Today, we will watch Super Bowl LVI, played at SoFi Stadium in the Los Angeles suburb of Inglewood, California, between the NFC Champion Los Angeles Rams and the AFC Champion Cincinnati Bengals.
The Rams very nearly had home-field advantage in Super Bowl XIV in 1980, playing at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, but it didn't help: They lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The San Francisco 49ers very nearly had home-field advantage in Super Bowl XIX in 1985, played at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto, California, but it didn't matter: They would have beaten the Miami Dolphins even if the game were played in the Orange Bowl.
But now, after 52 Super Bowls played at what were intended to be, and turned out to be, neutral sites, we have the 2nd straight Super Bowl in which a team is actually playing in it on their own home field. Cliché Alert: Home-field advantage is worth 3 points. The Rams are favored by 4 points. Which should mean that the Bengals are just about a match for them.
The referee is Ronald Torbert. This is the 1st time he's refereed a Super Bowl. He is a graduate of Michigan State University and... Harvard Law School, and he practices law during the off-season. (Former Nebraska quarterback Clete Blakeman, who refereed Super Bowl 50, is also a lawyer.)
The Rams haven't won a World Championship in 22 years, and that was in their exile in St. Louis. No L.A.-based team has won one since the Raiders, 38 years ago. The Bengals are in their 44th season, and have never won one, having lost the Super Bowl 40 and 33 years ago. Cliché Alert: Something's got to give.
Every now and then, a great performance will be put up in the Super Bowl by a player other than the quarterback of the winning team. But of the 1st 53 Super Bowl Most Valuable Players, there have been 1 cornerback, 1 safety, 1 defensive tackle, 2 defensive end (1 a co-MVP), 4 linebackers (1 a co-MVP), 1 1 kick returner, 7 running backs, 7 receivers, and 31 awards to 22 different quarterbacks (including 1 pair of brothers).
More than pitcher in baseball, more even than goaltender in hockey and goalkeeper in soccer, the game of American football is dependent upon the quarterback. A quarterback can be the difference between the sport's ultimate glory and its ultimate humiliation. As the late, great John Madden taught us, "The biggest difference is sports is between the winner and the loser of the Super Bowl. The losing team often feels worse than the teams that didn't make it."
I present to you 10 quarterbacks who rose to the occasion -- and 10 who crumbled before it.
20. Flop: Tom Brady, New England Patriots, Super Bowl LII, 2018
You'll notice that I don't have Brady in the Top 10. Anywhere. Even though he's won 7 Super Bowls, with 2 different teams. There's a reason for that: He's a cheater. You'll notice I did not put Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks on the bad side of this list, for his interception that gave Brady one of his wins, because he didn't call that play himself.
Brady is also the only quarterback ever to lose a Super Bowl to the Philadelphia Eagles. How lame is that? Yes, he put on one of the greatest performances any quarterback has ever had in this game. And he still lost. To the Eagles. Who were using their backup quarterback. In the Super Bowl.
While we're on the subject:
19. Top: Nick Foles, Philadelphia Eagles, Super Bowl LII, 2018
He had to take over for an injured Carson Wentz 3/4 of the way through the season, and was brilliant. In the Super Bowl, with the unenviable task of having to outscore Tom Brady, against a defense coached by Bill Belichick, knowing that Brady and Belichick were both unrepentant cheaters, he went 28-for-43 for 373 yards, 3 touchdowns and 1 interception. He also caught a touchdown pass from Trey Burton on the "Philly Special" trick play. The Eagles won, 41-33.
Did I mention he beat Tom Brady? And Bill Belichick? And that both men cheat? Yes, yes, I did. Did Foles win the game anyway? Yes, yes, he did.
18. Flop: Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos, Super Bowl XLVIII, 2014
Only 3 quarterbacks have ever led 2 different teams to the NFL Championship. One was Norm Van Brocklin, before the Super Bowl era. One is Tom Brady, who cheats, so throw that out the window. The other is Peyton: Super Bowl XLI with the Indianapolis Colts, and Super Bowl 50 with the Broncos. (Number 50 is the only one that doesn't have a Roman numeral, because, in football, the letter L doesn't stand for "50," it stands for "Loss.")
