2002: Patriots Stun Rams to Win Super Bowl XXXVI

Super Bowl XXXVI on February 3, 2002 looked to be a blowout in the making. The St. Louis Rams, with a 14-2 record and seeking to win two titles in three years, were up against the 11-5 New England Patriots, who had come from nowhere and were not considered to be of the same caliber.

The Rams, under Head Coach Mike Martz, entered the 2001 season expecting to contend for a title. They boasted the NFL’s most explosive offense, led by QB Kurt Warner, the league leader in passing (101.4 rating), passing yards (4830), touchdowns (36), completions (375), yards per attempt (8.8), and completion percentage (68.7) as well as league MVP choice of the Associated Press and NEA. Wide receivers Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt were both Pro Bowl performers. RB Marshall Faulk, who ran for 1382 yards and gained another 765 on 83 catches, garnered the other MVP trophies (Pro Football Writers Association and Bert Bell Award). The unheralded defense benefited from the addition of 33-year-old CB Aeneas Williams. Having won the NFC West with the league’s best record, St. Louis routed the Packers in the Divisional playoff and then got past the Eagles to win the conference title.

In 2000, the first year under Head Coach Bill Belichick, the Patriots finished at the bottom of the AFC East with a 5-11 tally, and not much more was anticipated in ’01. It certainly didn’t appear that the team was anything special when it fell to 5-5 following a loss to the Rams in November. But from that point, New England didn’t lose again, winning the last six regular season games. They barely defeated the Raiders in a snowy Divisional round contest and got past Pittsburgh for the AFC Championship. Coaching, starting with Belichick, certainly played a role, as did the coming together of a defense that didn’t allow more than 17 points in any of those eight wins. But the emergence of QB Tom Brady (pictured above), who took over for injured veteran QB Drew Bledsoe in September, paid huge dividends as he displayed outstanding game-management skills and great ability in clutch situations. Still, the Patriots came into the Super Bowl as two-touchdown underdogs.

There was a crowd of 72,922 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans and the Patriots broke with tradition by eschewing the usual player introductions to be introduced en masse as a team, emphasizing the club’s cohesiveness. The clubs traded punts to start off the game. On their second possession, the Rams drove 48 yards in ten plays with Warner completing six of seven passes. Jeff Wilkins kicked a 50-yard field goal to give St. Louis the early lead.

After the Patriots went three-and-out, the Rams again drove into New England territory, the highlight being a 29-yard pass completion from Warner to WR Az-Zahir Hakim on the second play of the second quarter. But after penetrating to the 34 yard line, Wilkins was wide to the left on a 52-yard field goal attempt.


New England held onto the ball for seven plays but again had to punt. However, on the third play of the next St. Louis possession, CB Ty Law intercepted a Warner pass that was intended for Bruce and returned it 47 yards for a touchdown (pictured at right). In stunning fashion, the Patriots were in front at 7-3.

With under two minutes remaining in the first half, Warner threw to WR Ricky Proehl for a 15-yard gain to the New England 40, but safety Antwan Harris forced a fumble and CB Terrell Buckley recovered for the Patriots. Brady hit on passes to WR Troy Brown for 16 yards and eight yards to TE Jermaine Wiggins to get to the St. Louis 24. Following an eight-yard carry by RB Kevin Faulk, Brady threw to WR David Patten for an eight-yard TD and the Patriots went into halftime with an improbable 14-3 lead.

Coach Belichick had learned from the loss to St. Louis during the regular season, when he had tried to key on blitzing Warner. This time, he sought to keep Marshall Faulk in check and loaded up with as many as six or seven defensive backs on each play. The strategy was having the desired effect, as Warner’s rhythm was disrupted and the fleet wide receivers were kept in check.

The teams went back to trading punts in the third quarter, battling for field position. Late in the period, after the Rams had advanced to the New England 45, Warner was intercepted again, this time by CB Otis Smith, who returned the pickoff 30 yards to the St. Louis 33. Five plays later, Adam Vinatieri kicked a 37-yard field goal to make the score 17-3.

With the game moving into the fourth quarter, the Rams began to come alive as Warner hit on short passes, completing six in a row to reach the New England three. Following two incompletions and facing a fourth-and-three situation, Warner ran and fumbled when hit by LB Roman Phifer. Patriots FS Tebucky Jones picked up the ball and took off for an apparent 97-yard touchdown, but the play was nullified by a defensive holding penalty on DE Willie McGinest. Gaining a huge reprieve, Warner ran for a two-yard touchdown shortly thereafter and New England’s margin was cut to 17-10.

The teams again traded punts, and the Patriots had consecutive three-and-out possessions. After the second one, and with under two minutes remaining, the Rams took over at their 45 yard line. Warner threw to Hakim for 18 yards, WR Yo Murphy for 11, and then the slow-but-steady Proehl for a 26-yard touchdown. With the extra point, the game was tied at 17-17 and it appeared likely that the contest would go into overtime.

