Early in the fourth quarter of their season opener, the Bengals found themselves confronted by a distinct football catastrophe. The play that caused it was fairly unremarkable, so much so that the CBS broadcast didn’t note the impact until about an hour later. But the consequences would cost Cincinnati dearly, shaping the early course of its AFC title defense.
The nightmare began to unfold as Bengals punter Kevin Huber kicked away to Pittsburgh’s Gunner Olszewski, who shrugged aside the flailing tackle attempt of Clark Harris and bounced outside. Olszewski’s return covered 20 yards while Harris, Cincinnati’s starting long snapper since 2009, writhed on the turf with what was later revealed to be a torn right biceps. After a frantic comeback, the Bengals stood an extra point away from victory when backup tight end Mitchell Wilcox stepped in as Harris’s emergency fill-in. The first snap of his NFL career was noticeably slow, giving a Steelers rusher time to get his fingers on the kick. Wilcox got another chance in overtime, but this time his hike flew high; Huber was unable to turn the laces, and the ultra-reliable Evan McPherson’s 29-yard field goal attempt knuckled far wide left. The Steelers later won on a last-second kick of their own.
For fellow snappers around the league, such as the Patriots’ eighth-year veteran Joe Cardona, Harris’s injury brought up mixed emotions. It stunk to see a member of their 32-man community sidelined, especially someone Cardona calls “one of the best in the league, hands-down.” Yet Cardona couldn’t help but feel a bit of satisfaction at how things turned out, too. “We’re in a moment where we’re seeing the value and importance of the position,” Cardona says. “I think what happened in Cincinnati would be the best example of that. When you walk out there on Sundays, and teams are dressing 46 guys, you’re the only one who can do this highly specialized job at the NFL level.”
