An Exciting Fourth Quarter

Note: We've been busy at The Gridiron Uniform Database Blog this week and haven't been able to bring you articles daily as we would have liked.  Tim's Trivia Questions will continue to appear, and while we intended on running one every day this week, we just haven't been around to write for the blog everyday.  We hope you understand, and we'll give you three questions in today's entry. 

An Exciting Fourth Quarter
by Rob Holecko

Super Bowl XXXVIII was played eight years ago yesterday, on February 1, 2004.  Played in Houston, it was on the one year anniversary of the Space Shuttle Columbia accident, and it also came to be remembered for the "Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction" that occurred at halftime.

But perhaps instead this game should be remembered instead for the most exciting 15 minutes of Super Bowl football ever played.  At the beginning of the fourth quarter the Patriots led 14-10, and the two teams combined for thirty-seven points in the fourth, and an exciting 32-29 Patriots victory.  Wikipedia summarizes the fourth quarter as thus:

Beginning wiith 3:57 left in the third period, the Patriots put together a 71-yard, 8-play scoring drive, featuring tight end Daniel Graham's 33-yard reception to advance to the Carolina 9-yard line. Running backAntowain Smith then capped off the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run on the second play on the final period to increase their lead, 21–10. This was the start of another scoring explosion, one that became one of the biggest explosions in Super Bowl history, with both teams scoring a combined 37 points in the last 15 minutes, the most ever in a single quarter of a Super Bowl.

Delhomme started out Carolina's ensuing drive with a 13-yard completion to wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad. After committing a false start penalty on the next play, Delhomme completed a pair of passes to Smith for gains of 18 and 22 yards. Running back DeShaun Foster then scored on a 33-yard touchdown run, cutting the Panthers' deficit to 21-16 after Delhomme's 2-point conversion pass fell incomplete. The Patriots responded on their ensuing possession by driving all the way to Carolina's 9-yard line, but the drive ended when Panthers defensive back Reggie Howard intercepted a third down pass from Brady in the end zone. Then on 3rd down from his own 15-yard line, Delhomme threw for the longest play from scrimmage in Super Bowl history, an 85-yard touchdown completion to Muhammad. Carolina's 2-point conversion attempt failed again, but they took their first lead of the game, 22-21, with 6:53 remaining. It was the first time in Super Bowl history a team down 10+ points during the 4th quarter had come back to take the lead. Two other times teams came back to tie the game; the Tennessee Titans against the Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV and the Rams against the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVI.

However, New England retook the lead on their next drive, advancing 68 yards with the aid of a pair of completions from Brady to Givens for gains of 18 and 25 yards. Once again the Patriots were faced with third down and goal, but this time they scored with Brady's 1-yard pass to Vrabel, who had lined up in an eligible tight end position. Then on a two-point conversion attempt, running back Kevin Faulk took a direct snap and ran into the end zone to make the score 29-22. Despite amassing over 1,000 combined yards, Kevin Faulk's two-point conversion constituted the only points he scored all season.

The Panthers countered on their next possession. Foster started the drive with a 9-yard run and a 7-yard reception. After that, Delhomme completed a 19-yard pass to Muhammad, followed by a 31-yard completion to receiver Ricky Proehl. Then Proehl, who caught the fourth quarter game tying touchdown pass against the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVI 2 years earlier for the St. Louis Rams, finished the drive with a 12-yard touchdown reception. Kasay's ensuing extra point tied the game, 29-29, with 1:08 to play in regulation and it appeared that the game would be the first Super Bowl ever to go into overtime.

However, Kasay kicked the ensuing kickoff out of bounds, giving New England the ball on their own 40-yard line. Brady calmly led the Patriots offense down the field with a 13-yard pass to Brown on second down. An offensive pass interference penalty on Brown pushed New England back to their own 43-yard line, but another 13-yard reception to Brown and a 4-yard pass to Graham brought up a critical 3rd down and 3 from the Carolina 40-yard line. The Panthers defense could not prevent the Patriots from gaining the first down, as Brady completed a clutch 17-yard pass to Branch. On the next play, Vinatieri kicked a 41-yard field goal to give New England the lead, 32-29, with four seconds left in the game. Carolina failed on their last chance, as Rod Smart went nowhere on the ensuing kickoff, and the Patriots had won their second Super Bowl in three years. This was the fourth Super Bowl to be decided on a field goal in the final seconds. Super Bowl V was won on a last second kick by Jim O'Brien, Super Bowl XXV had Scott Norwood miss his field goal chance, and in Super Bowl XXXVIII, Adam Vinatieri made his.

We are proud to add this game to our database of NFL matchups.  There has never been a Super Bowl played on February 2, however in two years, the NFL will play the first outdoors, cold-weather site Super Bowl with Super Bowl XLVIII scheduled to be played at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, home of the Jets and Giants, on February 2, 2014.

~ ~ ~

Tuesday was Media Day at the Super Bowl, and in answering the media's various and disparate questions, the players of both teams, the Giants and the Patriots, wore their uniforms with the Super Bowl patches, and displayed for the first time what they will be wearing when they take the field Sunday.

While we won't officially add the uniforms for Super Bowl XLVI to the database until kickoff, we can go ahead and offer a sneak peek and display them for you today in our blog.  The Giants will again be the road team, and the Patriots the home team, so visually the teams will look a lot like they did when they met in Super Bowl XLII.  The league alternates Super Bowl years between the NFC and AFC Champion being the home team.  This is similar to Super Bowls X and XIII, when the Steelers and Cowboys met both times in Miami.  The Cowboys were the home team in XIII, while the Steelers were the home team in X, but whichever year the two teams met, the Cowboys would have worn white and the Steelers black, because the Cowboys generally wore white at home, although they did wear blue in Super Bowl V, when they faced the Colts.  The only visual difference between Super Bowls X and XIII was that X was played during the day, and the Orange Bowl still had astroturf.  By Super Bowl XIII, the NFL was playing the Super Bowls at night, and the Orange Bowl had switched to a grass surface.