New England’s offense took over at its own 17 with 1:21 now on the clock and no timeouts remaining. Brady threw two passes to RB J.R. Redmond that covered 13 yards. After an incompletion, he went to Redmond again for another 11 yards to his own 41. A 23-yard pass to Brown took the ball into Rams territory at the 36 and a throw to Wiggins added another six yards. With seven seconds now remaining, Brady spiked the ball to stop the clock and Vinatieri, who was rapidly becoming recognized as an outstanding clutch kicker, booted a game-winning 48-yard field goal (pictured below). In an amazing upset, the Patriots won their first championship by a score of 20-17.


The Rams won the statistical battle, outdistancing New England in total yards (427 to 267), first downs (26 to 15), and time of possession (33:30 to 26:30). But the Patriots didn’t turn the ball over, while taking advantage of three St. Louis turnovers to score 17 points.

Tom Brady was the game’s MVP as he completed 16 of 27 passes for 145 yards and a touchdown and showed great poise in directing the game-winning drive. Troy Brown (pictured below) led New England’s receivers with 6 catches for 89 yards. RB Antowain Smith rushed for 92 yards on 18 carries.


The strategy of keying on Marshall Faulk held the Rams’ running game to 90 yards, with Faulk gaining 76 of that total on 17 attempts and catching four passes for 54 yards – ordinary by his standards. Kurt Warner was successful on 28 of 44 passes for 365 yards, but with just one TD against two interceptions. Az-Zahir Hakim, Isaac Bruce, and Torry Holt all caught five passes apiece, with Hakim gaining the most yards (90; Bruce and Holt gained 56 and 49 yards, respectively).

“When Adam hit it, it was so true,” said Bill Belichick of Vinatieri’s game-winning field goal. “It was so high and so far. If you want a guy to make a play at the end of the game, he's the one.”

Of the Rams, Ty Law said, “I don't think they looked past us, but at the same time, I don't think they were expecting this type of fight.”

“I don't think we were overconfident,” a disappointed Kurt Warner stated from the St. Louis perspective. “We played hard, but those few turnovers, those few mistakes we made, they turned them into points. Some days they don't turn into anything, but they turned them into 17 points and a world championship. That's what's so hard about this loss. It was the fact our mistakes did us in today.”

The championship for the Patriots proved to not be a fluke as the club won two more over the next three years and consistently contended beyond that. St. Louis, in the meantime, moved in the opposite direction. Warner suffered through two injury-marred seasons in 2002-03 and was let go – he would eventually revive his career in Arizona. The team dropped to 7-9 in ’02, and after rebounding to 12-4 in 2003, fell into mediocrity thereafter.

2009: Steelers Come Back to Defeat Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII

That the Pittsburgh Steelers were representing the AFC in Super Bowl XLIII on February 1, 2009 was of little surprise. That their NFC opponent was the Arizona Cardinals came as a shock to many pro football fans. The club had not appeared in a league title game since 1948 and hardly seemed likely to do so in 2008.

The Cardinals, coached by Ken Whisenhunt, had won the AFC West in ‘08, but with a lackluster 9-7 record. Moreover, after taking command of the division at 7-3 midway through November, the team went 2-4 the rest of the way and looked especially bad when blown out at Philadelphia and New England. But in the postseason, where it was greatly anticipated that they would be eliminated quickly, they defeated Atlanta at home in the Wild Card round, dominated the 12-4 Carolina Panthers at Charlotte, and then returned to University of Phoenix Stadium and held off the Eagles to win the NFC title.

37-year-old QB Kurt Warner revived his career in Arizona and had the outstanding wide receiver corps of Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston to throw to. The defense ranked 28th in the league in points surrendered during the regular season, but stepped up in the playoffs. DT Darnell Dockett, linebackers Karlos Dansby and Gerald Hayes, FS Antrel Rolle, and Pro Bowl SS Adrian Wilson were the featured players on the unit.

The Steelers, under Head Coach Mike Tomlin, were far more formidable in winning the AFC North at 12-4. They beat the Chargers in the Divisional playoff round and then won a hard-hitting battle with division-rival Baltimore for the AFC Championship. QB Ben Roethlisberger’s statistics dropped in 2008, primarily as a result of suffering a shoulder separation in the season-opening game, but he still was able to lift the offense in clutch situations – he guided the Steelers to six game-winning drives during the regular season, either in the fourth quarter or in overtime. The running game was hindered by injuries to veteran RB Willie Parker and rookie Rashard Mendenhall. But WR Santonio Holmes had come on strong late in the regular season and playoffs. The defense was outstanding and included NT Casey Hampton, SS Troy Polamalu, and an excellent group of linebackers led by the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, James Harrison.

There were 70,774 fans in attendance at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa for what was expected to be a classic mismatch. Pittsburgh got the ball first and drove 72 yards in nine plays. Roethlisberger completed passes of 38 yards to WR Hines Ward and 21 yards to TE Heath Miller along the way. The big quarterback (6’5”, 240 pounds) attempted to cap the drive himself by running the final yard on a third-and-goal play, and it initially appeared that he had been successful when a TD was signaled. However, the Cardinals successfully challenged the play and the Steelers settled for an 18-yard Jeff Reed field goal instead.

