There have been plenty of epic finishes to NFL playoff games through the years, but few have been as improbable as the one known as the “Music City Miracle” which occurred in Nashville 26 years ago this weekend.

Buffalo Bills’ kicker, Steve Christie, gave the visitors a 16-15 lead when he nailed a 41-yard fourth quarter attempt with 16 seconds remaining.

The Bills chose to pooch kick and it was fielded short by Tennessee Titans running back, Lorenzo Neal. He got the ball to tight end Frank Wycheck who – per the designed play, known as “Home Run Throwback” – tossed it across the field to wide receiver Kevin Dyson who proceeded to scamper – untouched! – 75 yards for the score. Titans’ kicker Al Del Greco added the point after to make the final, 22-16.

A few curiosities about the circumstances of this play:

• First, despite having just achieved a first down and gotten out of bounds in so doing, the Bills chose to send Christie out for the field goal on first down with 20 seconds remaining.
• Second, Dyson was not a Tennessee special teams member and had almost no familiarity with “Home Run Throwback.” As such, he received a tutorial from Titans head coach Jeff Fisher on the sidelines just beforehand. Dyson was only on the field because primary return man Derrick Mason was injured earlier in the game and backup returner, Anthony Dorsett, was dealing with cramps.
• Third, the Bills had sustained quite a few injuries on defense and sought volunteers to cover the kick. Several players on the field for Buffalo had limited or no special teams experience during the season and failed to maintain their lane integrity during the kick coverage.
• Fourth, Wycheck’s throwback to Dyson was deemed a lateral by officials on the field and was upheld during a replay review, though many in Buffalo likely still argue the ball went forward. What do you think? This video aims to prove it was a clean lateral.

And, as you’ve no doubt deduced, there’s no video this week because, well, the NFL locks their stuff down. The best I can do is offer a link to the play here with the Titans’ radio crew on the call.

Tennessee went on to defeat both the Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl XXXIV where it lost to the St. Louis Rams, 23-16, when the Titans’ Dyson was stopped one yard short of the goal line the game’s final play in another fantastic finish known as “The Longest Yard.”

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