The Super Bowl is unique among the championships of the four major North American sports.
Unlike the World Series, NBA Finals, and Stanley Cup Final, the Super Bowl is a one-time, winner-take-all contest. The single game format lends itself to high drama and drawing in viewers who don’t watch the National Football League in the 21 regular season and postseason weeks preceding Super Bowl Sunday.
The drama created by the successful marketing of and format of the NFL’s league championship round doesn’t always translate to the play on the field.
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Joe Montana led the San Francisco 49ers to a 55-10 rout of the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXIV. Three years later, Troy Aikman threw for four touchdowns and Emmitt Smith gained 108 yards on 22 carries in a 52-17 drubbing of the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVII.
The Super Bowl blowouts are not as memorable as the games in which an underdog David slays a favored Goliath. They serve as a reminder that odds can be defied by force of willpower and ability to do the impossible.
Without further adieu, here are the top 10 Super Bowl upsets of all time:
10. Super Bowl XXXVII: January 26, 2003, Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, California
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 48; Oakland Raiders 21
This Super Bowl was another example of unstoppable force meets immovable object. The unstoppable force was the Raiders offense, who led the NFL in total passing yards (4,689) and was second in total yards gained (6,451). The immovable object was the Buccaneers defense, who led the league in total defense (252.8 yards per game), pass defense (155.6 yards per game), points allowed (12.3 per game), passing touchdowns allowed (10), interceptions (31), and opponents passer rating (48.4).
The number one offense facing the number one defense was an afterthought. Super Bowl XXXVII’s predominant theme was Jon Gruden. Gruden was Raiders head coach from 1998-2001. Raiders owner Al Davis famously didn’t want to open up the piggy bank for his head coaches. Rather than pay Gruden, Davis “traded” him to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Buccaneers had fired Tony Dungy and hoped Gruden could build their offense into one that could win a championship.
Oakland entered their first Super Bowl in 19 years as four-point favorites. Tampa Bay dominated the game, out gaining Oakland in total yards (365 to 269), rushing yards (150 to 19), and first downs (24 to 11). Gannon threw a Super Bowl record five interceptions, three of them returned for touchdowns. Tampa Bay scored 34 unanswered points to capture their first and only Super Bowl.
NFL Films later revealed incompetence on the part of Gruden’s Raiders successor, Bill Callahan. The Raiders hadn’t changed the audible-calling system installed by Gruden. Furthermore, defensive back John Lynch told his teammates during the game virtually all the plays Oakland ran were plays Gruden specifically told them watch out for.
9. Super Bowl XVIII: January 22, 1984, Tampa Stadium, Tampa, Florida
Los Angeles Raiders 38; Washington Redskins 9
The first Super Bowl played in Tampa featured two teams that already hoisted the Lombardi Trophy. Washington was the defending Super Bowl champions while the Raiders (who relocated from Oakland in May 1982) won Super Bowl XV three years earlier.
Washington entered Super Bowl XVIII as a three-point favorites. They had the best offense, best defense against the run, best regular season record, and were defending Super Bowl champs. In Week 5, Washington beat Oakland 37-35 by scoring 17 points in the final six minutes of the game.
The Raiders began their day with a blocked Redskins punt recovered for a touchdown. This was followed by a pair of touchdowns. Oakland put up 21 points in the first half while Washington only managed a field goal. Marcus Allen scored two touchdowns in the third quarter: a five-yard run and a then record 74-yard run to end the quarter and Washington’s hopes for a repeat.
Allen, the Super Bowl MVP, carried the ball 20 times for 191 yards and the two touchdowns. The Raiders were the first team to score an offensive, defensive, and special teams touchdown in the same Super Bowl.
Allen’s supremacy was immortalized in two ways. The first by President Ronald Reagan, who famously said in a telephone call with Raiders head coach Tom Flores, “I already had a call from Moscow. They think Marcus Allen is a new secret weapon and they insist that we dismantle it.”
The second was by John Facenda, the voice of NFL Films, in his final voice-over work. Facenda summed up Allen’s historic run with one of his most memorable quotes, “As Washington’s hopes faded into the dying daylight, on came Marcus Allen, running with the night.”
8. Super Bowl XLVIII: February 2, 2014, MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Seattle Seahawks 43; Denver Broncos 8
Super Bowl XLVIII was the first to be played in an outdoor stadium in a cold weather city. Seattle was in the Super Bowl for the second time in franchise history while Denver was making its seventh Super Bowl appearance. Both teams boasted a 13-3 record, tops in their respective conferences.
Denver had the league’s best offense. Quarterback Peyton Manning set records for passing yards (5,477) and touchdowns (55). Seattle had the NFL’s top defense. They allowed the fewest yards per game (273.6) and fewest points (231) with the most takeaways (39), becoming the first team since the 1985 Chicago Bears to lead the NFL in all three categories.