Arizona punted following its first possession of the game and once again the Steelers put together a long drive that started off with a 25-yard pass completion from Roethlisberger to Holmes. Pittsburgh went 69 yards in 11 plays and, on the second play of the second quarter, scored a touchdown on a one-yard carry by RB Gary Russell to take a 10-0 lead.

The Cardinals came back as Warner completed five short passes and then threw long to Boldin for a 45-yard gain down to the Pittsburgh one yard line. Warner tossed a pass to TE Ben Patrick for the final yard and a TD to again make it a three-point game.

The teams traded punts, until a tipped pass by Roethlisberger was intercepted by Dansby to give Arizona the ball at the Pittsburgh 34 with two minutes remaining in the half. Again Warner completed short passes to move the Cardinals along, and they once more faced a first-and-goal situation at the one yard line. But Warner’s pass that was intended for Boldin was instead intercepted by Harrison at the goal line, who proceeded to return it 100 yards for a touchdown (pictured below), just barely falling across the goal line at the end with no time remaining. The longest (and arguably most thrilling) play in Super Bowl history made the score 17-7 as the teams went into halftime.


Following a punt by the Cardinals, Pittsburgh put together yet another long drive in its first possession of the second half. Moving from their 18 yard line (the Steelers had nearly gotten the ball in Arizona territory upon recovering what was initially ruled a fumble by Warner, but the play was overturned upon challenge), they reached the Cardinals’ nine yard line and kicked a field goal. However, an unnecessary roughness penalty on Adrian Wilson gave Pittsburgh a first down at the Arizona four instead. Parker ran for two yards, but then Roethlisberger threw an incomplete pass and was dropped for the loss of a yard on third down. They ended up settling for a 21-yard field goal by Reed.

The game entered the fourth quarter with the Steelers ahead by 20-7, and the clubs traded punts as time appeared to be running out for the Cardinals. Arizona had not been able to move the ball effectively thus far, and Larry Fitzgerald had been particularly quiet, but that all changed as the Cardinals went into a no-huddle offense and put together a scoring drive. Warner passed on every down and was successful on all eight of his throws, including four to Fitzgerald. A one-yard touchdown pass from Warner to Fitzgerald brought the Cardinals to within six points of the Steelers.

Pittsburgh went three-and-out on the following possession, with the key play being Darnell Dockett’s sack of Roethlisberger for an eight-yard loss. The Cardinals had to punt as well, but pinned the Steelers back at their one yard line. On a third-and-ten play, it appeared that Roethlisberger had completed a 19-yard pass to Holmes to get out of trouble, but a holding penalty in the end zone not only nullified the first down but gave Arizona two more points on a safety.


The Cardinals received the ensuing free kick and, after an incompletion on the first play, Warner fired a short pass to Fitzgerald that resulted in a 64-yard touchdown (pictured at right). With the extra point, Arizona was in the lead at 23-20 and there were just under three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. They had scored 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter, and seemed on the verge of a stunning upset.

Following the kickoff, Pittsburgh took over at its 22 yard line. A holding penalty backed the Steelers up to the 12, but Roethlisberger hit Holmes twice with passes covering 14 and 13 yards, and an 11-yard completion to WR Nate Washington got them to midfield. After a four-yard run by Roethlisberger, he again threw to Holmes on a play that covered 40 yards to the Arizona six. On second-and-goal, Roethlisberger went to Holmes once more, throwing high into the end zone at the right corner. Holmes stretched just high enough to catch the ball, kept his toes barely in bounds, and scored the six-yard touchdown that put the Steelers back in front (pictured at top).

The Cardinals had one last chance, taking over with 35 seconds on the clock. Warner threw to Fitzgerald for 20 yards and RB J.J. Arrington for 13, but with the ball now at the Pittsburgh 44, Warner fumbled while being sacked by LB LaMarr Woodley and DE Brett Keisel recovered for the Steelers to end the threat. The Steelers won their sixth Super Bowl by a score of 27-23.

The Cardinals significantly outgained Pittsburgh (407 yards to 292) and had the edge in first downs (23 to 20). The also suffered 11 penalties, at the expense of 106 yards, to 7 flags thrown on the Steelers and gave up two turnovers to Pittsburgh’s one. Neither team mounted much of a running attack, with the Steelers gaining just 58 yard on 26 carries while Arizona ran the ball 12 times for 33 yards.

Ben Roethlisberger completed 21 of 30 passes for 256 yards, including a touchdown and an interception, and was at his best in the game-winning drive. Santonio Holmes, the game’s MVP, caught 9 passes for 131 yards and the TD. Willie Parker was the leading rusher with 53 yards on 19 carries.

For the Cardinals, Kurt Warner (pictured below) went to the air 43 times and completed 31 of those passes for 377 yards, three for touchdowns while one was picked off. Anquan Boldin caught 8 passes for 84 yards and Larry Fitzgerald gained 127 yards on 7 receptions that included two TDs, while Steve Breaston contributed 6 catches for 71 yards. RB Edgerrin James accounted for all 33 rushing yards on 9 attempts.

