Steve Christie’s SB record FG broken twice during SB LVIII

Christie’s longstanding NFL-record 54-yard field goal was surpassed by two different kickers during Super Bowl LVIII

In 1994, Buffalo Bills place-kicking legend Steve Christie established an NFL Super Bowl record-long field goal of 54 yards during Super Bowl XXVIII — a mark that stood for 31 seasons.

On Sunday, February 11, in Super Bowl LVIII, Christie’s record was finally surpassed by San Francisco 49ers rookie kicker Jake Moody during the second quarter of action. Moody, whose rookie postseason featured plenty of drama due to misses, booted from 55-yards out to give the 49ers a 3-0 lead. That’s nearly two generations between Christie’s kick and the new record. And then, incredibly, Moody’s new record was broken in the third quarter when Kansas City Chiefs placekicker Harrison Butker nailed a 57-yard field goal to establish the now-current longest Super Bowl field goal.

Teams rarely attempt kicks of such length in the sport’s biggest game for fear of missing and giving their opponent incredibly short fields. But Steve Christie was different.

For those of you unfamiliar with Christie’s career, he was nearly as automatic and clutch as current Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker. The kicking phenom from Hamilton, ON made his way to Orchard Park, NY via the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Christie came on board after Scott Norwood and solidified the position for a decade, playing with the Bills from 1992 through the 2000 season. He could kick in any condition, and had one of the league’s strongest legs of his era — dare I say no one was a stronger in-game kicker.

In 144 regular-season games with the Bills, Christie made 234 of 299 (78.3%) field goals (long of 59 yards), 309 of 313 (98.7%) extra points, 93 touchbacks (13.5%)

With Buffalo, Christie made…

• from 0-19 yards — 7 of 7 field goals
• from 20-29 yards — 79 of 87 field goals
• from 30-39 yards — 78 of 96 field goals
• from 40-49 yards — 57 of 81 field goals
• from 50-plus yards — 13 of 28 field goals

(All stats courtesy Pro Football Reference)

Christie’s most famous kick was perhaps the game-winning 32-yard boot he made in overtime against the Houston Oilers to complete the largest comeback in NFL playoff history.

You hear it all the time: Records are meant to be broken. While it’s somewhat disappointing to know that yet another individual record by a former Buffalo Bills all-time great player falls to a new mark, it fortunately allowed us a chance to celebrate all the great things that Steve Christie brought to the team and fan base.