(NFL) Give me your Top 5 VANQUISHED Super Bowl opponents

[ChuckyTheGoat]

IE, list the Super Bowl teams that LOST. Of that group, who were the five Best?

Some come to mind immediately.

*OK, slow sports-day. Was thinking of something to do.

[mjsuax13]

4 Bills teams and give me the Falcons and their implosion.

[stevenash]

4 Bills teams and give me the Falcons and their implosion.

I was going to say the Buffalo-NYG SB was decided on a shanked FG attempt.

[ChuckyTheGoat]

4 Bills teams and give me the Falcons and their implosion.

Not bad. The 1990 Bills would definitely be on my list of Top 5.

They had the talent. They were worthy. I can point to one play that tilted the game:
*The Safety in the 1st half.
...Bruce Smith burst thru and hit Hostetler.
...Hostetler held onto the ball. 2 pts, but it easily could have been a Strip/Sack for 7 pts.
...Hostetler took a beating but stayed in the game. If Hostetler got knocked out, no way the Giants win.
...Also, the Bruce Smith safety showed Parcells that Jumbo Elliott couldn't hold out Smith. He turned to a power running game. Elliott run-blocking versus Smith was a good matchup (but pass-blocking was a huge mismatch for Smith).

[getaloadoffatso]

Both Cowboy teams with Staubach against the Steelers

Classic games
Both great teams

[pablo222]

2007 NE Patriots

[ChuckyTheGoat]

Both Cowboy teams with Staubach against the Steelers

Classic games
Both great teams

1978 Cowboys for sure.
...Try to count the # of Pro Bowlers in the 1978 game PITT vs DALL. If there were 44 starters, I'll bet 30 of them made at least one Pro Bowl. Talent all over the field.

[ChuckyTheGoat]

2007 NE Patriots

For sure. Patriots have to be at the top of the list.

[ChuckyTheGoat]

You guys hit 3 of them on my list.

What about the 1983 Redskins? Joe Gibbs was on record as saying that the 1983 Redskins were his best team. Just happened to have a bad game.
...Raiders were amazing in that game. The Derrick Jensen blocked punt. And what about the Jack Squirek pick-6? Ha-ha.
...Marcus Allen on the reverse-course rushing TD. That sealed it in the 2nd half.
...The Redskins were equipped to win Back-to-Back. Raiders shut the door.

[ChuckyTheGoat]

Here's my Top 5 in chronological order:

1968 BALT Colts
1978 DALL Cowboys
1983 WASH Redskins
1990 BUFF Bills
2007 NEW ENG Patriots

Honorable Mention: 1997 GBAY Packers, 2016 ATL Falcons

[Optional]

In my time of following NFL properly, Falcons in 2017 SB

[mjsuax13]

Not bad. The 1990 Bills would definitely be on my list of Top 5.

They had the talent. They were worthy. I can point to one play that tilted the game:
*The Safety in the 1st half.
...Bruce Smith burst thru and hit Hostetler.
...Hostetler held onto the ball. 2 pts, but it easily could have been a Strip/Sack for 7 pts.
...Hostetler took a beating but stayed in the game. If Hostetler got knocked out, no way the Giants win.
...Also, the Bruce Smith safety showed Parcells that Jumbo Elliott couldn't hold out Smith. He turned to a power running game. Elliott run-blocking versus Smith was a good matchup (but pass-blocking was a huge mismatch for Smith).

Chuck- you have a photographic memory. A play here or there and the Bills get one.

[mjsuax13]

2007 NE Patriots

Yes.

[ChuckyTheGoat]

Chuck- you have a photographic memory. A play here or there and the Bills get one.

Thanks, MJ! Maybe too much. It really was a play or two.

In that particular game, the Bills were so close to knocking Hostetler out of the game. And Simms was hurt. A Hostetler injury would have forced Matt Cavanaugh into the game.

Parcells figured out that ball-control was his only path to a Win. They rode Ottis Anderson hard.

Mark Ingram had the famous catch-and-scramble for the first down. Giants took the lead. And everyone remembers the Norwood kick: WIDE RIGHT.

[DwightShrute]

...

[mjsuax13]

Thanks, MJ! Maybe too much. It really was a play or two.

In that particular game, the Bills were so close to knocking Hostetler out of the game. And Simms was hurt. A Hostetler injury would have forced Matt Cavanaugh into the game.

Parcells figured out that ball-control was his only path to a Win. They rode Ottis Anderson hard.

Mark Ingram had the famous catch-and-scramble for the first down. Giants took the lead. And everyone remembers the Norwood kick: WIDE RIGHT.

That is the first Super Bowl I remember watching as a kid.

[DrunkHorseplayer]

2007 Patriots (Yes, the Giants got a miracle catch but a legendary offense only scored 14 points)
1983 Resdkins (The blocked punt was absolutely huge, way bigger than just about anybody thinks)
2001 Rams (The Patriots won because they cheated)
1990 Bills (Only 20 mintes TOP and they still only lost by a whisker)
1976 Vikings (McLanahan's fumble on the 1 was a killer and they lost to a 13-1 powerhouse)

[lakerboy]

1968 Colts.

[ChuckyTheGoat]

1968 Colts.

Morrall had a terrible game. Turnovers in the red-zone. Changed the course of history.

Namath made the prediction and got it home. IMHO, Namath played the perfect Field General game. He knew all the chess pieces.

In the book Namath talked about having to go up against Bubba Smith and Mike Curtis on the right flank. He knew that it was a bad matchup, so Namath stayed away from that side of the field. With the halftime lead, Namath threw a lot of short passes to check up clock in the 3rd quarter.

[ChuckyTheGoat]

Laker, wanted to give you one more thought on the 1968 Colts. That was the year that Unitas got injured. Morrall had a very good Regular Season, he actually won League MVP.

Unitas had been re-habbing. He lobbied with Shula to supplant Morrall for the game. Pretty hard to bench the league MVP in favor of a guy coming off injury.

Morrall starts, but had a terrible game. Unitas comes off the bench, but it's too late. They were down 16-0.

Very key point here. No two-point play. That was one of the rule agreements b4 the AFL-NFL merger went final.

Two years later the script was flipped. Morrall started, Unitas came off the bench. Colts beat the Cowboys in a turnover-filled game.

[Enkhbat]

Of course the Patriots when they had that perfect record going into the Super Bowl.