Biggest (Individual) choke in NFL History (1 Viewer)

[Jous]

Because I got a number of requests in the original topic and through PM's, here's the Poll for the Biggest INDIVIDUAL choke in NFL history. The biggest team choke is coming up next... (and I'll take some suggestions for biggest team choke in here)

 

[Saints-Man]

To me, the definition of choke involves allowing the pressure to get to you. I remember seeing a display of Michael Jordan, and there is a quote there from him that he missed a certain number of game winning shots. Just because you fail, doesn't mean you choked.

So, there are only two options here for me in this poll, Scott Norwood and Mike Vanderjagt. After watching the replay of the Bills-Giants SB game on NFL network during the leadup to the SB, the kick that Norwood missed was on the edge of his range. Therefore, it doesn't seem like a choke to me.

However, in Vanderjagt's case, the FG attempt was well within his range and he blew it BAD. Hence, I voted Vanderjagt. It seemed to me that the pressure got to him.

 

[H.K.]

Shouldn't Brett Favre be on this list?

 

[Emmitt Smith]

Trey Junkin's bobbled snap on GW FG, 2002 playoffs 49'ers vs Giants

Sure you could choose this one if you count the choke on the refs. The fat slob who would have probably caught the ball was eligable on the play and was clearly pass interfered.I chose Jackie Smith It was a close one between him and Scott Norwood, but wasn't Norwood's kick a pretty long one? I thought it was like 45 yards?

 

[-OZ-]

Only because I remember saying before the play that the Steelers have it locked up if they just give the ball to the bus, I had to go with Bettis. I'm not sure if it was a fluke or pressure, but that fumble was HUGE. Or would have been had a certain QB not made a game saving tackle.

 

[videoguy505]

Leon Lett touching the ball.

 

[Bri]

Norwood was an excellent K. He was a "lock". I was sure the Bills pulled out a squeeker there. That's the biggest one IMO

 

[Raider Nation]

FYI, Gary Anderson's missed FG wasn't a "game-sealing miss" as you phrased it.

The Vikes were UP by 7 when he picked an unfortunate time to miss his first kick of '98.

 

[Jous]

FYI, Gary Anderson's missed FG wasn't a "game-sealing miss" as you phrased it.The Vikes were UP by 7 when he picked an unfortunate time to miss his first kick of '98.

I meant that had he made it, the game would have been sealed and the Vikings would have gone to the Super Bowl. Maybe the wording was a bit off..

 

[Godsbrother]

I am sticking with Neil O'Donnell. The Steelers had the Cowboys on the ropes and had all the momentum in the game. Those two picks to a wide open Brown (not a receiver in sight) absolutely killed the Steelers.

It still pisses me off when I watch the replays of Super Bowl XXX.

 

[ConstruxBoy]

Norwood was an excellent K. He was a "lock". I was sure the Bills pulled out a squeeker there. That's the biggest one IMO

You should check the other thread Bri. Someone pulled his stats. He wasn't a lock, especially from beyond 40 yards. Sorry. As Saints-man points out above, it's not a choke if he only had about a 60% chance of making it anyhow. Vandy is the biggest choker of the PKs. That was not only in his range, but he missed it horribly. That is choking.

 

[zanti8]

#1 - the coach making defense calls for cleveland durring elways "the drive" .

#2- qb brian sipes int against oakland on 3rd down from the 3 yd line, down 12-14 with seconds left . 1980 playoff . i still feel bad for sipe . i can still see him grabbing his head and walking off . was a great qb but never seemed to recover from that play .

#3-byners fumble in denver, ugh!

 

[msommer]

I'm going to have to go with Romo even though Vanderjagt is close, so is the Bus

 

[Futeki]

Lin Elliott of the 13-3 Chiefs missed all three field goal attempts in the 10-7 home loss to the Colts in the 1995 playoffs.

 

[Mungo Burrows]

Y'all are giving these kickers too much credit/blame. For me it was a coinflip between Smith and O'Donnell due to the magnitude of their mistakes and the stage they were on. Nobody else was really that close in my mind. Probably Vanderjagt a distant third - I think I discount his because the team played so poorly they didn't really deserve to win anyway.

