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The Falcons blew a 28-3 lead, but so did the Bucs

Tampa Bay is responsible for the greatest fourth-quarter collapse in NFL history.
 
Matt Ryan walks off the field after the Falcons lost Super Bowl LI to the Patriots in February. [Getty Images]
Matt Ryan walks off the field after the Falcons lost Super Bowl LI to the Patriots in February. [Getty Images]
Published Dec. 18, 2017|Updated Dec. 18, 2017

The Falcons blew a 28-3 lead in last season's Super Bowl, and no one will let them forget it.

Including the Bucs.

During a playful exchange on Twitter in May, Tampa Bay trolled its division rivals by posting a photo of Vernon Hargreaves, No. 28, and Jameis Winston, No. 3.

That tweet (since deleted) prompted an apology from coach Dirk Koetter, who called it "totally unprofessional."

Somehow, no one reminded the Bucs that they once blew a lead that large.

We even missed noting the 30th anniversary of Tampa Bay's epic collapse. I was talking this week with reader John Prowell, and when the conversation turned to sad moments in Bucs history, he brought up Nov. 8, 1987. He described that day as the "darkest moment in his fandom."

While Atlanta's meltdown spanned three periods, Tampa Bay's took only one quarter. It remains the greatest fourth-quarter collapse in NFL history.

Steve DeBerg threw three touchdowns and running back Jeff Smith rushed for one to give the Bucs a 28-3 lead over the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

It took them 45 minutes to build that 25-point advantage but only 10 minutes and 41 seconds to squander it. In that span, Cardinals quarterback Neil Lomax threw three touchdown passes and the defense returned a James Wilder fumble for another score.

Trailing 31-28, Tampa Bay got the ball back with about two minutes left.

"To add insult to injury, because this is the Bucs, DeBerg leads them down the field on a furious charge to kick a game-tying field goal," recalled Prowell, 44, of Normal, Ill. "Donald Igwebuike, probably one of the best kickers they ever had to that point, clangs a last-minute field goal off the crossbar, and that's how the game ends."

"31-28 crushed me. My teenage years were just beginning at the time. I understood the meaning of the word 'depression' after that game."

Contact Thomas Bassinger at tbassinger@tampabay.com. Follow @tometrics.