But in between, hoo, boy. Can't blame the Meadowlands wind for letting a center snap go right over your shoulder, Peyton: It was your audible that caused that. The result was a safety, and it was all Seattle from there: The Seahawks won, 43-8.
17. Top: Eli Manning, New York Giants, Super Bowl XLII, 2008
After this game, Eli affirmed his status as an "elite quarterback," and as nobody's little anything. He went 19-for-34, for 255 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception. The stats don't tell the whole story. That last drive, with the David Tyree helmet catch and the touchdown catch by Plaxico Burress, gave the Giants a 17-14 win over Belichick, Brady and the Patriots.
True, the Giants' defense deserves a lot of credit. But if Eli hadn't put that last drive together, the Giants would have lost.
16. Flop: Kerry Collins, New York Giants, Super Bowl XXXV, 2001
Trent Dilfer of the Baltimore Ravens has been called the worst quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl. Which is sort of like catching the biggest fish on your fishing trip, and having the other guys question your bait.
But the worst quarterback ever to start in a Super Bowl has got to be Collins, and the only reason he doesn't rank higher on this list is because he wasn't that good to begin with. The Giants had a good running game and a great defense, but the Ravens torched them for a 35-7 win, the only Giant points coming on a kickoff returned for a touchdown.
Collins on the day: 15-for-39, 112 yards, no touchdowns, 4 interceptions, no offensive points, and a quarterback rating of 7.1. That is not a typographical error: Seven-point-one. Dilfer, "the worst quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl"? His quarterback rating that day was 80.9.
15. Top: Steve Young, San Francisco 49ers, Super Bowl XXIX, 1995
After 2 rings as backup, Young finally got out from Joe Montana's shadow. Even Montana never threw 6 touchdown passes without an interception in a Super Bowl. Young did that in this game, going 24-for-36 for 325 yards. The 49ers beat the San Diego Chargers, 49-26.
14. Flop: Neil O'Donnell, Pittsburgh Steelers, Super Bowl XXX, 1996
Before this, the Steelers had been in 4 Super Bowls, all quarterbacked by Terry Bradshaw, and won all 4. Bradshaw would be called dumb all season long, and then, 4 times in 6 years, turned out to be the smartest man in the stadium. And 2 of those wins were over the Dallas Cowboys.
So when the Steelers played the Cowboys in this game, even though the Cowboys had won Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII, and had nearly everybody back, and the addition of Deion Sanders, there was a sense that the Steelers couldn't lose, because they always beat the Cowboys in the Super Bowl. This sense overlooked 2 things: 2 games is a small sample size, and Neil O'Donnell was not Terry Bradshaw.
O'Donnell went 28-for-49 for 239 yards, 1 touchdown, and 3 interceptions. All 3 were by Larry Brown, and 2 were converted into 2nd-half touchdowns. The Steelers were only down 20-17 with 4:15 to go, but O'Donnell blew it.
13. Top: Jeff Hostetler, New York Giants, Super Bowl XXV, 1991
Phil Simms got hurt in the NFC Championship Game, so the Giants had to win that and, if successful, go into the Super Bowl with their backup quarterback. Jeff Hostetler did just enough to win the Championship Game: The Giants won 15-13, no touchdowns but 5 field goals.
In the Super Bowl, with head coach Bill Parcells giving him the ideal ball-control offense, "Hoss" held the ball for over 40 minutes, going 20-for-32, with 222 yards, 1 touchdown and no interceptions. The Giants hung on to win, 20-19. But if we give credit where it's due, then we must also debit:
12. Flop: Jim Kelly, Buffalo Bills, Super Bowl XXV, 1991
The stats don't stand out: 18-for-30, 212 yards, no touchdowns, but no interceptions, either. Certainly getting your team to score 19 points, and no more, against a defense coached by Bill Parcells at his peak and the young Bill Belichick isn't exactly shameful.
