The Super Bowl is the most watched sporting event in the world, and usually, it is a pretty good game. Not all Super Bowls are made equally though, and some are barn-burners, while some others are snoozefests that are over by the end of the first quarter.
Without further ado, here’s a list of five of the best Super Bowls in history and five of the worst.
The Best – Super Bowl XLIII – Steelers 27, Cardinals 23
The Steelers, led by Mike Tomlin and a defense featuring Hall of Famer Troy Polamalu and Pro Bowl linebackers James Harrison and James Farrior, faced off against the underdog Arizona Cardinals, who were appearing in their first Super Bowl in franchise history and were led by Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner and Pro Bowl receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. The game turned into an instant classic, and Harrison’s 100-yard pick six to end the first half is still referred to as one of the greatest plays in Super Bowl history.
The Cardinals scored with just under three minutes left in the game to take a 23-20 lead, and the final drive for the Steelers will live on in NFL lore forever. With 35 seconds left, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger found Santonio Holmes in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown, and the ensuing extra point would put the Steelers up 27-23; the Cardinals weren’t able to score on their final possession, and the Steelers won their sixth Super Bowl. Holmes won Super Bowl MVP for his heroics, as he had nine receptions and 131 yards with a touchdown in the game.
The Worst – Super Bowl XLVIII – Seahawks 43, Broncos 8
Super Bowl XLVIII pitted the Broncos’ league-leading offense against the Seahawks’ league-leading defense, and the game was over after the first play from scrimmage. The Broncos started the game on offense, and, after a bad snap, running back Knowshon Moreno was tackled in the end zone for a safety, and the game wouldn’t get any better for Denver from there, as Seattle would pull out a 36-0 lead before Denver got on the board.
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The Seahawks, who were led by Pro Bowlers Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch, Max Unger, Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, and Earl Thomas, upended the favored Broncos, who were led by Pro Bowlers Peyton Manning (who was also NFL MVP after setting the single-season record for passing touchdowns with 55), Demaryius Thomas, Julius Thomas, Louis Vasquez, and Matt Prater. Wilson played well, throwing for 206 passing yards on 18/25 passing and two passing touchdowns, while Lynch had 15 carries for 39 yards and a touchdown.
Malcolm Smith won Super Bowl MVP, but today, he is one of the lesser-known Super Bowl MVPs in history, and he is also one of the lesser-remembered members of the Seahawks’ “Legion of Boom” defense that would return to the Super Bowl the following year before falling late to the Patriots.
The Best – Super Bowl LII – Eagles 41, Patriots 33
Some of the Super Bowls that the Patriots played in during their dynasty in the 2000s and 2010s were somewhat boring, but this certainly isn’t one of them. The Patriots, who were led by Tom Brady, arguably the greatest quarterback in NFL history, and Bill Belichick, who is arguably the best coach in NFL history, met up against an upstart Eagles team that was starting their backup quarterback, Nick Foles, due to a season-ending injury to starting quarterback (and MVP candidate) Carson Wentz. The Patriots weren’t as good as some of their previous teams in the dynasty had been, as they only had four Pro Bowlers (Brady, fullback James Develin, tight end Rob Gronkowski, and special teamer Matthew Slater), but they were still considered one of the best teams in the league and were heavily favored to beat the Eagles.
In the Super Bowl, the two teams went back-and-forth the whole game, with the largest lead for either team being 12 points early in the second quarter for the Eagles. The most famous play of the game came on 4th-and-1 at the one-yard line with just over 30 seconds remaining in the second quarter, where Foles caught a pass from Trey Burton on a play that is now known as the Philly Special to take a 22-12 lead into halftime.
The Patriots took a one-point lead with nine minutes left in the game, and at that point, they had the momentum and it looked as though New England would win their sixth Super Bowl, but the Eagles responded with a touchdown drive to take a 38-33 lead, and after a fumble from Brady, the Eagles made a field goal with 1:05 remaining to take an eight-point lead. After Brady’s Hail Mary attempt came up short as time expired, the Eagles prevailed to win their first Super Bowl in franchise history.
