Posted on 01/23/2008 8:16:51 PM PST by fkabuckeyesrule
1. Joe Montana, 49ers, Super Bowl XXIV (1990)
Stats: 22-29, 297 yards, 5 TD, 0 interceptions in a 55-10 win over Broncos.
Montana was spectacular in winning his third Super Bowl MVP, throwing for a then-record five TDs and completing 76 percent of his passes against a Broncos team that boasted the top scoring defense in the NFL that season.
2. Steve Young, 49ers, Super Bowl XXIX (1995)
Stats: 24-36, 325 yards, 6 TD, 0 interceptions in 49-26 win over Chargers.
Young set a Super Bowl record with six TD passes against a helpless Chargers defense. Young also led the 49ers with 49 yards rushing.
3. Doug Williams, Redskins, Super Bowl XXII (1988)...Stats: 18-29, 340 yards, 4 TD, 1 interception in 42-10 win over Broncos.
Williams started only two games in the 1987 regular season, but he was in top form, rallying the Redskins from an early 10-0 deficit. The Redskins scored touchdowns on five consecutive drives in the second quarter.
4. Terry Bradshaw, Steelers, Super Bowl XIII (1979)...Stats: 17-30, 318 yards, 4 TD, 1 interception in 35-31 win over Cowboys.
Bradshaw set a then-Super Bowl record with his four TD passes in winning the third of his four SB titles. This was the first time in his Hall of Fame career that he threw for more than 300 yards in a game.
5. Joe Montana, 49ers, Super Bowl XIX (1985)...Stats: 24-35, 331 yards, 4 TD (1 rush), 0 interceptions in 38-16 win over Dolphins.
Montana beat Dan Marino and the Dolphins through the air with three touchdowns and another score on the ground. His 59 yards rushing were more than San Francisco star running back Roger Craig had.
6. Phil Simms, Giants, Super Bowl XXI (1987)...Stats: 22-25, 268 yards, 3 TD, 0 interceptions in 39-20 win over Broncos.
Simms was masterful in setting a Super Bowl record by completing 88 percent of his passes, including 10 in a row. "This might be the best game a quarterback has ever played," Giants coach Bill Parcells said afterward.
7. Troy Aikman, Cowboys, Super Bowl XXVII (1993)...Stats: 22-30, 273 yards, 4 TD, 0 interceptions in 52-17 win over Bills.
Aikman, who was named MVP, was part of a dominating offensive performance; he completed 73 percent of his passes and orchestrated quick scoring drives. "This game meant everything to me," Aikman said. "No matter what happens from here on out, I can say I took my team to a Super Bowl victory."
8. Kurt Warner, Rams, Super Bowl XXXIV (2000)...Stats: 24-45, 414 yards, 2 TD, 0 interceptions in 23-16 win over Titans.
Warner led "The Greatest Show on Turf," becoming the first and only player to pass for more than 400 yards in a Super Bowl.
9. Joe Montana, 49ers, Super Bowl XXIII (1989)...Stats: 23-36, 357 yards, 2 TD, 0 interceptions in 20-16 win over Bengals.
Montana's second TD pass was the game winner, a 10-yard strike to John Taylor with 34 seconds left. San Francisco dominated offensively, outgaining the Bengals 453 yards to 229.
10. Tom Brady, Patriots, Super Bowl XXXVIII (2004)...Stats: 32-48, 354 yards, 3 TD, 1 interception in 32-29 win over Panthers.
Brady outdueled Jake Delhomme with a Super Bowl-record 32 completions. He led the drive that set up Adam Vinatieri's game-winning field goal with four seconds remaining.
11. Roger Staubach, Cowboys, Super Bowl XIII (1979)...Stats: 17-30, 228 yards, 3 TD, 1 interception in 35-31 loss to Steelers.
Staubach nearly brought the Cowboys back from a big hole, throwing two fourth-quarter TD passes. His effort was good enough to earn him honors as the top non-winning QB performance.
12. Bart Starr, Packers, Super Bowl I (1967)...Stats: 16-23, 250 yards, 2 TD, 1 interception in 35-10 win over Chiefs.
Starr's passing yards were impressive coming in an era when big totals weren't the norm. Starr made wide receiver Max McGee look like a Hall of Famer (7 receptions, 138 yards). McGee, who replaced an injured Boyd Dowler early in the game, broke the team curfew the night before and did not expect to play.
13. Jim Plunkett, Raiders, Super Bowl XV (1981)...Stats: 13-21, 261 yards, 3 TD, 0 interceptions in 27-10 win over Eagles.
Plunkett got the Raiders started on the right foot with two first-quarter touchdown passes, including an 80-yarder to Kenny King. Plunkett started the season backing up Dan Pastorini.
14. Brett Favre, Packers, Super Bowl XXXI (1997)...Stats: 14-27, 246 yards, 3 TD (1 rush), 0 interceptions in 35-21 win over Patriots.
