Missed field goal opportunity gives Arizona Cardinals victory over New England Patriots – NFL Recap
Stephen Gostkowski missed a field goal opportunity for New England Patriots in the final few minutes of the game on Sunday, September 16, 2012, as Arizona Cardinals got a surprising win, 20-18, at Gillette Stadium, Foxboro.
During the entire game, the Pats relied most of the time on their kicker to get the scoreboard moving, but after scoring four field goals when Gostkowski geared up for another attempt, this time from 42 yards, the kicker surprisingly sent the ball wide to
the left, giving Cardinals an unexpected victory.
“I’d had a good game up until that point and I felt good going out there,” Gostkowski said after the game. He continued:
“It was just one of those things, you get opportunities like that not very often and I have to do a lot better job of coming through for the team. I had a chance to win and it came down to me and I didn’t pull through and it stinks. I feel bad for the fans
and my teammates. I can’t take it back now.”
The Cardinals also played well for their victory with quarterback Kevin Kolb leading the offence. Their coach Ken Whisenhunt said after the game:
“Nobody really gave us a chance, but our guys believed they could do it and it's great to see them operate that way."
Cardinals started the game well. They were unable to score touchdowns, but utilised many other opportunities. They got two field goals in the first quarter before Patriots got their first scoring move of the game in the form of a field goal.
Patriots scored another field goal in the second quarter to level the score. They increased their lead in the third quarter by adding another field goal, but Kolb and Andre Roberts combined for a two-yard touchdown to give the lead to Cardinals.
Kolb managed another touchdown in the final quarter as he rushed for five yards to reach the end zone early in the quarter, taking a handsome lead.
Patriots reduced the deficit by scoring a field goal and their quarterback Tom Brady finally got his first touchdown of the game when he connected with Rob Gronkowski for a five-yard touchdown. The touchdown was followed by a failed two-point conversion
attempt.
Patriots were trailing by two points with around two minutes left in the game when they got that touchdown. They managed to gain the possession towards the end of the game and Brady led the drive enough to get the field goal opportunity that was eventually
missed by Gostkowski.
Brady finished the game after completing 28 of his 46 attempted passes for 316 yards while scoring one touchdown and one interception.
This was Cardinals’ second victory in a row while Patriots are 1-1 after two games.
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