One-handed flips to the trickiest trick play: the 2023 season’s best touchdowns

With the regular season in the books, we look at six of the best scores from the last few months in the NFL

1) Courtland Sutton for the Denver Broncos v Buffalo Bills

Maybe one of the most head-scratching touchdowns ever scored in the NFL owing to the improbability – 3.2% according to the prediction models – that the pass could be completed in the first place. We begin with Russell Wilson faking the handoff, pedaling back and then spinning to evade a defender. Watching for the first time one assumes, much like the Bills defenders and the entire refereeing crew, that the laws of physics simply do not allow Sutton to make the catch while still in play. Joe Buck agreed until a dramatic change of heart mid-sentence: “He did not get both feet ... down!?” Colorado Ballet should recast their lead in February’s performance of Jekyll and Hyde.

2) Jack Jones for the Las Vegas Raiders v Los Angeles Chargers

The Chargers are 49-7 behind with three minutes to go in the third quarter. Their head coach Brandon Staley is already headed for the exit door, a generous stay of execution after pundit Richard Sherman called for him to be sacked at half-time. The next sequence has Staley wishing he had been. Los Angeles backup quarterback Easton Stick is battered from behind to force a fumble that 326lb nose tackle John Jenkins jogs in for a scoop and score. So far, so bad. Three plays later Jones anticipates a swing pass with such lightning speed and devastating athleticism that he overruns the ball and has to stretch back to make the one-handed interception. A few strides later he is home. To his eternal credit Stick seems to smile at his role in birthing this beauty into the world.

3) Jevon Holland for the Miami Dolphins v New York Jets

With two seconds remaining in the first half, the New York Jets trail the Miami Dolphins 10-6. One score down against an offensive juggernaut certainly feels acceptable. Tim Boyle is starting his first game in New York at quarterback, too. Run the ball, take stock and come out fighting next quarter. Ah screw it, dial up the Hail Mary, take the lead, what’s the worst that could happen? Well. For starters Boyle’s throw is a yard shy of the endzone coming to a stop in the arms of Holland. It gets worse as the safety shifts across the turf, around two would-be tacklers in Miami’s half. At midfield the killer blow is dealt. Holland sticks his foot in the turf, going inside two defenders after Bradley Chubb and Christian Wilkins’ exquisite tandem blocks. Another block sees him race by another two Jets following a skip to his left that sells Boyle so hard that he falls over at the 15-yard line, allowing Holland to scamper in for the score with a 99-yard pick-six.

4) Tee Higgins for the Cincinnati Bengals v Minnesota Vikings

Vikings cornerback Akayleb Evans thinks he has Higgins on toast. Big mistake. Higgins leaps in front of him on the one-yard line to catch Jake Browning’s all-or-nothing throw. Only it isn’t as deep as Browning wanted so the receiver’s jump takes him out of scoring territory facing the wrong way. Fortunately Higgins is a part-time contortionist: he starts to fall out of bounds, palming the ball into his right hand while whipping it backwards to brush its tip over the pylon for the score. In and of itself it is magical, when combined with the touchdown tying the game at 24-24 with 39 seconds remaining to give the Bengals the runway for an epic overtime comeback win, it’s otherworldly.

5) David Montgomery for the Detroit Lions v Los Angeles Chargers

This was the highlight for David Montgomery in a fantastic first season with the Lions, and it helped secure a narrow victory too. Detroit’s offensive line steamrolls their opposite numbers, blowing open a chasm for Montgomery. A punishing block from Jameson Williams near the end of the run helps things along nicely too.

6) San Francisco 49ers’ trick play v Dallas Cowboys

Kyle Shanahan digs deep in his bag of tricks for what would be the beginning of a long three quarters for Dallas. Brock Purdy hands off to Christian McCaffrey who pops it to Deebo Samuel who then dabs it back to Purdy, now 12 yards behind the line of scrimmage. He launches a throw to the wider than wide open George Kittle while taking a huge hit from a defender. The tight end grabs the ball in stride to rumble in for the 38-yard touchdown. The timing would make a Swiss watch proud. The Cowboys still have no idea what hit them.

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