The New England Patriots have been one of the most dominant football teams of the 21st century, and that includes winning numerous Super Bowls. No one could beat them. Well, no one but Eli Manning and the New York Giants. In 2008, during Super Bowl XLII, the Giants had a minute and 15 seconds left to try to pull off a win against the untouchable Patriots, who hadn't lost a game all season. The score was 14-10, with the Patriots in the lead.
Giants quarterback Manning managed to ward off several Patriots defenders and desperately launched a 32-yard pass to wide receiver David Tyree. The pass was high, but Tyree jumped up in the air and managed to catch the ball despite pressure from safety Rodney Harrison. As Tyree fell to the ground, he held the ball in place against his helmet while keeping Harrison at bay. No one knows exactly how he managed to hold on to it, but the Giants went on to score and win the big game 17-14.
Our second play on the list took place the next year in 2009, during Super Bowl XLIII, a matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals. The Steelers led the game at halftime but, during the second half, the Cardinals made a big comeback. The Steelers didn't give up.
On the last drive of the game, the Steelers managed to make their way down 78 yards toward their goal. With 35 seconds left, they needed just six more yards to get a touchdown. Things looked a bit hopeless as Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger launched the ball to the back corner of the end zone. Enter Santonio Holmes. Despite the awkward positioning, Holmes jumped up, made the catch, and managed to stay in bounds gracefully, leading the Steelers to a 27-23 win over the Cardinals. Holmes was also the MVP of the game.
In January 2000, the St. Louis Rams took on the Tennessee Titans for Super Bowl XXXIV. At first, the game was a bit of a dud. Neither team had scored a touchdown by halftime, although the Rams had three field goals, so they led 9-0. But by the fourth quarter, the game picked up, and some say it led to one of the most exciting quarters in NFL history. With 2:15 left in the game, the score was tied 16-16. The Rams came in and quickly scored a 73-yard touchdown, making the score 23-16.
It may have seemed like the game was over, but the Titans retaliated quickly. They managed to get to the 10-yard line with 6 seconds left on the clock. Their final attempt to score would require them to trick Rams linebacker Mike Jones into moving away from the middle of the field so that quarterback Steve McNair could pass to wide receiver Kevin Dyson. Jones was too smart for the play and managed to tackle Dyson at the 1-yard line, saving the game for the Rams.
While the Patriots have dominated postseason play during the 21st century, they almost missed out on their fourth Super Bowl win in 2015 during Super Bowl XLIX. Ask any football fan, and they probably remember the Seattle Seahawks making what's considered one of the biggest mistakes in NFL history.
Picture it. There are 20 seconds left in the game. The Seahawks are second and goal from the 1-yard line. They have arguably the best running back in the league, Marshawn Lynch, on their roster. But what do they do? Rather than relying on "Beast Mode" to run the ball in and get an easy touchdown, they have quarterback Russell Wilson pass the ball. The result was Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler grabbing the interception and the Patriots coming out on top 28-24.
The next play on the list takes us back to 1983 and a Super Bowl XVII matchup between the Miami Dolphins and Washington Redskins. At the start of the fourth quarter, the Redskins were down 17-13 in a game that was largely controlled by both teams' defenses.
At one point, the Redskins found themselves a fourth-and-1 from the Dolphins' 43-yard line. A field goal was out of the question, so they called on running back John Riggins. At 6 feet, 2 inches tall, and weighing 230 pounds, Riggins was a big guy, which is largely why the Dolphins' defenders couldn't stop him. He ran for a 43-yard touchdown. The Redskins went on to win the game 27-17.
The fact that the Philadelphia Eagles even made it to Super Bowl LII in 2017 was a miracle in itself. The team was playing behind backup quarterback Nick Foles. But the fact that the Eagles managed to beat the Patriots 41-33 was an even bigger miracle. Many people attribute the win to a trick play called the "Philly Special."
With 38 seconds left in the second quarter, the Eagles were fourth-and-goal from the Patriots' 1-yard-line. Essentially, the play saw center Jason Kelce snapping the ball to running back Corey Clement while Foles stood behind the right tackle. Clement tossed the ball to tight end Trey Burton, who turned and tossed it to Foles. The Patriots weren't expecting Foles to play the role of wide receiver, and he made the touchdown with ease. The Eagles went into halftime with a 22-12 lead and eventually into Super Bowl history.
Former Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway is arguably one of the best to ever play in the NFL. The superstar appeared in five Super Bowls, but he didn't win the big game until his fourth try, which was 1998. The Broncos were playing the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXII. Elway, with three Super Bowl losses under his belt, was determined not to rack up a fourth one.
In the third quarter, the game was tied 17-17. Elway needed a first down, and his only option was to rush the ball himself. To make it, he not only had to dive but also fly over Packers linebacker Brian Williams. Just as he did that, safety LeRoy Butler hit his legs while safety Mike Prior hit his shoulders. Elway spun around like a helicopter, hence the name of the play, but he landed on his back with a tight grasp on the ball, and he got the first down. The Broncos eventually scored a touchdown on that drive, and they went on to win Elway's first Super Bowl with a score of 31-24.
The combination of quarterback Peyton Manning and wide receiver Reggie Wayne was a pretty prolific one when the two superstars played for the Indianapolis Colts. They ended up showing off their stuff in Super Bowl XLIV in a 2010 matchup against the New Orleans Saints. With less than six minutes left in the game, the Saints were leading 24-17, but Colts fans knew Manning and Wayne could find each other for a touchdown to tie up the game.
