Dec. 8, 1963 - Charley Johnson threw touchdown passes of 78, 58, 43, and 17 yards today as the Cardinals routed the Philadelphia Eagles, 38-14, before 15,979 chilled fans at snow-flaky Busch Stadium in St. Louis. The other Cardinal touchdown was made on a 42-yard sprint by Larry Wilson with a recovered fumble. The Philadelphia quarterback, Sonny Jurgensen, troubled most of the day by the Cardinal line, was able only to set up two short scoring runs by Tim Brown. Johnson’s 4 scoring passes gave him a total of 26 for the season. He completed 14 of 29 passes for 315 yards. Johnson’s No. 1 receiver was Bobby Joe Conrad, who increased his league-leading reception total to 65, breaking a Cardinal single-season record. He caught 6 for 122 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Cardinals scored 10 points in the last 26 seconds of the first half for a 17-7 lead at halftime. Bill Triplett, in the clear, dropped Johnson’s long pass, but the Cardinal quarterback came back with a 58-yard scoring pass to Sonny Randle seconds later. After Tom Woodeshick fumbled the ensuing kickoff, Jim Bakken kicked a 23-yard field goal with 6 seconds left. Johnson was smiling but still shivering in the locker room after the game. “Gosh, the only time I ever played in this kind of weather before was when I was in eighth grade,” said the Texan, “and then it only sleeted.” In the losers’ locker room, Philadelphia coach Nick Skorich said: “We just made too many mistakes, gave the ball away too frequently. Even when we were behind, 24-14, in the third quarter, we had a drive going until Tim Brown fumbled and the Cardinals recovered. That had to be the turning point of the game.” Skorich was encouraged by quarterback Sonny Jurgensen’s performance. “He’s still not packing the old strength and snap, but that will come with complete rest.” Jurgensen too found cause for encouragement, although admitting that the old-time zip was missing. “I was using muscles I hadn’t used for five weeks,” he remarked, “and it was natural that a soreness should develop. Next year, however…” and his voice trailed away. The inference was clear. Jerry Wolman and Earl Foreman could expect a greatly improved club with a healthy Jurgensen when they inaugurate their first full season as co-owners of the Eagles next fall.
