I asked Ryan Fitzpatrick, veteran quarterback, if he had a favorite Monday Night Football memory in his decade of playing in the NFL. Of course, the bearded Fitz didn't disappoint with his tale from Monday, September 10, 2007.
"It was my first ever game in Cincinnati," Fitzpatrick recalled. "I got traded to Cincinnati about six days before that. They told me pretty much the day of the game, or maybe the day before, that I was the backup holder. I had never held in my life. During the game, our kicker just so happened to get hurt and the punter, who was the starting holder, went to kick. So the backup holder, me, had to go in there and hold for an extra point. I had to scramble for my helmet, found it, ran out there and the extra point got blocked. I don't know if it was the hold or the kick or just whatever. The whole time I was sitting there, six days in to being a Cincinnati Bengal, thinking, 'Oh my gosh. Like, this is awful.' It was a close game. We ended up winning though, so it was a good memory."
The Bengals defeated Baltimore 27-20 despite Kyle Larson's blocked extra point mid-way through the first quarter. Kicker Shayne Graham ended up returning to the game and Fitzpatrick was relieved of holding duties by Larson for the rest of the game.
Fitzpatrick will get a chance to add to his Monday night NFL experiences in Week 7 when the (3-3) Texans travel to Pittsburgh to take on the (3-3) Steelers. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT on ESPN and SportsRadio 610.
