Nov 30th 2008 10:33PM by JJ Cooper (author feed)
Filed under: Bears, Vikings
Many years ago, Tony Dorsett ran his way into the NFL record books by running 99-yards for a touchdown in prime time during a 1977 Monday Night Football game against the Vikings.
It took 31 years, but the Vikings got their revenge. In another prime time game, the Vikings set a record of their own, tying the record for the longest pass play in NFL history when Gus Frerotte hooked up with Bernard Berrian for a 99-yard touchdown pass.
For a 99-yard pass, the Frerotte-Berrian hook up was actually pretty easy. The Vikings had just stuffed the Bears on fourth and goal at the one, on a play that could have given the Bears a 14-3 lead. The Vikings decided to take advantage of the momentum swing, by sending Berrian deep. Frerotte had plenty of time in the pocket, while Charles Tilman got confused and covered the inside receiver, allowing Berrian to run free. Once he caught the ball, it was an easy sprint into the record book.
Berrian becomes the 11th player in NFL history to catch a 99-yard pass. Because the NFL doesn’t make a distinction beyond the yard marker, it’s not possible for the record to ever be broken unless the NFL decided to adopt the CFL field–so expect Berrian to be in the record book forever.