Denver were two-point favorites and had the ball first. Seattle scored a safety on the first play from scrimmage with 14:48 left in the first quarter, the quickest score in Super Bowl history. At halftime, Seattle had a 22-0 lead. Denver didn’t get on the scoreboard until the end of the third quarter, making the score 36-8. Manning, a five-time league MVP, threw two interceptions in the first half. One of them was returned by Super Bowl MVP Malcolm Smith for a 69-yard touchdown.
This was the first Super Bowl in which the winner scored more than 40 points while holding their opponent to less than 10. The 35-point margin of victory is the largest for an underdog and tied for third largest overall in Super Bowl history. Seattle was the first team since the Baltimore Ravens in Super Bowl XXXV to score touchdowns on offense, defense, and special teams. The 59 minutes and 48 seconds Seattle continuously held the lead is also a Super Bowl record.
Denver lost their NFL-record fifth Super Bowl. Their loss ensured that each of the eight-highest scoring teams in league history failed to win a Super Bowl in the same season. In addition, the four teams that entered the Super Bowl with the NFL’s leading passer failed to win the game.
Denver joined the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV as the only teams to score less than 10 points in the previous 30 years. The Broncos loss is especially biting considering Manning set a Super Bowl record for completions (34) and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas for receptions (13).
7. Super Bowl XXV: January 27, 1991, Tampa Stadium, Tampa, Florida
New York Giants 20; Buffalo Bills 19
The opponents were examples of contrasting strengths. Buffalo featured an explosive, no-huddle offense that scored the most points in the league (428). The Giants boasted the NFL’s stingiest defense, allowing a league-low 211 points. Their contrasting strengths yielded the same result: a record of 13-3.
They met Week 15 at the Meadowlands. Buffalo won 17-13 in inclement weather. The game was memorable because the two starting quarterbacks, the Giants’ Phil Simms and the Bills’ Jim Kelly, were both injured. Kelly returned for the Divisional Playoffs but Simms was replaced by Jeff Hostetler.
Buffalo entered their first Super Bowl as seven-point favorites. They were a deep talented team with nine Pro Bowl players, five future Hall of Fame players, and a future Hall of Fame coach in Marv Levy. Buffalo handed the Oakland Raiders a 51-3 thumping in the AFC Championship Game, the most lopsided score in AFC Championship Game history. They were expected to do the same to the Giants, who made their second Super Bowl appearance in four years.
The Giants had a future Hall of Fame coach in Bill Parcells, who constructed his team to play “power football”. This included a powerful defense and an offense that sustained long drives and kept the opposing offense off the field. Their game plan for Super Bowl XXV was conservative: a power running game on offense and being physical with Buffalo’s wide outs and playing with extra defensive backs. Defensive coordinator Bill Belichick famously told the defense that they would win the game if Bills running back Thurman Thomas gained more than 100 yards.
Thomas ran for 135 yards and a touchdown on just 15 carries. The Giants overcame an early 12-3 deficit. They controlled the clock, holding the ball for more than 40 minutes. Super Bowl MVP Ottis Anderson ran for 102 yards on 24 carries and a touchdown.
Super Bowl XXV was the first to feature two teams from the same state and the first in which neither team turned the ball over. It was also the first in which both team wore Super Bowl patches on their uniforms. The Giants had a 75-yard touchdown drive that took a record nine minutes, 29 seconds off the clock.
Both teams played well enough to win. Many thought Thomas should have been MVP in spite being on the losing side. Though this game is most memorable for Wide Right, it was strategy that decided the victor. Belichick’s defensive game plan is included at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
6. Super Bowl XV: January 25, 1981, Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
Oakland Raiders 27; Philadelphia Eagles 10
These were not John Madden’s Raiders. Tom Flores was in his second year as head coach. Quarterback Ken “The Snake” Stabler was traded to the Houston Oilers for Dan Pastorini. Pastorini struggled to a 2-3 start before he was replaced by journeyman Jim Plunkett. Oakland entered the postseason as a Wild Card, defeating Stabler’s Oilers, the Cleveland Browns, and San Diego Chargers to reach their second Super Bowl in four years.
Awaiting Oakland was the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles, making their first league championship game appearance in 21 years. Philadelphia had one of the league’s stingiest defenses. They allowed the fewest points in the league, adept at stopping both the run and the pass. Philadelphia defeated Oakland 10-7 in a hard-fought Week 12 contest that included eight sacks of Plunkett.
The Eagles were two-point favorites. Oakland jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back. Plunkett picked apart the Eagles’ secondary. He finished 13-of-21 for 261 yards and three touchdowns. The most memorable score was an 80-yard reception by running back Kenny King through the outstretched arms of Eagles cornerback Herman “You Play To Win The Game” Edwards.
