A Steve McNair Memory

Sitting in a bar on the 4th of July I noticed on one of the many television screens that the erstwhile quarterback Steve McNair had been found shot dead in a Nashville condominium. I was pretty shocked, as were most hardcore or casual football fans. I remember Steve Mcnair as a warrior, or at least an NFL-warrior. Now sordid details come out that he was most likely shot by his secret girlfriend...his longtime wife had no idea about the affair until he was found dead...

In any case, my clear memory from the McNair football era was the Music City Miracle, the one time the Tennessee Titans franchise (originally the Houston Oilers) made the Super Bowl. The team had been carried by Steve McNair and running-back Eddie George for most of the season. In the playoff game in question, the Titans were playing the Buffalo Bills, a team my brother had been rooting for (if I remember correctly) and who'd just taken a lead with mere seconds to go. They were celebrating on the sidelines, dunking their coach and all, since all they had to do was kickoff and tackle the guy, and they'd move on to the next round. 

I stood up on my bed and opened my window, hollered to Dan to let him know the Bills had just won. "Hey Dan," I called, and as he came sauntering to my window I'd looked over my shoulder back at my tv to see the kickoff. The Titans kick-returner caught the kickoff, then ran to one sideline, drawing the entire defense. He then lobbed a lateral clear to the other sideline. It traveled backwards about one yard, making it a legal backwards lateral (that much seemed clear when it happened in live action, and it was upheld when the officials were discussing it).

The Titan who caught it ran nearly untouched all the way to a touchdown, and playoff victory. By now Dan was at my window and I was jumping up and down on my bed, blabbing about "Oh man, you just...should have seen it..." and he came in to watch the replays. 

Besides Eli-to-Plaxico with thirty seconds left and my vested interest in that game, that Music City Miracle ranks as one of the more exciting games I remember watching live.