Frankie’s Top 10 Super Bowl of All-Time

DAYTON, Ohio — Super Bowl week is my favorite week of the year. I appreciate NFL history, and there’s no bigger place where history is made more than the Super Bowl.

I’ve been fortunate to see a lot of great Super Bowls in my lifetime, and they are in my list of top 10 Super Bowls of all time. But there are some before my lifetime that are also memorable, so here are my top 10 Super Bowls of all time.

10. Super Bowl XXXII – Green Bay Packers vs. Denver Broncos;
Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, California (January 25, 1998)
This one was for John. After losing his first three trips to the Super Bowl,
Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway was finally looking to lead the Broncos
to their first Super Bowl title. But to do it, the Broncos would have to
overcome the defending world champion Green Bay Packers.

Denver entered as an 11-point underdog, but they showed early on they could
play with Green Bay. That’s because they had running back Terrell Davis, who
would win Super Bowl MVP with 157 yards rushing and three touchdowns.

Elway didn’t have a prolific game, but what will always be remembered about
this game is his helicopter flip for a first down late in the third quarter.
Packers quarterback Brett Favre threw for 256 yards and three touchdowns, but
couldn’t get it done on the Packers last chance drive.

The win was the Broncos first Super Bowl title, forever cementing John Elway
as one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history. On the other side, Favre
would play 13 more seasons in the NFL but never made it back to the Super Bowl.

9. Super Bowl XXXIV – St. Louis Rams vs. Tennessee Titans; Georgia
Dome, Atlanta (January 30, 2000)
Everybody remembers how this game ended, but there were so many things that led
up to it.

First off, this may be the most unique matchup in Super Bowl history. Both
teams had relocated just five years ago respectively, and both were looking to
bring championships to two Midwest cities new to the NFL.

Second, these were two contrasting styles of play with the Rams and Titans.
St. Louis was in the infancy stages of their “Greatest Show on Turf”
era, while the Titans were driven by second team all pro running back Eddie
George.

The Rams kicked three short field goals in the first half, then increased
their lead to 16-0 on a Torry Holt touchdown. But that’s when Tennessee leaned
into their bread and butter. George ran for 55 yards and two touchdowns to
bring Tennessee all the way back to tie the game.

Titans quarterback Steve McNair drove Tennessee 78 yards with some heroic
escapes included. That gave the Titans one play from the 10-yard line for a
chance to tie the game with just six seconds to play. It would be the first
Super Bowl to ever go to overtime. The play was for wide receiver Kevin Dyson
to run inside toward the middle of the field, which happened. But what also happened
was Rams linebacker Mike Jones reading the play to tackle Dyson one yard short.
One yard short.

This would be the only world championship for the Rams in St. Louis (more on
that later), while the Titans have not been back to the Super Bowl since.

8. Super Bowl XIII – Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Dallas Cowboys; Orange
Bowl, Miami (January 21, 1979)
This was a heavyweight battle between two titans of the NFL. Both the Steelers
and the Cowboys had both won two Super Bowls, and the winner of this game would
cement themselves as an early dynasty in the Super Bowl era.

Look at the Hall of Fame players on both sides of this game. Nine Steelers
players would eventually be enshrined at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and
five Cowboys players would join them. In addition, both head coaches,
Pittsburgh’s Chuck Noll and Dallas’s Tom Landry, would also be enshrined in
Canton.

As for the game itself, the game was back and forth until Pittsburgh built a
commanding 35-17 fourth quarter lead. It was quarterback Terry Bradshaw
throwing for four touchdowns that would name him MVP. But it was the play most
memorable for this game that would turn it in Pittsburgh’s favor. Dallas
Cowboys tight end Jackie Smith was wide open in the end zone late in the third
quarter, but he could not haul in Roger Staubach’s pass forcing Dallas to
settle for a field goal.

A late Cowboys rally was stopped short when Pittsburgh’s Rocky Bleier
recovered an onside kick, giving Pittsburgh its third Super Bowl title in five
years.

7. Super Bowl XLIX – New England Patriots vs. Seattle Seahawks;
University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona (February 1, 2015)
Heading into this game, there were questions surrounding New England Patriots
quarterback Tom Brady and if he was, in fact, the greatest quarterback of
all-time. He had three Super Bowl titles, but non since 2004. And Brady and the
Patriots entered this game with controversy surrounding them, with reports
swirling about deflated footballs used in their AFC Championship win.

On the other side, it looked like the Seattle Seahawks were on the cusp of a
new dynasty. They had the best defense, led by the Legion of Boom, and a young
emerging star quarterback in Russell Wilson along with, perhaps, the best
running back in the NFL in Marshawn Lynch.

