Legends can be made in the Super Bowl, the NFL’s grandest arena of competition, but unfortunately, with that reaction there is also an equal and opposite reaction that can also take place—and we have seen quite a few players over the years soil their legacies with bad showing in the Big Game.
Let’s take a look back at the 10 worst Super Bowl performances of all-time.
Craig Morton, QB, Broncos – Super Bowl XII
Craig Morton’s outing in Super Bowl XII is often cited as a cautionary tale for what can go wrong for a guy when he is trying to make it over the hump against superior talent and get a Super Bowl W.
Facing the Dallas Cowboys, his former team who he also lost a Super Bowl starting for, Morton’s day was ugly from the jump. The entire game he was inefficient and inaccurate, leading to a bevy of turnovers and terrible drives. Completing a mere 4 of 15 passes for 39 yards, his four interceptions, Morton nearly single-handedly crippled any chance of a Broncos’ victory. Morton’s struggles spread through the rest of the Denver offense like a plague and they failed to find any rhythm against a stifling Cowboys defense, leading to a 27-10 defeat.
Rich Gannon, QB, Raiders – Super Bowl XXXVII
As good as Rich Gannon’s 2002 NFL MVP-winning season was—was about as bad as his showing in that year’s Super Bowl was. Gannon threw a Super Bowl record five interceptions, including three pick-sixes, which all but doomed his Oakland Raiders entirely. The Buccaneers defense was led by Jon Gruden, who had recently coached Gannon—and it seemed like he knew all of his tricks and exactly how to set his group up for success. The Buccaneers capitalized on every error that Gannon made and blew his Raiders out in humiliating fashion, cruising to a 48 to 21 win.
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Kerry Collins, QB, Giants – Super Bowl XXXV
To say that Super Bowl XXXV was a struggle for New York Giants quarterback, Kerry Collins, would be the understatement of the century. He and, frankly, the rest of the Giants were overwhelmed by the Baltimore Ravens’ historically good defense. Collins, to his credit, faced relentless pressure all game, but still—throwing four interceptions in a game of that magnitude is unacceptable.
The Giants’ offense was completely stifled all night, as the Ravens’ defense had their way with them and finished with a 34-7 rout in hand that left Collins and the Giants reeling.
Rex Grossman, QB, Bears – Super Bowl XLI
Even the most die-hard of Chicago Bears fans had serious doubts about Rex Grossman’s ability to win a Super Bowl heading into the big game, so, what happened probably wasn’t a huge shock, but man, was it ugly. Grossman surrendered two interceptions, including a critical pick-six and his inability to protect the football almost entirely undermined what was a quality effort from the Bears defense against Peyton Manning and a top offense across the league all season.
What made this all the more painful was that it also ended up squandering all of the momentum that the team got from Devin Hester returning the opening kickoff for a touchdown. The Colts capitalized on Grossman’s terrible performance and notched a 29 to 17 victory in the process.
Tony Eason, QB, Patriots – Super Bowl XX
Tony Eason’s Super Bowl XX experience was short-lived but memorably ineffective. Granted, he had a tall task going up against the Chicago Bears’ formidable defense, but Eason failed to complete any of his six pass attempts before being benched, which is just about as bad as it can get.
As mentioned, the Bears’ defense, was one of the best that the NFL has ever seen, but when you get dominated the way that Eason did, and your team loses 46 to 10, you have to be mentioned among the worst Super Bowl performers of all time.
Neil O'Donnell, QB, Steelers – Super Bowl XXX
In Super Bowl XXX, O’Donnell completed 28 of 49 pass attempts for 239 yards, which may seem alright at face value, but his performance is most remembered for the two interceptions he threw, both of which were caught by Cowboys cornerback Larry Brown at pivotal times of the game.
Not only could the interceptions not have come at a worse time, with the game still very much hanging in the balance, but they also hand-delivered Dallas amazing scoring opportunities that swung the momentum of the game in their favor permanently. The first interception came with the Steelers trailing by three points in the third quarter, setting up a Dallas touchdown that extended their lead from three to 10 points. The second interception occurred in the fourth quarter, again leading to a Cowboys touchdown that effectively sealed the victory for Dallas. You simply can’t make the same mistake twice like that when you are trying to win a Super Bowl.
Peyton Manning, QB, Broncos Super Bowl XLVIII
Peyton Manning may go down as one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game of football—and, yes, he also does have two Super Bowl rings to his name, but he also owns the dubious distinction of having one of the worst Super Bowl performances of all-time.
The game started with a shotgun snap flying over his head and resulting in a safety, then his first pass was intercepted for a touchdown, setting the tone for a game where he threw two interceptions and his Broncos were ultimately blown out in embarrassing fashion by the Legion of Boom-led Seattle Seahawks.
Earl Morrall, QB, Colts – Super Bowl III
Earl Morrall holds a special place in NFL history, though, it is likely not the kind of history that he expected to or wanted to be making as an NFL player. In Super Bowl III, Earl Morrall’s performance was a key factor in the Baltimore Colts’ stunning upset loss to the New York Jets—the very one that Joe Namath guaranteed on live TV beforehand.
Morrall threw three interceptions early and missed a number of open receivers before being replaced by Johnny Unitas, but the damage was done. The Jets’ 16-7 victory in conjunction with the Namath guarantee remains one of the greatest upsets and holds a ton of lore in Super Bowl history—but it may not have ever come to fruition without one of the worst Super Bowl performances of all-time from Earl Morrall.
Ron Jaworski, QB, Eagles – Super Bowl XV
Long before Ron Jaworski was known for his colorful personality as an NFL analyst, he was the longtime starting quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles. Unfortunately for Jaws, his Super Bowl XV experience was known for little more than bad turnovers and poor decision making. His three interceptions against the Oakland Raiders halted drives and squandered scoring opportunities, putting the Eagles in a nearly unwinnable situation… Which is not exactly what you want out of your quarterback in the biggest game of his career.
The Raiders capitalized on these mistakes, securing a 27-10 victory over Jaworski’s Philadelphia Eagles and Jaws’s place in history as having had one of the worst Super Bowl showings of all time.
David Woodley, QB, Dolphins – Super Bowl XVII
There was very little that went right for David Woodley during his first and only Super Bowl, as he completed only 4 of 14 passes for 97 yards, with one interception, in a humiliating loss to the legendary Washington Redskins teams of yesteryear.
His performance and this defeat culminated in what was undoubtedly one of the least effective performances by a player at any position in Super Bowl history.