“Was that a 60-minute game, or what?” exclaimed Steelers LB James Farrior. “It came down to the last play, and we made it.”

The sixth Super Bowl victory for the Pittsburgh franchise pulled it ahead of Dallas and San Francisco, although the Steelers were still short of Green Bay’s total of 12 league titles.

The Steelers slumped to 9-7 in 2009 and missed the playoffs. Kurt Warner came back for one last season in ’09 and led the Cardinals to another NFC West title, but after winning a high-scoring thriller in the Wild Card round of the postseason, they were thrashed by New Orleans in the Divisional round.

2008: Warner Passes for 395 Yards and Cards Hold On to Beat Seattle

QB Kurt Warner (pictured above) had experienced a rebirth of his career with the Arizona Cardinals, and the team was now poised to make the most of it. After coming out of nowhere to lead the Rams to a championship in 1999 and putting together three outstanding seasons from ’99 to 2001, Warner’s career had come crashing down over the next two seasons. Losing his starting job to Marc Bulger, he moved on to the Giants for a year and acted as mentor to rookie QB Eli Manning, and then came to Phoenix in 2005 to do the same for QB Matt Leinart.

However, circumstances moved Warner back to the forefront with the Cardinals. Leinart struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness, and the veteran was productive in his appearances. After Leinart went down with a collarbone injury early in the 2007 season, Warner took over the starting role and didn’t relinquish it. With outstanding wide receivers to throw to in Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin, the 37-year-old quarterback was thriving in 2008 and the team was contending in the mediocre NFC West.

The Cardinals had been perennial underachievers, and since moving to Phoenix in 1988 finished over .500 just once through ’07. That they had gone 8-8 in 2007 under new Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt was cause for celebration. By the time they faced the Seattle Seahawks at Qwest Field on November 16, 2008, they were sporting a 6-3 record.

The Seahawks were in the tenth and final year under the direction of Head Coach Mike Holmgren, who had announced prior to the season that ’08 would be his last. They had experienced success during Holmgren’s tenure, winning the previous four division titles and going to the Super Bowl following the 2005 season. But by the time they faced the Cardinals, they were 2-7. Injuries were a key factor in the club’s collapse, in particular the loss of QB Matt Hasselbeck, who had missed the previous six games due to a back injury.

Arizona started strong, scoring on its first two possessions. The first was a 13-play drive that resulted in a 38-yard field goal by Neil Rackers and the second covered 89 yards in seven plays that led to a four-yard touchdown run by RB J.J. Arrington. Along the way, Warner had connected with Boldin twice for 54 yards and once to Fitzgerald for 20. The Cardinals had a 10-0 lead after one quarter.

Rackers added a 48-yard field goal in the second quarter before Seattle got on the board. CB Josh Wilson intercepted a Warner pass at his own 23 and returned it 58 yards to the Arizona 19. Shortly thereafter, Hasselbeck threw for a 13-yard touchdown to RB Maurice Morris. The Cardinals got the ball back with less than a minute to go in the half and managed a 54-yard field goal by Rackers as time expired to take a 16-7 lead into halftime.

Arizona appeared to put the game away in the third quarter as Rackers kicked his fourth field goal, of 26 yards, and Warner ended a ten-play drive with a six-yard TD pass to Arrington. The Cardinals’ margin was stretched to 26-7.

However, the Seahawks fought back on their next possession. Josh Wilson returned the kickoff 56 yards to the Arizona 36 yard line. Seattle drove to the three, but it appeared that the Cardinals had extinguished the threat when LB Karlos Dansby intercepted Hasselbeck’s pass in the end zone on a third-and-three play. However, rather than taking a touchback, Dansby returned the interception to the ten yard line and fumbled. It was recovered by OT Walter Jones and the Seahawks had a new set of downs and made the most of it. Five plays later, RB T.J. Duckett scored a touchdown from a yard out. An attempted two-point conversion failed.

Arizona got the ball back, but on the second play Warner fumbled when sacked by DT Brandon Mebane and DE Darryl Tapp recovered at the Cardinals’ 14. Duckett ran for another TD from two yards out after Seattle successfully converted a fourth down as Hasselbeck ran for five yards on a fourth-and-three play. Suddenly, Arizona’s margin was reduced to six points (they kicked the extra point this time) with 9:41 left on the clock.

With the crowd of 67,616 now aroused and unleashing a deafening roar, the Cardinals held the ball for seven plays on their next possession, but an intentional grounding call on Warner forced them to punt. Seattle got the ball back on its own 26 with 5:38 remaining and apparent momentum. However, at this critical juncture the offense went nowhere in three plays and had to punt.

Arizona ran almost two minutes off the clock before punting with just over two minutes remaining. But on the first play, Hasselbeck’s long pass intended for WR Deion Branch was intercepted by CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and the Seattle threat was finally extinguished. The Cardinals held on to win, 26-20.

