Strangest OT Finishes in NFL History

Few things in sports deliver as much excitement as sudden-death overtime, and while the NFL has tweaked overtime rules to ensure a game cannot end on a field goal from the first possession, OT on the gridiron ranks among the highest drama in sports.

But these are not merely thrilling games that went to OT. While playoff games earn a slight edge for their greater measure of overall importance, the Buffalo Bills' historic comeback against the Houston Oilers failed to crack the list. It simply wasn't strange enough.

Instead, these 10 games each featured a measure of either head-scratching or unbelievable play in overtime that factored in the outcome. And one thing proves persistently true: NFL players find games that end in a tie really, really strange.

Here are the 10 strangest overtime finishes in NFL history, from vexing draws to the "Improbable Bobble" to a victorious Tim Tebow.

10. Nov. 16, 2008: Eagles 13, Bengals 13

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

"Don't worry. We've got loads of time left, guys."

In the NFL, a game can end in a tie? Don't worry, if you didn't know that, you're in the same boat as some professional NFL players.

Following a November 2008 game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Cincinnati Bengals, a headline on NJ.com screamed: "Donovan McNabb turns ball over four times and does not know the rules in 13-13 tie with Bengals."

McNabb admitted after the game that when it comes to ties, he "never even knew that that was in the rulebook."

Yahoo Sports' Chris Chase posed a series of very reasonable questions about how a veteran QB like McNabb, with five appearances in the NFC Championship Game, did not know the basic rules for regular season play: 

"

What did Donovan think that "T" section in the standings was next to the "W" and "L"? Was he confused when he had to run a hurry up offense with two minutes left? And in 2002, when his team played the 9-6-1 Falcons in the playoffs, did McNabb think those numbers represented the Atlanta area code?

"

And after media and fans heaped scorn upon McNabb for his ignorance, it was surprising to learn that NFL players persist in not knowing the rules of the sport they get paid millions of dollars to play. 

In 2013, Green Bay Packers tight end Andrew Quarless admitted his own ignorance of the rules following a tie with the Minnesota Vikings, saying via ESPN's Rob Demovsky: "It’s definitely a weird feeling. This is my first tie I’ve been a part of. ... I thought we were going to go to double overtime."

Nope, it's a tie.

9. Nov. 11, 2012: Rams 24, 49ers 24

USA TODAY Sports

"But I won the game already!"

Following in the vein of Donovan McNabb before him,  St. Louis Rams receiver Danny Amendola admitted he had no clue that games could end in a tie following a 2012, 75-minute deadlock with the San Francisco 49ers.

Amendola can be at least partially forgiven for that brain fart considering that the Rams actually won the game twice in OT before settling for the tie. 

Visiting the 6-2 Niners at Candlestick Park, the 3-5 Rams could be forgiven for expecting defeat, but they could not foresee a tie game. And yet, they played to the league's first tie since McNabb's infamous ignorance of the overtime rules following a 2008 contest.

The Rams saw overtime victory slip through their fingers twice. First, when an illegal formation penalty brought back an 80-yard pass from Sam Bradford to Amendola up the sideline. 

Then kicker Greg Zuerlein had his 53-yard game-winner called back due to a delay of game infraction. Zuerlein missed from 58 yards out on his next try, so everyone had to kiss their sisters, even the only children, with the final score knotted at 24.

For the record, Amendola has one sibling, a brother.

8. Jan. 10, 2010: Cardinals 51, Packers 45

Matt York/Associated Press

Yoink!

With the Arizona Cardinals hosting the Green Bay Packers in the Wild Card Round, quarterbacks Kurt Warner and Aaron Rodgers put on a passing clinic, combining for nine touchdowns. The wild amount of offense set new playoff records for points (96), with the teams combining for 1,024 total yards and 62 first downs. 

Suffice to say, it was a game dominated by the offense—right up until it wasn't. 

Neil Rackers could not boot home the winning 34-yard field goal with 14 seconds remaining, and the weary defenses plodded into overtime. Surely, the game would finish on a long pass play down the sideline, judging by the results up to that point.

