Super Bowl Moments – The Great Touchdowns In Super Bowl And Playoff History
The sports betting calculus isn’t the foremost reason to remember great touchdowns in Super Bowl history, but one can’t help acknowledging the fact that most of these plays shifted the flow of pro football’s ultimate event, reshaping outcomes and changing the fortunes of NFL betting participants.
Santonio Holmes’ Winning Catch In Super Bowl XLIII
The 9-7 Arizona Cardinals were about to complete a rags-to-riches story of unspeakable proportions. The franchise that hadn’t won a world title since 1947 – when it resided in Chicago – and had never even made a Super Bowl had suddenly vaulted to a 23-20 lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the final minute. Pittsburgh was chasing its sixth Super Bowl title, but a late Arizona touchdown put that prize in jeopardy. No need to fear, though: Steeler quarterback Ben Roethlisberger put a ball in the corner of the end zone where only Holmes could catch it. The receiver tapped down two feet just before getting shoved out of bounds. The Steelers won ring number six.
James Harrison’s Interception Return in Super Bowl XLIII
Online Betting savants will recall that Harrison’s return, while spectacular, would have meant comparatively little had he not gone 100 yards and taken a Kurt Warner pass to the goal line. If Harrison’s interception against the Arizona Cardinals had taken him only 97 yards in the other direction, the Pittsburgh Steelers might not have won their sixth world title by a 27-23 score.
Ricky Nattiel’s Touchdown On Denver’s First Scrimmage Play of Super Bowl XXII
Betting gurus will note that this play was the exception to the rule. The Denver Broncos used this gorgeous strike from John Elway’s right arm to bolt to a 10-0 lead against the Washington Redskins in San Diego, but after a 35-point second quarter from quarterback Doug Williams, the Redskins pulled away and cruised to a 42-10 triumph.
The Antwaan Randle El Touchdown Pass In Super Bowl XL
Super Bowl betting experts surely felt the Pittsburgh Steelers were likely to beat the Seattle Seahawks after they intercepted Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck in the red zone in the fourth quarter of a tense contest. Yet, with a 14-10 lead, Pittsburgh needed a kill shot with just under 10 minutes remaining in regulation. That’s when the Steelers went to the grab bag and used a flanker reverse pass to fool the Seahawks’ secondary. Hines Ward caught a perfectly-delivered ball from fellow flanker (and former college quarterback) Antwaan Randle El to seal Pittsburgh’s fifth Super Bowl championship at Ford Field in Detroit.
Playoff History: Dwight Clark And “The Catch”
This will always remain one of the most iconic moments in NFL playoff history. The play that enabled the San Francisco 49ers to beat the Dallas Cowboys, 28-27, in the 1981 (season) NFC Championship Game was memorable partly because it was such a phenomenal play, but mostly because it launched the career of quarterback Joe Montana, viewed by most experts as the greatest signal caller in the history of the sport. The 49er dynasty began that day at Candlestick Park, and just as significantly, the Dallas Cowboys’ dynasty truly ended. The Cowboys were so close to returning to the Super Bowl and regaining their status as a championship team under then-quarterback Danny White. However, Montana’s magic prevented White from joining Roger Staubach as a Dallas quarterback with a Super Bowl appearance. The game truly changed the fortunes of two franchises and dramatically affected the course of the sport’s evolution.
The Immaculate Reception From The 1972 AFC Playoffs
The thing to remember about this seminal moment in playoff history is that the rules of the time prevented a legal catch from being made on a deflected ball unless the defender touched the ball first. If Pittsburgh’s Frenchy Fuqua, not Oakland Raiders’ safety Jack Tatum, touched the ball on the carom, Franco Harris couldn’t have legally caught this pass by Terry Bradshaw. Only because Tatum hit the ball first was Harris able to complete this remarkable scoring play.