This matchup was a pick ’em leading up to kickoff, and the game would play
out as such. Both teams traded touchdowns in the first half, sending the game
to halftime tied at 14. Seattle built a 10-point lead in the third quarter, and
it looked as if the Patriots were heading for another Super Bowl loss.

But that’s when Brady delivered one of the best performances of his career,
leading two touchdown drives in the fourth quarter to give New England the
lead. Seattle would drive down the field, highlighted by a circus catch by wide
receiver Jermaine Kearse. Was New England seriously about to get burned again
by a great Super Bowl catch? It sure looked like it with Seattle at the
six-yard line with just over a minute to play and running back Marshawn Lynch as
the most dependable weapon in the league.

Seattle was one yard away from a second straight Super Bowl title, but
that’s when the Butler arrived. Malcolm Butler, from West Alabama, intercepted
a Wilson pass- Cris Collinsworth probably still can’t believe the call- to end
the Patriots 10-year drought.

A dynasty was not in the works for Seattle, but New England’s dynasty was
reborn. The Patriots would go on to win two more Super Bowls and appear in
three, and Brady would continue to undisputedly cement his status as the greatest
quarterback in NFL history. Russell Wilson would continue to ascend to the
NFL’s upper tier of quarterbacks after this game, but Seattle hasn’t sniffed
the Super Bowl since that fateful call at the one-yard line.

6. Super Bowl XXXVIII – Carolina Panthers vs. New England Patriots;
Reliant Stadium, Houston (February 1, 2004)
This was David vs. Goliath, even if Goliath wasn’t yet Goliath. The Patriots
had missed the playoffs the year prior, but returned with a vengeance in 2003.
New England went 14-2 with the league’s number one scoring defense and an
offense with plenty of weapons.

On the other side, here was Carolina, who took the high road in the playoffs
to win the NFC Championship. This was a team that wasn’t nearly as talented as
New England, but they were in this game for a reason. They had playmakers in
wide receivers Steve Smith Sr. and Muhsin Muhammad on offense and defensive
ends Julius Peppers and Mike Rucker on defense.

Sure enough, the game was scoreless for much of the first half. Then, an onslaught.
Not just from one side, but from both teams. Twenty-four combined points over
the final 3:05 gave New England a 14-10 halftime lead.

The third quarter came and went, setting the stage for, perhaps, the most
dramatic fourth quarter in Super Bowl history. New England extended their lead
to 21-10, but Carolina wouldn’t go away as the answered with a 33-yard
touchdown by running back DeShaun Foster. Then, just when it looked like New
England was about to ice the game, Panthers cornerback Reggie Howard
intercepted Tom Brady in the end zone.

Carolina would then strike big, when Mushin Muhammad hauled in an 85-yard
touchdown to give Carolina its first lead. New England would answer with a Mike
Vrabel touchdown to go up 29-22, but Carolina wouldn’t back down. Quarterback
Jake Delhomme drove Carolina 80 yards in 90 seconds to tie the game.

But one thing you don’t want to do is make things easier for Tom Brady and
the Patriots, and Panthers kicker John Kasay did just that when he kicked the
ball out of bounds. That gave the Patriots the ball on their own 40-yard line
with all three timeouts- yeah, you know where this is going- and Brady and the
offense made the most of the situation. Even with an offensive pass
interference, the Patriots still found a way to the Panthers 23-yard line,
setting the stage for kicker Adam Vinateri’s second Super Bowl winning field
goal.

A second Super Bowl title in three years officially kicked off talk of a
dynasty in New England, which they would cement with another Super Bowl title
the following year. Meanwhile, Carolina would take a massive step back in 2004,
going 7-9. But they would get back to the playoffs in 2005 and 2008, before
returning to the big stage in 2015.

5. Super Bowl LII – Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots;
U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis (February 4, 2018)
This is still, to this day, my favorite Super Bowl of all-time. Not just for
the game itself, but for what led up to it. And all the storylines before,
during and after the game.

New England was looking for its second straight Super Bowl title and tie
Pittsburgh for the most all time with six. Brady was 40 years old, but he
played like he was 25 in 2017 when he won his third MVP.

Then there was Philadelphia, playing with the best mindset I’ve ever seen a
team play with. Ever since their last Super Bowl appearance in 2004, a loss to
the Patriots, the Eagles had only made the playoffs five times in the next 12
years. But 2017 looked like it just might be the Eagles year, until MVP
candidate quarterback Carson Wentz went down with a torn ACL in early December.
Another lost opportunity in Philly, right? Heck, they were home underdogs as a
NUMBER ONE SEED in the NFC Playoffs. But that’s all the bulletin board material
they needed.