~ ~ ~

Tim's Super Bowl Trivia Questions - "Are You Smarter Than TimmyB?" 

For today's installment, here are a few logo patch and supplier vector related questions for you:

What was the first Super Bowl where the team wore that year's Super Bowl logo patch on their jersey?

What was the first Super Bowl where the team(s) wore the supplier vector?

What was the last Super Bowl where a team did NOT wear the supplier vector?

Hog Day Afternoon

Hog Day Afternoon
by Rob Holecko

We resume our look back at past Super Bowls that we are adding to our database by taking a look at Super Bowl XVII.  Super Bowl XVII was played on January 30, 1983.  This was the latest a Super Bowl had ever been played.  The players' strike had resulted in a loss of seven weeks of games during the season and the ninth and final week of regular season games were played in the first weekend of January.  With teams playing shortened schedules, not all teams played the same amount of divisional games, so they abandoned divisions and just seeded the top 8 teams in each conference 1-8 and played a sixteen-team tournament, with the Championship being Super Bowl XVII.

The Washington Redskins and Miami Dolphins reached this game, and the 'Skins rushing attack of John Riggins behind one of the greatest offensive lines ever, known as the "Hogs", and also led by QB Joe Theismann and season MVP K Mark Moseley, won the game 27-17, with Riggins breaking for a touchdown on a key fourth down late in the game.

We are proud to add this game to our database.

Two later Super Bowls were also played on January 30, in 1994, the Dallas Cowboys won their second of two back-to-back championships, beating the Buffalo Bills in Atlanta for the second year in a row in Super Bowl XXVIII

Six years after that, the St. Louis Rams culminated their fantastic 1999 season, also in Atlanta, by stopping Kevin Dyson one yard short of the end zone and defeating the Tennessee Titans 23-16 in Super Bowl XXXIV.

These Super Bowls also are now in our database.

And now, we are also proud to debut a new segment that will run all week leading up to the Super Bowl.  It's a daily Super Bowl trivia question brought to you by our website historian, Tim Brulia.  It's called, "Do You Know As Much As Timmy B?"  Here's Tim with the first question:

~ ~ ~

What four instances did the "home" team of the Super Bowl NOT wear the home jersey that they normally wore that season? Bonus: can you tell me why?

Put your guesses in the comments and look for the correct answer and another question tomorrow!

~ ~ ~

Well, we'll be back tomorrow with more exciting Super Bowl related content, including another trivia question and Tuesday is also Media Day, and we'll be unveiling here in the blog the uniforms the Giants and Patriots will be taking the field in Sunday.

More Super Bowls

More Super Bowls
by Rob Holecko


Today, January 28th is the anniversary of three more Super Bowls for us to look back on here at the Gridiron Uniform Database in our daily feature, "On This Day."  Twenty-two years ago, the San Francisco 49ers broke the '85 Bears record of most points in a Super Bowl, when they defeated the Denver Broncos 55 to 10.  Six years after that, the Dallas Cowboys capped off their 1990s dynasty with their third Super Bowl of the decade, beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 27 to 10 in Super Bowl XXX in Arizona, and also on this day in 2001, the third Super Bowl held in Tampa was played as the Baltimore Ravens defeated the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV.

We are proud to add these Super Bowls to our database as we continue to build the Gridiron Uniform Database into the most complete and comprehensive resource of its' type anywhere on the internet.

Here are, from Wikipedia, in-depth reviews of these three games:

The 49ers blew out the Broncos by gaining 461 yards of total offense, holding the ball for 39:31, and scoring on six of their first eight drives. The San Francisco defense also limited the Broncos to 167 yards, 12 first downs, and a time of possession to 20:29.

On their opening possession, Denver was forced to punt after three plays and the 49ers scored on their ensuing drive, marching 66 yards and scoring on a 20-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Joe Montana to receiver Jerry Rice. 

The Broncos responded with a 49-yard scoring drive, mainly on plays by running back Bobby Humphrey, who rushed 4 times for 22 yards and caught a 27-yard shovel pass, Elway's longest completion of the game. Kicker David Treadwell finished the drive with a 42-yard field goal to cut the Broncos deficit to 7–3. 

Denver's defense forced San Francisco to punt on their next drive after 3 plays, and receiver Vance Johnson gave his team good field position with a 7-yard return to the Broncos' 49-yard line. But then Humphrey lost a fumble at midfield while being tackled by defensive end Kevin Fagan, and safety Chet Brooks recovered the loose ball for San Francisco.
From then on, the 49ers completely took over the game. Ten plays after the fumble recovery, the 49ers scored on a 7-yard pass from Montana to tight end Brent Jones. Kicker Mike Cofer missed the extra point attempt, keeping the score at 13–3, but it turned out to be the only miscue the 49ers would make for the rest of the game. Once again, the Broncos were forced to punt three plays after the ensuing kickoff, and the 49ers advanced 69 yards in 13 plays to score another touchdown. The key player on that drive was fullback Tom Rathman, who caught 3 passes for 39 yards, kept the drive alive with a successful run on a fourth down conversion, and capped it off with a 1-yard touchdown to make the score 20–3. Later in the second quarter, wide receiver John Taylor's 17-yard punt return gave the 49ers the ball near midfield, and they scored another touchdown with a 38-yard completion from Montana to Rice, increasing their lead to 27–3 at the end of the half.

When the second half started, the 49ers picked up right where they left off. Linebacker Mike Walter intercepted Broncos quarterback John Elway's first pass of the third quarter, and Montana threw a 28-yard touchdown reception to Rice on the next play. Then Elway was intercepted again on the Broncos' ensuing drive, this time by Brooks, who returned the ball 38 yards to the Denver 37-yard line. Two plays later, Montana fooled defensive back Steve Atwater with a pump fake in Rice's direction, and then threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Taylor, making the score 41–3.