What was shameful was this: Trailing 20-19 with 2:16 to go, and needing all the time he could get, Kelly chose to keep going up the middle, with passes and runs, instead of throwing toward the sideline where the clock could be stopped. The Bills only needed a field goal, but, apparently, they needed it to be closer than 47 yards, and Scott Norwood missed. It wasn't the worst quarterbacking performance in Super Bowl history, but it was the most short-sighted.
11. Top: Joe Montana, San Francisco 49ers, Super Bowl XXIV, 1990
Take your pick of Joe Cool performances: He was 4-0 in Super Bowls, winning 3 MVPs, including this one. The game the year before, when he had to launch a 92-yard drive with 3:16 minutes to go, was certainly more dramatic. But this was his masterpiece: 22-for-29, 297 yards, 5 touchdowns, no interceptions. This game still holds the records for points scored by the winning team and winning margin: The 49ers beat the Denver Broncos, 55-10.
10. Flop: Ron Jaworski, Philadelphia Eagles, Super Bowl XV, 1981
Long before he was an ESPN analyst nicknamed "Jaws," he was a quarterback out of the small towns around Buffalo nicknamed "The Polish Rifle." He had gotten the Eagles to 3 straight Playoff berths, and now, he had gotten them into the Super Bowl.
To be fair, the Oakland Raiders just plain shut the Eagles down. But Jaworski didn't help his own cause: 18-for-38, and while the 291 passing yards were a good total, he only threw 1 touchdown pass, and 3 interceptions.
9. Top: Earl Morrall, Baltimore Colts, Super Bowl V, 1971
If any football player ever needed redemption, it was Morrall after Super Bowl III. The Colts did get back into the big game 2 years later, but it was Johnny Unitas who started. And then he got hurt in the 2nd quarter, and Morrall had to step in against the Dallas Cowboys.
This time, he was up to the task. The stats don't say that -- 7-for-15, 147 yards, an interception and no touchdowns -- but the result does: Colts 16, Cowboys 13. He gained a little more redemption 2 years later, when, with the Miami Dolphins, he had to fill in for an injured Bob Griese for half the season, and they went undefeated, and he got to play in Super Bowl VII -- and VIII, both of which the Dolphins won.
8. Flop: Fran Tarkenton, Minnesota Vikings, Super Bowl XI, 1977
Fran the Scrambler was in his 3rd Super Bowl. The 1st time, he had to face Pittsburgh's Steel Curtain; the 2nd, Dallas' Doomsday Defense. The Oakland Raiders' defense was not the equal of those, and he now had the experience that was necessary to win the big one. Result: 17-for-35, 205 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions.
7. Top: Phil Simms, New York Giants, Super Bowl XXI, 1987
After John Elway's performance with "The Drive" to lead the Denver Broncos to victory in the AFC Championship Game, he was the headline quarterback, even over a New York team. And he didn't do badly, going 22-for-37 for 304 yards, with 1 touchdown and 1 interception.
But Simms had as close to a perfect game as a quarterback can have: 22-for-25, 268 yards, 3 touchdowns, no interceptions. The Giants won, 39-20.
6. Flop: Dan Marino, Miami Dolphins, Super Bowl XIX, 1985
In just his 2nd NFL season, Marino had broken the single-season records for passing yards and touchdown passes. Everyone was talking about him becoming the greatest quarterback of all time. He wasn't even the best quarterback in this game: His "quarterback rating" was 66.9, while Joe Montana's was 127.2, nearly twice as high, as he led the San Francisco 49ers to a 38-16 win.
This was the 2nd of Montana's 4 Super Bowl wins, and the 2nd of his 3 Super Bowl MVP awards. Marino would play another 15 seasons, and reach only 1 more AFC Championship Game, and lost it.