That Seattle came so close to pulling the game out was nothing short of amazing since Arizona significantly outgained the Seahawks, 458 yards to 196, and had the edge in first downs, 24 to 18. Seattle converted just one of nine third downs and gained a woeful 43 yards rushing on 22 attempts. The Seahawks also gave up four turnovers, to Arizona’s three.

However, considering all of the yards gained, Arizona only got into the end zone twice, benefiting from a perfect four-for-four field goal performance by Neil Rackers. They also were penalized eight times, as opposed to one flag thrown on the Seahawks.


Kurt Warner completed 32 of 44 passes for 395 yards with a touchdown and an interception. It was his fourth straight 300-yard performance (of an eventual five), a club record. Both wide receivers had big days, with Anquan Boldin catching 13 passes for 186 yards and Larry Fitzgerald (pictured at right) adding 10 receptions for 151 yards. J.J. Arrington ran for 40 yards on 8 carries with a TD and RB Tim Hightower had 35 yards on his 11 attempts.

For Seattle, Matt Hasselbeck was good on 17 of 29 passes for 170 yards with a TD and three interceptions (two by Rodgers-Cromartie). Deion Branch was the leading receiver with four catches for 54 yards. RB Julius Jones gained 19 yards on 10 carries to lead the team, and Hasselbeck was right behind with 17 yards on four attempts. While T.J. Duckett scored two short touchdowns, he had a total of five yards on as many carries.

The win for Arizona was as huge as the loss for the Seahawks was devastating. Any hopes for climbing back into the race were eliminated for Seattle, while the Cardinals appeared set to win the division.

It did not go so easily for Arizona the remainder of the regular season, however, as the club lost its next two games and four of the last six to end up at 9-7. While they won the NFC West title, it was widely anticipated that the Cardinals would be dispatched quickly in the postseason, but instead they defeated Atlanta, Carolina, and Philadelphia, respectively, to advance to and win the NFC Championship before barely succumbing to Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl. The Seahawks finished at 4-12 for third place in the division.

Kurt Warner ranked among the league leaders with 4583 yards and 30 touchdown passes while completing 67.1 % of his passes with only 14 interceptions. He was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time since 2001.

Larry Fitzgerald led the NFL with 12 touchdown receptions (tied with Detroit’s Calvin Johnson) and the NFC with 1431 yards on his 96 catches. Anquan Boldin (pictured below) had 89 pass receptions for 1038 yards and 11 TDs despite missing four games due to injuries. Both also were chosen for the Pro Bowl, and Fitzgerald received All-NFL recognition as well.

2001: Saints Come From 18 Points Behind to Beat Rams

The New Orleans Saints were coming off of a 10-6 year in 2000 under first-year Head Coach Jim Haslett and were 3-2 in ’01 as they faced the St. Louis Rams, the team they had beaten out for the NFC West title and then defeated in the Wild Card playoff (the first playoff win in franchise history), at the Dome at America’s Center on October 28, 2001. The Rams, under second-year Head Coach Mike Martz, were a perfect 6-0 thus far and seemed almost invincible.

St. Louis, with its outstanding passing offense, struck quickly on the second play from scrimmage. WR Az-Zahir Hakim took the handoff on a reverse and the former high school quarterback proceeded to fire a pass to WR Isaac Bruce for a 51-yard touchdown. The Saints then fumbled the ball away on their first possession, as TE Cam Cleeland was stripped by St. Louis LB Don Davis after catching a short pass from QB Aaron Brooks. CB Aeneas Williams recovered for the Rams and five plays later, following pass completions by QB Kurt Warner of 25 yards to WR Torry Holt and 13 yards to TE Ernie Conwell, Conwell ran for a two-yard touchdown. St. Louis was ahead by 14-0 and the game was barely four minutes old.

New Orleans got on the board thanks to a 33-yard John Carney field goal, and the score was 14-3 after one quarter. But the Rams scored again early in the second quarter. A pass interference call on Saints CB Kevin Mathis gave St. Louis a 38-yard gain to the New Orleans 36 yard line, and then Warner connected on passes of 13 yards to RB Trung Canidate (filling in for injured star RB Marshall Faulk) and 19 to Bruce to set up Canidate’s one-yard touchdown run.

The Saints drove 66 yards in 12 plays for another field goal by Carney, this time of 44 yards. But Jeff Wilkins responded with a 54-yard field goal late in the period that gave the Rams a halftime lead of 24-6 (Wilkins had missed an attempt earlier that broke a string of 30 consecutive successful field goal attempts).

Down by 18 points, New Orleans came back in stunning fashion in the third quarter. First, rookie RB Deuce McAllister returned the opening kickoff of the second half 46 yards to the St. Louis 48. Two plays later, Brooks connected with WR Joe Horn for a 46-yard touchdown.

On the ensuing St. Louis possession, Saints safety Sammy Knight roared into the backfield on a safety blitz, batted Warner’s pass and intercepted it. His 13-yard return ended up at the Rams’ 16 yard line. New Orleans lost yardage on the possession, however, and settled for a 44-yard field goal by Carney.

