Top 10 Longest Field Goals in NFL – What is the NFL FG record?
8 minutes
Last Updated: May 25, 2024
The NFL has been around for over one hundred years. Needless to say, the NFL has an extremely long and rich history with quite a few interesting records that are still waiting to be broken.
In the following sections, we take a look at the top 10 longest field goals in the history of the league.
But before we delve deeper into the longest field goals in the NFL and NFL kicking records, let’s briefly examine some other interesting, unbreakable NFL records.
One of these is held by Otto Graham, who, over the course of his tremendously successful career, had ten championship game appearances with his team Cleveland Browns.
Don Hutson finished his career with eight touchdown titles, which is another impressive NFL record that we doubt anyone will take away from him.
One of the greatest quarterbacks in the NFL, Sid Luckman, posted a stunning passer rating of around 107.05 during the 1943 season. He also averaged around 10.94 yards per pass attempt, and this is yet another unbreakable NFL record.
With three hundred and forty-seven coaching wins, Don Shula remains the greatest coach in the history of the league. With the Miami Dolphins and Baltimore Colts, he won fourteen division titles.
There are many other NFL records worthy of admiration, and one of these must be the NFL record FG. Without further ado, let’s see who holds the record for the longest NFL field goal made.
1. Justin Tucker (66 Yards)
If you are wondering what’s the longest field goal in NFL history, that would be a legendary 66-yard field goal scored by amazing Justin Tucker in a match played on the 26th of September, 2021.
Justin Tuckers has held the record field goal NFL since September 2021. Previously, this record was held by Matt Prater, who made history back in 2013 with his amazing 64-yarder goal.
Back to Justin Tucker, the thirty-two years old, who’s been with the Baltimore Ravens since 2012.
Justin Tucker’s 66-yarder is the NFL kick record, and we highly doubt anyone will take this record from him any time soon.
As previously mentioned, Justin made history in a match against the Detroit Lions. Aside from setting the NFL kick record, he also helped his team secure a great 19-17 victory over the Lions.
The longest NFL field goal made came just three seconds before the match finished. Commenting on Justin’s amazing performance, Coach John Harbaugh just said that Justin must be the best kicker in the history of the sport, and we cannot argue with this; after all, he will always remain remembered for his NFL kicking records.
2. Matt Prater (64 Yards)
Our list of the top 10 longest field goals also includes a legendary 64-yarder posted by amazing Matt Prater in a match held in 2013.
In 2013, Matt Prater was playing for the Denver Broncos squad. As of today, he plays for the Arizona Cardinals.
Matt Prater made history on the 8th of December in a match against the Tennessee Titans at the end of the first half.
For many years, his 64-yarder was the longest NFL field goal made before Justin Tucker set a new record. Matt Prater also led his team to a 51-28 victory. Before Matt Prater, only four NFL kickers had 63-yard kicks, including Jason Elam, who competed for the Denver Broncos.
Tom Dempsey, who competed for the New Orleans Saints, David Akers, who competed for the San Francisco 49ers; and Sebastian Janikowski, who competed for the Oakland Raiders.
3. Tom Dempsey (63 Yards)
Tom Dempsey’s NFL kick record of 63 yards was set in a match played on the 8th of November 1970 against the Detroit Lions. At the time, Tom Dempsey played for the New Orleans Saints.
He joined the team one year prior after leaving the San Diego Chargers. Following his departure from the Saints squad, he went on to play with the Los Angles Rams, Houston Oilers, and Buffalo Bills.
His NFL record FG set with the Saints that cold December day remained for over forty years.
Unlike other kickers on this list, Tom Dempsey used quite a unique straight-toe technique when posting his NFL kick record.
There is nothing unusual about this, considering the fact that legendary Tom Dempsey was born without toes on his foot.
One of the best kickers in the history of the sport is sadly no longer with us. Tom Dempsey passed away on the 4th of April 2020, at the age of seventy-three.
4. Brett Maher (63 Yards)
Fourth on our list of the top 10 longest field goals, we have Brett Maher’s impressive 63-yarder posted in a match against the Philadelphia Eagles in 2019. Before setting this NFL record FG, amazing Maher had already a 62-yarder in his career.
At the time of setting this record, Brett Maher played for the Dallas Cowboys squad.
His professional career kicked off in 2013 when he was drafted by the New York Jets. Over the years, he also played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Ottawa Redblacks, Hamilton Tiger Cats, Cleveland Browns, Houston Texans, and Arizona Cardinals.
As of 2021, Brett Maher is a member of the New Orleans Saints. It should be noted that Brett Maher is the very first NFL kicker in the history of the league with three goals of at least 60 yards. This is yet another NFL record that may not be broken ever.
5. Jason Elam (63 Yards)
Next, we have amazing Jason Elam, whose 63-yarder posted in 1998 is one of the top 10 longest field goals in the history of the league.
Many older fans of the NFL probably vividly remember this goal simply because field goals of over 60 yards were incredibly rare at that time.