Foles won Super Bowl MVP in one of the most improbable performances by a quarterback in a Super Bowl, after putting up 373 yards and four touchdowns (one being his receiving touchdown) with an interception.
The Worst – Super Bowl XXIV – 49ers 55, Broncos 10
The 49ers came into Super Bowl XXIV as a 12-point favorite, and they managed to make even that spread look low, as they defeated the Broncos in a beatdown that was over by the end of the first quarter. San Francisco was led by Hall of Famers Jerry Rice, Joe Montana, Charles Haley, and Ronnie Lott, while the Broncos were led by John Elway, Steve Atwater, and a solid, if unspectacular, defense.
San Francisco scored on their first drive, and the Broncos would respond with a field goal to make it 7-3 just over eight minutes into the game; from that point, the 49ers would score 34 straight points before the Broncos would score again. The 49ers’ 45-point victory is the biggest margin in Super Bowl history.
Rice had what might have been the greatest performance by a wide receiver in the Super Bowl in history, as he caught seven passes for 138 yards and three touchdowns, but he would lose out on Super Bowl MVP to Montana, who went 22/29 with 297 passing yards and five passing touchdowns, which set the record for most passing touchdowns in a Super Bowl.
The Best – Super Bowl LI – Patriots 34, Falcons 28
One year before the Eagles beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl, the Patriots pulled off the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history and beat the Atlanta Falcons 34-28. The underdog Falcons, who were led by NFL MVP Matt Ryan and other Pro Bowlers in Devonta Freeman, Julio Jones, Alex Mack, Vic Beasley, and Matt Bryant, took a 25-point lead early in the third quarter, but the Patriots, who were led by Tom Brady and a very good defense, were able to tie the game at 28-28 with 57 seconds left in the game, before winning the coin toss and winning the game with a touchdown on their first drive in overtime.
At the start of the fourth quarter, the Falcons still lead 28-9, and they looked well on their way to their first Super Bowl victory in franchise history, but the Patriots were able to score 19 points in the final 9:44 of the game to tie it before scoring a touchdown in overtime, with Patriots running back James White scoring the final two touchdowns of the game, as well as a two-point conversion after a Danny Amendola touchdown with just under six minutes to go.
Brady would win Super Bowl MVP, his fourth, and he would win his fifth Super Bowl, breaking the record for most Super Bowl victories as a quarterback.
The Worst – Super Bowl XXXVII – Buccaneers 48, Raiders 21
Super Bowl XXXVII saw one of the greatest defensive performances in any Super Bowl by the Buccaneers, who intercepted Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon a Super Bowl-record five times, with three of those being returned for touchdowns. The Raiders were actually the favorite to win before the game, and they scored a field goal four minutes into the game to take a 3-0 lead, but after that field goal, the Bucs would score the next 34 points, and after three touchdowns from the Raiders, they would add on two defensive touchdowns in the final 90 seconds to reach the 48-21 final score.
Several players could have won Super Bowl MVP for the Buccaneers, including linebacker Dwight Smith, who had two pick-sixes, Keenan McCardell, who had two receiving touchdowns, Derrick Brooks, who had a pick-six and a tackle for loss, Simeon Rice, who had two sacks, and Ronde Barber, who deflected four passes. However, safety Dexter Jackson won Super Bowl MVP after having two interceptions, and became one of the more forgettable Super Bowl MVPs in history.
The Best – Super Bowl XLII – Giants 17, Patriots 14
In another Super Bowl where the winner was a massive upset, the Giants beat the undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl XLII to ensure that the 1972 Miami Dolphins are still the most recent team to go undefeated in an entire season. The Giants were an upstart team who made the playoffs as a Wild Card team before going on a run, and they were led by Eli Manning, Hall of Famer Michael Strahan, and head coach Tom Coughlin, while the Patriots were in the middle of an already-established dynasty and were led by Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and Hall of Famers Randy Moss and Richard Seymour.
