Sports Genius
20 Years After The Thanksgiving Miracle
Football and Thanksgiving have lived together since the early 20s, but just a handful of the matchups played on this day are still remembered today. One of them is the 1993 Snow Bowl in Texas.
With 15 seconds left the score was 14-13 in favor of the Dallas team, but Miami had the chance to kick a field goal from around the 41yds to take the lead.Stoyanovich and the kicking team of the Dolphins stepped on the snowy field, trying to hit the game winner, but the kick was blocked by the Cowboys defense; that's when the Miami fans witnessed the miracle.
After a FG is blocked, the defense needs to recover the ball to gain possession again. If the offensive team touches the ball before the defense, that's the spot from where the other team will start attacking. But if the defense touches the ball without gaining possession, it's ruled as a fumble, and therefore can be recovered by the offensive team to get the ball back in their hands.
That's exactly what Leon Lett, number 78 of the Dallas Cowboys did, giving Miami the ball again with 3 seconds left on the clock.
The Dolphins kicked another field goal and hit it this time, winning the game by 2. If Leet would have let the ball roll and stop on the field without touching it, the Cowboys would have won the game; instead he gave the Dolphins' fans the best Thanksgiving gift possible and left the Cowboys supporters eat a bittersweet turkey-based meal.