Super Bowls That Mirror The Chicago Cubs' Epic World Series
Jan 3, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) greets head coach Sean Payton moments before their game winning field goal in the fourth quarter against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome. The Saints won 20-17. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
The Chicago Cubs are the story of the sports world with their incredible World Series triumph after 108 years without a championship. The NFL has few comparisons.
However, football has seen plenty of dramatic title games that featured similar backdrops. Maybe not teams with the same drought as the Cubs, but circumstances that rivaled what they went through to get it done. Are there Super Bowls that compare to that unforgettable Game 7? Indeed there are and it’s time fans got a history lesson on just what some teams went through to be champions.
Super Bowl III
The game itself didn’t approach the excitement level of what the Cubs and Indians staged, but the meaning behind this game historic. For years the New York Jets and the rest of the AFL had been hearing it from every direction how their league was considered second class compared to the NFL. After two humiliating defeats in Super Bowls I and II, it was getting harder to argue. If they didn’t win this game, it could be catastrophic. Instead, spurred by a guarantee from QB Joe Namath, the Jets stunned the football world by defeating the heavily favored Baltimore Colts 16-7.
Super Bowl XVI
A team enduring decades of frustration with no championships. Constantly being the whipping post of other dynasties year after year. Sounds about right. That was the San Francisco 49ers all way through the 1970s. Then in 1981 things changed. They’d build a loaded young roster full of talents like Joe Montana and Ronnie Lott, guided by the great Bill Walsh. In the NFC Championship they slayed a former champion in the Dallas Cowboys. Last but not least they survived a comeback by a team from Ohio (Cincinnati Bengals) in Super Bowl XVI.
Super Bowl XXXII
That phrase “monkey off the back” never applied to a franchise quite like it did to the Denver Broncos by 1997. This was a team that had been railroaded in the Super Bowl four times by a combined score of 163-50. Most people expected more of the same in Super Bowl XXXII against the defending champion Green Bay Packers. There were plenty of close calls and near-disasters like star running back Terrell Davis leaving with a migraine. In the end though the Broncos pulled ahead 31-24 on a late drive and held on in the final minutes to erase decades of heartbreak.
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Super Bowl XXXIV
As championship droughts go, the St. Louis Rams had a sizable one going by 1999. They hadn’t tasted a such glory since the 1950s, back when the franchise was in Los Angeles. After another losing season in 1998, not one person expected them to compete that year. Especially after losing quarterback Trent Green to a torn ACL (Kyle Schwarber alert). No biggie. Unknown backup Kurt Warner takes over, leads them to a league-best 13-3 record and into Super Bowl XXXIV. There they too survive a huge comeback against Tennessee, stopping them at the goal line as time expired to preserve a 23-16 triumph.
Super Bowl XLIV
Sensing a pattern here yet? A long-suffering franchise that could only sniff success in brief spurts. The New Orleans Saints were never the ones to win when it mattered most. Then, all of a sudden, they got good. Spearheaded by a charismatic leader (Drew Brees) and brash coach (Sean Payton) the team made it to their first Super Bowl ever in 2009. Though the play was great, it was the hyper-aggressive play calling that took center stage. A second half onside kick turned the momentum and the Saints rode that all the way to a title. Suddenly, critics were silent.