Denver's lone touchdown came on their next possession, a 61-yard, 5-play drive. First, Broncos defensive back Darren Carrington returned the ensuing kickoff 39 yards to the 39-yard line. Elway's 13-yard completion to Johnson, a 34-yard run from Humphrey, and a pass interference penalty on 49ers linebacker Bill Romanowski moved the ball to the San Francisco 1-yard line. Elway then capped off the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run on third down, cutting their deficit to 41–10.

However, the 49ers continued to dominate the Broncos. San Francisco responded to Denver's score with an 11-play, 75-yard drive that took 6:56 off the clock, and ended with Rathman's 3-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter. Then after the ensuing kickoff, Elway was sacked for a 6-yard loss by defensive end Danny Stubbs. Then after an offsides penalty on the 49ers, cornerback Don Griffin sacked Elway, forcing a fumble. Stubbs recovered the loose ball and returned it 15 yards to Denver's 1-yard line. 49ers running back Roger Craig then closed out the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run on the next play to make the final score of the game 55–10.

Rice finished the game with 7 receptions for 148 yards and a Super Bowl record 3 receiving touchdowns (he joined teammate Roger Craig as the only players to score three touchdowns in a Super Bowl; Craig did it in Super Bowl XIX – 2 receiving and 1 rushing). Craig was the leading rusher of the game with 69 rushing yards and a touchdown, while also catching 5 passes for 34 yards. Rathman rushed for 38 yards and 2 touchdowns while also catching 4 passes for 43 yards. Taylor caught 3 passes for 49 yards and a touchdown, and added another 38 yards on 3 punt returns. Elway was held to just 10 completions out of 26 attempts for 108 yards with no touchdowns, and was intercepted 2 times. Elway also ran for a touchdown, and fumbled twice (although he recovered one of them). Humphrey was Denver's leading rusher and receiver, with 61 rushing yards and 3 receptions for 38 yards. Carrington returned 6 kickoffs for 146 yards.

Super Bowl XXX began with Dallas wide receiver Kevin Williams returning the opening kickoff 18 yards to the 29-yard line. On Dallas' first possession Troy Aikman completed a 20-yard pass on second down to wide receiver Michael Irvin, followed by a 23-yard gain by Emmitt Smith to advance to the Pittsburgh 28-yard line. On third down and eight from the 26-yard line, Williams could only gain 2 yards on a reverse play, forcing Dallas to settle for a 42-yard Chris Boniol field goal.

On the Steelers' first possession, the Dallas defense forced a three-and-out and subsequent punt, which Cowboy cornerback Deion Sanders returned 11 yards to the 25-yard line. After 2 Smith runs, Aikman completed two quick passes, the first to Irvin for an 11 yard gain and the second to Sanders (who was brought in on offense as an extra receiver) for 47. Four plays later, Aikman completed a 3-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jay Novacek (playing in what would be his last game, as Novacek missed the following season due to back injuries before retiring), increasing Dallas' lead to 10-0.

After the Steelers managed to advance to the Dallas 36-yard line on their ensuing drive, the possession fell apart due to a miscue by center Dermontti Dawson. Pittsburgh had lined up in the shotgun formation, and Dawson's snap sailed over quarterback Neil O'Donnell's head. O'Donnell managed to recover the fumble, but the Steelers were unable to recover from the 13-yard loss and had to punt 2 plays later.

After the punt, Dallas drove to the Steelers 24-yard line. However, a pass interference penalty on Irvin nullified a 24-yard touchdown reception, and moved the ball back to the 34-yard line. On the next play, Aikman completed a 19-yard pass to Novacek, bringing up second down and 1 to go from the 15-yard line. However, the Steelers defense stopped Smith for no gain on the next play, and then tackled him for a 3-yard loss on third down. Boniol then kicked a 35-yard field goal, increasing Dallas' lead to 13-0.

After an exchange of punts, Steelers wide receiver Andre Hastings returned John Jett's punt 11 yards to the Pittsburgh 46-yard line. After O'Donnell's first down pass fell incomplete, Dallas linebacker Charles Haley then sacked the Steeler quarterback for a 10-yard loss, forcing 3rd down and 20. O'Donnell's next pass was a 19-yard completion to Hastings, and then a 3-yard fourth down run by wide receiver/backup quarterback Kordell Stewart netted a first down. Nine plays later, O'Donnell threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Yancey Thigpen with just 13 seconds left in the half, cutting Pittsburgh's deficit to 13-7.

After the third quarter began with another exchange of punts, the Steelers advanced the ball to their own 48-yard line. However, on third down, Cowboys cornerback Larry Brown intercepted O'Donnell's pass at the Dallas 38-yard line and returned it 44 yards to the Pittsburgh 18-yard line. Aikman then completed a 17-yard pass to Irvin to reach the 1-yard line, setting up a 1-yard touchdown by Smith to increase Dallas' lead to 20-7.

On their next drive, the Steelers had second down and 2 on their own 47-yard line, but turned the ball over on downs after running back Bam Morris was tackled for no gain on 3 consecutive running plays: a draw play to the left, a run to the left, and one to the middle. The Steeler defense held, however, forcing Dallas into a three-and-out; after a 6-yard run by Smith and an incompletion, Aikman's third down pass was broken up by defensive back Rod Woodson (who had missed most of the season due to a knee injury), forcing the Cowboys to punt.