Instead, the Cardinals sent cornerback Michael Adams on a blitz on the Packers' first possession. He creamed Rodgers, jarred the ball loose, it was picked up by Karlos Dansby and returned 17 yards for the game-winning TD. Just like that, Rodgers saw his season go poof.

After the game, Warner, a master of understatement, phrased it well, via USA Today's Jim Corbett: "I know the defense gave up a lot of points. But when we needed them to make a play, they made a play. That's what it takes to win these games."

7. October 24, 1983: Cardinals 20, Giants 20

RICHARD DREW/Associated Press

"Guys, you're never gonna win lying down!"

St. Louis Cardinals kicker Neil O'Donoghue had himself a fine regulation game, booting through a pair of field goals, but the rest of the offense couldn't get much going through the air. Neil Lomax threw 17 incompletions on 33 attempts, hounded as he was by Brad Van Pelt and a young Lawrence Taylor, who each recorded a sack.

However, New York Giants QB Jeff Rutledge also found himself under constant duress, enduring six St. Louis sacks. The quarterbacks combined for five interceptions and zero touchdowns, but the Cardinals had ample opportunity to win the game in OT.

O'Donoghue attempted three more field goals in the extra period, from 45, 20 and 42 yards, and he missed every single one of them—on Monday Night Football no less. Worse still, his last two misses both came during the game's final 66 seconds.

Frank Litsky of the New York Times quoted Giants coach Bill Parcells on the day after the game as saying: "If somebody had to win that game, we might still be playing out there.''

6. Jan. 20, 2008: Giants 23, Packers 20

Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

Yes, third Tynes the charm.

The 2008 NFC Championship Game between the New York Giants and Green Bay Packers was played in brutal weather, with freezing temperatures at Lambeau Field producing a wind chill that plunged past minus-20. 

New York head coach Tom Coughlin's face became so chapped, it seemed it would shatter at the slightest touch. The condition of his face worsened after kicker Lawrence Tynes missed a pair of field goals wide left in the final seven minutes of the fourth quarter, shanking the second try well wide and leading to overtime.

The kicking unit appeared to be in crisis, as relayed by the San Francisco Chronicle's Scott Ostler:

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After the first miss came a playoff moment frozen in time: As Tynes runs off the field, Giants coach Tom Coughlin, face red with frostbite and fury, screams as if Tynes' dog has just soiled Coughlin's lawn. 

"He doesn't like it when we miss," Tynes said. "I hear him yelling but I don't listen to him. I'd be a fool to listen to him."

After the second miss...(punter and holder Jeff) Feagles approaches (snapper Jay) Alford, and then Tynes, to cheer them—in case they get another chance. "You have to kind of talk 'em down off the ledge," Feagles explained.

"

The marquee matchup in the game pitted legendary 38-year-old quarterback Brett Favre against a 27-year-old Eli Manning, and the harsh conditions favored the kid. Favre, playing in what would be his final game with the Packers, tossed a crucial interception early in OT, giving the Giants the ball at the Packers' 34-yard line, just at the edge of field-goal range. 

But the Giants failed to get a first down. Since Tynes had missed twice already and the ball responded like a stone in the frigid conditions, a punt or a fourth-down attempt seemed just as likely as another field goal try.

Then radio announcer Bob Papa seemed genuinely surprised as he exclaimed: "Here comes Tynes again!"

After pushing both of his attempts to the left, Tynes started the decisive kick to the right, and it drew back to split the uprights and send the Giants to Super Bowl XLII against the 18-0 New England Patriots.

Tynes' chilling game-winner from 47 yards out was the first kick of more than 40 yards in Lambeau Field's storied playoff history. 

5. Nov. 10, 2002: Steelers 34, Falcons 34

GENE J. PUSKAR/Associated Press

"Man, I hate ties."

Back in 2002, Michael Vick playing Tommy Maddox should have been no contest. But on Nov. 10, Maddox threw for a then-franchise record 473 yards, and receiver Plaxico Burress accounted for 253 of those yards, also setting a franchise record, plus two touchdowns.

