Super Bowl History: Recapping The Wildest Endings in Super Bowl History
Rich Gannon's Inaccuracy
Heading into Super Bowl XXXVII, the Oakland Raiders had nothing to fear. They were led by the league's reigning MVP Rich Gannon. His monster season included 4,689 passing yards, 26 touchdowns and a 97.2 passer rating. Gannon was also facing the underdog Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Normally the Bucs wouldn't have been much of a threat except for the fact that Ex-Raider's and current Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden was prowling the sidelines. Gruden knew all of his ex-QB's signals and the result was messy. The Bucs' defense intercepted Gannon 5 times and sacked him often. The final score was 48 to 21 in favor of Gruden's new team.
Buffalo Bills Wide Right
Scott Norwood was a pretty good kicker for the Buffalo Bills. In fact, he retired as the Buffalo Bills' third leading scorer. But Norwood's accuracy from long range was atrocious. He was 0 for 6 from 50+ yards out. The farthest field goal kick he ever successfully completed was 49 yards. On grass, Norwood was 1 for 5 from 40+ yards out. So when Norwood's number was called on to win Super Bowl XXV for the Bills, the team and fans had reason to worry. The 47 yard attempt missed the uprights by a foot or two and the underdog New York Giants held on to win 20-19.
Buffalo Bill's Back to Back to Back to Back Super Bowls losses
Norwood's missed kick paved the way for Buffalo's Super Bowl woes over the next three seasons. No team had ever lost three straight, let along four straight, title games. In terms of football futility, only the Canadian Football League's Regina Roughriders have lost more championships in a row. They lost the Grey Cup final every year from 1928 to 1932.
Leon Lett's almost TD
Defensive tackle Leon Lett made a head's up play when he recovered a fumble on Dallas' 35 yard line. He nearly ran it all the way back for a touchdown when, in an attempt to mimic Michael Irvin's signature move, he stuck out his arm. Buffalo's Don Beebe dislodged the ball and recovered it in the end zone for a touchback.
Luckily, the play didn't cost the Dallas Cowboys the game against one of the worst teams in Super Bowl history, the very same Bills that lost four straight title games. The Cowboys went on to win Super Bowl XXVII 52-17.
Asante Samuel's droppend INT
The 2007 New England Patriots looked unstoppable. They engineered the first 16-0 regular season since the NFL added two games after the 1977 season. Led by Randy Moss's 23 touchdown receptions and Tom Brady's NFL record 50 touchdown passes (since broken), the Pats scored more points than any other team in NFL history up to that point. With two relatively comfortable playoff victories, the Pats boasted a perfect 18-0 win-loss record heading into Super Bowl XLII.
Asante Samuel had the game winning interception in his hands before he dropped the ball. Giants quarterback Eli Manning would wind up making two clutch throws in a row, including the famous helmet catch by David Tyree and the eventual game winner to Plaxico Burress. The 2007 Pat's had the distinction of being the only team to go 18-1 without winning it all. The 1985 Chicago Bears still hold that distinction en route to completing the greatest season of all time.
Which botched play do you think was the biggest Super Bowl blunder ever? Let us know in the comments section below.