Brandon Carr made his name in Kansas City, playing cornerback for the Chiefs during Todd Haley's head-coaching run at Arrowhead.
Carr now is with the Dallas Cowboys, and Haley is the offensive coordinator of the Pittsburgh Steelers. They crossed paths Sunday during Dallas' monster 27-24 overtime win.
Carr was the star of the game, intercepting a Ben Roethlisberger pass in OT and racing it back to the Steelers' 1-yard line, setting up a chip-shot, game-winning field goal by Dan Bailey. Carr said his time with Haley helped him on the play.
"I just stayed in my zone and I trusted myself this time," Carr said, via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "He made a throw behind (Mike Wallace), so I went and got the ball. I've been dealing with Coach Haley for three years, so I finally got a chance to play against him. It worked out that some of his tendencies held true.
"It helped a lot just to know how a person thinks on the field. I had a chance to figure out how he thinks and how he's going to attack me -- know how he coached me up in Kansas City. Basically, it helped me play to my weaknesses and make them my strengths."
On NFL Network
NFL Replay will re-air the
Dallas Cowboys' 27-24 OT win over the Pittsburgh
Steelers in Week 15 on Wednesday, Dec. 19 at 9 p.m. ET.
Steelers fans could be tempted to twist Carr's words and put this loss on Haley, but that's not right. Carr had the benefit of familiarity, and he took advantage of it at an ideal time.
Follow Dan Hanzus on Twitter @DanHanzus.
