The Phil Luckett Coin Toss Fiasco! (Steelers vs. Lions, 1998) | NFL Vault Highlights

The Steelers and Lions went to overtime on Thanksgiving Day, 1998 when chaos ensued during the coin toss!
#ClassicGameHighlights #Lions #Steelers
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[@mikeyoungblood1642]

Forget the coin toss, this game, with the entire nation watching was a textbook example why the NFL NEEDED Instant Replay!

[@vadimzdonutube]

Then the next week when the Jets beat the Seahawks when the ball didn’t even cross the goal line, that almost certainly guaranteed instant replay for the following season

[@leogetz3570]

And the week after that when Jerry Rice clearly fumbled, but the referees ruled him down, which screwed the Packers from recovering and closing out the game, even more that certainly guaranteed instant replay@@vadimzdonutube

[@redpillfreedom6692]

@@vadimzdonutube And the Jerry Rice non-fumble call was the last straw

[@chrisuncleahmad]

Little known fact about this game- it was the last win ever for Barry Sanders.

[@joshuawick5382]

Whoa!

[@kendallutch3060]

i did not know that

[@edwardoutlawjr8154]

That's sad. He deserved so much better than what he got in Detroit.

[@cirio1919]

Bart shouldn’t have won

[@EdmacZ]

Lots of weird things to take from this game. -The Steelers would completely collapse after this game. -Lions QB Charlie Batch was from Pittsburgh, and would become the Steelers future backup QB, and win two rings with them. -This was Barry Sanders’ last win as a Lion.

[@rustyshackleford436]

Once you’ve been cheated despite all your efforts it takes your soul away

[@88bahl]

this is also one of the first games to ever have 1st and 10 graphic which is how i found it, surprised not a lot have brought it up

[@nedwart]

​@cb2990 the first CBS game with a first down line too!

[@michaelpowell5266]

The infamous coin-flip game. At least there were two Hall of Fame RBs in that game, namely Barry Sanders of the Lions and Jerome "The Bus" Bettis of the Steelers!!!

[@Willthrill8]

So we all gonna ignore Terry Fair getting CTE on that kick return at 5:10

[@RealJackHQ]

Lions came back with a kick off return fumble recovery of their own, and we actually did a clean hit. Now that's class.

[@adampincente209]

This was 20 years ago, I’m getting old lol

[@OmniTron1000]

I will NEVER forget this game.

[@MindFluxx]

Why this field look like a damn pool table tho?😂😂

[@thupatrupa]

mac ferris the old school turf was rough. Like playing on a putt putt course

[@TheLocalLt]

mac ferris cuz it was exactly that, carpet on top of concrete. Think of mini golf. Brutal to play on

[@TLO129]

Ever hear of AstroTurf?

[@Knightmessenger]

The astroturf in the silverdome was new for this season. If you look at the lions vs jets 97 game, it doesnt look as colorful and the end zone design is slightly different.

[@RichV20]

It looked beautiful on TV

[@Jeremy_theGent]

I've heard this coin flip audio a hundred times, and I don't hear anything but "tails."

[@BigAl-vh2jr]

Jerome Bettis admitted to saying huh-tails. This indicates that he was in the middle of saying heads and changed his mind. By rule, the ref has to go with his first choice, which was heads. Hope this helps.😊

[@Jeremy_theGent]

@@BigAl-vh2jr When did he admit that? And I know the rule, I'm saying I've never heard anything but "tails."

[@BigAl-vh2jr]

@@Jeremy_theGent In his postgame press conference, he said that he was originally gonna go with heads, but he changed his mind and said huh-tails, but said that he didn’t say heads. However, by rule, Luckett made the right call.

[@FryingTiger]

Hea-TAILS. Heads is a one syllable word, so as soon as he started, there was non going back.

[@SPTO]

Poor Phil Luckett. He wasn't that bad of an official but he had a REAL bad run of luck around this time frame. I want to wish all my American friends a happy and safe Thanksgiving.

[@bigblue9996]

He's the reason why instant replay came back thanks to the Testaverde touchdown against Seattle.