On their next drive, the Steelers advanced from their own 20-yard line to the Dallas 19. Dallas defensive end Tony Tolbert sacked O'Donnell on third down for a 9-yard loss, however, forcing Pittsburgh to settle for kicker Norm Johnson's 46-yard field goal with 11:20 left in the game, cutting the deficit to 20-10. On the ensuing kickoff, Pittsburgh surprised the Cowboys by executing a successful onside kick, with defensive back Deon Figures recovering the ball for Pittsburgh at their own 47-yard line. O'Donnell hit Hastings on two consecutive passes for 23 total yards. His next pass went to wide receiver Ernie Mills for 7 yards, and then Morris ran for 5 yards and caught a pass for a 6-yard gain to the Dallas 11-yard line. Three plays later, Morris scored on a 1-yard touchdown run, cutting Pittsburgh's deficit to 20-17.

With the aid of linebacker Levon Kirkland's 8-yard sack on Aikman, the Cowboys were forced to punt on their next drive and Pittsburgh regained possession of the ball at their own 32-yard line with 4:15 remaining. On second down, however, Brown intercepted another O'Donnell pass and returned it 33 yards to the Steelers' 6-yard line.

Two plays later, Smith scored once again with 3:43 left in the game, increasing the Cowboy lead to 27-17. The Steelers responded by driving to the Dallas 40-yard line, but after O'Donnell threw 4 consecutive incompletions, Pittsburgh turned the ball over on downs with 1:42 left in the game. After that, Dallas ran out most of the clock with three quarterback kneels and an intentional delay of the game penalty before punting the ball back to the Steelers. Pittsburgh regained possession of the ball with three seconds remaining, but O'Donnell's hail mary pass was intercepted by Dallas safety Brock Marion on the final play of the game.

The Steelers had outgained the Cowboys in total yards, 310-254 (201-61 in the second half) had 25 first downs compared to the Cowboys 15, and limited Dallas' powerful running attack to just 56 yards. However, they were unable to overcome O'Donnell's interceptions, which led to two Cowboy touchdowns. The irony of the game was that O'Donnell entered Super Bowl XXX as the NFL's career leader in fewest interceptions per pass attempt.

Troy Aikman finished the game with 15 out of 23 completions for 209 yards and a touchdown (Aikman became just the third quarterback to win three Super Bowls; Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana each won four). Smith was the Cowboys' leading rusher with 49 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. (Smith became just the 5th player to score a touchdown in three different Super Bowls, joining Lynn Swann, Franco Harris, Thurman Thomas and Jerry Rice; he also became the first player to rush for two touchdowns in two different Super Bowls). Irvin was Dallas' top receiver with 5 catches for 76 yards. Novacek caught 5 passes for 50 yards and a touchdown. Defensive end Chad Hennings recorded 2 sacks.

Although his 3 interceptions were costly, O'Donnell recorded 28 of 49 completions for 239 yards and a touchdown. Morris was the top rusher of the game with 73 yards and a touchdown, and caught 3 passes for 18 yards. Hastings was the top receiver of the game with 10 receptions for 98 yards, and returned 2 punts for 18 yards. Mills caught 8 passes for 78 yards and gained 79 yards on 4 kickoff returns, giving him 157 total yards.

Charles Haley became the first player to win 5 Super Bowls, winning two with San Francisco (XXIII and XXIV) and two previously with Dallas (XXVII and XXVIII). Barry Switzer became the second head coach, after former Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson, to win a college football national championship (University of Oklahoma 1974, 1975, 1985) and a Super Bowl title.

After a many-year long tradition of presenting the Vince Lombardi Trophy to the winning team in its locker room after the game, the NFL instituted an on-the-field presentation ceremony for Super Bowl XXX. This new tradition has been followed by the NFL ever since.

The outcome of the game had rather large ramifications for two soon-to-be free agents after their performances. Larry Brown, who was named Super Bowl MVP for his two interceptions, parlayed his performance into a lucrative free agent contract with the Oakland Raiders. However, he was not very effective and was cut from the team after two injury-plagued seasons. Neil O'Donnell left the Steelers in the offseason and signed a long-term free agent contract with the New York Jets, accepting New York's more lucrative offer. O'Donnell's tenure in New York, like Brown's in Oakland, was plagued by injuries and ineffective play and he was released from his contract following the 1997 season. Both players finished their careers as backups, Brown returning to the Cowboys in 1998 and O'Donnell playing for the Cincinnati Bengals and Tennessee Titans until his retirement in 2003.

Both defenses dominated early in the first quarter as the first five possessions of the game ended in punts. On the fifth punt, Ravens kickoff/punt returner Jermaine Lewis returned the ball 33 yards to the New York 31-yard line. Although a holding penalty on the return moved the ball back to the 41-yard line, Baltimore took only two plays to score on quarterback Trent Dilfer's 38-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brandon Stokley.

Early in the second quarter, a holding penalty against the Giants nullified linebacker Jessie Armstead's 43-yard interception return for a touchdown that would have tied the game. Later in the period, Dilfer completed a 44-yard pass to receiver Qadry Ismail to set up a 47-yard field goal by Ravens kicker Matt Stover to extend Baltimore's lead, 10-0. With the aid of a 27-yard run from running back Tiki Barber, the Giants advanced all the way to the Ravens' 29-yard line on their ensuing drive, but Baltimore defensive back Chris McAlister intercepted a pass from Kerry Collins to keep New York scoreless at halftime.

The Giants forced the Ravens to punt on the opening drive of the second half. Five plays later, Baltimore safety Kim Herring intercepted Collins at the New York 41-yard line. The Ravens then advanced to the 24-yard line, but the drive stalled and Stover missed a 41-yard field goal attempt.

After an exchange of punts, Baltimore defensive back Duane Starks intercepted a pass from Collins and returned it 49 yards for a touchdown, setting off a chain of events unseen before in Super Bowl history: three touchdowns on three consecutive plays in 36 seconds. On the ensuing kickoff, Ron Dixon returned the ball 97 yards for the Giants' first and only score of the game. But Jermaine Lewis returned the next kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown, making the score 24-7 for the Ravens. It was the first time in history two kickoffs were returned for touchdowns in the same Super Bowl game, and on back-to-back kickoffs.