However, Burress needed that 254th yard and a third TD to deliver a victory that wasn't. The Pittsburgh Steelers squandered a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter as Vick led a furious comeback for the Atlanta Falcons to force overtime. After so much offense in the first 60 minutes, neither team could find a point in the overtime.

The game ended on a 50-yard pass from Maddox to Burress, which he caught with half his body in the end zone—the half without the ball. Burress was down at the 1-yard line, and time expired for a uniquely unsatisfying tie at the end of a thoroughly thrilling game.

Burress expressed the odd duality of his dissatisfaction with the result, via the Associated Press: "We didn't win but, we didn't lose. It's so disappointing. You have this uneasy feeling that you lost, but you know you really didn't."

4. Oct. 31, 2013: Dolphins 22, Bengals 20

Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press

Wake woke up a sleepy Dalton for the walk-off safety.

With the game tied 20-20, the Cincinnati Bengals still had to like their chances against the Miami Dolphins despite facing 3rd-and-10 from their own 8-yard line. A punt would not necessarily spell doom for them, as long as QB Andy Dalton avoided another costly error. 

Dalton had already thrown three interceptions, one of which was returned 94 yards for a touchdown by Miami's Brent Grimes. Another interception would surely prove fatal, which is perhaps what caused Dalton to hold the ball for one beat too long. 

Dalton hopped back to the goal line after taking the snap, calmly reviewing his receiving options. Then defensive end Cameron Wake burst through the middle of the line on a bull rush and demolished Dalton. 

Since the ball was along the plane of the end zone when Wake smashed Dalton backward into the turf, the play became the very first walk-off safety in NFL history to come on a quarterback sack. 

In fact, only two walk-off safeties had been recorded previously, per CBS Sports' John Breech:

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There has been only a total of three in NFL history. The last one came in November 2004 when Chicago's Adewale Ogunleye tackled a Titans offensive lineman in the end zone after a fumble by Tennessee quarterback Billy Volek. The Bears won the game 19-17.

The only other overtime safety came in November 1989 when Minnesota's Mike Merriweather blocked a Rams punt out of the end zone for a 23-21 Vikings win.

"

Give credit to Wake for the superb pass-rushing, but fault Dalton for his blissfully unaware dropback that led to a game-winning eight-yard sack instead of, at worst, a seven-yard sack and punt. 

3. Jan. 8, 2012: Broncos 29, Steelers 23

Jeff Gross/Getty Images

Textbook form from Tim Tebow.

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau stands among the greatest tactical defensive minds in the history of the sport. He is credited with inventing the zone blitz, not to mention overseeing dominant defenses for decades.

Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow was a national celebrity for his celebrated college days at Florida and his outspoken religious views, but many football insiders considered him a bad QB with an inaccurate arm and poor diagnostic skills as a signal-caller. 

Tebow had struggled against the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs to end the 2011 season, but his team had squeaked into the playoffs. 

The plucky Broncos battled the Steelers to a draw after 60 minutes of football, and the Broncos got the ball first in overtime. That's when LeBeau challenged Tebow to beat him and deployed a risky "cover zero" defense with 10 men up near the line and no safety over the top. 

On the first play from scrimmage, Tebow found Demaryius Thomas streaking over the middle on a slant, and the receiver outran the entire "Steel Curtain" defense, aided by a superb stiff-arm on Ike Taylor, for an 80-yard, game-winning touchdown to deliver Denver a stunning Wild Card victory. 

As Slate's Josh Levin described it:

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By playing nine and even 10 men in the box, Pittsburgh ensured that any play-action pass that Tebow completed would go for huge yardage. Tebow was just 10 for 21 on Sunday, but five of those 10 completions went for at least 30 yards. One of those came on the first (and last) play of overtime. ... Why did the Broncos win? Because the Steelers held Tim Tebow in such low esteem that they didn't believe he could complete a simple crossing pattern.

"

Steelers linebacker James Farrior confirmed this, via Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: "We felt we had a good grasp of what they would try to do to us. They made more plays than we thought they were capable of making. We really hadn't seen that out of him on tape."