[@SPTO]

@@bigblue9996 Not necessarily, yes he was the ref in that game but because there was no replay involved the official that directly made the call was head linesman Earnie Frantz. Luckett got tarnished by association.

[@bjchit]

He was also in charge of the replay officials on the Fail Mary.

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

Luckett made the right call

[@bjchit]

He should have reflipped.

[@TurtleBombPro]

Steelers playing down to their competition even back in 1998

[@Amarknash]

With that "stud" Kordell at QB how did they ever lose?

[@njh18]

Mmm, they were 7-9 in ‘98, toss up game really.

[@donovanmccat7254]

For those that are arguing that Bettis only said tails, listen carefully at 13:10 mark. Bettis says "I changed it in the air, it hadnt hit the ground". He is admitting right there he started to call heads and changed to tails. He actually thought he had until the coin hit the ground to decide.

[@giantsr1eva]

@Donavan McCat I know, he’s clearly stating that the coin did not hit the ground so he could change the call. He obviously said heads then tails. There will always be people who will only listen to the announcers and not the players making the call.

[@onedayatatime007]

You can hear everything and he never said heads. He was caught up in the moment when arguing and was flustered so he repeated what the ref said

[@reeferrick2635]

never said heads and even if he did the official told him to call it in the air and after that point he never said heads

[@mcmudkipp]

How do you hear headssstails. From the replay he does say tails pretty distinctly

[@RiseOfTheKumquat67]

They only played the PA announcement sound in the replay. You can clearly hear "headstails" on the broadcast mics while it's happening live.

[@Knightmessenger]

What was picked up by tv mics and what the ref on the field in person can be different. Yeah from tv audio, it clearly sounds like Bettis only said tails. But apparently, it has since come out that wasnt what was actually said.

[@perfectsense3240]

The Silverdome used to be loud as shit and the echoes were insane. Doesn’t surprise me there were other things heard.

[@PommieUsian]

It's pretty clearly "tails" If there were echos in the stadium, the last thing Luckett said was "heads" so it can explain how he thought Bettis said "heads". Still a colossal screw up that determined the outcome of the game.

[@GarrusN7]

Boy refs were trash the whole game. That first Stewart pick was ruled a no catch? lmao terrible.

[@skooby_doobie_doonkann3334]

Ethan Matz making me now wonder if this obligated Phil Luckett to make a shitty call in the lions favor which would ultimately lose this game for Pittsburgh

[@Thegooman67]

Brandon Crapo That's what I was thinking too

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

Luckett made the right call

[@NuRm69]

how did Luckett keep his job after this game? some of the worst calls I've ever seen, and that includes the replacement refs

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

@@NuRm69 Because Bettis started with heads and changed it. Ref made the right call.

[@shady6735]

Bettis would walk off a superbowl champ in detroit.

[@TheLocalLt]

Yea they could do another video about those refs…

[@ihatetheantichrist9545]

amlnet49 the only bad calls in that game was ben’s dive into the end zone (which they could have punched in on the next play easily with bettis) and Haggans being offsides people act like they messed up a million calls in that game.

[@TheLocalLt]

I LOVE BEING PURPLE phantom offensive PI, the egregious chop block on Ben when they didn’t even have the ball, the phantom defensive holding that set the gadget Ward-Randle El TD pass up… there were at least 5 really bad calls in the game and several other questionable ones

[@ihatetheantichrist9545]

amlnet49 that PI call on Jackson was the correct call

[@TheLocalLt]

I LOVE BEING PURPLE okay congrats you poked a hole through 1 of the 5 or 6 examples… the ref Bill Leavy apologized for the game saying the crew blew it, and Leavy could never work in Seattle again… the league and refs clearly knew it was a poorly officiated game that’s why they took those steps afterward

[@Knightmessenger]

I believe this was also the first game to use the first down line technology. Meanwhile the last NHL game to use the glowing puck also involved a detroit team, it was the cup finals game 1 in the previous spring.