The Giants gained only one first down on their final four possessions, and were never able to move the ball into Baltimore territory. Meanwhile the Ravens added 10 more points to their lead, making the final score 34-7. A few possessions after Jermaine Lewis' touchdown, New York punter Brad Maynard's 34-yard punt from his own 4 to the 38-yard line and tight end Ben Coates' 17-yard reception set up a 3-yard touchdown run by running back Jamal Lewis early in the fourth quarter. Dixon fumbled the ensuing kickoff to Baltimore defender Robert Bailey, setting up Stover's 34-yard field goal with 5:27 left in the game.

Well, we've got a lot of exciting new things coming up at the Gridiron Uniform Database, so "stay tuned."  Tomorrow is the Pro Bowl, and the Super Bowl is only a week away.  Look for some exciting Super Bowl Trivia question from our historian Tim Brulia in the coming days.

Super Bowl XXV

Today we welcome back guest blogger and Giants fan, bigbluelarry, aka Larry Schmitt, with a feature on the Giants' second Super Bowl Championship, Super Bowl XXV, which was played on January 27, 1991 in Tampa.

Super Bowl XXV

by Larry Schmitt

Super Bowl XXV was one of the most exciting and compelling games in NFL history. It featured the only win-it or lose-it kick in a title game (Jim O'Brien's attempt in SB V and Adam Vinetari's in SB's XXXVI & XXXVIII came with the scores deadlocked. Had they missed, those respective games would've gone into OT. Only Scott Norwood has been burdened with the outcome of the Super Bowl being squarely on his foot. 

Giants running back Ottis Anderson
carried the ball 21 times for
102 yards and one touchdown
was named Super Bowl MVP.

Strategically fascinating, the "Smashmouth" Giants, with their powerful running game and stout defense (they were #1 in points allowed and #2 in yards allowed), were a throwback team, playing a style of football that was reminiscent of the 1950's. The Buffalo Bills were "the new thing," using a no-huddle attack that was a hybrid of the Run-and-Shoot, only the Bills kept a TE on the field instead of four WR's. Buffalo was unstoppable in the playoffs. They ran over, through and around Miami and Los Angeles in the playoffs, scoring a total of 95 points and accumulating 995 yards of offense in only two games! 

The Giants lost their starting quarterback Phil Simms to a broken foot in mid-December, but back up Jeff Hostetler came in and led the Giants to wins in their last two regular season games to finish the season 13-3, and the Giants smothered Chicago and San Francisco in the playoffs, surrendering only a single touchdown and 16 total points in the postseason.

When the irresistible force met the immovable object, the battle of wills swung back-and-forth. A late touchdown before half time cut the Bills lead to 12-10. The Giants opened the second half with a 16-play, 75-yard TD drive that consumed 9:29 - the longest drive in Super Bowl history to that point [coincidentally, it would be broken by the Giants in Super Bowl XLII]. The Bills' Thurman Thomas put on an impressive performance, rushing for 135 yards on only 15 carries and catching 5 passes for 55 yards. He gave Buffalo the lead with a 31 yard run on the first play of the 4th quarter. 

Giants defensive coordinator Bill Belichick's hybrid "Big Nickel" defense tested the patience of QB Jim Kelly, who called his own plays. Fielding two down linemen and five or six defensive back on every play, the Giants forced the Bills to run short routs underneath the coverage shell and physically punished their receives after the catch and surrendered very few big plays the Buffalo had been accustomed to. Trailing 20-19 and possessing the ball on their own 10-yard line and 2:16 on the clock, Kelly began a heroic drive. Moving the Bills mostly on the ground - three scrambles and two Thomas runs accounted for 51 of the drive's 61 yards -  Kelly set up the infamous FG attempt at the New York 29 yard-line. Of course, Norwood's kick has forever been tabbed as "Wide Right" and the Giants celebrated their second Super Bowl win in for years. Buffalo would return the big game three more times successively, an unprecedented run of conference supremacy.

For the first time, the teams uniforms featured the logo for that season' Super Bowl - a large shield with the roman numeral XXV, a practice that would not become commonplace until Super Bowl XXXII after the 1997 season.

Box Score: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/199101270buf.htm

A Silver Anniversary

Today at the Gridiron Uniform Database we welcome 'bigbluelarry' aka Larry Schmitt, our resident Giants expert who will take over the reins of our "On This Day..." series twice this week to look back at the Giants' Super Bowl victories.  Today is the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Giants' first Super Bowl championship in Super Bowl XXI in January 1987.  Larry will be back Friday to give the same treatment to Super Bowl XXV.

~ ~ ~

A Silver Anniversary
by Larry Schmitt

In Super Bowl XXI, Phil Simms had a record day

It's hard to believe I'm sitting here writing about 25th anniversary of the Giants' first Super Bowl as they are getting ready to play their fifth. For long-time fans of the Giants, Super Bowl XXI was a dream come true, and most of us deep down probably felt like it may never happen for us. Indeed, at the conclusion of the game, Giants radio voice Jim Gordon summed it up perfectly, "the Giants have accomplished something most people thought they would never see." 

The Giants' LB Carl Banks

It had been 30 years since the Giants had won a title, and the theme of that team during their playoff run was "burying the ghosts" of Charley Conerly, Frank Gifford, Andy Robustelli and Sam Huff. There were still holdovers from the lost decade of the 70's on the team: George Martin, Harry Carson and Brad Benson. Quarterback Phil Simms still had many doubters and was often booed as the Giants passing game struggled in the regular season (he threw more INT's than TD's that year). The teams strength was the powerful front seven of their 3-4 defense (masterminded by defensive coordinator Bill Belichick) and their "Suburbanite" offensive line and TE Mark Bavaro blocking for HB Joe Morris, who rushed for a then team record 1,516 yards.