The game was a defensive affair, with the Patriots leading 7-3 heading into the fourth quarter. In the fourth quarter, Manning threw a touchdown pass early on to David Tyree to take a 10-7 lead before Brady threw a touchdown to Moss with 2:42 left to re-take the lead at 14-10. On New York’s final drive, Manning completed a pass to Tyree that is now known as the “Helmet Catch,” and he completed a touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress with 35 seconds left to take the win.
Before the game, the Patriots were favored to win by 12 points, and the Giants’ victory is still seen as one of the biggest upsets in sports history. Manning won Super Bowl MVP for his heroics in the fourth quarter.
The Worst – Super Bowl XX – Bears 46, Patriots 10
Super Bowl XX saw the famous 1985 Bears take on the Patriots; the Bears were favored by 10 points, and they played like it. The Patriots scored the first points of the game on a field goal, but after that, the Bears would score the next 44 points to take a 44-3 lead before a Patriots touchdown and a Bears safety finished off the scoring.
Richard Dent won Super Bowl MVP after having 1.5 sacks, but several other players could have won the award, including Reggie Phillips, who had a pick six, Otis Wilson, who had two sacks, Mike Singletary, who had two fumble recoveries, and Jim McMahon, who had two rushing touchdowns and passed for 256 yards without committing a turnover. Dent was a great player and a deserving Hall of Famer, but he was not the best player on the field that day.
The 1985 Bears looked like the beginning of a dynasty, but the team wouldn’t make it back to the Super Bowl until 2006.
The Best – Super Bowl XXXIV – Rams 23, Titans 16
Super Bowl XXXIV pitted the St. Louis Rams, who were led by NFL MVP Kurt Warner and Hall of Famers Orlando Pace, Marshall Faulk, and Isaac Bruce, who, along with Torry Holt, combined to make up the “Greatest Show on Turf,” against the Tennessee Titans, who were led by Hall of Famer Bruce Matthews and other Pro Bowlers in Eddie George, Frank Wycheck, and Jevon Kearse, as well as quarterback Steve McNair. The Rams, who were heavily favored, beat the Titans by seven points after Tennessee came up one yard short of the endzone on the final play of the game.
The first half was a defensive affair, despite both teams having extremely high-powered offenses, as three field goals by Rams kicker Jeff Wilkins, all of which were 29 yards or shorter, were all of the scoring before halftime, and the Rams took a 9-0 lead into the third quarter. Halfway through the third quarter, the Rams took a 16-0 lead off of a 9-yard touchdown from Holt, but the Titans scored two rushing touchdowns courtesy of George to close the deficit to 16-13 with seven minutes remaining.
After that, Tennessee got the ball back again, and they would kick a field goal to tie the game at 16-16 with 2:12 left, but the Rams responded with a one-play touchdown drive on a 73-yard pass to Bruce to retake the lead with 1:54 left. Tennessee then drove back down the field, and they got to the 10-yard line with six seconds left, and McNair threw the ball to Kevin Dyson, who managed to get to the one-yard line before being tackled by Rams linebacker Mike Jones, and the Titans were unable to run another play before time ran out.
Warner won Super Bowl MVP for his performance, where he had 414 passing yards on 24/45 passing and two touchdowns.
The Worst – Super Bowl XXIX – 49ers 49, Chargers 26
The highest-scoring Super Bowl in history was also one of the worst. The 49ers were favored by 18.5 points, and they played like it, with Steve Young having what might have been the greatest performance by a quarterback in Super Bowl history.
Young threw for 325 yards on 24/36 passing and threw six touchdowns, while also having 49 yards on the ground. The game was over five minutes into the first quarter, as the 49ers took a 14-0 lead 4:55 into the game and never looked back, as they would eventually win by 23 points.
Jerry Rice had another great performance in a Super Bowl, with his 10 receptions, 149 yards, and three touchdowns being one of the greatest performances any receiver has had in a Super Bowl, but Young’s heroics shone through more than Rice’s did.
