When it comes to major league football games, kickers don’t typically get the same spotlight as other players. The quarterbacks, wide receivers and tight ends usually hog all the press coverage with their fancy footwork, throws or catches.
But the kicker often has to step up and perform in make-or-break, game-deciding situations, so these players spend a lot of time practicing during the lead-up to the weekly games. Sometimes the players push themselves to see how far they can kick that football, and on Monday, Nov. 18, Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker put on quite a display!
As the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers prepared to face each other on the gridiron in a special Monday Night Football game from Mexico City, Butker took the field to kick some field goals.
One of the fun, yet challenging things about playing in Mexico City is the location’s high altitude. At 7,382 feet, Mexico City’s air is much thinner than it is at most football stadiums in the United States.
In fact, the highest altitude any NFL team faces in the States is in Denver, which sits at an altitude of 5,280 feet. This kind of altitude allows the football to travel farther than it can at sea level because of the thinner air.
And Butker used this thinner air to his advantage during warmups on Monday when he kicked a 70-yard field goal! Check out the impressive moment as posted to Twitter by the NFL on ESPN account:
Could we see a record field goal tonight on #MNF?
Harrison Butker nailed one from 70 in pregame ð® pic.twitter.com/aZbv3YlSCv
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) November 19, 2019
Not only did Butker clear the posts with that kick, but it also looked like he had some room to spare! That’s not something fans get to see very often.
For comparison’s sake, the NFL record for the longest field goal kick during a game happened on Dec. 8, 2013, when Denver Broncos’ kicker Matt Prater scored a 64-yarder against the Tennessee Titans at the end of the first half of the game.
According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, only 17 players in NFL history have kicked a field goal of at least 60 yards during a game. Unfortunately for Butker, since this kick was during a warmup, he doesn’t get added to the list.
No need to feel too badly for him, though, as the Chiefs still went on to win Monday’s game over the Chargers, 24-17.
This story originally appeared on Simplemost. Checkout Simplemost for additional stories.