The defense was dominant in the playoff games at Giants Stadium, not even surrendering a single touchdown in beating San Francisco 49-3 and Washington 17-0. But Simms stole the spotlight at the Rose Bowl against John Elway's Broncos, passing for a record 22-25 for 268 yards and three touchdowns and was the first Super Bowl MVP to declare he was "going to Disney world."

Spider Lockhart in his heyday

Uniform wise, the Giants wore their basic home blue jerseys with red and white trim that were their staple from 1980-1999. They were augmented however by a patch memorializing a Giant great who had passed away during the offseason, Carl "Spider" Lockhart, who was one of their few bright spots during the lean years of the late 60's and early 70's. They featured two versions of the patch that season, a blue one on their white jerseys and a white one on their blue jerseys, which to my knowledge is a unique treatment for a memorial patch. (Editor's note: The 1997 Atlanta Falcons did something similar for owner Rankin Smith, and the Minnesota Vikings have twice in their history used white & color memorial patches.) The Denver Broncos made their second Super Bowl appearance in 1986, and wore their road white jerseys which were unchanged since their last appearance in the big game in 1977. There were some minor modifications made to Denver's socks, which changed from blue to orange, and the striping on their pants, however, as a whole the uniforms would remain basically the same until the 1997 re-design.


Box Score: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/198701250den.htm

~ ~ ~

Thanks, Larry, great job!  We're proud to add this game to our website, and we look forward to more Giants' stuff from you in the future.

Super Bowl XVI

Super Bowl XVI
by Rob Holecko


On this day thirty years ago, the San Francisco 49ers captured their first Super Bowl.  It was the beginning of the Niners' 1980s dynasty that would see them win four Super Bowls with Joe Montana at quarterback, as well as a fifth with Steve Young in 1994.

The Niners' return to prominence this season ended Sunday with a loss to the Giants in the NFC Championship Game, but today we will look back to this game in January 1982 where it all began.

From Wikipedia:

Super Bowl XVI was an American football game played on January 24, 1982, at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan (a suburb of Detroit) to decide the National Football League champion following the 1981 regular season. It marked the first time that a Super Bowl was held at a cold-weather city. The domed stadium saved the crowd at the game from the very cold and snowy weather, but the weather did affect traffic and other logistical issues related to the game. Icy roads and a windchill well below zero caused the 49ers motorcade to be delayed out on the slippery roads before they finally made it to the Silverdome, although no one was hurt and the team made it there with plenty of time before kickoff.

The National Football Conference NFC champion San Francisco 49ers (16-3) defeated the American Football Conference AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals (14-5), 26-21. Although the Bengals gained 356 yards of total offense to the 49ers' 275, San Francisco forced 5 turnovers and jumped to a 20-0 lead by halftime. This marked the first time in Super Bowl history that the team which compiled the most yards and touchdowns lost.
49ers quarterback Joe Montana was named the Super Bowl MVP, completing 14 of 22 passes for 157 yards and one touchdown, while also rushing for 18 yards and a touchdown on the ground.

This game was also the first Super Bowl for the CBS team of Pat Summerall and John Madden. Summerall had already worked eight Super Bowls, including three as the play-by-play voice for CBS (X, XII, XIV), but this was the first Super Bowl for the two of them together.  They would go on to do four more with CBS (XXVIII, XXI, XXIV, XXVI) as well as three with FOX (XXXI, XXXIII, XXXVI) while Madden would team up with Al Michaels to do 2 on ABC (XXXVII & XL) and another with NBC (XLIII).    Madden debuted the use of the telestrator called the 'CBS Chalkboard' to diagram plays during instant replays in this game.

We are proud to add this game to our collection of head-to-head match-ups in the Gridiron Uniform Database.

~ ~ ~

In all the excitement over Sunday's thrilling Conference Championship games, we decided to take yesterday off at the Gridiron Uniform Database blog. It was just as well, as there were no Super Bowls ever played on January 23, however there was one memorable NFC Championship game that we'd like to "flash-back" to.

On January 23, 2000, twelve years ago, the Greatest Show on Turf almost met their match, as the high-flying offense led by Kurt Warner and Marshall Faulk were trailing the defensively-minded Tampa Bay Buccaneers 6-5 late in the game.  Would a great defense hold off a great offense and make it to Super Bowl XXXIV?  Well they almost did, but Warner hit Ricky Proehl with a 30-yard touchdown pass with 4:44 left and the Rams were on their way to the Super Bowl in Atlanta and the record books.

We are happy to add this game to our database as well.

~ ~ ~

Congratulations to the Giants and the Patriots for making it to Super Bowl XLVI, and we'll be back tomorrow with a special guest entry as we look back at the Giants' first Super Bowl Championship twenty-five years ago.

Conference Championships

Championship Sunday 
by Rob Holecko


Today is the day we will find out what two teams will meet in Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis in two weeks.  Any of the four possible matchups have great possible storylines.  It could be a first ever Super Bowl with opposing teams coached by brothers....it could be a rematch of either Super Bowl XLII or Super Bowl XXXV...or it could be the franchise of the 2000s versus the franchise of the 1980s...

But first we get to enjoy a couple great conference championship matchups.  In the early game today, the Baltimore Ravens take on the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship, while in the later game the San Francisco 49ers will host the New York Giants in the NFC Championship.

Who do we at the Gridiron Uniform Database website think is going to win?  Well, here are our picks...

Bill Schaefer..."What I want and what I think are 2 different things.  I'd like to see 49ers-Ravens but I think that it will be the Patriots and the Giants, so I'm going to split the difference and say Patriots over 49ers."

Tim Brulia..."As much as I hate to say it, I'll pick the Ravens over the Giants. That would be the fourth Super Bowl (along with I, XXVII and XXXII) that will feature the two road teams winning Conference Championships.  But I am rooting for the Giants and Patriots. So far, though, I am 0-for-8 in the playoffs."

