Maybe the Super Bowl III wasn't a wildly entertaining, amazing played game, but, its impact on football was immeasurable. Way back in 1969, the New York Jets and Baltimore Colts met in the third AFL-NFL championship and the first to bear the “Super Bowl” name. A few days before the game, Jets quarterback Joe Namath famously said, “We’re gonna win the game. I guarantee it.” The Jets indeed won the game and in doing so, changed the public perception of the AFL and the merger.
The Super Bowl XXV is famous for two things: Scott Norwood’s missed field goal, and Bill Belichick’s genius defensive game plan. Norwood’s game-winning field goal attempt infamously sailed wide right and kick-started a run of four consecutive Super Bowl losses for the Buffalo Bills. As for Belichick, he had the Giants essentially play a 2-5 defense with two down linemen and five linebackers running around. It was one of his finest coaching performances.
The Tennessee Titans rallied from a 16-0 deficit to tie the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV, but Kurt Warner and Isaac Bruce connected on a 73-yard TD to give St. Louis a seven-point lead with under two minutes to play. The Titans responded by driving to the Rams’ 10-yard line and calling their final timeout with six seconds remaining. Steve McNair then hit Kevin Dyson on a quick slant, but Rams linebacker Mike Jones tackled him at the 1-yard line to end the game. Dyson reaching for the goal line remains one of the more enduring images in NFL history. Super Bowl XXXIV seemingly gets overlooked when people talk about the greatest games in NFL history. But it shouldn’t, as it was a classic that included an incredible finish.
James Harrison’s 100-yard interception return before halftime. Kurt Warner’s 64-yard TD to Larry Fitzgerald to give the Cardinals a three-point lead with 2:37 left. And, of course, Santonio Holmes’ game-winning toe-tap touchdown with 36 seconds on the clock. If you wanted to put this No. 1, no one could really dispute it.
After “Deflategate” dominated the discourse in the two weeks before gameday, the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks finally met in a highly-anticipated showdown. The Seahawks were looking to win their second consecutive title; the Patriots were looking to snap a 10-year championship drought. Tom Brady and the Patriots trailed the Seahawks and their “Legion of Boom” defense 24-14 at the start of the fourth quarter. But Brady orchestrated a masterful comeback that gave New England a four-point lead with two minutes left. The Seahawks then drove to the goal line, where Russell Wilson threw a game-ending interception to Malcolm Butler.
There was a strip-sack touchdown, a game-changing special teams fumble, and, of course, Jackie Smith’s infamous drop in the end zone. Super Bowl XIII featured a legendary, MVP-winning performance from Steelers legend Terry Bradshaw and a near-comeback from Cowboys great Roger Staubach. It also was a de facto Pro Bowl. This game featured a 26(!) Hall of Famers, including 18 players.
Super Bowl LI, the first Super Bowl to reach overtime, also featured one of the greatest comebacks in NFL history. Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons dominated the Patriots in the first half and held a 28-3 lead in the third quarter. Brady then went full-Brady, Matt Ryan and Dan Quinn cratered in the fourth, and New England forced overtime. The Patriots eventually won on a James White touchdown run. The first half of this game was a total stinker, but the second half was just that good.