[@RichV20]

Brown First Down

[@Fireyninjadog]

The steelers collapse of 1998 began right here

[@blobulous3500]

Probably the best nfl thanksgiving day first this famous botched coin flip then randy moss torched the cowboys later that day

[@walterlv01]

A footnote to this game is that both teams would lose out and go a combined 0-8 the last month of the season.

[@leogetz3570]

yep, Barry Sanders last win of his career

[@captainamerica2521]

Kordell Stewart was the prequel to Taysom Hill.

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

Beattis started saying Heads then changed it to Tails. Enhanced audio has confirmed this. Phil Luckett made the right call.

[@bjchit]

Ok, Phil, we get it, you thought you made the right call.

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

@@bjchit He did make the right call

[@bjchit]

@@EssexAggiegrad2011 The right call would have been to reflip.

[@Mrd9960]

That's why after this, they changed the rule to, before the coin flip they ask, that's how it should have been done originally.

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

@@Mrd9960 Indeed

[@Dirtnation2]

13:55 I watch this at my Grandma house, now at my grandma house you don't curse don't take the lords name in vein. My uncle is a diehard Midwestern Steelers fan oh boy lot of F-bombs and g.d. s.o.b's at Grandma's house that day. He was still sore about it 5 years later.

[@clayjr86]

This game brought back replay including Seahawks vs Jets. The rule that says offense & Defense player come down with the ball the ball goes to the receiver.

[@maxpeck4154]

One of the few times that something completely ridiculous and off the wall happened that DIDN'T screw the Lions.

[@96Eman21]

I was at that game on Thanksgiving Day 1998, my very first #DetroitLions home game

[@MRALEX9870]

And the Lions have been paying for this ever since 😂

[@BrotherApexx]

Before the toss, there were a few other bad calls in this game. Luckett's coin toss was just icing on the cake.

[@averagefella]

I completely agree lol

[@insertcolorfulmetaphor8520]

Nevermind that Bettis was trying to pull a fast one by saying "HeadsTails" Never liked the STEALers very much, and I've hated them ever since XL, and yet I exude no bias in saying that Bettis acted like a punk during the aftermath of the coin toss, and even Coach Cowher shot Bettis the stink eye after the ref explained what happened.

[@BobCat623923]

@@insertcolorfulmetaphor8520 No of course you have no bias LOL....why do you hate them since XL??

[@insertcolorfulmetaphor8520]

@@BobCat623923 Lol I'm a fan of the Seahawks. From the womb, to the tomb, I'm a 12th man for life! So, yeah... no bias over here. :- )

[@Alex-pq9rm]

@@insertcolorfulmetaphor8520 obviously bias lol

[@bennyrobinson1935]

Took Pittsburgh a couple of years to get over this

[@ericsigersmith6067]

@@IanMalcolm-rw5pn you mean 2005 ?

[@Ozmodiar6]

Ref: Call it in the air Bettis: Heads I win, tails you lose

[@leogetz3570]

25 years later and people are still complaining. About a week later, a TV station in Pittsburgh, ironically, had the enhanced audio which proved Luckett right. Even Bettis himself has admitted he started to say "heads", but then quickly changed. Neither team was going to make the playoffs that year, so this didn't affect anything. It did however, spur an immediate rule change for teams to call it before the coin is tossed. There's even video out there somewhere of players bringing hand made signs to the coin toss as to not cause confusion!!

[@mike32277]

I turned on Closed caption and it read "heads" when Bettis called it. He said heads. It even sounded like heads when he said it. The ref didn't make a mistake.

[@johngotti4286]

mike32277 just turned it on. Didn’t even pick up his voice, dumbass!

[@MICHAEL_MAY_8]

He said TEADS! There's no doubt in my mind he said that!

[@ethanhildebrand4453]

He clear as day said tails

[@grimmreaper4443]

Hetails trick

[@charlesvinson5528]

He said heads first

[@PENS68]

This game sent the Steelers into a tailspin. They dropped their final four games after this and would end up going 6-10 the following season.

[@ericrobinson2567]

These. Refs. Were. Awful.

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

They were right

[@Kartkid024]

You'd think a moment like this would have been a sign that a coin flip shouldn't have this much impact on the game.....However, here we sit 21 years later and the OT rules are still broke.

