Game-ending Hail Marys: a history

Thanks to a controversial facemask penalty called on the Lions on what would have been the last play of the game Thursday night, the Packers got one more shot at the end zone with a final, untimed down.

Some Aaron Rodgers wizardry, plus questionable tactical decisions by the Lions, resulted in a 61-yard Hail Mary touchdown to steal a Packers victory, 27-23. It put Green Bay back on the winning side of the Hail Mary equation and gave tight end Richard Rodgers a wild finish to compare with his dad, who was involved in the infamous Cal-Stanford "The band is out on the field" game.

But where does the play rank among the longest Hail Marys to win a game in league history?

Well, record keeping on this sort of thing is a bit spotty, though it seems as though the play was at least the longest Hail Mary to win a game in the last 15 years and may be the longest in the NFL since the term was popularized in 1975. Here are some of the noteworthy game-ending Hail Marys through the years.

1975: In a Dallas playoff victory over the Vikings, Roger Staubach found Drew Pearson for a 50-yard score as time expired. Staubach's description of the play after the game helped popularize the term.

1978: The Falcons' Steve Bartkowski connected with Alfred Jackson on a 57-yard Hail Mary on the final play to defeat the Saints.

1981: A tipped pass to running back Roland Hooks made Joe Ferguson's 36-yard heave a game-winner as the Bills got a walkoff victory over the Patriots.

1983: Bartkowski again, this time victimizing the 49ers, with a 47-yard Hail Mary to Billy "White Shoes" Johnson to give the Falcons a win.

1991: The Falcons, perhaps more adept than most at winning games via a Hail Mary, captured another over the 49ers when Michael Haynes hauled in a 44-yard bomb from Billy Joe Tolliver.

1999: One of Cleveland's two victories in its first season back in existence came when Kevin Johnson reeled in a 56-yard Hail Mary thrown by otherwise-not-well-remembered Browns quarterback Tim Couch.

2002: Couch strikes again. In fact, game-winning Hail Marys might have been Couch's best asset in the NFL. This time, it was Quincy Morgan who caught a 50-yard heave from the No. 1 draft pick. To date, this has been the Browns' only playoff season since their resurrection, so this godsend was more important than most.

2010: A Texans defender tips the ball to Mike Thomas, who walks into the end zone to give the Jaguars a miracle victory. Luckily, this was back in the days Gus Johnson was still calling the NFL full-time.

2012: The infamous Fail Mary had the Packers on the losing side, as a 24-yard lob from Seattle's Russell Wilson was caught simutaneously by Green Bay defender M.D. Jennings and Seahawks receiver Golden Tate. One replacement official signaled touchdown while another did not, though the play stood as a score on review.