 

[Workhorse]

Joe Pisarcik.

 

[avoiding injuries]

Romo's was too early in the playoffs.

Bettis' play didn't effect the outcome.

I wasn't alive for Superbowl 13 although I've seen clips.

Gonna have to go with Norwood. Stage of all stages and it directly effected the outcome.

 

[AB in DC]

Norwood was an excellent K. He was a "lock". I was sure the Bills pulled out a squeeker there. That's the biggest one IMO

Gonna have to go with Norwood. Stage of all stages and it directly effected the outcome.

Copied from the other thread:Scott Norwood stats:

Pro-Football-Reference

DatabaseFootball

Some lowlights:

- Exceeded 80% FG accuracy in only one year out of seven

- Was below 70% accuracy in four of those years

- Missed 3% of PATs and 11% of FG attempts under 30 yards

- Did not kick a FG of 50+ yards until his final year in the league (career 2-for-10)

- Career 37-for-61 on 40-49 yard FGs.

- Career AAA rating of 67.0 is worse than every single starting kicker in the NFL, as of the beginning of 2006. (AAA rating defined here on page 11)

(Caveat: I haven't done any historical analysis of AAA ratings, so he may not have been the worst kicker in the NFL as of 1990)

I stand by my assertion that he should never been playing for a SB contender.

BTW, during that SB year, Norwood had not made a single kick from 47+ yards.

 

[PsychoMan]

Here's an old article I stumbled across that describes many of the situations in this poll (and some more) for those that maybe don't remember exactly what happened. A good read.

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_..._30/ai_68865931

 

[rick6668]

Norwood was an excellent K. He was a "lock". I was sure the Bills pulled out a squeeker there. That's the biggest one IMO

Gonna have to go with Norwood. Stage of all stages and it directly effected the outcome.

Copied from the other thread:Scott Norwood stats:

Pro-Football-Reference

DatabaseFootball

Some lowlights:

- Exceeded 80% FG accuracy in only one year out of seven

- Was below 70% accuracy in four of those years

- Missed 3% of PATs and 11% of FG attempts under 30 yards

- Did not kick a FG of 50+ yards until his final year in the league (career 2-for-10)

- Career 37-for-61 on 40-49 yard FGs.

- Career AAA rating of 67.0 is worse than every single starting kicker in the NFL, as of the beginning of 2006. (AAA rating defined here on page 11)

(Caveat: I haven't done any historical analysis of AAA ratings, so he may not have been the worst kicker in the NFL as of 1990)

I stand by my assertion that he should never been playing for a SB contender.

BTW, during that SB year, Norwood had not made a single kick from 47+ yards.

How anyone voted Norwood, I'll never understand.

 

[phthalatemagic]

I still think you should seperate individual moments: fumble, kick, bobble snap, etc from career situations like Marty and Jim Kelly. How do you compare a single moment with a career?

 

[Tough As Nails]

Shouldn't Brett Favre be on this list?

The games he choked away weren't big enough for the list. They were either 1st round or divisional round playoff games. If those performances/mistakes would have been in the NFC Championship or Super Bowl...then sure. But as it is, nobody really expected those teams to go very far so the poor performances are forgotten.

 

[Rhino]

Wow… after all the hate for Peyton Manning that this board has thrown around over the years, I’m shocked that Jim Kelly gets a pass. Kelly had four straight seasons with a chance to win the Super Bowl and doesn’t deliver on any of them. His Super Bowl performances were terrible. In four Super Bowls he only threw a touchdown in one of them, the ’91 game against the Redskins. He also threw 4 interceptions in that game. Yet in the regular season he threw plenty of TD’s.

Kelly should be running away with this.

 

[Pipes]

Norwood was an excellent K. He was a "lock". I was sure the Bills pulled out a squeeker there. That's the biggest one IMO

Gonna have to go with Norwood. Stage of all stages and it directly effected the outcome.

Copied from the other thread:Scott Norwood stats:

Pro-Football-Reference

DatabaseFootball

Some lowlights:

- Exceeded 80% FG accuracy in only one year out of seven

- Was below 70% accuracy in four of those years

- Missed 3% of PATs and 11% of FG attempts under 30 yards

- Did not kick a FG of 50+ yards until his final year in the league (career 2-for-10)

- Career 37-for-61 on 40-49 yard FGs.