[@giantsr1eva]

@KartKid024 How do you suggest we fix them? You can't just keep having the teams keep swapping possession until the defense stops them.

[@Kartkid024]

@@giantsr1eva the easiest solution is go to the college OT rules.

[@Knightmessenger]

@@giantsr1eva one idea I've heard is first team to score six points wins. But not letting the first team to receive the ball instantly win with a field goal (like in this game) is a massive improvement.

[@owenblack3186]

Happy anniversary coach Reich

[@pronkb000]

It must be clarified, LUCKETT GOT IT RIGHT. Bettis said "head--tails." Luckett correctly interpreted the call as "heads." No matter how much of a tantrum Bettis threw after the fact, you cannot change your pick once you've committed.

[@onedayatatime007]

Never said heads. Clear as day

[@steelermia]

ah the kordell stewart days ... I think I tuned out during this time and didn't watch many games thus missing this

[@gkg901]

Stewart had a fkn CANNON arm

[@Mr.M_1776]

Remember the hail mary he threw while playing for Colorado?

[@ericsigersmith6067]

@@Mr.M_1776 ya at michigan

[@averagefella]

Bad calls by the zebras all game. And then to top it off, Phil Suckett just had to fuck up the simplicity of the coin toss. To his credit, though, I did briefly hear Bettis say heads and then quickly change to tails lol 😁 Better than Matt Hasselbeck boldly saying "We want the ball and we're gonna score!" Never thought coin tosses would be so dramatic 😂 Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

[@gabrielmendesdacunha6346]

herman moore deserves more love

[@debbie2042]

Charlie Batch had a nice arm.

[@eddiespaghetti7785]

These game needed instant replay really bad lol 🤣

[@StFidjnr]

No wonder on fox nfl sunday host james brown said about the steelers "they have now got the terrible toss to go along with the terrible towel"

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

The call was right

[@hermanuslemmer1695]

I didn't start following football at any level until my freshman year of college in 2004. The botched coin flip was my only memory of football from the 1990s. My friend thought he heard Bettis say, "Heads tails."

[@slikdarelic]

Which one was it Jerome? Teads or Hails.. 😂😂😂

[@lwill4075]

I remember this vividly as a kid. I was so mad

[@TheLocalLt]

Last game Barry Sanders won in the NFL

[@marcelinomartinez2845]

the movie Rat Race brought me here lol

[@j.a.greene3523]

I believe you can vaguely hear Bettis say "Head-Tails" where he said the "Head" part really quickly, and, by rule, the ref has to go with the first call he hears. Also note that Luckett said "Heads is the call" twice and Bettis didn't put up a stink until the coin landed Tails. I think he was trying to do the "I called this", regardless of which side was going to come up... similar how students merge the "T" and "F" for True and False quizzes and then when they get it wrong, they say "Oh, that's suppose to be a T" or "That's suppose to be an F". Memorable moment though.

[@bjchit]

He said I said tails immediately after Luckett said heads is the call.

[@johngotti4286]

J. A. Greene you’re hearing things

[@user-zh9lc3st6y]

Slow it down. Bettis said head-tails but he actually said heads before he said tails. He just said heads really fast.

[@pleasestaysafe2787]

I don't know what you were watching. But everything you described did not happen. Slow it down? He may have said uh tails, but no he did not say heads tails.

[@jorgegaytan3012]

7 yrs later the Steelers will win their 5th superbowl ,

[@ballthemblack]

refs had a real bad game the coin toss was the icing on the cake

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

Beattis started saying Heads then changed it. Luckett made the right call.

[@kenny3970]

My favorite lions thanksgiving game

[@shrihithtalapaneni9227]

He said heads tails. You go with the one he said first.

[@Noirfury]

I remember after that someone brought out a sign that said heads to the toss.

[@chrisuncleahmad]

Good defensive struggle..... until THAT coin toss

[@mattwillis._.]

This is why you shouldn’t call it in the air...

[@Lew2000]

Refs were bad all game. That interception should have been a catch by mark bruener.