Favre threw a 64-yard TD pass to Andre Rison on the second play from scrimmage and a then-record 81-yard scoring pass to Antonio Freeman. Add a rushing touchdown, and it's surprising that he was not named MVP (Desmond Howard won).
15. Tom Brady, Patriots, Super Bowl XXXIX (2005)
Stats: 23-33, 236 yards, 2 TD, 0 interceptions in 24-21 win over Eagles.
Brady had another near-flawless performance in the Patriots' most recent Super Bowl crown, but it was wide receiver Deion Branch (11 catches, 133 yards) who was named MVP.
16. Jake Delhomme, Panthers, Super Bowl XXXVIII (2004)
Stats: 16-33, 323 yards, 3 TD, 0 interceptions in 32-29 loss to Patriots.
Delhomme's numbers were excellent, but unfortunately for him, Tom Brady was on the other side of the field. Delhomme connected on a Super Bowl-record 85-yard TD pass with Muhsin Muhammad, but an early fumble by the QB led to a Patriots touchdown.
17. John Elway, Broncos, Super Bowl XXXIII (1999)
Stats: 18-29, 336 yards, 2 TD (1 rush), 1 interception in 34-19 win over Falcons.
Elway's last NFL game proved to be one of his best. In addition to his 80-yard TD pass to Rod Smith, Elway rushed for a score as Denver cruised.
18. Kurt Warner, Rams, Super Bowl XXXVI (2002)
Stats: 28-44, 365 yards, 2 TD (1 rush), 2 interceptions in 20-17 loss to Patriots.
Warner nearly led his heavily favored Rams to a win over the upstart Patriots with a TD pass and rushing TD in the fourth quarter. But Ty Law's 47-yard interception return in the second quarter hurt the Rams and Warner.
19. Terry Bradshaw, Steelers, Super Bowl XIV (1980)
Stats: 14-21, 309 yards, 2 TD, 3 interceptions in 31-19 win over Rams.
In his fourth and final Super Bowl championship, Bradshaw had touchdown passes of 47 yards to Lynn Swann and 73 yards to John Stallworth. Bradshaw was named game MVP for the second straight year.
20. Mark Rypien, Redskins, Super Bowl XXVI (1992)
Stats: 18-33, 292 yards, 2 TD, 1 interception in 37-24 win over Bills.
Rypien's solid performance resulted in both Gary Clark and Art Monk collecting more than 100 receiving yards for the Redskins. Rypien was named MVP.
And Darrell Green was one of my favorite “enemy” players of all time, too. That guy was a joy to watch — especially when he was consistently ranking among the fastest players in the NFL even in his early 40s!
Of course the greatest RB in Super Bowl history......Timmy Smith.
And yet that team was never able to win a championship in all those years!
Rex Grossman.
That is true to my regret.
see 22
You bring up a good point: the relative competition in the game. The poll doesn’t take upsets into account, nor rushing, nor unusually exceptional plays that succeed.
This article is designed to sell beer.
You forgot the sarcasm tag. 8-)
I couldn’t argue with you on Marino and I guess it just gets down to opinion on who’s the “best”. I’d say the top 5 in no special order (IMHO) would be Unitas, Bradshaw, Montana, Marneo and Staubach.
Even when they were good they always seemed to be missing one or more key ingredients. Their defensive unit was great, but I was never that high on Randall Cunningham, and they lacked a real go-to guy for their running game.
Buddy Ryan was a great defensive coach but he didn't know squat about the offense. I remember that Cunningham was coming along nicely until the coach who was guiding him had a heart attack while on the treadmill and died. Then Randall figured the NFL was just one big game of street ball.
The Eagles OL always got a bad rap no matter who was on it. How could they follow a blocking scheme if they had no idea where the QB was going to be? And Cunningham would never look deep. Just about all his passes were to the TE or fullback.
And that's my rant about the Buddy years.
I am sure it was a bit of a fluke but it was amazing to watch.
Back in 2001, when Doug Flutie played for the Chargers, the Skins played them the first game of the season and got beat badly. During the game, the Chargers ran a play where Flutie through a block on our linebacker - forget who - but basically it was a great block and cleared the way for a big play.
Who knows what would have happened if Jackie Smith had caught that pass. I was a kid of 8 when that game was played but I still remember it as one of my favorites.
...and I thank God that Smith dropped it.
Matt Bahr was the kicker for the New York Giants back in the early 1990s. During their Super Bowl season (1990-91) he took a reckless approach to his game in which he was usually the first guy down the field, making tackles on kickoffs.
I love my Redskins! I love Joe Gibbs even more! I was just a kid when Sonny was playing but I remember him and Kilmer battling it out.
That game was on the NFL Network the other night. That was one amazing 2nd quarter.
I believe the NFL Network will be showing that game next weekend.
I believe Doug Williams could have worn a blindfold and thrown the ball backwards over his left shoulder, and someone would have caught it for a long gain.
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