But they didn't. Manning attempted to pass to Wayne who was running a stick route that involved some fancy maneuvering, but Saints cornerback Tracy Porter was too smart for that. He saw the play coming before it happened and stepped in front of Wayne to make the interception. To throw salt in the wound, Porter ran the ball for a 74-yard touchdown, and the Saints won the game 31-17.
There's no doubt that Joe Montana is an NFL legend, and his touchdown pass to John Taylor during Super Bowl XXIII is one of the reasons why. The year was 1989. Montana already had two Super Bowl wins under his belt. In this particular game, the quarterback and his San Francisco 49ers would match up against the Cincinnati Bengals. With 3:20 left in the game, the Bengals were up 16-13.
If the 49ers wanted to win the game, they had to make a 92-yard drive to a touchdown. It had never happened before, and it was unlikely to happen then. But never discount Montana. He got the 49ers to the Bengals' 10-yard-line and called a timeout with 30 seconds left on the clock. And then he decided to execute a play called the "20 Halfback Curl, X Up." Wide receiver Taylor lined up as a tight end, and when the ball was snapped, Montana made a perfect pass to him. Taylor hadn't made a single catch in the game, but he caught that one and ran it in for a touchdown. The 49ers won the game 20-16.
Often, a noteworthy Super Bowl play is the one that made the difference. A game-winning touchdown. An interception that cost the other team. Marcus Allen's 1984 touchdown run in Super Bowl XVIII wasn't a difference-maker. The Los Angeles Raiders would have won without it. After all, they beat the Redskins 38 to 9. But the play itself was so magnificent that it's worth mentioning.
Allen got the ball and had his work cut out for him. With seemingly the entire Redskins defense to get through, it looked like had nowhere to go, but somehow, Allen pushed through and ran for his life. He went a whopping 74 yards and scored a touchdown at the end of the third quarter. Allen ended up scoring twice during that game and had 191 rushing yards and 18 receiving. He was the game's MVP, and that 74-yard touchdown is still talked about today.
Say the phrase "28 to 3" to a Falcons fan, and you're unlikely to make a new friend. By the third quarter of the game, that's how badly the Falcons were beating the Patriots in Super Bowl LI in 2017. However, the Patriots managed to come back and win the game 34-28. Had it not been for Julian Edelman, that may never have happened.
The Patriots were at their own 36-yard line with about two and a half minutes left in the game. Quarterback Tom Brady threw a pass at Edelman, but his accuracy was off. Instead, he threw it directly to Falcons cornerback Robert Alford. It should have been an interception. But Alford could only tip the ball. Edelman faced double coverage from the Falcons' defense and all three men went for the ball but, somehow, Edelman still managed to get his hands on it. Then, it came loose as he fell to the ground. Even so, Edelman managed to grab it again and secure it before he fell.
A 100-yard interception and touchdown return in a Super Bowl. Seems unheard of, but back in 2009, it happened during Super Bowl XLII. The 2009 matchup between the Steelers and Cardinals was a close one, with a final score of 27-23. The Steelers came out on top, thanks to James Harrison.
Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner attempted a pass at wide receiver Anquan Boldin, but Harrison picked it off and started running for his life. Around the Steelers' 40-yard line, he hit a wall of Cardinals players, but somehow, he kept going. He was jumping over guys. He was barely avoiding tackles. Finally, at the 1-yard line, receivers Steve Breaston and Larry Fitzgerald managed to catch up with Harrison, who was utterly exhausted at this point, but they pushed him into the end zone. There was some debate over whether it was a touchdown or a 99-yard interception, but the referees reviewed the play and declared it a touchdown.
Super Bowl XXXI was a noteworthy game for several reasons. The matchup between the Patriots, led by quarterback Drew Bledsoe, and the Packers, led by quarterback Brett Favre in his first Super Bowl, received plenty of media attention. It still does. But what isn't talked about enough is wide receiver Desmond Howard's 99-yard kickoff return.
With about 3:24 left in the third quarter, Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri kicked off after a Patriots score, and the ball launched at Howard on the Packers' 1-yard line. Howard caught the ball and shot up the middle of the field, running at full speed. No one could touch him. He scored a touchdown that pretty much secured a win for the Packers. The final score was 35-21.
In 2012, Eli Manning and his Giants faced the Patriots in the Super Bowl yet again. They won this game as well by a score of 21-17. While Manning's game-winning catch to wide receiver Mario Manningham wasn't quite as noteworthy as the one to David Tyree, it still makes the list.
There were 3:46 remaining in the game, and the Giants were down 17-15 at their own 12-yard line. Desperate to get to the Patriots' end zone, Manning launched the ball 40 yards toward Manningham, who was double-covered by Patriots defenders along the left-hand sideline. Somehow, Manningham got the ball in his hands just before Patriots safety Patrick Chung tackled him, which kept the Giants' hopes alive and led to their game-winning touchdown.
Tracy Porter's interception wasn't the only remarkable play to take place during Super Bowl XLIV, an exciting matchup between the Saints and Colts. During the second half, Saints head coach Sean Payton made what is often called a gutsy call and the game's turning point.
Punter Thomas Morstead started the second half of the game with a surprising onside kick, which was recovered by Saints safety Chris Reis. Because so many players piled on top of him, it took officials over a minute to determine which team recovered the ball, eventually awarding it to the Saints, who went on to win the game.