Like most other longest field goals, Jason Elam set his record at the end of the first half in a match played against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Jason Elam also has helped his team Denver Broncos secure a 37-24 win. Jason Elam was drafted into the NFL back in 1993 by the Denver Broncos.
He remained on the team until 2007, when he joined the Atlanta Falcons. Elam retired from playing professionally in 2009. Since his retirement, he has focused on spending more time with his family and doing some humanitarian work.
6. Sebastian Janikowski (63 Yards)
Sixth on our list of the top 10 longest field goals in the history of the NFL, we have Sebastian Janikowski and his 63-yarder from 2011.
At the time of setting this NFL record FG, Sebastian Janikowski was a member of the Oakland Raiders squad.
He scored a 63-yarder in a match against the Denver Broncos, just as the first halftime expired.
It is interesting to note that this specific game resulted in sixteen penalties. Thankfully, Sebastian Janikowski’s impressive record was not affected by any of these penalties.
He most of his career playing for the Oakland Raiders. Janikowski joined the team in 2000 and left in 2016. Before retiring, he also spent one season with the Seattle Seahawks.
According to online sources, Sebastian Janikowski today works as a cab driver.
7. David Akers (63 Yards)
We cannot discuss NFL kicking records without mentioning David Akers and his amazing 63-yarder score in 2012.
What is also impressive is the fact that David Akers was thirty-eight years old at the time of setting this NFL kick record.
He set his personal record and one of the longest field goals in the history of the sport in the first match the Philadelphia 49ers played in the 2012 season.
This was a match against the Green Bay Packers, which ended in the 49ers securing a 30-22 victory. David Akers’ career in the NFL kicked off when he was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in 1997.
Between 1997 and 2013, when he retired, he also was a member of many other teams, including the Carolina Panthers, Washington Redskins, Berlin Thunder, Philadelphia Eagles, and Detroit Lions.
8. Graham Gano (63 Yards)
One of the top 10 longest field goals in the history of the NFL is Graham Gano’s impressive 63-yarder score in 2018.
At the time of setting this record, Graham Gano was a member of the Carolina Panthers. He joined the team in 2012, and it was not long before everyone was impressed by his talent.
Early in the 2018 season, the Carolina Panthers played a match against the New York Giants.
At halftime, the Giants had a 20-13 lead. After three periods, the Giants had a 20-16 lead before the Panthers took a 27-16 lead, thanks to Christian McCaffrey’s masterful touchdown reception.
Finally, Graham Gano’s 63-yarder led the team to a 33-31 victory in one of the most exciting matches of that season.
Before joining the Carolina Panthers, Grama Gano played for the Baltimore Ravens, Las Vegas Locomotives, and Washington Redskins. In 2020, the twenty-five-year-old Gano joined the New York Giants.
9. Matt Bryant (62 Yards)
Matt Bryant, with his 62-yarder, also deserves a spot on our list of the top 10 longest field goals in the NFL. Matt Bryant’s impressive NFL career kicked off in 2000 when he joined the Iowa Barnstormers.
Two years later, he became a member of the Berlin Thunder, while in 2002, he was signed by the New York Giants, where he spent one season.
Until 2019 when he retired, he also played for the Miami Dolphins, Florida Tuskers, Atlanta Falcons, Indianapolis Colts, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
As for his amazing NFL record FG of 62 yards, he posted it back in 2006 in a match against the Philadelphia Eagles.
With just four seconds of the match left, his team was losing to the Eagles.
In probably the most crucial moment in the game, Matt Bryan scored a 62-yarder and led his team to victory.
Matt Bryant retired in 2019 with 397 field goals in total, 464 field goal attempts, and of course, his amazing 62-yarder field goal.
10. Brett Maher (62 Yards)
Brett Maher appears on this list two times, and there is a good reason. As discussed previously, Brett Maher scored his impressive 63-yarder in a match against the Philadelphia Eagles in 2019.
However, this is not his only field goal of at least 60 yards. In a match with the Dallas Cowboys against the New York Jets played on the 19th of October 2019, he scored a 62-yarder just before halftime ended.
This is it for the top 10 longest field goals. Now you know what’s the longest field goal in NFL history. The amazing records set by Brett Maher and others on the list are probably unbreakable, but nobody knows what the future holds.
Since 1970 when the AFL and NFL merged, there have been twenty-five 60-yarder goals in the league.
The list of the longest field goals in the NFL could also include Jay Feely, Greg Zuerlein, and Jake Elliott’s 61-yarders scored in 2012, 2015, and 2017, respectively.
The list could also include Steve Cox, Rob Bironas, Morten Andersen, Greg Zuerlein, Dan Carpenter, and Chandler Catanzaro’s 60-yarder scored in 1984, 2006, 1991, 2012, 2010, and 2016.
The longest field goal of the 2021 season is Justin Tucker’s 66-yarder, and this is one of the NFL records that will probably stay in place for a while.
