One of my favorite streaks in NFL lore was broken last week.
After an 0-for-1,844 franchise run of returning kickoffs for touchdowns over 32 seasons, Michael Spurlock etched his name into Tampa Bay Buccaneers lore by taking a kickoff 90 yards for a score in the first quarter of the Bucs’ 37-3 rout of the Falcons on Sunday.
Sure, returning a kickoff for a touchdown is no easy feat, unless you are Devin Hester, who has done it five times in his two-year career, including a 92-yard return on the opening kickoff of Super Bowl XLI. Hester has also returned six punts for scores, and a missed field goal, though, and his knack for big returns is something the league has never seen before.
But a kickoff return for a score by a Buccaneers player is also something that had never been seen before, which is mind-boggling in its own right. Over 32 seasons, you’d think one of the 139 other players that had returned kicks for the Buccaneers would have busted through at some point, wouldn’t you?
According to an Orlando Sentinel story, they had unsuccessfully tried to return a kick for a score in 53 stadiums in 38 cities, chalking up 21 1/4 miles worth of return yardage in the process.
In October 2003, Randal Williams of the Dallas Cowboys did in three seconds -- yes, three -- what it took Tampa Bay 31-plus years to do. In a game against the Eagles, Philadelphia opened with an onside kick, but an alert Williams picked the ball up on the dead run and ran 37 yards for a touchdown with 14:57 left on the clock.
Williams acknowledged that he wasn’t really that fast, but the scoreboard operator was apparently caught off guard by the on-side kick as well, and it took him a second to start the clock. But in the record books, it stands as the fastest score in a game in NFL history, and one that seems impossible to beat.
As for the Bucs, now they can start looking forward to that next kickoff return for a score, likely sometime in the 2039 season.
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The celebrity picks:
Lance Burton, Monte Carlo headliner
(24-19-2)
Steelers –8 at Rams
Saints -3 at Eagles
Chargers -8 1/2 vs. Broncos
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Anthony Crivello, star of "Phantom - The Las Vegas Spectacular"
(23-19-3)
Packers -9 at Bears
Colts –7 vs. Texans
Chargers -8 1/2 vs. Broncos
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Danny Gans, Mirage headliner
(22-21-2)
Cowboys –10 1/2 vs. Panthers
Colts -7 vs. Texans
Cardinals –10 vs. Falcons
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Oscar Goodman, mayor of Las Vegas
(25-19-1)
Dolphins +22 at Patriots
Buccaneers -7 at 49ers
Chargers -8 1/2 vs. Broncos
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Hans Klok, Planet Hollywood headliner
(20-23-2)
Steelers -8 at Rams
Colts –7 vs. Texans
Chargers -8 1/2 vs. Broncos
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Wayne Newton, "Mr. Las Vegas"
(17-24-4)
Bears +9 at Packers
Dolphins +22 at Patriots
Saints -3 vs. Eagles
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Penn & Teller, Rio headliners
(25-19-1)
Eagles +3 at Saints
Patriots –22 vs. Dolphins
Giants -3 at Bills
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Rita Rudner, Harrah's headliner
(27-17-1)
Browns -3 at Bengals
Chargers -8 1/2 vs. Broncos
Jaguars-Raiders over 39