And no one has seen that out of Tebow since. The Broncos signed Peyton Manning the following offseason, traded Tebow to the New York Jets and he has not landed with an NFL team since being cut by the New England Patriots prior to the 2013 regular season.

2. Jan. 19, 2002: Patriots 16, Raiders 13

ELISE AMENDOLA/Associated Press

Nope, that's not a fumble, apparently.

Most people know this simply as the "Tuck Rule" game. New England Patriots fans know it as the start of the team's recent dynasty, and Raiders fans mark it as the start of their team's prolonged decline. 

Playing in heavy snow at Foxboro Stadium, the Pats held the ball at Oakland's 42-yard line with 1:50 left in the game and trailing 13-10. Tom Brady, not yet know as "Tom Terrific," dropped back to pass and got hit, fumbling the ball, which was recovered by Raiders linebacker Greg Biekert.

That appeared to spell curtains for the Patriots, but referees ruled that Brady's arm had moved forward in an attempt to pass, and he had been tucking the ball back at the time he was hit and lost control. According to the rulebook, this rendered what appeared to be an obvious fumble that likely would have ended New England's season instead a harmless incomplete pass. 

Brady maneuvered his kicker Adam Vinatieri in position for the game-tying 45-yard field goal at the end of regulation. Brady did so again in overtime and passed flawlessly during the 61-yard drive. The team even went for and converted a fourth down from the Raiders' 28, setting up a 23-yard field goal that was far from certain.

With heavy snow swirling and rotten conditions on the field, Vinatieri booted through the game-winning points and entered his name in NFL lore forever, coming on just the first of several clutch postseason kicks he converted. 

Without the tuck rule and Vinatieri's magical leg, there might be no Pats dynasty and much less disarray with the Raiders franchise. 

Jon Gruden, who coached the Raiders in that game, stated on a Nov. 3, 2014 broadcast of Monday Night Football that he did not like Vinatieri very much for a long, long time.

"

“He kicked me out of Oakland. I didn’t call a timeout because I didn’t want them to shovel snow off. I never liked Adam Vinatieri.” -Gruden

— Taji (@InfiniteRaiders) November 4, 2014"

Gruden defended his decision not to call timeout and ice the kicker because he feared they would allow the spot of the kick to be cleared, a ploy that had some precedence for the Pats. 

1. Nov. 6, 2000: Packers 26, Vikings 20

MIKE ROEMER/Associated Press

Not even Antonio Freeman could believe he caught that game-winning TD.

With the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings sitting on 20 points apiece, the ball just into Vikes territory and facing a 4th-and-5, Brett Favre took a shot downfield to Antonio Freeman. It fell harmlessly incomplete, or so everyone thought, except for the referee and Antonio Freeman.

Veteran announcer Al Michaels—who made the immortal call of Team USA's stunning ice hockey win over the Soviet Union at the 1980 Olympics: "Do you believe in miracles? Yes!"—added another signature phrase to his resume: "He did what?!"

After Favre threw a dying quail off his back foot down the right sideline, Vikings cornerback Chris Dishman appeared to have a great chance at an interception with solid inside coverage, but he only managed to deflect the pass toward the turf. 

Freeman had dove for the ball, and when Dishman deflected the pass, it landed on Freeman's back and bounced to his left just as he was rolling over on the landing, putting him in prime position to catch the magic-bullet pass before it hit the ground. 

Dishman thought it had fallen incomplete, as did Michaels on the Monday Night Football broadcast, but Freeman got up, cut across to the middle of the field and ran the final 15 yards to paydirt. 

Michaels' exasperated "He did what?!" coincided with Freeman's Lambeau leap into the crowd as bedlam descended upon Lambeau Field. Vikes head coach Dennis Green surely thought the exact same thing as Michaels.

ABC's announcers fell all over themselves in disbelief after looking at the replay. Color commentator and comedian Dennis Miller summed it up best: "It's just a great, fluky play for the Pack." Many Packers fans simply call it the "Improbable Bobble."