- Career AAA rating of 67.0 is worse than every single starting kicker in the NFL, as of the beginning of 2006. (AAA rating defined here on page 11)

(Caveat: I haven't done any historical analysis of AAA ratings, so he may not have been the worst kicker in the NFL as of 1990)

I stand by my assertion that he should never been playing for a SB contender.

BTW, during that SB year, Norwood had not made a single kick from 47+ yards.

How anyone voted Norwood, I'll never understand.

Apparently 47 yard field goals should be automatic.

 

[H.K.]

Shouldn't Brett Favre be on this list?

The games he choked away weren't big enough for the list. They were either 1st round or divisional round playoff games. If those performances/mistakes would have been in the NFC Championship or Super Bowl...then sure. But as it is, nobody really expected those teams to go very far so the poor performances are forgotten.

Good call. I vote Marino then.

 

[Jous]

Thanks for the votes. Anyone want to throw out some suggestions for options in the Biggest (Team) Choke poll? I really can't come up with too many big ones that can't really be attributed to one particular player.

 

[Liquid Tension]

How in the world can people say that Scott Norwoods kick was a choke? He had NEVER kicked a FG at that length on grass in his career! How is that a choke?

 

[Bri]

Norwood was an excellent K. He was a "lock". I was sure the Bills pulled out a squeeker there. That's the biggest one IMO

Gonna have to go with Norwood. Stage of all stages and it directly effected the outcome.

Copied from the other thread:Scott Norwood stats:

Pro-Football-Reference

DatabaseFootball

Some lowlights:

- Exceeded 80% FG accuracy in only one year out of seven

- Was below 70% accuracy in four of those years

- Missed 3% of PATs and 11% of FG attempts under 30 yards

- Did not kick a FG of 50+ yards until his final year in the league (career 2-for-10)

- Career 37-for-61 on 40-49 yard FGs.

- Career AAA rating of 67.0 is worse than every single starting kicker in the NFL, as of the beginning of 2006. (AAA rating defined here on page 11)

(Caveat: I haven't done any historical analysis of AAA ratings, so he may not have been the worst kicker in the NFL as of 1990)

nice work to use math to support your theory.no math needed though, this is a good K

1988 buf | 32 37 86.5 | 33 33 | 129 |

I stand by my assertion that he should never been playing for a SB contender.

What does that even mean? We're not talking some all star team but the best two teams competing for a championship. He was part of one of them.

 

[belljr]

Only because I remember saying before the play that the Steelers have it locked up if they just give the ball to the bus, I had to go with Bettis. I'm not sure if it was a fluke or pressure, but that fumble was HUGE. Or would have been had a certain QB not made a game saving tackle.

Is it a choke is the team still wins?

 

[Jous]

Only because I remember saying before the play that the Steelers have it locked up if they just give the ball to the bus, I had to go with Bettis. I'm not sure if it was a fluke or pressure, but that fumble was HUGE. Or would have been had a certain QB not made a game saving tackle.

Is it a choke is the team still wins?

Yes. The outcome has no bearing on a fact that a player let pressure get to him and made a big mistake.

 

[Liquid Tension]

Norwood was an excellent K. He was a "lock". I was sure the Bills pulled out a squeeker there. That's the biggest one IMO

Gonna have to go with Norwood. Stage of all stages and it directly effected the outcome.

Copied from the other thread:Scott Norwood stats:

Pro-Football-Reference

DatabaseFootball

Some lowlights:

- Exceeded 80% FG accuracy in only one year out of seven

- Was below 70% accuracy in four of those years

- Missed 3% of PATs and 11% of FG attempts under 30 yards

- Did not kick a FG of 50+ yards until his final year in the league (career 2-for-10)

- Career 37-for-61 on 40-49 yard FGs.

- Career AAA rating of 67.0 is worse than every single starting kicker in the NFL, as of the beginning of 2006. (AAA rating defined here on page 11)

(Caveat: I haven't done any historical analysis of AAA ratings, so he may not have been the worst kicker in the NFL as of 1990)

nice work to use math to support your theory.no math needed though, this is a good K

1988 buf | 32 37 86.5 | 33 33 | 129 |

I stand by my assertion that he should never been playing for a SB contender.

