The National Football League offers no shortage of notable moments over the course of a typical season. Memorable plays and exciting moments begin when the NFL kicks off its season in early September, and the excitement only builds as the season inches closer to the Super Bowl, the league’s much-watched championship game.
The winner-take-all nature of the Super Bowl certainly adds to the gravity of the game, and that has laid the foundation for some unforgettable plays since the first Super Bowl was played in 1967. Any list of notable moments in Super Bowl history could be endless, but the following are four moments that fans of the game won’t soon forget.
1. The Seattle Seahawks decide to throw the ball. The Seahawks were trailing the New England Patriots 28-24 with 20 seconds left in Super Bowl XLIX in Arizona in 2015 but had the ball at the goal line. Most football fans fully expected Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson to hand the ball off to running back Marshawn Lynch, who scored a rushing touchdown earlier in the game. But Seattle instead chose to pass, and Wilson was intercepted by undrafted rookie Malcolm Butler, a play that sealed the Patriots’ victory and prompted second-guessing from millions of fans.
2. David Tyree makes a catch for the ages. Acrobatic catches have become the norm in the modern NFL, but there may still be no more unlikely catch than New York Giant David Tyree’s “Helmet Catch” in Super Bowl XLII in 2008. The Giants trailed the Patriots 14-10 late in the fourth quarter when Tyree and his teammates faced a third down. Tyree leapt in the air to catch an Eli Manning pass with one hand, pinning the ball to his helmet and maintaining possession for a first down and 32-yard gain. The Giants ultimately scored a touchdown on the drive to secure a 17-14 victory.
3. Joe Montana keeps his cool. When the Cincinnati Bengals kicked a go-ahead field goal with a little more than three minutes left in Super Bowl XXIII in Miami in 1989, things were looking bleak for quarterback Joe Montana and his San Francisco 49ers teammates. But Montana kept his cool, even pointing into the crowd as the Niners offense huddled on the field and asking, “Hey, isn’t that John Candy?” Montana’s cool demeanor undoubtedly helped the 49ers pull off a stunning comeback, which culminated when he connected with wide receiver John Taylor on a 10-yard touchdown with 34 seconds to go to cap an incredible 11-play, 92-yard drive.
4. Scott Norwood breaks hearts in Buffalo. Memorable plays leave some fans cheering and others lamenting what might have been. Super Bowl XXV in Tampa, Florida, between the Giants and the Buffalo Bills in 1991 certainly featured such a play. Trailing 20-19 with just four seconds to go, the Bills lined up to kick a 47-yard field goal that would have earned the franchise its first Super Bowl victory. But Buffalo placekicker Scott Norwood’s kick sailed wide right, handing the Giants the win and starting a string of four straight Super Bowl losses for the Bills.
