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Mora disappointment Colts' boss drops to 0-6 in postseason with loss to Dolphins
Updated: Sunday December 31, 2000 11:13 PM
MIAMI (AP) -- Jim Mora was sure -- a jinx did not beat him, the Miami Dolphins did. "I don't feel snakebit at all," the Indianapolis Colts head coach insisted in an even tone. "There's no such thing as being snakebit. You either get it done or you don't, and we didn't." Mora fell to 0-6 in postseason play when his Colts lost to Miami 23-17 in overtime Saturday in an AFC wild-card playoff. Mora is the only head coach in NFL history to win at least 100 regular-season games and not record a playoff victory. His six losses also matched the league record for consecutive defeats in postseason play, a mark set by Steve Owen from 1939-50. "You can go back to `What if?' but that's part of the game," he said. "I know some things I'll think about. I'm thinking about them now. But I prefer not to share them." Mora really came close this time. Ahead 14-0 at halftime, the Colts watched Miami score the tying touchdown with 34 seconds left in the fourth quarter on Jay Fiedler's 9-yard pass to Jed Weaver. Then, after the usually reliable Mike Vanderjagt missed a 49-yard field goal try on the Colts' first possession in overtime, the Dolphins won it on Lamar Smith's 17-yard touchdown run with 3:34 left in the extra period.
When Smith barged into the end zone, Mora simply took off his headset and walked onto the field to shake hands with Dolphins head coach Dave Wannstedt. No excuses, no apologies. Mora calmly explained the loss in a small interview room. In an odd twist, a television set in the corner was tuned to Wannstedt's winning news conference. "When you don't turn the ball over and don't get many penalties and really don't make many mistakes, if you're good enough, you ought to win," Mora said. "We just came up a little short." Mora remained the only person in NFL history to coach at least four postseason games and not win any of them.
Mora's streak started with four losses while he coached the New Orleans Saints. His Colts were knocked out of the playoffs last season by Tennessee, 19-16. The Colts were 10-6 in the regular season this year, winning three consecutive tough games at the end to reach the playoffs. Even though the Dolphins won the AFC East at 11-5, Indianapolis was a slight favorite in this matchup -- the third time the teams played in 35 days. "Today's game was a good example of what our whole season was about," Mora said. "We battled hard all afternoon, but we didn't make the plays when we needed to." "It just reinforces the things we need to do to get better, but I'm not going to get into that now. We'll be back."
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