The Fine That Invented the NFL Touchdown Spike

At the goal line, Homer Jones changed his mind. The New York Giants receiver had just hauled in an 89-yard touchdown pass on October 17, 1965, his first score in the NFL, and by habit he was ready to hurl the football into the crowd. A brand new league rule stopped him cold: throw the ball to the fans and pay a fine. So Jones slammed it into the turf instead, and touchdown celebrations were never the same.

A Habit He Never Got to Finish

Jones had been with the Giants since 1964. He was not a rookie chasing a first impression, just a receiver who had watched stars like Giants teammate Frank Gifford throw the ball into the stands after scoring.

Before the 1965 season, the NFL added a rule fining players for exactly that. Jones knew about it. He just did not expect to remember it in the middle of a sprint to the end zone.

The Catch That Forced the Decision

Quarterback Earl Morrall found Jones deep down the field at Yankee Stadium, and Jones turned it into an 89-yard touchdown, his first in the league. The Giants beat the Philadelphia Eagles 35-27 that day in front of 62,815 people.

"I had always said that when I made my first touchdown, I was gonna throw the ball in the stands," Jones said afterward.

At the goal line, the fine flashed through his head instead. He drove the ball into the ground.

The Giants Credit Him With Starting It

Nobody scripted what came next. Jones was not trying to invent a signature move, he was trying to avoid a fine.

The New York Giants' own team history credits Jones with inventing the spike in 1965, and the NFL's official site uses the same language. Players around the league picked it up, and the move outlasted his career by decades.

A Record Nobody Has Broken

Jones kept catching passes for the rest of the decade. In 1967 he led the NFL with 13 touchdown catches and made his first Pro Bowl.

He retired with a 22.3-yard average per catch, still the highest in NFL history among receivers with at least 200 receptions. Buddy Dial is second at 20.83.

More than sixty seasons after that afternoon in the Bronx, players still slam the ball into the turf after scoring. The touchdown spike remains an NFL celebration.