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These are the top 5 Super Bowl calls of all time
The Super Bowl is not only the pinnacle for the teams, players, and coaches but also for the officials. We look at our top 5 calls in Super Bowl history.
This year we revisit some of the greatest, most memorable plays from Super Bowl history. Great plays by NFL athletes sometimes require equally great officiating from the officials. In a game where officials never want to be the story, we discuss the plays where they were the story, but only because they showed they were the best in the NFL and deserved those Super Bowl assignments.
#5: Mario Manningham tightropes the sideline
Embed from Getty ImagesSuper Bowl XLVI: Giants vs. Patriots, February 5, 2012
Covering officials: SJ Laird Hayes, HL Tom Stabile
The Giants were trailing by two points with 3:46 remaining in the fourth quarter. A late-game, one-score deficit in a Super Bowl against the Patriots was familiar territory for the Giants, as they had the ball in similar fashion in Super Bowl XLII en route to a victory. Could lightning strike the same place twice?
On the first play of the drive, Giants quarterback Eli Manning tested the defense and threw a 38-yard pass to receiver Mario Manningham, who was riding the sideline.
Side judge Laird Hayes was ahead of the play, as he is supposed to be, but had to make a judgement on the catch. Was Manningham in bounds? Did he complete the process of the catch? Hayes likely had assistance on the call of two feet in bounds from head linesman Tom Stabile, who was upfield. Hayes continued to run forward to remain out of the way of the play, but had his body turned and kept his eye trained back on the players for any potential interference and then ruled on the catch. Hayes, himself, made an athletic play to make the call. The Patriots challenged the ruling, but Hayes’ call was upheld.
#4: Titans come up one yard short
Embed from Getty ImagesSuper Bowl XXXIV: Rams vs. Titans, January 30, 2000
Covering officials: FJ Al Jury, SJ Tom Fincken
The NFL Championship in 1958 and the AFL Championship in 1962 were the only league titles that were determined in overtime as of this game. (The AFL game went into a rare second overtime period.) The first Super Bowl played in the new millennium was the closest it had come to sudden death in the Super Bowl era, until it happened in both the 2017 and 2024 seasons.
The Titans had the ball on the Rams 10-yard line with six seconds remaining. There really was a chance to only run one play to achieve the tie. Quarterback Steve McNair was able to connect with receiver Kevin Dyson, who was at the 5-yard line. Dyson began sprinting to the end zone, and Rams linebacker Mike Jones broke off his coverage of tight end Frank Wycheck and engaged Dyson at the 2½. Jones grabbed Dyson by the legs, who fell forward reaching for the end zone. As time expired, Dyson was down by contact at the 1-yard line.
While there was no question about Dyson being short, field judge Al Jury and side judge Tom Fincken were stationed on the goal line and watched the play approach. If the snap was inside the 5-yard line, the head linesman and line judge would shift during the play to cover the goal line.
The fortunes of this game were decided by one yard, but the Titans were beneficiaries of a 1-yard call earlier in the postseason. In what became known as the Music City Miracle, Wycheck threw a backward pass to Dyson on a kickoff return with seconds left in their Wild Card game. Dyson ran 75 yards for a touchdown and a Titans win. The play was reviewed and the call stood that it was a legal lateral with a margin of about one yard.
#3: Santonio Holmes TD toe-tap in the end zone
Embed from Getty Images
Super Bowl XLIII: Steelers vs. Cardinals, February 1, 2009
Covering official: FJ Greg Gautreaux
After the Cardinals mounted a 9-point swing on a touchdown and a safety (#37 on this list), the Steelers were driving with 2:37 remaining on the clock. Two plays after quarterback Ben Roethlisberger found receiver Santonio Holmes for a 40-yard reception down to the 6, Roethlisberger again was looking for Holmes. Parked in the back corner of the end zone, the pass was out of reach for the Cardinals coverage, and putting his toes down in the end zone, Holmes completed the process of the catch to the ground. The Steelers took the lead with 35 seconds remaining, and the call was upheld by replay.
If for nothing else, this play is the epitome of a game played by humans and judged by humans. Field judge Greg Gautreaux nailed the touchdown call in the end zone, but, for obvious reasons, held his emotions in check while on the field. Mike Pereira was the vice-president of officiating at the time, said that he found Gautreaux crying in the locker room unleashing the pent-up excitement of the game. Much like the players who, when they were young, dreamed of that last-second Super Bowl touchdown and winning the game, Gautreaux got the last-second touchdown call in the Super Bowl. And he won.
Holmes did, however, get away with an excessive celebration foul without penalty. After monitoring the post-touchdown activity, Gautreaux and the crew correctly transitioned to the extra-point attempt. At that point, Holmes used the ball as a prop, out of the view of the officials. Had it been seen, the 15-yard penalty would have been marked off on the kickoff, which might have changed the complexion of the Cardinals last-second attempt to score. Holmes was fined $10,000 during the week for the infraction.
#2: David Tyree’s helmet catch + Eli Manning escape
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty ImagesSuper Bowl XLII: Giants vs. Patriots, February 3, 2008
Covering officials: R Mike Carey, SJ Larry Rose, BJ Scott Helverson
The Patriots were looking to close out the final chapter of their perfect season with a four-point lead late in the fourth quarter. They already faced the Giants in the season closer — in a tight game as well — to become the first team to run the table in a 16-game season. It was just a matter of holding off the Giants attack for another 2½ minutes to make history.
