Joe Buck Explains His Lackluster David Tyree Call in Super Bowl XLII
With 1:15 remaining and the New York Giants trailing by four points against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, Giants wide receiver David Tyree made one of the most talked-about catches in Super Bowl history. Thirteen years later, Tyree’s catch against his own helmet is still widely considered one of the greatest moments in Super Bowl history.
If you listened to Joe Buck‘s live call of the game, it seemed like an ordinary play. Buck explained the reason for his lackluster call.
The New England Patriots rolled through the 2007 season
The New England Patriots entered Super Bowl XLII with a lot on the line. They finished the regular season undefeated at 16-0 and won their two postseason games to enter the Super Bowl with an 18-0 record. They were looking to become the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to complete a full season undefeated.
The Patriots had played the New York Giants in the final game of the regular season. New England outlasted New York 38-35 to complete the perfect regular season. The Patriots completely dominated in the regular season. They scored at least 34 points in each of their first eight games. In four games, they scored 40-plus points. They hit 50 in two of them.
During the regular season, the Patriots’ average margin of victory was 19.6 points. They put up a league-high 589 points and gave up 274, the fourth-best in the NFL. The Patriots were one win away from a perfect season, and then David Tyree and the New York Giants got in the way.
David Tyree and the Giants shocked the world in Super Bowl XLII
The New York Giants had given up 38 points to the New England Patriots in the final game of the regular season. They came out with a strong defensive plan in Super Bowl XLII, pressuring quarterback Tom Brady throughout. The Giants held New England to seven points through three quarters but still trailed 7-3.
David Tyree then gave the Giants the lead on a catch nobody remembers. Tyree hauled in a 5-yard touchdown pass with 11:05 remaining to put the Giants in front 10-7. Brady and the Patriots responded with a go-ahead touchdown with 2:42 to play when Brady hit Randy Moss with a 6-yard touchdown pass. New England led 14-10.
With 1:15 to play, Giants quarterback Eli Manning avoided a sack and lofted a pass down the middle of the field. Tyree leaped and caught the ball, pinning it to his helmet with his right hand as Rodney Harrison brought him down. Tyree’s crazy catch helped set up Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress for the game-winning score.
Joe Buck’s call of Tyree’s catch was bland, and he explains why
Had the Giants not rallied to defeat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, David Tyree’s catch certainly wouldn’t get the attention it gets now. When Tyree made the catch against his helmet, it was a ho-hum call by announcer Joe Buck. Buck later revealed why the excitement wasn’t in his voice.
“(The game) was so intense,” Buck said in an interview with Graham Bensinger. “My heart was going to jump out of my chest, not because I was scared or nervous. It was just awesome and exciting, which is funny because one of the criticisms you’ll get from a Giants fan if you go online is the Tyree catch that I didn’t scream and pull a groin about.
“When you’re doing that game, you have to be dead sure that what you’re saying is right. First of all, I could barely see Manning come out of there, and secondly, I couldn’t see the catch all that well because of the twisted body. That whole march down the field is something I’ll never forget.”
