NFL Recap (Minnesota-Baltimore)
Posted: Sun December 13, 1998 at 9:47 p.m. EST
MINNESOTA 38, BALTIMORE 28
BALTIMORE (Ticker) -- Gary Anderson took some of
the spotlight away from Randall Cunningham and the
rest of the league's most potent offense, but the result remained the same
as the Minnesota
Vikings reached 13 wins for the first time.
Cunningham continued his run at Most Valuable Player with another
superb effort and Anderson kicked six field goals and set an NFL record
with his 36th in succession, leading the Vikings to a 38-28 victory over
the Baltimore Ravens.
Anderson nailed all six of his attempts, the fourth of which came from
24 yards in the second quarter and gave him 32 in a row, one more than
former Viking Fuad Reveiz's previous league record. He put Minnesota ahead
to stay with 12:55 left in the second quarter, drilling a 45-yarder for a
15-14 lead.
"It's exciting, I never thought I would do this. I'm sorry to break a
buddy's record, but I'm pretty happy about it," Anderson said. "I just go
about my job day in and day out and do whatever coach (Dennis) Green tells
me."
Cunningham threw touchdown passes to Randy Moss and Cris Carter and notched his
fourth 300-yard game of the season, completing 32-of-55 passes for 345
yards. Carter returned after missing most of last week's rout of Chicago
with a strained calf to make 11 catches for 85 yards.
"I keep doing what I just have to do. I still know I'm the backup on
this team," Cunningham said. "To get a victory on the road, it's very
tough. I'm just happy I had the performance and helped this team win."
Moss continued his march to NFC Rookie of the Year with his seventh TD
catch in three games, increasing his league-leading total to 15. He had
six receptions for 89 yards, increasing his NFL-best total to 1,209.
Minnesota (13-1) set a team record for wins by surpassing the previous
record of 12, reached on four occasions -- all before 1978, when the league
went from 14 games to 16 games.
"Now, we can't get ahead of ourselves to get homefield advantage for
the playoffs," Green noted.
This contest saw another NFL record with three kickoffs brought back
for touchdowns -- all in the first quarter.
Following Anderson's first kick, Corey Harris had a 95-yard
TD return. Anderson answered with a 31-yard field goal, but Patrick Johnson
took his kickoff 97 yards to the end zone. Minnesota's David Palmer returned the
ensuing kick 88 yards for a score.
Harris had 243 yards on eight kick returns as Baltimore set a league
record with 365 kick return yards. The 511 combined yards on kick returns
by both teams was the second-most in NFL history.
Jim Harbaugh
completed 16-of-26 passes for 212 yards and a TD, but also had two of the
Ravens' six turnovers, including one of their five fumbles. Floyd Turner
had 10 receptions for 147 yards and a touchdown for Baltimore (5-9), whose
defense was simply overmatched.
"I'm happy for the performance, but I would have rather won," Turner
said. "We made too many errors today, especially against a ballclub like
that. It was just very frustrating for us."
The Vikings had a 420-267 edge in total yardage, had 26 first downs
compared to the Ravens' 16, and controlled the clock for over 40 minutes.
"I don't think there's any question that they're the best team
anywhere that I've seen in the National Football League," said Ravens coach
Ted Marchibroda. "This is a ballgame where we made too many mistakes. You
can't win in this league and make as many mistakes as we did."
Following Palmer's touchdown, Cunningham's pass to Carter on the
conversion attempt fell incomplete and Minnesota trailed, 14-12, with 3:22
left in the opening quarter.
A fumble by Ravens tight end Eric Green led to
Anderson's 45-yarder and Harris lost a fumble on the ensuing kickoff,
leading to Cunningham's 17-yard TD toss to Moss for a 22-14 advantage with
11:36 left before halftime.
"I'm happy we were able to bounce back and take control of it," Moss
said. "It was pretty hectic out there."
Harbaugh fumbled the snap near midfield on the next possession before
a 14-yard run by Leroy
Hoard set up Anderson's record-setting 24-yarder with 5:17 to go in the
second.
Hoard, starting again in place of the injured Robert Smith, rushed for
68 yards on 26 carries.
Baltimore's Priest
Holmes ran eight times for 39 yards and a touchdown but also had a pair
of fumbles -- the last of which led to Anderson's 46-yard field goal early
in the third that built the lead to 28-14.
Harbaugh was intercepted by cornerback Corey Fuller on the next
play from scrimmage, again giving the Vikings great field position at the
28. Five plays later, Cunningham fired to Carter at the front left corner
of the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown -- the 100th of Carter's career.
"It was a little different in the beginning," Carter explained. "They
had a very good defense. We were just able to shut them down and
capitalize on their mistakes."
Carter, who saw his streak of consecutive games with a reception end
at 111 last week, became just the 12th player in NFL history with 100
career touchdowns. He also moved past Steve Largent into fourth place on
the all-time receptions list with 820.
Baltimore put together a 76-yard drive but Harbaugh's pass on
4th-and-goal from the 3 fell incomplete. But the Ravens received a bit of
life early in the fourth when Cunningham threw an interception, just his
ninth of the season compared to 29 touchdowns.
Minnesota quickly dashed Baltimore's hopes of a comeback with a
16-play, 84-yard drive that chewed over nine minutes off the clock.
Cunningham completed 7-of-9 for 77 yards to set up Anderson's 20-yard boot
with 2:51 to go, creating a 38-20 cushion.
"He's playing at a torrid pace right now with great poise and
confidence," coach Green added. "That's what makes him probably the best
QB right now."
Matthew Hatchette,
filling in for the injured Jake Reed, had six grabs
for 95 yards as Minnesota won for the first time in nine trips to
Baltimore. The Vikings had not played there since 1968.
© 1998 Sportsticker Enterprises, LP
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