Raiders linebacker Rod Martin intercepted Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski three times, a Super Bowl record that still stands. Philadelphia didn’t score a touchdown until the fourth quarter but it was too little, too late.
The Raiders became the first Wild Card team to win the Super Bowl. Plunkett was named MVP, the second Heisman Trophy winner to earn the honor (Roger Staubach won the Heisman in 1963 as a junior at Navy and was MVP of Super Bowl VI). Flores was the first person in NFL history to win a Super Bowl as a player (Super Bowl IV as a Kansas City Chiefs backup quarterback), assistant coach (Super Bowl XI with the Raiders), and head coach.
5. Super Bowl XXXII: January 25, 1998, Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, California
Denver Broncos 31; Green Bay Packers 24
AFC representatives in the Super Bowl had fallen on hard times. The conference hadn’t won since the Los Angeles Raiders bested the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII, a streak of 13 games. Denver also had Super Bowl futility on their side, losing their four previous trips by a combined 163-50. Three of the Broncos’ Super Bowl losses came with John Elway under center, adding to the belief that No. 7 couldn’t win the big one.
Meanwhile, the Packers were defending Super Bowl champions with a reigning three-time league MVP in quarterback Brett Favre. The Gunslinger led the NFL with 35 passing touchdowns and was second on the Packers in rushing. Future Hall of Famer Reggie White led the team with 11 sacks.
Denver, a Wild Card team, entered the game as 11-point underdogs. Outside of the Mile-High City, you’d be hard pressed to find anyone who thought the Packers would lose this game. There was just no way they could fall to a team that lost four Super Bowls by 113 points.
Broncos running back Terrell Davis, a San Diego native, missed most of the second quarter with a migraine. In spite of that, he rushed for 157 yards, score a Super Bowl record three rushing touchdowns, and earn Super Bowl MVP honors. Elway wasn’t sacked in the game, finishing 12-of-22 for 123 yards and an interception.
Broncos owner Pat Bowlen famously hoisted the Lombardi Trophy in the air and exclaimed, “This one’s for John!” during the post-game celebration.
The Broncos didn’t lose yardage in any play from scrimmage. Davis became the only player to rush for three touchdowns in a Super Bowl and the only non-San Francisco 49er to score three touchdowns in a Super Bowl. Favre gave props to the Broncos defense after the game, citing their blitz packages as one of the main reasons why they lost.
4. Super Bowl IV: January 11, 1970, Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, Louisiana
Kansas City Chiefs 23; Minnesota Vikings 7
Super Bowl IV was the final Super Bowl before the AFL/NFL merger. In spite of the New York Jets’ victory over the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III, many still believed that the AFL was an inferior league to the NFL. Because of that, the NFL’s Vikings were 12-point favorites to knock off the AFL’s Chiefs.
Minnesota posted a 12-2 regular season record. They were dominant on both sides of the ball, leading the NFL in points scored (379) and points allowed (133). Minnesota scored 50 or more points in three games but the team’s true strength was the fearsome defensive line known as the Purple People Eaters.
Kansas City went 11-3 in the regular season. Their defense was the fourth in the history of professional football to lead their league in fewest rushing yards, fewest passing yards, and fewest total yards. Kansas City advanced to Super Bowl IV after defeating the AFL’s two previous champions (the Jets and Oakland Raiders) in the playoffs.
Kansas City dominated Minnesota on a field deteriorated by rain, forcing three interceptions of Vikings quarterback Joe Kapp and three fumbles. Chiefs head coach Hank Stram’s most famous call was the 65 Toss Power Trap.
The Chiefs’ victory gave the AFL a second consecutive Super Bowl, evening the series at 2-2. Quarterback Len Dawson, maligned because of the perceived inferiority of the AFL, found vindication when he was named Super Bowl MVP. Super Bowl IV featured Stram wearing a microphone in the game, the first coach to be miked up for NFL Films. Hank Stram provided memorable in-game quotables including “C’mon Lenny! Pump it in there, baby! Just keep matriculating the ball down the field!”
3. Super Bowl XXXVI: February 3, 2002, Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
New England Patriots 20; St. Louis Rams 17
Perhaps it was a bit of poetic justice that the first post 9/11 Super Bowl featured a team named the Patriots. The Patriots were a feel-good story but virtually no one gave them a chance against the Rams.
After all, the Patriots were 0-2 in Super Bowls and the Rams were 14-point favorites. The Greatest Show on Turf lit up the scoreboard. Quarterback Kurt Warner won the MVP. Wide receivers Issac Bruce and Torry Holt combined for 142 receptions, 2,469 receptions, and 13 touchdowns. Marshall Faulk was the NFL Offensive Player of the Year for a third consecutive year. The Rams had the best record in the league at 14-2. They were supposed to make short work of the Patriots and capture their second Super Bowl in three years.
