the.com/hail mary
A desperate long throw you attempt only when the clock hates you more than the defense.
means A last-ditch, low-probability attempt made in desperation when conventional options have run out.
from Named for the Catholic prayer 'Hail Mary' — invoked for help in times of need — the phrase entered football slang after quarterback Roger Staubach described his game-winning desperation touchdown pass in a 1975 NFL playoff game as a 'Hail Mary pass,' saying he closed his eyes and said one as he threw it. The term stuck for any long, prayerful heave thrown as time runs out, and later spread beyond sports to describe any desperate, odds-defying last attempt.
- origin
- Named after the Catholic prayer, for luck
- first use
- Cowboys QB Roger Staubach coined it, 1975
- odds
- Completion rate hovers around 10-20 percent
- beyond football
- Now means any last-ditch, low-odds gamble