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USATSI

It's not often that you see an NFL team attempt a field goal of 60 yards or more, but that's exactly what the Washington Commanders did just before halftime on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.  

With six seconds left in the second quarter and Washington sitting at the Eagles' 38-yard line, Ron Rivera made the obvious decision and sent kicker Joey Slye out to attempt a 56-yard field goal. However, just before the kick, the Commanders got called for a false start, which pushed the kick back to 61 yards. 

At that point, Rivera had two options: He could send out Sam Howell to throw a Hail Mary or he could stick with Slye and try the 61-yarder. 

Rivera went with option two and Slye made the gamble pay off by absolutely drilling a 61-yard kick that gave the Commanders a 17-10 lead at the half.

The field goal was notable for multiple reasons. For one, it set the franchise record for longest kick. Before this week, the Commanders had never made a field goal of 60 yards or more in franchise history. The organization has existed since 1932 and in the 91 years since then, the longest field goal that any kicker had ever made was a 59-yarder by Graham Gano in 2011. 

It was also a record-setting kicker for Slye. Before the field goal, the longest make of Slye's career was 58 yards, so he smashed his own personal record by three yards. 

Any time a kicker hits a field goal from more than 60 yards, it's a big deal, and that's because they're so rare. The kick by Slye marked just the 26th time in NFL history that someone has a made a field goal from 61 yards or more (Over the course of NFL history, kickers have made just 18.4% of their field goal attempts from that distance)

The kick by Fairbairn marked just the fourth time this year that an NFL kicker has made a field goal of 60 yards or more, joining Arizona's Matt Prater (62), Philadelphia's Jake Elliott (61) and Kansas City's Harrison Butker (60). 

As for Washington's game, it's a tight one at halftime. To keep tabs on the Commanders upset big against the Eagles, be sure to click here so you can follow along on our GameTracker.