Rob Holecko..."I think it will be the Giants over the Patriots.  The Giants are just playing too good right now, and I think they will beat the 49ers today, and I think the Patriots won't make the same mistakes they made two years ago in the playoffs when they lost to the Ravens.  In the Super Bowl, I think the Giants will beat the Pats again, just like they did four years ago."

Well, there you have it our Super Bowl picks...

~ ~ ~

On This Day.... a couple great Super Bowls were played on January 22nds.  Who can forget Marcus Allen's touchdown run when it went one way, then turned around and went the other way and ran for the touchdown, or how about Jack Squirek's interception return of Joe Theismann right before halftime.  The Raiders defeated the Redskins 38-9 in the first Super Bowl in Tampa in Super Bowl XVIII.  Then five years later, Joe Montana led the 49ers on a game winning drive over the Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII, and the 49ers won their third Super Bowl Championship of the 1980s in Bill Walsh's final game.  A couple great Super Bowls to remember as we look forward to see what new memories will be made this Super Bowl season.

Wait, What... Don't Tell Me! I Messed Up Again!

Somehow a week ago on January 15, I messed up, by writing about Super Bowl XIII as being played on January 15, when even in the graphic I had the correct date of January 21, 1979.  The list I was looking at had the calendar year, not the season, so when I saw '1978' I should have realized it was the '1977' season's Super Bowl that was played on that day.

So, nonetheless, since the On This Day... for January 21st Super Bowl has already been added to the database, we shall today cover the Super Bowl from the day that we missed, Super Bowl XII.

Super Bowl XII
by Rob Holecko

America's Team the Dallas Cowboys captured their second Vince Lombardi trophy on January 15, 1978 when they defeated the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XII 27 to 10.  The summary from Wikipedia:

Super Bowl XII was an American football game played on January 15, 1978 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion following the 1977 regular season. It was the first Super Bowl played inside a domed stadium.

The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys (15-2) defeated the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos (14-3), 27–10. The Cowboys defensive team dominated most of the game, forcing 8 turnovers and allowing only 8 pass completions by the Broncos for just 61 yards.

For the first and only time, two players won Super Bowl MVP honors: defensive tackle Randy White and defensive end Harvey Martin. For White, the honor was won on his 25th birthday. This was also the first time that a defensive lineman was named as the Super Bowl MVP.

We are proud to add this game to our database, and you can see it along with other Super Bowls that have been added on our new Super Bowl page.

Visit us tomorrow here at the Gridiron Uniform Database Blog where we'll preview the AFC and NFC Championships and also take a look back at a couple great Super Bowls from the 1980s played on January 22.

The Stupor Bowl

The Stupor Bowl
by Rob Holecko

Yesterday we told you about America's Team, the Dallas Cowboys, and how their dynasty began with a Super Bowl VI win over the Dolphins.  Well, they made it to the Super Bowl the year before that as well, losing to the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl V, forty-one years ago today.

Super Bowl V was the first Super Bowl played after the completion of the AFL-NFL Merger. As per the merger agreement, all 26 AFL and NFL teams were divided into 2 conferences with 13 teams in each of them. The NFL's Colts, the Cleveland Browns, and the Pittsburgh Steelers agreed to join the 10 AFL teams to form the AFC. The remaining 13 NFL teams formed the NFC. This explains why the Colts represented the NFL in Super Bowl III, but not the NFC for Super Bowl V.

Super Bowl V was a sloppy, poorly executed display of football.   The game is sometimes called the "Blunder Bowl" or the "Stupor Bowl" because it was filled with poor play, penalties, turnovers, and officiating miscues. The two teams committed a Super Bowl record 11 combined turnovers in the game, and the Colts' 7 turnovers are currently the most ever committed by a winning team in a Super Bowl. Dallas also set a Super Bowl record with 10 penalties, costing them 133 yards. Bubba Smith refused to wear his Super Bowl V ring because of the "sloppy" play.

It was finally settled with five seconds left when Colts rookie kicker Jim O'Brien kicked a 32-yard field goal. In order to win the game, Baltimore had to overcome a 13–6 deficit at the half, losing their starting quarterback in the second quarter.

It is also the only Super Bowl in which the Most Valuable Player Award was given to a member of the losing team: Cowboys Linebacker Chuck Howley, who intercepted two passes. Sacks and tackles were not yet recorded. It was the first time a QB didn't win the award. Howley refused to accept the award because it was meaningless to him after his team lost.

Even though it is one of the least memorable Super Bowls, in fact it is possibly the Millard Fillmore of Super Bowls, we are still proud to add it to our database of matchups.

America's Team

America's Team
by Rob Holecko

 Forty years ago today, the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI at Tulane Stadium in  New Orleans.  After coming up short in NFL Championships to the Green Bay Packers and losing a sloppy Super Bowl V to the Colts the year before, the Cowboys finally got a championship for the man in the fedora, Tom Landry.  They would add another six years later against the Broncos, and while they would possibly be remembered as the foil of the team of the 70s, the Steelers, losing twice to them in Super Bowls, the 70s Cowboys, America's Team could make an argument for being the team of that decade as well.  They appeared in one more Super Bowl than Pittsburgh, and while (2-3) is worse than (4-0), their period of excellence lasted from 1966 through 1981, much longer than the Steelers.  The 1981 NFC Championship was that team's swan song, as they would fall into mediocrity in the mid-1980s, before Jerry Jones would buy the team, hire Jimmy Johnson and build a new, 1990s dynasty.

Super Bowl VI would be the last game the Dolphins would lose before going undefeated the following year and winning the next two Super Bowls.

We are proud to add Super Bowl VI to our database of game matchups included here at the Gridiron Uniform Database.

~ ~ ~

The last time the Ravens won a home
playoff game, a 2000 Wild Card
game against the Broncos, they
went on to win Super Bowl XXXV.

