Stupidest Play of All Time

[Don Wassall]

So I'm reading the latest issue of The Sporting News and they have an article noting that Giants punter Jeff Feagles on Nov. 27 will play in his 283rd straight game, breaking the NFL record held for over a quarter century by Vikings defensive end Jim Marshall.


The article is full of the usual ridicule that Feagles is not a real football player, etc., but it was the mention of Jim Marshall that got my attention.


In a 1964 game against the 49ers, Marshallrecovered a fumbleand ran66 yards -- in the wrong direction into his own team's end zone for a safety! That has to rank as the stupidest well-known play in sports history. Other nominations?Edited by: Don Wassall

 

[Colonel_Reb]

Let me think. I can't think of anything that stupid in the NFL, Don!

 

[GWTJ]

How about every other time Vick takes the snap from center?

Seriously, Garo Yepremian trying to pass the ball in Super Bowl VII. Had he made that field goal with 2 minutes left in the game, the Dolphins would have won the game 17-0 to cap their perfect season of 17-0. Instead they won the game 14-7. Edited by: GWTJ

 

[Bronk]

Leon Lett's premature TD celebration comes to mind.

How about Abner Haynes' "We'll kick," in the 1962 AFL Championship game? Man, had the Dallas Texans lost that...

 

[JoeV]

Ditka letting the Fridge getting the rushing TD in Super Bowl XX instead of Walter Payton. Not stupid, just insulting to Sweetness.

 

[Bart]

The lame pass byunthinkingIsiah Thomas in huge playoff game, which Larry Bird deftly stole to snatch a victory.


ESPN: Pistons guard Isiah Thomas took the ball out from the side in Boston Garden. There were only five seconds left.



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<TD width=171>Larry Bird was considered by some as the ultimate team player.</TD></TR></T></TABLE>


In those five seconds, Bird's mind worked overtime. "I was guarding Joe Dumars and I saw that the ball was going to (Bill) Laimbeer. I started to move toward him. I thought that if I fouled him right away, there'd be only four seconds left, and even if he made the shots, we'd still have a chance to tie the game.


"But the pass Isiah threw, he just tossed it. It seemed to hang up there forever. I kept going and I got my left hand on the ball. I was thinking about shooting, but the ball was going the other way. It kept getting away from me. I probably would've hit the side of the backboard.


"I knew there were five seconds left when I got the ball, so I started counting down in my head. Then I turned and saw D.J. coming down the lane."


And he passed to the cutting Dennis Johnson, whose twisting layup enabled Bird and the Celtics to steal an improbable 108-107 victory.


Bird, the ultimate team player, finished with 36 points, 12 rebounds, nine assists and, yes, one steal.

 

[Don Wassall]

How about when Chris Webber called timeout for Michigan at the end of the national championship game when Michigan had no timeouts left, which caused them to lose the game if I remember correctly.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

I can think of several plays in college football, but not in the pros. I was thinking of the Lett and Yepremian plays though.

 

[Bronk]

I can't tell you how many times I've seen black players field a kickoff inside the five or 10-yard lines, then run back into the end zone and go to a knee.

It happened this year to my eldest son's team and one of my teammates did it when I was in high school. The guy, who was really a nice kid and a friend of mine, scooped it up at the eight, RAN BACK into the EZ, dropped to a knee and tossed the ball to the zebra. When he got to the sideline, I said, "X, what did you just do?!" His reply, "Did I do something wrong?"

 

[GWTJ]

Leon Lett made another stupid play. It was against the Dolphins at the end of the game. It was a snow covered field and the Dolphins tried a long field goal to win the game. The kick was way short and Leon Lett tried to fall on it on the 3 yard line. He lost control of it and Miami got a 2nd chance at the field goal. It was close enough to be more like an extra point. Anyway, the kick was good. I believe this was a Thanksgiving Day game and national televised. Any confirmation on that?

 

[surfsider]

It was a Thanksgiving game. That was a really unbelievably dumb play. You'd think that anything that the average fan knew about the game might have seeped into his conciousness at some point in his playing days.

 

[White Shogun]

Maybe Leon should have checked out this site before the game.

 

[Southern Knight]

This has more of a regional flavor:



In a game against rival Georgia, Georgia Tech's black QB, Reggie Ball,
threw the ball away on FOURTH down with under a minute left in the
game. After the game, he said he thought he had one more
play.



The guy can't even count to FOUR and we're supposed to believe that he passes his courses at Georgia Tech?

 

[Colonel_Reb]

I remember that game! I had forgotten about that play though. Thanks for the reminder, Southern Knight!

 

[sport historian]

Southern Knight,


Ken Stabler did the exact same thing as the Georgia Tech QB against Tennessee in 1965. The game was tied 7-7 with under a minuter to play with then soph QB Stabler leading a drive. Alabama was inside the Vol 10 with less than a minute to play. the Snake threw the ball away on 4th down. Tennessee took over and ran out the clock to preserve a tie. It was a moral victory for Tennessee at the time, as they were building in Doug Dickey's second year, and Bama was coming off a national title.

 

[GWTJ]

Here's a few bonehead plays that my Steelers made. Sometimes it is tough to watch them:

WR Dave Smith spikes the ball on the three yard line in a Monday Night Football game vs. Kansas City (1971)

RB Barry Foster lets kickoff bounce past him and watches as 49ers take ball into endzone (1990)

WR Plaxico Burress spikes the ball before the play is over vs. Jacksonville (2000)