Each NFL team's greatest play of all-time and why

Atlanta Falcons - The Kick
January 17, 1999

There are a lot of very interesting plays in Atlanta Falcons history. However, with no Super Bowl wins in franchise history, there’s no actual play that led to the promised land, but there are a few that got them close. Truly, if “28-3” didn’t exist, this play would undoubtedly be Julio Jones’ catch. It was one of the greatest catches in the history of the Super Bowl, but it only brings up bad memories for Falcons fans. 

However, one memory that’s exclusively good is “The Kick.” In January of 1999, Atlanta was facing the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings. It was a one-loss Vikings team taking on a two-loss Atlanta team. It was truly a matchup of NFC titans. Even if they were unexpected titans.

Gary Anderson hadn’t missed a field goal all season, but he missed a crucial kick for the Vikings in this game to give the Falcons a chance to tie the game, which they did. In overtime, Morten Anderson had a chance to win the game after the Falcons drove to their opponent’s 21-yard line.

The Vikings played the kick incredibly well. They had hands everywhere, but Anderson was able to find the one space where the kick wouldn’t be blocked, and the Falcons were on their way to the Super Bowl.