Yesterday, the New York Giants went into Lambeau Field and defeated the #1 seed 15-1 Green Bay Packers, setting up a 1990 NFC Championship Game rematch, one previewed by bigbluelarry a few days ago.  The Giants outplayed the Packers in every phase of the game, and even overcame a few bad calls that went in the Packers favor.  They are hot right now, similar to 2007, when they upset the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.  But they will face a strong 49er team that also played a great game Saturday beating the Saints.  It should be a great game Sunday.

In the AFC, the Ravens won their first home playoff game in eleven years, defeating the Texans and will face the Patriots next Sunday in the AFC Championship.  The Ravens will face a tough task against a Patriots team that, despite a below-league-average-defense, appears to be hitting on all cylinders.

Will Super Bowl XLVI be a Super Bowl XLII rematch?  Or how about "The Harbaugh Bowl"?  Or maybe a Super Bowl XXXV rematch between the Ravens and Giants.  Or how about Tom Brady going for his fourth Super Bowl to tie Bradshaw and Montana against Montana's team, the 49ers.

Any of the four combinations that could reach the Super Bowl look to be an exciting matchup, by after watching that game yesterday, I'd have to say the Giants are the hottest team right now, and as of now, I pick it's going to be the Giants over the Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI.  Later this week Bill and Tim will be bringing you their picks as well.

~ ~ ~

Speaking of past great NFC Championships, yesterday was the 17th anniversary of the 1994 NFC Championship.  This was the third straight NFC Title game featuring these two teams.  It was also the first NFC Championship on FOX.

1994 was the NFL's 75th anniversary season, and many teams wore throwback uniforms during the year, the 49ers and Cowboys in this game included.  The Cowboys were two-time defending Super Bowl champions, but this time the 49ers got the best of them and defeated Dallas 38-28, and went on to the Super Bowl and defeated the Chargers, and Steve Young finally got the monkey of the back.
 

This game was requested by Villaroman Santos, and we are proud to add it to our database as well.  If you would like to request any game to be added, be feel free to email us.

The First World Championship Game: AFL vs NFL

The First World Championship Game
by Rob Holecko

When the NFL Champion Green Bay Packers and the AFL Champion Kansas City Chiefs met 45 years ago today in the first game that would grow to be annual spectacle that we now know of as the Super Bowl, it was little more than an afterthought.  The Packers had just wrapped up their 10th NFL Championship against the Dallas Cowboys and were heavily favored to beat the underdog Chiefs.  The AFL Champion Chiefs were hoping to show that an AFL team deserved to be on the same field as the NFL Champion.

The Packers dominated the Chiefs and won 35 to 10.  They would win the following Super Bowl as well, but the AFL's Jets and these very Chiefs would Super Bowls III and IV, and the merger became complete with the former AFL teams gaining full acceptance as equal and full competition for their more established NFL counterparts.

For more in-depth information on this game, you can read the Wikipedia entry on it here.

Also January 15 is the anniversary of one of the best Super Bowls ever played, the 1978 season's Super Bowl XIII.  The Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys met for the second time in four Super Bowls, and both teams were in their third Super Bowl in the past five years.  The game went back and forth, a key drop by Cowboys TE Jackie Smith in the end zone was the difference in a 35-31 Steeler victory.

We are proud to add these two games, the first ever "Super Bowl" and one of the most exciting Super Bowls, to our collection of matchups in the Gridiron Uniform Database.  We plan on rolling out a new feature in the coming days showcasing all of the Super Bowl matchups, so stay tuned for that.

~ ~ ~

Also, we are closing in on 100,000 visitors (not unique visitors -- I know it's many of the same visitors who keep coming back, but still) -- thank you for the continued interest in our site.  Speaking of which, we wouldn't have been able to do this without Uni Watch, and this morning I clicked my shortcut to uni-watch.com, and this came up:

I don't know if I'm just navigating wrong or something happened to their site.  I hope they didn't get hacked or anything.  Maybe some right-wing nut job just is having some fun, who knows?  Anyway, if anyone knows anything, or they get it fixed, let us know in the comments.  (This just in, Uni Watch's front page is back up.)

~ ~ ~

Steve Young threw six touchdowns
in Super Bowl XXIX, a mark that
Tom Brady tied yesterday

Of the two games yesterday, the only real question was would the Saints come out in white-over-black or white-over-gold.  Tim Brulia & I guessed the white-gold, while Bill Schaefer went with white-black.  They did go with white-gold, but it wasn't enough to defeat the 49ers, who prevailed on a play eerily similar to "The Catch II", the 1998 playoff game against the Packers which featured Terrell Owens catching a touchdown down the middle of the field between defenders and coming off the field in tears, hugging coach Steve Mariucci.  Yesterday Vernon Davis caught a touchdown down the middle of the field between defenders and came off the field in tears, hugging coach Jim Harbaugh.

In the other came, Tebow-mania finally came to an end as the Patriots routed the Broncos.  Tom Brady tied Steve Young and Daryl Lamonica's postseason record of six touchdown passes in a game.

Enjoy the Texans-Ravens and Giants-Packers games today! These both should be pretty predictable matchups, the Texans always go white-over-navy wearing white on the road, and the Ravens, considering it's a day game, we expect will be in purple-over-white, as Tim said, "BAL likely in Purple/white, but I'd be thrilled if 'the team I love to hate' went purple/black."  (Added: This just in, Ravens are in purple/black -- see picture to the right -- so I guess we can color Tim thrilled!)
  
The Giants and Packers should, of course, have no uniform surprises, either, as they re-stage the 2007 NFC Championship Game today. Unfortunately for the Giants, they won't be able to count on Brett Favre throwing a critical late-game interception this time.  If the Giants should pull off the upset, we'll be looking at re-match of the 1990 Giants-Niners NFC Championship that bigbluelarry told us about earlier in the week.  Otherwise we'll see another classic Niners-Packers playoff game.