What does that even mean? We're not talking some all star team but the best two teams competing for a championship. He was part of one of them.

Bri, you would have to agree that it is obvious that Norwood was not good at longer kicks

 

[Liquid Tension]

Only because I remember saying before the play that the Steelers have it locked up if they just give the ball to the bus, I had to go with Bettis. I'm not sure if it was a fluke or pressure, but that fumble was HUGE. Or would have been had a certain QB not made a game saving tackle.

Is it a choke is the team still wins?

YES! If a teammate(s) bails you out that does not take away from a choke

 

[Spike]

To me, the definition of choke involves allowing the pressure to get to you. I remember seeing a display of Michael Jordan, and there is a quote there from him that he missed a certain number of game winning shots. Just because you fail, doesn't mean you choked.So, there are only two options here for me in this poll, Scott Norwood and Mike Vanderjagt. After watching the replay of the Bills-Giants SB game on NFL network during the leadup to the SB, the kick that Norwood missed was on the edge of his range. Therefore, it doesn't seem like a choke to me.However, in Vanderjagt's case, the FG attempt was well within his range and he blew it BAD. Hence, I voted Vanderjagt. It seemed to me that the pressure got to him.

I think this whole argument is perfectly stated.

 

[bryhamm]

I am sticking with Neil O'Donnell. The Steelers had the Cowboys on the ropes and had all the momentum in the game. Those two picks to a wide open Brown (not a receiver in sight) absolutely killed the Steelers.It still pisses me off when I watch the replays of Super Bowl XXX.

 

[pats3in4]

Carney. Who misses an extra point? Snap was good. Hold was good. He just shanked it after one of the most amazing plays ever executed.

 

[AB in DC]

no math needed though, this is a good K1988 buf | 32 37 86.5 | 33 33 | 129 |

Oh really?How about this kicker?1990 buf | 20 29 69.0 | 50 52 | 110 Or this one?1986 buf | 17 27 63.0 | 32 34 | 83 Or this one?1987 buf | 10 15 66.7 | 31 31 | 61

 

[Bri]

Bri, you would have to agree that it is obvious that Norwood was not good at longer kicks

With just enough time for a final drive, Levy tells Kelly he's gotta get them to the 30 yard line. Kelly got them there, to the 30 yard line.When watching a game, the kick is expected at that point IMO.That's not a 55 or 60 yarder, it's not that long.In fact it's the direction of the kick that was "off" it had plenty of distance.

When the Bills got the ball on their own 10 yard line with 2:16 left on the clock, Kelly felt that he could get the job done. He had done it so many times before. Coming from behind late in the game had become on of Kelly's trademarks. "We knew that we had one timeout left. We came out and I told the guys, ‘Hey, this is what champions are made of. Let's play like it - let's be one!'" "I had to run the ball a couple times and I didn't want to, but our goal was to get to the 30. We got there and it wasn't meant to be (winning).

 

[Bri]

no math needed though, this is a good K1988 buf | 32 37 86.5 | 33 33 | 129 |

Oh really?How about this kicker?1990 buf | 20 29 69.0 | 50 52 | 110 Or this one?1986 buf | 17 27 63.0 | 32 34 | 83 Or this one?1987 buf | 10 15 66.7 | 31 31 | 61

so the season I quoted wasn't a good one?4th highest scoring player in USFL in 1985 means he stinks?5 FGs in one game=bad kicker?I didn't say he was great, he was a good K though

 

[My_Favorite_Team_is]

Tony Eason impersonating a U-boat commander being chased by a destroyer in Superbowl XX.

DIVE...DIVE...DIVE

 

[Ghost Rider]

I would love to see a legitimate reason for why anyone is voting for Scott Norwood.

I voted for O'Donnell. The Steelers outplayed the Cowboys in SBXXX, but lost because of O'Donnell's two picks.

 

[Bri]

I would love to see a legitimate reason for why anyone is voting for Scott Norwood.

