With the Detroit Lions facing the New Orleans Saints on this week’s NFL schedule, the “Throwback Thursday” feature harkens back to November 8, 1970, to a game played between these 2 franchises in which Saints’ kicker Tom Dempsey booted a record-breaking 63 yard field goal in the dying seconds to give his team a 19-17 win. Dempsey wasn’t your average run-of-the mill NFL placekicker. He not only was a straight-ahead style kicker in a era when soccer-style kickers were becoming more prevalent, he also was born with no toes on his right foot and no fingers on his right hand, and wore a quirky flat-surfaced shoe on his right kicking foot. In the early 1970s, the Lions were an elite team in the NFC, while the Saints were only four years removed from being an expansion franchise, so Detroit was a heavy favorite in the game. The Lions got touchdowns from Charlie Sanders, their All Pro tight end, on a throw from Bill Munson, and on a ten yard run by Mel Farr, while the Saints attack settled for Dempsey field goals. He kicked a total of four in the game, including the record-breaking game winner. As the fourth quarter was winding down, Dempsey kicked his third three-pointer to put New Orleans ahead and looking to be on their way to the huge upset. Then Munson led the Lions downfield and set up Erroll Mann for a short field goal to put his club ahead. It may have been total desperation that caused the Saints to even attempt the winning try. The team had fired their original coach, Tom Fears, and this matchup was the replacement coach J.D. Roberts’ first game at the helm. With pretty much nothing to lose, Roberts sent Dempsey out for the unimaginable record attempt, and Dempsey came through. On the kick, holder Joe Scarpati handled a perfect snap from the long snapper, Jackie Burkett. Amazingly, and in stark contrast to today’s era of specialization, Scarpati and Burkett also made huge contributions that day to New Orleans’ defensive effort, with Scarpati snagging an interception and Burkett contributing a pair of picks. The win, which was one of only two games the Saints would win that year, cost the team the top college draft pick in 1971, but they did alright with the second pick, selecting quarterback Archie Manning, who would be a lone bright spot of their losing franchise in the coming years. Dempsey’s record broke the old mark, held by Baltimore’s Bert Rechichar, by seven yards, and the record would stand until the Broncos’ Matt Prater, kicking in the high altitude of Denver, hit a 64 yarder in 2013.
Tom Dempsey boots record 63 yard field goal