's eighth
win in the last 11 Pro
Bowls.
Palmer threw a 42-yard TD
pass to Johnson and a
72-yarder to Reggie Wayne,
and Baltimore's Ed Reed
intercepted two passes
before the frantic finish.
Palmer, who took over for
Super Bowl MVP Peyton
Manning after just two
series, went 8-for-17 in his
first Pro Bowl appearance
after missing last season's
game with a knee injury.
"This is all just a fun
game," said Reed, who tied
the Pro Bowl record for
interceptions. "Carson made
two great throws, and those
guys made great catches. We
needed those points."
Tiki Barber, the New York
Giants' running back who's
retiring after a 10-year
career, scored on a 1-yard
run in the second quarter.
Kansas City guard Will
Shields, who appeared in his
record-tying 12th Pro Bowl,
also is contemplating
retirement.
Baltimore's Adalius Thomas
returned Marc Bulger's
fumble 70 yards for a
confusing score in the first
half, but there was no
confusion about the game's
best play: Sean Taylor, the
maverick Washington safety,
broke the unwritten rule
about hard hits in an
exhibition when he viciously
leveled Buffalo punter Brian
Moorman on an attempted fake
in the third quarter.
"Believe it or not, it
wasn't as bad as it looked,"
Moorman said. "It was just
hard. It took me a second to
realize that it didn't hurt
so bad, so I got right back
up."
Tiki Barber threw an
interception and rushed for
just 4 yards on seven
carries, but the veteran
scored the game's first
touchdown. He got a standing
ovation from the crowd and
his fellow players when a
video tribute to his career
was shown on the scoreboard
with 1:58 to play.
"I've been ready for this
for a while, and I've been
expecting it," Barber said.
"I'm excited. I'm not sad
and upset that it's over.
I'm just real happy that it
happened the way that it
did, and I achieved all that
I have, and get to go out on
my terms."
Romo passed for 156 yards in
the second half, and San
Francisco's Frank Gore made
an early TD run. The crowd
actually booed Romo in the
second half as the NFC's
early comeback attempt
stalled, but the Dallas
quarterback led three strong
final drives.
He was stopped on a
fourth-down quarterback
keeper on the first drive,
but after Young fumbled,
Jackson made a gutsy scoring
run on another fourth down
with 2:54 to play. The NFC
tried a fake on the
conversion attempt, but Romo
-- who had no trouble
holding for kicks after his
infamous flub in a playoff
loss to Seattle -- couldn't
find an open receiver. Manning capped his week of tropical relaxation with 67 yards passing in just two series as the AFC's starting quarterback. NFC starter Drew Brees also played just two series before dislocating his left elbow -- a scary moment for Sean Payton, his coach with both the Saints and the NFC squad, but one that's unlikely to affect next season.
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Bad Day and Good Day: Brees dislocated his elbow and Palmer was MVP. |
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LaDainian Tomlinson got his touchdown.
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League MVP LaDainian
Tomlinson also ran for a
score as the AFC underlined
its regular-season
superiority -- but until
things got tight, neither
side cared much about the
result in the league's
annual postseason showcase.
Instead, they welcomed new
stars such as Vince Young --
the first rookie quarterback
here since Dan Marino in
1984 -- and said goodbye to
older pros who won't be
back.
