Harrison Butker's 69-yard field goal demonstrates the NFL's latest big scoring controversy

He found a window that works and filled a void others missed.

It wasn't long ago that most of sports media, and other legacy media, tried to ruin Harrison Butker's life and career because he's a religious Catholic.

Butker's crime was sharing those views, including that the most important thing in most people's lives should be having a family, at a commencement speech at a...Catholic university. He was swiftly condemned by many, while the NFL rushed to distance themselves from those views and reaffirm their commitment to wokeness.

Still, in a great credit to their organization, the Kansas City Chiefs stuck by him while others may have immediately cut him to avoid angering the sports media mob. And they're likely glad they did. The 31-year-old in 2025 made 33 of 38 field goal attempts with a long of 59.

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Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker celebrates after making a 69-yard field goal against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., on Aug. 22, 2026. (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)

But based on his kick in Saturday's preseason game, that long might get bumped up in 2026. Just before halftime in the Chiefs game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Butker came on for a whopping 69-yard field goal try and booted it straight through the uprights.

May have been good from 72 yard, somehow.

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Butker did go on to miss another kick later in the game, something he felt was more important than even the extraordinary length. "You've got to make your kicks. Miss an extra point, miss a game-winner. That's what I