St. Louis CB Dre’ Bly fumbled the kickoff and it was recovered for the Saints by RB Fred McAfee at the Rams 16. Five plays later Brooks rolled out and tossed a six-yard pass to Horn for a touchdown. An attempted two-point conversion failed when RB Ricky Williams was stopped short of the end zone, but the Saints were now only two points behind at 24-22.

The Rams went three-and-out on their next possession and had to punt. It took just two plays for New Orleans to take the lead when Brooks went deep down the sideline to WR Willie Jackson and connected for a 49-yard touchdown. Once again, the attempted two-point conversion failed, but the Saints were now ahead by 28-24.

The Saints onslaught continued when DE Darren Howard intercepted a short Warner pass and returned it 37 yards to the St. Louis 23. The resulting possession lasted five plays and ended with Carney hitting on a 23-yard field goal. The third quarter ended with the Saints in the lead at 31-24, having put up 25 points in the course of the period.

St. Louis finally got on the board again in the fourth quarter following a 12-play, 87-yard drive that ended with an eight-yard touchdown pass from Warner to Holt. With the score now tied at 31-31 and the clock winding down to under five minutes, it seemed as though the Rams would yet pull the game out. But at the New Orleans 23, Canidate, who had caught a screen pass, fumbled and safety Chris Oldham recovered for the Saints and ran 43 yards before being pushed out of bounds at the St. Louis 36.

A 14-yard run by Ricky Williams got the ball to the 22, but it seemed that the Rams had dodged a bullet four plays later when they blocked Carney’s 30-yard field goal attempt. However, Bly was penalized for being offsides, giving New Orleans a first down. They ran three times to run the clock down and Carney’s fifth field goal of the day, from 27 yards, gave the Saints a 34-31 win.


St. Louis outgained the Saints, 474 yards to 320, and had 25 first downs to New Orleans’ 15. But they also turned the ball over eight times, including the four that fueled the New Orleans third quarter comeback.

Aaron Brooks (pictured at top) completed 20 of 31 passes for 254 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Joe Horn caught 8 passes for 121 yards and two of the TDs. Ricky Williams led the running game with 77 yards on 17 carries.

For the Rams, Kurt Warner went to the air 47 times with 29 completed for 385 yards; however, while he threw for one TD, he also surrendered four interceptions (two by Sammy Knight, pictured above left). Isaac Bruce was the most productive receiver, catching 7 passes for 179 yards and a touchdown, but while Trung Canidate caught 10 passes for 107 yards, he only gained 19 yards rushing on 12 carries in relief of Faulk, including the one short TD. Az-Zahir Hakim, who contributed a touchdown pass, was the team’s leading rusher with 20 yards on two runs.

“They're not robots, they can be beaten,” said Joe Horn afterward. “I think we proved that today and we look forward to meeting them again.” The result was very different when the clubs met for the rematch in New Orleans – the Rams won, 34-21. Indeed, St. Louis lost only once more the rest of the regular season in posting a 14-2 record and re-taking the NFC West. However, they were stunned by the underdog New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. New Orleans failed to generate any momentum from the come-from-behind win, going 3-7 and losing the last four games of the year. The Saints finished in third place in the division at 7-9.

Kurt Warner (pictured below) was the NFL’s leading passer (101.4 rating) and also led the league in completion percentage (68.7), passing yards (4830), touchdown passes (36), yards per attempt (8.8), yards per completion (12.9), and percentage of TD passes (6.6).

Aaron Brooks, in his first full season as the starting quarterback, ranked fourth in the NFL with a career-high 3832 yards and tossed 26 touchdown passes, although he was also among the league leaders with 22 interceptions.

1999: Warner to Bruce TD Passes Propel Rams to Win Over 49ers

By Week 5 of the 1999 NFL season, the St. Louis Rams had already created a sensation. The Rams had not had a winning record in ten years and were coming off a dismal 4-12 campaign in ’98. Head Coach Dick Vermeil, who had made a comeback to the sideline in 1997 after a 15-year absence, had not been able to turn the club around and it appeared that things would not get better when Trent Green, the quarterback signed away from Washington as a free agent, went down for the year with a knee injury – Green had been playing well in the preseason, and so the blow was all the greater.

Into the starting job at quarterback came Kurt Warner (pictured above), a 28-year-old unknown out of Northern Iowa who had most recently been playing arena football and in the NFL’s developmental league, NFL Europe. The 6’2”, 220-pound Warner proved to have a quick release as well as a strong and accurate arm and was a comfortable fit in the wide-open passing offense installed by offensive coordinator Mike Martz.

After three games (the Rams already had a bye week), St. Louis was 3-0 and had run up convincing scores against the Ravens, Falcons, and Bengals. Warner had passed for 894 yards with 9 touchdowns against just two interceptions, taking advantage of an excellent group of wide receivers that included sixth-year veteran Isaac Bruce, rookie Torry Holt, second-year speedster Az-Zahir Hakim, and slow-but-steady Ricky Proehl.