Is it you or Grove that's a Bills fan? That kick ended Norwood's career. He never really came back from it. How would you explain that dramatic affect?

 

[BigTex]

Wow… after all the hate for Peyton Manning that this board has thrown around over the years, I’m shocked that Jim Kelly gets a pass. Kelly had four straight seasons with a chance to win the Super Bowl and doesn’t deliver on any of them. His Super Bowl performances were terrible. In four Super Bowls he only threw a touchdown in one of them, the ’91 game against the Redskins. He also threw 4 interceptions in that game. Yet in the regular season he threw plenty of TD’s.Kelly should be running away with this.

Without a doubt.

 

[Dr. Phil]

I vote for Tony Eason in the SB.

 

[My_Favorite_Team_is]

I would love to see a legitimate reason for why anyone is voting for Scott Norwood.

Is it you or Grove that's a Bills fan? That kick ended Norwood's career. He never really came back from it. How would you explain that dramatic affect?

Plus to put "The Miss" over the top U2 waited a bunch of years later and then wrote a video to go to the song about it...well in theory at least...ok it was in my head only but still... and for further pressure to the neck....check out "Buffalo 66" by Vincent Gallo in 1998....

 

[fatness]

I am sticking with Neil O'Donnell. The Steelers had the Cowboys on the ropes and had all the momentum in the game. Those two picks to a wide open Brown (not a receiver in sight) absolutely killed the Steelers.

I agree. That was worse than choking one on play. It was sustained choking.

 

[Slinger]

Kelly should be running away with this.

I picked him. Losing the Superbowl for 4 straight years is a talent in itself.

 

[Ghost Rider]

I would love to see a legitimate reason for why anyone is voting for Scott Norwood.

Is it you or Grove that's a Bills fan? That kick ended Norwood's career. He never really came back from it. How would you explain that dramatic affect?

I am not a Bills fan.So, that kick ended Norwood's career. He was never that great of a kicker, anyway. He had only hit 69% of his FG attempts that season. Him missing a 47-yarder, a tough kick for ANY kicker, is not choking. The way it is looking, Vanderjagt's miss last January might have ended his career, so that makes his miss more of a choke (though still not a high level choke, considering the distance), especially when you consider he is (or was coming into this last season, at least) the most accurate FG kicker ever. Granted, missing a game-typing FG is different than missing what would have been a Super Bowl-winning kick, but a 47-yard FG is tough to make, so missing it is hardly choking.

 

[Ghost Rider]

Kelly should be running away with this.

I picked him. Losing the Superbowl for 4 straight years is a talent in itself.

Damn, I didn't realize that Kelly lost those games all by himself, because allowing 139 points in 4 Super Bowls (almost 35 points a game) is always the QB's fault.

 

[Slinger]

Kelly should be running away with this.

I picked him. Losing the Superbowl for 4 straight years is a talent in itself.

Damn, I didn't realize that Kelly lost those games all by himself, because allowing 139 points in 4 Super Bowls (almost 35 points a game) is always the QB's fault.

Got something caught in your eyes? That's an interesting stat. The Bills defense gave up 139 points during their Superbowl run. Jim Kelly is still the QB who lost 4 straight Superbowls. The Bills offense was stellar, but when they finally went to the big dance, forgetaboutit. That will never happen again for the next million years.

 

[Spartans Rule]

Kelly should be running away with this.

I picked him. Losing the Superbowl for 4 straight years is a talent in itself.

Damn, I didn't realize that Kelly lost those games all by himself, because allowing 139 points in 4 Super Bowls (almost 35 points a game) is always the QB's fault.

Got something caught in your eyes? That's an interesting stat. The Bills defense gave up 139 points during their Superbowl run. Jim Kelly is still the QB who lost 4 straight Superbowls. The Bills offense was stellar, but when they finally went to the big dance, forgetaboutit. That will never happen again for the next million years.

That's nice, but it has absolutely nothing to do with this thread, which is about choking.The AFC was in the midst of losing 13 straight Super Bowls. The Bills were woefully overmatched in all but one of them, the one against Giants. In that game, Kelly led the drive to set up a game-winning field goal and the kicker missed it.Throwing the word choke out when a team loses to a vastly superior team is stupid.