The first Super Bowl I ever watched was the Pittsburgh Steelers and Los Angeles Rams in January of 1980. I was 5. I have now watched 32 Super Bowls, some of them have been epic clashes, others have been big-time snoozers. I remember who I wanted to win each Super Bowl and its a wonder that I kept watching. As someone who liked the Dolphins, Broncos and Bills as a kid (as Packer-alternatives), the team I was rooting for one 2 of the first 15 Super Bowls I watched. Here is my ranking of these 32 games from worst/least memorable to best/most memorable.
32. SB XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - Barrett Robbins? Brad Johnson? and Finally we can put 0-14 to rest.
31. SB XXXV- Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - Dominant Ravens defense, No Giant offensive TD's, and Trent Dilfer - Super Bowl winning quarterback.
30. SB XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - Montana to Rice, Someone cover this guy, Or anyone for that matter and the Most lopsided Super Bowl ever.
29. SB XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - Troy, Emmitt and Michael get their first, Leon Lett vs Don Beebe, Blowout city and The Bills lose 3 in a row.
28. SB XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - Jim Plunkett, Kenny King, Al Davis and the First wildcard team to win a Super Bowl.
27. SB XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - Eugene Robinson's escapades, Back-to-back for Denver and Elway goes out a winner.
26. SB XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - Questionable officiating, Fast Willie Parker, and "The Bus" wins one in Detroit.
25. SB XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - Barry Switzer, Larry Brown, "Quantum Leap" sees the future and 3 in 4 years for the Cowboys.
24. SB XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - Devin Hester starts it off, Kelvin Hayden finishes it off and Peyton Manning gets a ring.
23. SB XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - Steve Young record-breaker, Jerry Rice and Rickey Watters 3 TD Club, and Young escapes the Montana shadow.
22. SB XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - Super Bowl rematch, Bills lead at halftime and Buffalo loses 4th straight Super Bowl.
21. SB XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - Almost perfect Phil Simms, Simms is going to Disney World and Parcells gets one last Gatorade bath.
20. SB XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - Redskins put up 35 in the 2nd, Timmy Smith over 200 and Doug Williams adds an MVP to many other Super Bowl firsts.
19. SB XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - Marcus Allen best run in Super Bowl history, AFC wins its last for 14 years and the City of Los Angeles gets one before everyone leaves town.
18. SB XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - Montana vs Marino, Almost a home game for San Fran, Million dollar commercials and #2 for Joe, the only for Dan.
17. SB XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - Where is Thurman's helmet? Mary Rypien MVP and Joe Gibbs wins a 3rd.
16. SB XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - Terrell Owens plays hurt, Donovan
McNabb takes his time, Another 3-point Patriot Super Bowl and Back-to-Back for New England.
15. SB XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - Ray Wersching's a busy man, Dan Ross is even busier and Joe Montana wins the first of four.
14. SB XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - The "Super Bowl Shuffle", The "Fridge", Ditka, no TD's for Walter and Buddy Ryan gets carried off the field.
13. SB XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles Rams 19 - The first I ever watched, Rams lead entering 4th, Bradshaw to Stallworth and Jack Lambert ices the Steelers 4th Super Bowl victory.
12. SB XLIV - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - Sean Payton's onside kick gamble, Tracy Porter takes a pick to the house and the City of New Orleans continues its revitalization.
11. SB XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - Wild 4th Quarter, Adam Vinatieri strikes again and of course, Wardrobe malfunctions.
10. SB XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - James Harrison 100 yards, Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald go off and Santonio Holmes tiptoes for the game-winner.
9. SB XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - Greatest Show on Turf" debuts, Warner to Issac Bruce, Kevin Dyson stopped a couple feet short and Dick Vermiel cries.
8. SB XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - Terrell Davis can't be stopped, The Elway helicopter, Holmgren lets them score and Denver "wins one for John".
7.
SB XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - The "Hogs", The "Killer Bees", Fulton Walker and John Riggins 4th and 1.
6. SB XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - "Greatest Show on Turf" closing act, Adam Vinatieri from 48 and Bill Belichick and Tom Brady start a lasting legacy.
5. SB XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - Tim Krumrie's leg, Jerry Rice all day, John Taylor at the end and Montana gets a 4th.
4. SB XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - Undefeated team, David Tyree's catch, Eli to Plaxico and the '72 Dolphins pop the champagne.
3. SB XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - Desert storm, Patriotism, Otis Anderson running wild, Wide right and a Huge upset.
2. SB XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - Packer Fan, (This is My list), Favre to Rison, Desmond Howard's kick return, Reggie doing his thing and the Trophy returns to Titletown. (Would fall behind SB XLIV for non-Packer fans)
1. SB XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - Alright, I admit this is not the greatest game of these 32, but again this is my list. Two things make this game #1 for me. First, the most obvious - I am a die-hard Packer fan. Second, I got to share this one with my son, who was just about the same age I was when I started watching the Super Bowl. Maybe someday he will list out his Top 32 Super Bowls, and maybe this one will be at the top of his list too. (Would fall behind SB XXXVI for non-Packer fans)