The Eagles, and the city, embraced the underdog mentality, and knocked off
Atlanta to advance to the NFC Championship. Playing with a backup quarterback,
Nick Foles turned in an impressive performance going 26/33 for 352 yards and
three touchdowns. Impressive, but he wasn’t about to beat the Patriots in the
Super Bowl was he?

But that mindset Philadelphia was playing with was all they needed to beat
New England, exorcising nearly 60 years of demons in doing so. They didn’t care
Tom Brady and Bill Belichick were on the other side. They had head coach Doug
Pederson, who would outcoach Belichick in this game.

The game itself was a track meet. Almost 1,200 total yards of offense were
racked up, and there was only one punt. Brady and Foles traded haymaker after
haymaker, but it was Philadelphia tight end Trey Burton’s touchdown pass to
Foles on the “Philly Special” that cemented Philly as the dominant
team in this one.

Nick Foles, who was an Eagle from 2012 to 2014, had bounced around the NFL
in 2015 and 2016. But after being brought back to the Eagles for the 2017
season, this was his moment. Going toe-to-toe with the G.O.A.T.. And in the
fourth quarter, it was his time, leading the Eagles on the go-ahead touchdown
drive. The game, of course, would come down to a Hail Mary, which Brady
launched high into the air and took a few seconds to hit the ground. But when
it did, Philadelphia unleashed the biggest celebration in the city’s history.
The underdogs won and slayed a whole lot of demons in the process.

4. Super Bowl XXXVI – St. Louis Rams vs. New England Patriots;
Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans (February 3, 2002)
Whereas Super Bowl LII remains my favorite Super Bowl to this day, Super Bowl
XXXVI remains the most meaningful Super Bowl to this day.

This was the first Super Bowl after 9/11, and emotions were high in one of
America’s most iconic sports venues. It seemed fitting the Patriots were
playing in the game, but they had a huge challenge standing in their way. The St.
Louis Rams were, at this point, the “Greatest Show on Turf.” This was
their third straight year scoring over 500 points, and they seemed poised to be
the NFL’s next dynasty. A dynasty would be born on this night, but not the one
expected.

Despite being 14-point underdogs, New England wasn’t intimidated. Their
defense out-physicaled the Rams offense. And quarterback Tom Brady, who took
over mid-season, played like he was a 15-year veteran. A sign of things to
come, right?

Another reason this Super Bowl is in my top 10 is the halftime show. U2
absolutely nailed it, especially during “Where the Streets Have No
Name.”

Despite being pushed around by the Patriots, the Rams still got their yards.
And in the fourth quarter, they came alive. Quarterback Kurt Warner found wide
receiver Ricky Proehl for a 26-yard touchdown to tie the game at 17 with just
1:30 left. FOX color analyst John Madden said on the broadcast that the
Patriots should play for overtime.

It looked like that’s what the Patriots were doing, only moving to their own
41-yard line with just 29 seconds to play. But that’s when Brady found wide
receiver Troy Brown over the middle for 23 yards, followed by Jermaine Wiggins
gaining six more yards. That set the stage for Adam Vinateri to kick a game-winning
48-yard field goal straight through the uprights, giving New England its first
Super Bowl championship. Patriots owner Robert Kraft said it best after the
game; “We are all Patriots, and tonight the Patriots are World
Champions.”

This is not only the most meaningful Super Bowl of all-time, but one of the
most history-changing games in NFL history. This was the launching of the
Patriots dynasty, and the end of the Greatest Show on Turf. The Rams would fall
hard, missing the playoffs in 2002 with a 7-9 record. They would return in 2003
and 2004, but that was it. The Rams never returned to the playoffs before
leaving St. Louis after the 2015 season.

3. Super Bowl XXV – Buffalo Bills vs. New York Giants; Tampa
Stadium, Tampa Bay, Florida (January 27, 1991)
Everybody knows Bill Belichick as the head coach of the New England Patriots,
but he made a name for himself as the New Giants defensive coordinator. And in
1990, the Giants had the number one scoring defense in the NFL.

On the other side, the Buffalo Bills entered with the NFL’s best scoring
offense, led by Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas and Andre Reed. Buffalo’s defense,
led by Bruce Smith and Darryl Talley, also contributed to a top 10 defense in
the league.

The game was played amid a tense backdrop, the Persian Gulf War. Security
was high, and there was a sense of unease inside the stadium. But all of that
was lifted with Whitney Houston’s stirring rendition of the National Anthem.

Early on, it was clear Belichick’s gameplan for Buffalo’s dynamic offense
was working. Buffalo struggled to get anything going, but still built a 12-3
lead capped off by a Bruce Smith safety. The Giants would then take over,
utilizing running back Otis Anderson to hold the ball for over 40 minutes.

