Texans Fall On Thanksgiving To Titans

The Texans-Chiefs franchise is celebrating its 50th season of play in 2009. This is another look at the founding team of the American Football League and its first season of play.

The Dallas Texans won the fourth quarter of their contest with the New York Titans, 22-13.

Only problem was the Titans won the first three quarters and thus won the game 41-35. It was the highest scoring game in the first season of the American Football League and was one of those games that earned the league the reputation of being wide-open and built on passing. A small crowd of 14,344 sat in the Polo Grounds (right) and watched the game on Thanksgiving. The game was also broadcast on national television, which helped create the aura of the wild, high scoring AFL.

The teams combined for 76 points, nine touchdowns, 814 yards in total offense, 527 net passing yards, as the quarterbacks were a combined 35 of 70.

Dallas entered the fourth quarter down 28-13, and New York scored the first touchdown of the period. But the Titans missed the extra point, so it was 34-13 with 11 minutes to play. That’s when the Texans got back in the game, as they scored three touchdowns and a two-pointer after one of those scores in the final period.

It wasn’t enough, as the Texans record fell to 5-6 on the season. The victory ended a four-game losing streak for the Titans.

After the game, Hank Stram said his team needed rest and a return home to Dallas more than anything. The Texans had played six days earlier in Boston, and then spent the week practicing at a resort in the Catskill Mountains, before showing up for the holiday game in New York.

“We’ve played our two worst games the last two weeks, when we needed to play our best,” Stram said of the losses to the Patriots and Titans. “The entire squad has let down. The tackling is poor. New York ran 45 yards for a touchdown on a play that should have gained maybe 15 yards.

“Our pass defense is very poor and we’re not rushing the passer. We’ve given up 83 points in the last two weeks. A team can afford to make some offensive mistakes because they don’t change the score. But a defensive mistake gives the other team seven points.”

Texans CB David Webster got hit with three pass interference penalties during the game, setting up a pair of New York touchdowns. The Titans got it done through the air, as QB Al Dorow hit 21 of 33 passes for 301 yards. His favorite target was WR Don Maynard, who caught 10 passes for 179 yards.

The Dallas offense wasn’t nearly as efficient. From a story in the Dallas Times-Herald after the game: “The Texan offense was as unstable as a drunk tight rope artist. Dallas gained an impressive total of 415 yards but 247 yards of that balance was gained in just six plays … The two teams gained a total of 814 yards and 417 of those steps came on just 10 plays. New York had gainers of 45, 45, 42 and 38 yards.”

The Texans had their share of big plays as well: a 44-yard run by Abner Haynes, 22-yard pass from QB Cotton Davidson to RB Johnny Robinson, an exploding 67-yard run by Haynes who finished with 157 yards, a 20-yard run by Robinson, a 42-yard pass from Davidson to Robinson and a 52-yard catch by WR Chris Burford, who dropped the first four passes thrown to him.

When Titans RB Bill Mathis ran in from one-yard three minutes into the fourth quarter, New York led 34-13. That’s when the Texans scored twice in four minutes, as QB Cotton Davidson connected with Haynes on a four-yard TD and then 18 yards with WR Chris Burford for a score. A third penalty on Webster gave New York the ball at the Texans two-yard line, and Dewey Bohling scored on the next play, making it 41-28.

It took two plays for Davidson to lead the Texans back, as he threw 51 yards to Burford and then 13 yards for a touchdown to WR Max Boydston.

New York took the next kickoff and ran off 10 plays, killing the clock and securing the victory.

One final note: although the crowd at the Polo Grounds was small, they were scary. The Tex-Anns, a drill squad for the franchise attended the game. But they were ushered out of the Polo Grounds before the final play. Why? Because, as the Times-Herald described it: “young hoodlums were hanging around their station in the stands and the police were afraid of a post-game rush.”

GAME #11 RECAP/1960

• Opponent: New York Titans.
• Site: Polo Grounds, crowd estimated at 14,344.
• Score: 41-35 Titans.
• Texans Leading Rusher: Abner Haynes, 11 carries for 157 yards.
• Texans Leading Receiver: Chris Burford, four catches for 94 yards.
• Texans Leading Passer: Cotton Davidson, 14 of 37 for 226 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT.
• Texans Punter: Davidson four punts, 143 yards, 35.7-yard average.

SCORING SUMMARY

• 1Q – New York – D. Maynard 45-yard TD pass from A. Dorow. B. Shockley PAT kick.
• 1Q – New York – R. Donnahoo 57-yard fumble return for TD. Shockley PAT kick.
• 2Q – Dallas – J. Spikes 14-yard FG.
• 2Q – Dallas – A. Haynes 67-yard TD run. Spikes PAT kick.
• 2Q – New York – Dorow 3-yard run. Shockley PAT kick.
• 2Q – New York – A. Powell 1-yard TD pass from Dorow. Shockley PAT kick.
• 3Q – Dallas – Spikes 11-yard FG.
• 4Q – New York – B. Mathis 1-yard TD run. Shockley PAT kick failed.
• 4Q – Dallas – C. Burford 18-yard TD pass from C. Davidson. C. Johnson caught a pass from H. Enis for two points.
• 4Q – Dallas – Haynes 4-yard TD run. Spikes PAT kick.
• 4Q – New York – D. Bohling 2-yard TD run. Shockley PAT kick.
• 4Q – Dallas – M. Boydston 13-yard TD pass from Davidson. Spikes PAT kick.