Quarterback Eli Manning lead the Giants offense on a drive beginning at their 17-yard line. After moving to the 44-yard line, the Giants faced a 3rd-and-5 after Asante Samuel nearly had a title-clinching interception. The play call was 76 Union Y Sail with Manning in shotgun formation. A fourth-and-long play seemed inevitable as Manning was swarmed by the Patriots pass rush.
Disappearing from view, it seemed Manning was in the grasp of the Patriots pass rush and was sacked. Referee Mike Carey was in his usual position, which was behind the pile, and he ran in to confirm the play was over. Manning somehow broke free of Seymour’s grip on his jersey and evaded the defense. Carey, who was now within feet of the scrambling Manning, had to feverishly backpedal to avoid getting mixed up in the play.
The key to Carey not whistling the play dead is that the defense must demonstrate grasp and control, which was obviously absent here. That said, there is no magic catch-all as for how long it takes to determine the quarterback is in the grasp to rule the play dead. Manning might have bought some time because he disappeared from Carey’s direct line of sight, but through it all, Manning was moving under his own power. Although Seymour had Manning’s jersey, it was not enough to give the Patriots a sack and shut the play down. Somehow Manning broke out of it to heave the ball to receiver David Tyree, who broke his route and was standing at the 25-yard line
Tyree had to out-leap Patriots cornerback Rodney Harrison and was able to secure the football with his fingertips but could not establish control in his hands. As he fell to the ground, Tyree pinned the ball to his helmet and was fortunate that Harrison did not knock the ball away. Because both players were falling from their leap, Harrison was not able to simply swipe at the ball, and Tyree kept the ball frozen in position without attempting to cradle the ball and potentially losing control. When the ball is held tenuously like that, there is a higher standard to demonstrate control, but Tyree did not allow the ball to move.
The ball also dipped low to the turf, but it never touched the ground. This obviated any judgement calls of Tyree using the ground to establish or assist possession. When a player has conventionally secured the ball, the ball can move slightly upon touching the ground as long as the receiver demonstrates he was in full control before and after touching the ground. Tyree, it can be argued, wasn’t in full control of the ball when it neared the ground.
Side judge Larry Rose and back judge Scott Helverson were keyed on the reception and watched as the ball came perilously close to the ground and watched intently for any signs of a loose ball. They awarded the reception. Although replay could have very easily overturned an incomplete call into a reception, Rose and Helverson did not need it. After a review, the catch call was confirmed, and Tyree etched his name permanently in Super Bowl lore.
#1: Julian Edelman’s insane catch between three Falcons
Super Bowl LI: Patriots vs. Falcons, February 5, 2017
Covering officials: LJ Jeff Seeman, HL Kent Payne, BJ Todd Prukop (RO Tom Sifferman)
Super Bowl LI had gone down as one of the greatest, if not THE greatest, comeback in Super Bowl history. One of the key catches, and the call that went into that play, will be remembered as THE play in that game. That play was Julian Edelman’s catch with 2:28 to go in the 4th quarter.
The play began with the Patriots still down by 8 points and on their own 36-yard line. While not a do-or-die play, time was running out on the Patriots and they needed to move the ball and score to tie the game. As was often the case, Tom Brady targeted his favorite receiver, Julien Edelman, on the 1st and 10 play from the New England 36-yard line.
Edelman ran a route over the middle just past midfield. Falcons cornerback Robert Alford dove in front of Edelman and got BOTH hands on the ball, but could not come up with the interception. Instead, the ball bounded up into the air, giving both teams the opportunity to converge on the ball.
As the ball was falling back toward the field, Edelman and three Falcon defenders (Alford, Keanu Neal, and Ricardo Allen) converged on the same spot and dove toward the ball. The ball appeared to go in-between all four players and ended up hitting Alford’s leg, causing it to bounce back up into the air again momentarily. As he was falling, Edelman reached into the mix of arms and legs and grabbed the ball, bobbling it briefly against Alford’s leg. The question became, did Edelmen secure the ball and have control, or did the ball hit the ground before Edelmen could secure possession.
Back Judge Todd Prukop was first on the scene, but he was screened by the mass of players so he had no view of the ball and could not rule if it was caught or not. Thankfully, LJ Jeff Seeman had not only the best view but also the conviction to run in and emphatically rule that Edelman did indeed secure the catch before the ball hit the ground. HL Kent Payne also confirmed Seeman’s initial ruling. During replays on the jumbotron, both teams were pointing and suggesting that their preferred call was correct.
Atlanta coach Dan Quinn challenged the play, and replay confirmed Jeff Seeman’s call on the field was correct. Replays clearly showed Edelman getting his hands under the ball and maintaining control throughout the process. New England continued their drive from the Falcons 41-yard line and scored the game-tying touchdown and two-point conversion and eventually won the game in overtime.
Ten years ago we took a deeper dive into the history of the Super Bowl and published a list of 50 Super Bowl calls that shaped not only their particular game but also the history of the Super Bowl.
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