[@tevinsherrill5653]

Didn't the Steelers lose out their remaining games after this?

[@vintageeagle8853]

Yup

[@RichV20]

So did the Lions

[@jonathanfrimerman8855]

Thanks giving 2021 Ravens at Lions Eagles at Cowboys Colts at Steelers TNF

[@kenbaum9035]

Game shouldnt have even been in Ot if they dont miss that INT call

[@anthonybaratta6152]

Damn… QBs under center… I-formations… pro-set?

[@leannetoussaint3308]

2:26 video game play

[@rivalstorm7216]

Haha you’re right

[@Mr.M_1776]

Red first down line is messing with me. Now its yellow and red is the line if scrimmage

[@elquednau]

This video shows even the people with the worst luck in the world can still get lucky.

[@eddiespaghetti7785]

If we had Batch instead of Kordell in these game we win . Batch had a very good 4th Quarter

[@michaelshea9769]

My lord.. gotta love when the NFL did not have instant replay. I think instant replay actually existed before this, but the NFL stopped using it because.. well who the fuck knows. Btw, people talking about bad calls, it seemed like this kind of crap always happened without instant replay back in those days and it was so damn frustrating! Anyway, fantastic editing! Really enjoying this channel.

[@mr.russell5395]

Charlie Batch whom would play for the Steelers later on

[@alexbangalter]

Headstails headstails headstails headstails headstails headstails

[@shedd45]

Bring back astro turf.

[@itsweaponX]

I watched it repeatedly and I only hear Bettis say "tails." Then he immediately follows it up with "I said tails" to correct the official before he could get a good look at the result of the toss.

[@itsweaponX]

Bettis admits in this interview that he said, "hea... tails!" because he had a habit of calling heads. kzbin.info/www/bejne/r2mxeYypmbmWhLc

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

@@itsweaponX And the referee went with heads since Bettis started with heads

[@wpjohnston0213]

Ahh, the NFL before Instant Replay - I would guarantee this game and the week 14 Jets vs Seahawks controversy (the Vinny Testaverde called TD run which was not) really forced the NFL back to instant replay.

[@bjchit]

There was also Jerry Rice's fumble that wasn't that may have cost the Packers the game in the playoffs too.

[@Knightmessenger]

Phil Luckett was also the ref in the jets vs seahawks game (not that he made the touchdown call) so he became a household name for all the wrong reasons.

[@perfectsense3240]

The Silverdome was badass

[@skooby_doobie_doonkann3334]

20 years later here are some facts. we obviously know that the Steelers got fucked and that no one will ever view Phil luckett the same but this was the last game that Barry Sanders won in the NFL or as a Lion after playing all 10 seasons in Detroit and the lions ent on to finish 5th in the then NFC Central division with a record of 5-11. the Steelers rode a 2 game losing streak into this Thanksgiving day game at the silverdome and would not win another game for the remainder of the season finishing 3rd in the then AFC Central division with a record of 8-8. neither team made the playoffs.

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

The Steelers didn't get fucked. Beattis started saying Heads then changed it. Luckette made the right call.

[@bearstown19show]

Bears finish 4-12 in 1998 5th place

[@docadams7099]

Yep, folks, this is the ol' Coin Flip Flap, or the Coin Flip Flop. t

[@RichV20]

I got CTE from watching this.

[@eddiespaghetti7785]

Kordell should of had 5ints lol 🤣

[@achapification]

worst officiating in a game of all time? 3 blown calls in regulation alone

[@cowboys5213]

If I was bill I would of taken my team off the field and at the press conference I would of said I don't care if we lose this game but I won't let my guys get cheated because the ref wants to cover the spread

[@whitneybowens6167]

This is the craziest thing I seen go the Lions way and the last🚹💩💣

[@1990Thunderbolt]

something about the lions steelers games, i find it weird and fascinating i should say. even the game was tied in their recent matchups! it's crazy when they both meet!

[@y.cortez657]

GO BARRY SANDERS...!!! #20

[@TryPuttingItInRice]

Jerome "The Bitch" Bettis really tried to get away with that BS on the coin toss.