The Giants took a 20-19 lead in the fourth quarter, but Buffalo would drive
into scoring range, setting the stage for kicker Scott Norwood and a 47-yard
field goal try. It was a long kick, but Norwood put a great drive into it. One
problem, it was wide right. The Giants had pulled off a huge upset, as
6.5-point underdogs, while this would only be the beginning of pain for Buffalo
on the world’s biggest stage as they would go on to lose the next three Super
Bowls.

2. Super Bowl XLIII – Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Arizona Cardinals;
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa Bay, Florida (February 1, 2009)
Another Super Bowl classic in Tampa Bay. This Super Bowl had everything from
the Steelers looking to win a sixth Super Bowl title to the Cardinals looking
to pull off a huge upset for their first Super Bowl title.

As a Bengals fan, I absolutely loathe the Steelers. But that 2008 Steelers
team was loaded. Ben Roethlisberger was already looking like a future Hall of
Famer, and he ran a talented, physical offense. Defensively, they were loaded
front to back. I’m talking James Harrison, Lamar Woodley, Troy Polumalu, Ike
Taylor, you name them.

Another reason why this Super Bowl was so great, the announcers. NBC’s main
team at the time was Al Michaels, John Madden and Andrea Kremer. Talk about a
hall of fame announcing team. This would be John Madden’s last game broadcast
of his career. What a game to go out on.

The first half was controlled, until the very end. Just when it looked like
Arizona was going to take a 14-10 lead, James Harrison turned in the greatest
defensive play in Super Bowl history. Harrison picked off Cardinals quarterback
Kurt Warner at the goal line and rumbled, bumbled and stumbled 100 yards for a
dramatic touchdown.

But the Cardinals wouldn’t go away. After being held off the scoreboard
until midway through the fourth quarter, Cardinals wide receiver Larry
Fitzgerald exploded for two touchdowns to give Arizona a dramatic 23-20 lead.

The only problem was the Cardinals left too much time for Big Ben and
Pittsburgh’s offense. Roethlisberger drove the Steelers 78 yards in just over
two minutes, capping it off with one of the greatest catches in Super Bowl
history by Santonio Holmes as he toe-tapped both feet down. Two years in a row,
two of the greatest catches in Super Bowl history.

The win gave Pittsburgh its NFL-record sixth Super Bowl title and
Roethlisberger his second in just his fifth NFL season.

1. Super Bowl XLII – New York Giants vs. New England Patriots;
University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona (February 3, 2008)
By a hair, this is my greatest Super Bowl of all time. Why? Because what
happened in this game was so unexpected and remains one of the greatest
accomplishments in the history of the NFL and all of sports.

To understand the New York Giants upset of the 18-0 New England Patriots,
you have to look at the talent disparities between these two teams. New England
in 2007 was ridiculously talented. Tom Brady threw for 50 touchdown passes,
Randy Moss hauled in 23 touchdowns, Wes Welker hauled in over 100 catches, Mike
Vrabel had 12.5 sacks, Asante Samuel had six interceptions… and they went
18-0.

The Giants, they went 10-6 in the regular season. They went 7-1 on the road,
which may have been why they were able to go on the road and win three games on
the road in the playoffs. Eli Manning barely threw more touchdowns than
interceptions, Brandon Jacobs just got over 1,000 yards rushing and Plaxico
Burress was their leading receiver at 70 catches for over 1,000 yards and 12
touchdowns.

But where the Giants were strong was their defensive line, anchored by Hall
of Famer Michael Strahan. And this is where the difference was made in Super
Bowl XLII.

The Giants defensive line hit Brady all night, keeping the game close
heading into the fourth quarter. That’s when Eli Manning ignited the Giants
offense, leading a touchdown drive in the fourth quarter. New England would
eventually regain the lead, but that’s when the greatest play in Super Bowl
history was made.

Everybody remembers a play for one particular reason. But what makes the
Helmet Catch so memorable is because there were two memorable things that
happened on that play. First, was the escape. New York Giants quarterback Eli
Manning escaping three Patriots defenders, including Hall of Famer Richard
Seymour. Then, he heaved the ball down the middle of the field to a wide open
David Tyree. One problem; Patriots safety Rodney Harrison was closing in to
make the play. Tyree leaped for the ball and, something none of us had ever
seen before, pinned the ball to his helmet for dear life and held on.
Improbable. And if there was any doubt the Giants were now going to win the
game, they were quickly vanquished.

The Giants had denied the Patriots perfection. They were 12.5-point
underdogs, and had silenced all the critics. The Patriots, meanwhile, took a
few years to recover from this crushing defeat. In 2008, Brady went down with a
season-ending injury in week one. The Patriots failed to make the playoffs.
They would not win another playoff game since 2011, with the Giants again
beating them in the Super Bowl.