5. Top: Joe Namath, New York Jets, Super Bowl III, 1969
"Broadway Joe" didn't just say there were 4 or 5 quarterbacks in the AFL better than Earl Morrall of the Baltimore Colts, the NFL MVP that season. He said, "We're gonna win, I guarantee it!" The pressure was really on him: Had he said nothing, and lost, few people outside the New York Tri-State Area would have cared; but had he lost after saying those things, he would have looked like an idiot in front of the entire country.
And you know what? He wasn't that great that day. He went 17-for-28, 206 yards. No interceptions, but no touchdowns, either. The Jets' only touchdown was on a run by Matt Snell, and they got the extra point and 3 field goals from Jim Turner. Those 16 points would only have won 24 of the 1st 55 Super Bowls.
But they were more than enough to win this one. And when Joe walked off the field at the Orange Bowl, waving that "We're Number 1" finger, he walked off it a legend, one far bigger than his stats -- on the day or for his career -- would suggest.
4. Flop: Joe Theismann, Washington Redskins, Super Bowl XVIII, 1984
The year before, Theismann had led the 'Skins over Miami in Super Bowl XVII. And there was plenty of reason to believe they would repeat. They looked better than they were the year before. And when Joe was on the cover of Sports Illustrated after winning the NFC Championship, his pose made it look like the headline was coming right out of his mouth: "BRING ON THE RAIDERS!"
His big mouth had gotten him in trouble before, but, this time, it was his arm that did it: 16-for-35 and 235 yards wasn't that bad, but 2 interceptions and no touchdowns was. The 2nd interception was a particularly dumb pass, deep in his own end, taken by linebacker Jack Squirek, who was able to just waltz into the end zone, and make the score 21-3 Raiders just before the half. This was an ugly game, and the Silver & Black beat the Burgundy & Gold, 38-9.
The Dreaded SI Cover Jinx, maybe? During the next season's training camp, Theismann was on the cover again. This time, there was tape over his mouth.
3. Top: Terry Bradshaw, Pittsburgh Steelers, Super Bowl XIII, 1979
The Dallas Cowboys were defending Champions. Some of their players had won 2 Super Bowls already. But so had most of the Steelers, including Bradshaw. Nevertheless, Cowboy linebacker Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson predicted the Cowboys would win, 31-0; and, apparently believing the stories about Bradshaw being dumb, said, "Bradshaw couldn't spell 'cat' if you spotted him on the C and the A."
Terry went 17-for-30, for 318 yards, 4 touchdowns and 1 interception. The Steelers won, 35-31. Terry was named the game's MVP. He said, "Ask Hollywood how dumb I ham now." He was probably better the next year, and was named MVP again, but, if you divide by pressure, this was his greatest game.
2. Flop: Earl Morrall, Baltimore Colts, Super Bowl III, 1969
When Johnny Unitas, already considered by some to be the greatest quarterback of all time, when down with an injury before the 1968 season began, many observers thought the Colts were finished. But Morrall stepped up, won the NFL's MVP, and led them to the NFL Championship.
Joe Namath of the AFL Champion New York Jets was not impressed: "We've got 4 or 5 quarterbacks in the AFL who are better than Morrall." Morrall did more to prove Namath's point than Namath did: 6-for-17, 71 yards, no touchdowns and 3 interceptions. It may have been the worst performance in a big game, in any sport, by any player, ever.
True, the Colts only lost 16-7, but all that means is that the game was there for the taking, and neither Morrall nor Unitas, who came off the bench in the 2nd half after not playing all season, was up to it (although Unitas did lead the Colts' only touchdown drive of the day).
1. Top: Doug Williams, Washington Redskins, Super Bowl XXII, 1988
The 1st black quarterback to start in the Super Bowl, Williams probably had more questions in the buildup than any quarterback since Namath -- and, unlike Namath, it wasn't his own fault. And he had to face the Denver Broncos, with their Orange Crush defense, and an opposing quarterback, Elway, looking for redemption.
Williams had a 1-yard rushing loss. But, on passes, he went 9-for-11, for 228 yards, 4 touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 5th drive that ended with a rushing touchdown. That was just in the 2nd quarter. The Redskins won, 42-10, and Williams was named the MVP.
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