On October 10, the Rams hosted the division rival San Francisco 49ers at the TWA Dome. The 49ers, under Head Coach Steve Mariucci, were 3-1 entering the contest. Moreover, they had dominated the Rams since 1990, when they were still located in Los Angeles, winning a total of 17 straight games. The 49ers were playing with Jeff Garcia at quarterback in place of veteran star Steve Young, who was out with a concussion (he would, in fact, never return).

The St. Louis offense maintained the established pattern of the first three games, with Warner tossing a 13-yard touchdown pass to Bruce to cap a seven-play, 83-yard drive midway through the first quarter. Along the way, Warner had connected with RB Marshall Faulk, a key offseason acquisition from the Colts, for a 23-yard gain in a third-and-six situation.

Just three minutes later, Warner tossed a second touchdown pass to Bruce, this one covering five yards. While the 49ers recovered as Garcia completed passes of 21 yards to WR Terrell Owens and 11 yards to WR J.J. Stokes in a six-play drive that resulted in a 42-yard Wade Richey field goal, WR Tony Horne returned the ensuing kickoff 54 yards and, on the next play, Warner hit Bruce once more for a 45-yard TD. The Rams were up by 21-3 after one quarter.

San Francisco responded with a nine-play, 80-yard drive that culminated in a two-yard touchdown run by RB Lawrence Phillips – a failed first round draft choice of the Rams who had behavioral issues that eclipsed his great talent and was roundly booed by the St. Louis fans. Along the way, Garcia had again done well, with two key passes that totaled 44 yards to RB Charlie Garner and a 19-yard completion to all-time great WR Jerry Rice in a third-and-13 situation.

The Rams extended their lead to 28-10 when Warner completed a nine-play drive that covered 89 yards with a 22-yard TD pass to TE Jeff Robinson. However, the 49ers got a break just before halftime when Warner fumbled in his end zone and it was recovered by DT Junior Bryant for a touchdown. The Rams’ lead at halftime was 28-17.

There was no more scoring until late in the third quarter. The Niners put together an 11-play drive that included a 31-yard run by Garner and ended with a 43-yard field goal by Richey to narrow the St. Louis margin to 28-20. It didn’t stay narrowed for long, though, as Horne returned the ensuing kickoff for a 97-yard touchdown.

For all intents and purposes, the game was over. The Rams scored one last touchdown in the fourth quarter, Warner connecting for the fourth time with Bruce on a scoring pass of 42 yards, and the final score was 42-20.

“I was happy more for the guys who were in Los Angeles with me and we went through a lot of trying times trying to beat this team,” Bruce said afterward. “I'm glad it's over.”

It was another convincing statement from Kurt Warner and the Rams offense. Warner completed 20 of 23 passes for 323 yards with five touchdowns and one interception. His 14 touchdowns in the first four games of the season were unprecedented in NFL history. Isaac Bruce caught 5 passes for 134 yards and the four touchdowns, while Torry Holt gained 67 yards on his three catches. RB Robert Holcombe gained 47 yards on six carries to lead the team, and RB Justin Watson was right behind with 46 yards on 11 attempts. Marshall Faulk was held to six yards on seven carries, but contributed 38 yards on four pass receptions.

Playing catchup throughout, Jeff Garcia went to the air 36 times with 22 completions for 233 yards, giving up three interceptions while completing no touchdown passes. Terrell Owens caught six passes for 60 yards while Charlie Garner added five receptions for 57 yards and led the team with 52 yards on 13 runs.

The Rams made it to 6-0 before losing two straight games, but then went 7-1 the rest of the way to finish first in the NFC West with a 13-3 record – the team’s best since 1975. They went on to defeat the Tennessee Titans in the Super Bowl by a 23-16 score. San Francisco went in the opposite direction, winning just once more to end up at 4-12 and in fourth place in the division. It was the first time the 49ers had finished under .500 since the 1982 strike season and was the worst tally since 1979.

Kurt Warner went on to have an MVP season (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers of America, Newspaper Enterprise Association, Bert Bell Award), leading the NFL with a 109.2 passer rating, 41 touchdown passes, 65.1 completion percentage, 8.7 yards per attempt, and 8.2 TD percentage. His 4353 passing yards ranked second.

Isaac Bruce (pictured below) had a Pro Bowl year (less surprising in his case – he was an established star who had previously been selected following the ’96 season), catching 77 passes for 1165 yards (15.1 avg.) and 12 touchdowns.

2000: Titans Come Up a Yard Short, Fall to Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV

The Rams had not been very successful since moving from Los Angeles to St. Louis in 1995; in fact, they had had nothing but losing records since getting to the NFC Championship game following the ’89 season. Dick Vermeil, who had last coached in the NFL with the Eagles in 1982, became the head coach in 1997 but, in two seasons, had compiled a mediocre 9-23 tally.

