To celebrate the 45th season of “Monday Night Football,” a panel of ESPN.com contributors has selected the 45 most memorable moments in MNF history. Look back at all 45 moments in the count down to this season’s MNF debut.
No. 1: Seahawks 14, Packers 12 | Sept. 24, 2012
In 1975, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach heaved a game-winning 50-yard touchdown pass to Drew Pearson in the closing seconds of a playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings. Staubach said of the play after the game, “I closed my eyes and said a Hail Mary.” That was the first time the term Hail Mary was associated with such a desperation pass.
On Sept. 24, 2012, a new term was coined.
That night turned out to be the final night of replacement referees in the NFL. The NFL Referees Association had been locked out since June due to a dispute with the league, leaving the NFL in the hands of officials who had mostly worked at lower-level college divisions or the high school level. So when possession of Russell Wilson‘s desperation pass came into question in the closing seconds of the Green Bay Packers–Seattle Seahawks game, it’s no surprise that two officials simultaneously made two different calls.
Wilson’s pass was first snagged by Packers safety M.D. Jennings. Jennings was able to pin the ball to his body as he fell to the ground and landed on top of Seahawks receiver Golden Tate. Tate tried to wrestle the ball away, and his efforts led to confusion among the refs.
After minutes of consultation and replay review, the refs ruled it was shared possession and a touchdown for the Seahawks. The call was universally considered to be wrong, and although the play itself was a Hail Mary, it will forever be remembered as the “Fail Mary.” More on the Fail Mary can be read in ESPN’s A Moment in Time.
Two days later, an agreement was reached to end the referees’ lockout.
#ThrowbackMNF: Now it’s your turn. Share your most vivid MNF memories, photos and videos on Twitter at @ESPNMondayNight or on ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” Facebook page by using #ThrowbackMNF. Reader submissions: Sept. 8 | Sept. 4 | Sept. 3.