The Patriots turned to Tom Brady after incumbent Drew Bledsoe was injured in a Week 2 loss to the New York Jets. Brady had immediate success guiding the offense, earning his first Pro Bowl berth. Their success on the defensive side of the ball was mixed. The Patriots ranked sixth overall in scoring but 24th in yards allowed. The controversy surrounding the Tuck Rule Game added an element of perceived flukiness to the Patriots’ season.
The Rams outgained the Patriots 427-267 but turned the ball over three times. New England capitalized on the turnovers, taking a 17-6 lead. After a Patriots fumble return for a touchdown was wiped out by a penalty, Warner led two drives down the field to tie the score at 17-17. With time expiring, the Patriots defied conventional wisdom and turned to kicker Adam Vinatieri (who kicked a winner against the Raiders in the Tuck Rule Game) to seal their first Super Bowl in regulation.
Though no one knew it at the time, Super Bowl XXXVI was a coming out party for the Patriots. Today, Belichick and Brady are synonymous with NFL excellence. Before they became a league standard, they were underdogs facing a seemingly insurmountable obstacle.
2. Super Bowl XLII: February 3, 2008, University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
New York Giants 17; New England Patriots 14
The 2007 Patriots were the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to go undefeated in the regular season and the only team to do so since the NFL expanded to a 16-game regular season in 1978. Quarterback Tom Brady threw a career high 4,806 yards and a then record 50 touchdowns on his way to the NFL MVP. New England set records for points scored (589, since broken by the 2013 Denver Broncos), 75 total touchdowns, and a net deferential of 315 points.
The Giants weren’t expected to do much after the retirement of running back Tiki Barber. Eli Manning faced criticism (with Barber being one of the loudest voices) because of inconsistent play. When the Giants dropped their first two games, the criticism intensified. Manning and the Giants eventually found their groove, winning 10 of their final 14 games and entering the playoffs as a Wild Card. They were the first NFC team to win three playoff games on the road to reach the Super Bowl.
The game was a rematch of the regular season finale that New England won 38-35. Eighteen consecutive wins made the Patriots a 12-point favorite. Expectations of a shootout evaporated as the defenses took center stage. A grand total of 10 points were scored in the first three quarters. The final quarter saw three lead changes. The highlight of the Giants’ game-winning drive was David Tyree’s catch that he pinned to the side of his helmet with Patriots safety Rodney Harrison draped over him.
Super Bowl XLII was the first Super Bowl in 34 years in which neither team scored at least 20 points. Manning, who had to escape five Patriots defenders just to get the pass off to Tyree, was named MVP. The Giants did more than deny perfection to the Patriots.
They won all 11 road games they played in, an NFL record. Manning silenced Barber and the rest of the critics who believed he would never justify his draft status or family pedigree. The Giants won it all despite trailing in each of their postseason games, including overcoming two fourth-quarter deficits. And they did with only one Pro Bowl starter (defensive end Osi Umenyoira).
1. Super Bowl III: January 12, 1969, Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida
New York Jets 16; Baltimore Colts 7
It should come as no surprise this is the mother of all Super Bowl upsets. The historical significance of this game cannot be overstated. This was the first league championship game to bear the moniker “Super Bowl”. The 1966 and 1967 AFL-NFL Championship Games (retroactively known as Super Bowls I and II) were dominated by Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers. The upstart AFL was seen as not being on the same level as the more established NFL because of the performance of the Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders against the Packers.
Baltimore entered Super Bowl III as 18-point favorites after posting a 13-1 regular season record and shutting out the Cleveland Browns 31-0 in the NFL Championship Game. Their defense allowed the fewest points in the league (144) and was third in rushing yards allowed (1,339). Joe Willie Namath threw for more than 3,000 yards for Gang Green. However, he only completed 42.7 percent of his passes. He also threw more interceptions (17) than touchdowns (15).
Namath’s Guarantee is etched in pro football folklore but the Jets’ victory was a team effort. They used a conservative game plan that emphasized the run and quick, high percentage passes to cut down on interceptions. Running back Matt Snell ran for 121 yards and a touchdown on 30 carries. Jim Turner kicked three field goals. The Jets defense picked off Colts quarterback Earl Morrall three times before he was benched in favor of Johnny Unitas, who drove the Colts down the field for their only touchdown late in the game.
Namath was named MVP even though he didn’t throw a touchdown in the game. The Jets are the only team in Super Bowl history to score only one touchdown and still win the game. More importantly, the Jets’ victory legitimized the merger and served as a template for every Super Bowl upset that followed.
– Curtis Rawls is a Managing Editor for cover32 and covers the NFL and the New York Giants. He can be followed on Twitter @TheArmchrAnlyst.
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