[@steelermia]

I was gonna ask who said heads if he said tails .. so it was in fact bettis who said heads then tried to switch while it was in the air .. so what's the controversy ?

[@leogetz3570]

there is no controversy, he started to say heads, then switched. It's just that most everyone only heard "tails". And 3 days later during all the Sunday games, teams were told to choose before the coin is tossed instead of calling it in the air, which became a permanent rule.

[@CFC-1967]

Coin toss fiasco? worst refs ever.

[@FryingTiger]

Shows just how stupid everyone associated with football really is. Fucking up a coin flip is amazingly difficult.

[@qmaster7565]

Steelers fans don’t really have a say in this lol. Jerome clearly said heads before tails

[@eddiespaghetti7785]

We did everything we can to lose these games and the refs before the coin flip where helping us out. That should of been a TD from Kordell to Charles Johnson (R.I.P) and we missed a Easy FG smh 😭

[@Jimmy_Hopkins15]

This game will only be remembred for the coin toss lol

[@iwilrage]

Disgusting..I hope the filed something against that ref.

[@homer9868]

The spread was -2.5 Steelers for this game…talk about a bad beat, if Steelers actually got credit for correctly calling the coin toss, they most likely get in range for FG and win, thus covering. Also the lions went 0-4 against the spread rest of the season and Steelers went 0-4 as well. How bizarre

[@jorgegaytan3012]

Next time say,yes or no,,much easier than saying heads or tails,since they almost sound the same

[@kendallutch3060]

12:15

"Headstails the Movie" Starring Jerome "The Bus" Bettis coming spring 2019! LMBO!!!!!!!!!

[@IHJello]

if you pay attention you can clearly see that coin tosses are fake as fuck on field. looks like coaches call which side they want ahead of time and the player is supposed to go out there and say the same thing. Jerome hesitated because he didn't want to call heads and said fuck it and called tails on his gut feeling lol. feelsbadman

[@insertcolorfulmetaphor8520]

More like the Jerome Bettis Fiasco... "HeadsssTails... Tails! TAILS... I SAID TAILS!" LOL. GTFOH, Jerome...

[@zoeith6]

Who cares. It is a forgotten ref and a team that has been arguably the worst franchise in football vs. a hall of fame running back and one of the most storied franchises.

[@DanStrayer]

Appears that Phil Luckett hangs out in the KZbin comments section near you

[@skeeterdoo4147]

@@zoeith6 "Worst franchise in football?" You're nuts. It's not even close. The Lions have won four NFL championships and were the NFL's showpiece team in the 1950s. They've been pretty mediocre (with few exceptions) since then, but they're not even close to being the worst.

[@DiegoOspina86]

@@skeeterdoo4147 exactly. Though the bad recent history, the Lions at least won four NFL championships

[@slickreynolds7573]

Shit it shouldn’t have to to go to OT

[@christopherdonaldson7484]

Luckett had an interpretation problem...

[@christopherdonaldson7484]

@@skeeterdoo4147 I saw the game

[@christopherdonaldson7484]

I said I saw the game, and that's all there is to it. Can't trust officials

[@christopherdonaldson7484]

Been over it

[@christopherdonaldson7484]

And I'm still not (Steelers fan here #herewego)

[@christopherdonaldson7484]

I meant what I said. Period

[@CaptainTunnel]

I can still hear my Dad having a screaming fit over every Steeler turnover "Well god almighty d**n it Kordell!" My favorite thanksgiving game. Mom made cake to go with pumpkin pie y'all. 1998 was a good year 😂

[@denniswilson372]

See it doesnt really matteer..Lions fans will swear he said heads tails but if u really watch his mouth he only says one and its cleary tails...tch his mouth not anything else...he doesnt say two words..he says 1...it doesnt matter the whole game was plagued with shit officiating...the bruener catch was screwed...the holding...the pass interference on both teams...so glad they have challenges now..cause honestly the League was plagued with crap officials who were regional and fans of certain teams...

[@EssexAggiegrad2011]

Enchanted audio proved he started with Heads then switched to Tails