Mourning Redskins lose on field goal
LANDOVER, Md. -- After scoring the game's only touchdown, Clinton Portis lifted his jersey to reveal a white shirt with the words "In memory of Sean Taylor."
They played for Sean.
They tried to win for Sean, just as Sean's father had told them to do.
The grief of the Washington Redskins was on full display Sunday, in front of 85,000 waving their No. 21 towels, but their fragile emotions were shattered when Rian Lindell kicked a 36-yard field goal with four seconds left to give the Buffalo Bills a 17-16 victory.
"It makes your heart drop all the way to your feet," quarterback Jason Campbell said. "We wanted to come out here and win one for Sean, and try to keep ourselves in the playoff run."
Five days after Taylor died from a gunshot wound in Florida, the Redskins' defense did Taylor proud by not allowing a touchdown. Buffalo's points came on 5 field goals and a safety. But a major gaffe played a part in leaving Washington's players disconsolate at the final whistle.
Lindell hit a 51-yard attempt that didn't count because the Redskins called timeout just as the ball was snapped. Coach Joe Gibbs then tried the same tactic again, but consecutive timeouts aren't allowed when attempting to freeze the kicker.
The resulting 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty gave the veteran Lindell a much easier kick. His game-winner extended his streak to 17 consecutive made field goals.
"There's nobody to blame but myself," Gibbs said. "I should have known the rule."
Buffalo started its final drive at its 22 with 56 seconds remaining and no timeouts. A 31-yard pass to Josh Reed set up the winning kick.
Taylor's father, Pedro Taylor, had urged the Redskins to win out and make the playoffs when he addressed the team Wednesday. But Washington (5-7) has now lost four straight and is fading quickly from the postseason picture. The Redskins will attend Taylor's funeral today, then must try to find a way to focus for a Thursday night game against the Bears.
Buffalo (6-6), with solid performances from rookie quarterback Trent Edwards and third-string running back Fred Jackson, broke a two-game skid to keep its AFC playoff hopes alive. But the Bills were unwelcome outsiders on a day that was part memorial service and part celebration, one that fittingly ended in a chilly autumn rain.
Teammates and coaches addressed Taylor directly during a pregame video tribute.
"You're the best I ever coached," said assistant coach Gregg Williams, who thought of Taylor as a son. "You will be missed."
Fans held posters that called Taylor the "eternal 12th man." Another read, "4-ever a Skin, 4-ever a Cane, 4-ever 21," a reference to Taylor's stellar college career at Miami before the Redskins drafted him in the first round in 2004.
When the Redskins' defense took the field for the first time, Taylor's safety position was vacant: Only 10 players defended Jackson's 22-yard run around the left end. Taylor's replacement, Reed Doughty, then ran onto the field, and he was the one who made the tackle on the next play, a short pass to Reed.
When Santana Moss, one of Taylor's closest friends on the team, caught his first pass, he pounded his chest and held up his index and middle fingers and his pinky. It was his way of spelling "21" for all to see, and he often repeated the gesture -- sometimes with both hands -- when he made a catch.
Cornerback Fred Smoot said he cried sometimes when he would look over to the safety position and see that Taylor was not there. Gibbs said the team was drained even before it came out of a locker room, where, just as at Redskins Park, Taylor's locker was sealed in Plexiglas.
"There was a lot of emotion for the whole week," Gibbs said.