The greatest moments in NFL on Thanksgiving history
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1974: Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach gets sidelined with an injury with the Cowboys trailing, 16-3, in the third quarter. Rookie Clint Longley replaces him, and is not expected to do much while replacing a future Hall of Famer. Instead, he passes for two touchdowns, including a 50-yard touchdown pass to Drew Pearson with just 28 seconds left as Dallas wins, 24-23.
1982: New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor has four sacks, but that was just the setup for his amazing moment. With the score tied, 6-6, in the fourth quarter, Taylor intercepts a Gary Danielson pass at the three and returns it 97-yards for the winning touchdown of a 13-6 victory over the Detroit Lions.
1993: Trailing 14-13 in a snowstorm, the Miami Dolphins line up for a game-winning field goal against the Dallas Cowboys. Pete Stoyanovich’s kick is blocked, but Dallas’ Leon Lett inexplicably tries to recover the ball. Instead of picking it up, he slides it down the field. With the ball live, Miami recovers it, then Stoyanovich kicks the winning field goal on the next play.
1997: Detroit running back Barry Sanders rushes for 167 yards and three touchdowns in 19 carries as the Lions defeat Chicago 55-20.
1998: Phil Luckett misunderstands Jerome Bettis’ coin flip call at the start of overtime and awards the ball to the Lions. The Lions move downfield and kick the winning field goal in a 19-16 victory. The Steelers don’t win another game the rest of the season.
-- Houston Mitchell