It didn’t appear that 1999 would be any better when QB Trent Green, who they were counting upon to start after signing him away from the Redskins as a free agent, went down for the year with a knee injury in the preseason. Replacing him was Kurt Warner (pictured above), a 28-year-old unknown with an arena football and NFL Europe background who had appeared in one game in ’98 as a backup to Tony Banks and Steve Bono. What occurred became the stuff of pro football legend as Warner proceeded to pass for 4353 yards and a league-leading 41 touchdowns while compiling a top-ranked 109.2 passer rating. Veteran Pro Bowl WR Isaac Bruce hauled in 77 passes for 1165 yards and 12 TDs, while rookie WR Torry Holt added 52 catches for 788 yards. RB Marshall Faulk, acquired from the Colts in the offseason, contributed 1381 rushing yards, with a 5.5 yards-per-carry average, along with a team-leading 87 pass receptions for another 1048 yards.

The Rams roared through the ’99 schedule, piling up 526 points in winning the NFC West with a 13-3 record. They defeated Minnesota in the Divisional playoff round and then got past Tampa Bay, 11-6, in a tense, hard-fought NFC Championship game.

Their opponent in Super Bowl XXXIV was the Tennessee Titans, another team that had relocated in the preceding decade. Formerly the Houston Oilers, the club had moved to Tennessee in 1997 and, after a couple of nomadic years moved into its new home, Adelphia Coliseum, with a new name, the Titans, for ’99. Through all the moving and related distractions, Head Coach Jeff Fisher gathered together the pieces of a winning football team. In 1999, Tennessee came in second in the AFC Central with a 13-3 tally, good enough to earn a wild card spot in the postseason.


The Titans operated a conservative offense guided by QB Steve McNair (pictured at right) and the running of RB Eddie George (1304 yards). TE Frank Wycheck led the receiving corps (69 catches, 641 yards). The rugged defense featured rookie DE Jevon Kearse (aka “The Freak”), CB Samari Rolle, and SS Blaine Bishop. They defeated Buffalo in stunning fashion in the Wild Card playoff, and proceeded to beat the Colts and Jaguars in the Divisional and AFC Championship contests, respectively.

There were 72,625 fans present at Atlanta’s Georgia Dome on January 30, 2000 for the Super Bowl matchup. St. Louis moved the ball with ease in the first half, amassing 294 yards and driving inside the Tennessee 20 yard line on each possession but coming away with just three field goals. On the first drive, holder Rick Tuten bobbled the snap to thwart a field goal attempt, and placekicker Jeff Wilkins, who was successful on kicks of 27, 29, and 28 yards, also missed a 34-yarder.

The Titans threatened to score just once in the half, but Al Del Greco missed a 47-yard field goal attempt following a 42-yard drive. Tennessee amassed just 89 yards of offense, but was down only 9-0 at the half.

In the first possession of the second half, the Titans made it into field goal range but Del Greco’s 47-yard attempt was blocked by CB Todd Lyght. The Rams turned around and moved once more deep into Tennessee territory, highlighted by a 31-yard pass completion from Warner to Bruce. Warner tossed a nine-yard touchdown pass to Holt and St. Louis was ahead 16-0 and seemed to be in control.

However, the Titans offense came alive, scoring 16 points in under 14 minutes to tie the game. A 23-yard scramble by McNair set up Tennessee’s first score of the game, a one-yard rush by George. The try for a two-point conversion failed. But after the Rams were forced to punt, the Titans came right back with a 13-play, 79-yard drive that was capped by another short Eddie George touchdown run.

Once again, the Titans defense forced St. Louis to punt, and Tennessee again capitalized as Del Greco booted a 43-yard field goal to knot the score at 16-16 with just over two minutes remaining. It didn’t stay tied for long - on their next play, Warner fired a long pass to Bruce; hit as he was throwing, the ball was a bit underthrown but the wide receiver adjusted, and breaking a tackle he streaked into the end zone to complete the 73-yard touchdown play.

With 1:54 left in the fourth quarter, the Titans took over on their 12 yard line and proceeded to drive down the field. On third-and-five at the St. Louis 26, McNair barely avoided a sack and hit WR Kevin Dyson with a pass that gained 16 yards. There were now just six seconds left and the ball ten yards away from the end zone as McNair threw one last pass on a slant to Dyson who caught it in full stride at the three. Rams LB Mike Jones grabbed Dyson and tackled him a yard short of the goal line as time ran out (pictured at bottom). The Super Bowl had come within a yard (and successful extra point) of going into overtime; as it was, the Rams capped their remarkable season with a 23-16 win.


The Rams outgained the Titans with 436 yards to 367. Most of that was accounted for by the game’s MVP, Kurt Warner, who set a Super Bowl record with 414 yards on his 24 completions out of 45 passes thrown, including two touchdowns. Isaac Bruce gained 162 yards on 6 catches with a TD, while Torry Holt added 7 receptions for 109 yards and a score and Marshall Faulk (pictured at left) caught five for 90 yards. The Rams gained just 29 yards on the ground, with Faulk rushing for 17 yards in 10 carries.

Eddie George rushed for 95 yards and two touchdowns on 28 attempts, while Steve McNair added 64 yards on 8 carries. McNair also completed 22 of 36 passes for 214 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions (neither team suffered a turnover). TE Jackie Harris was Tennessee’s top pass receiver with 7 catches for 64 yards.

Dick Vermeil retired, having finally won a championship (although he returned to coach the Chiefs in 2001). The Rams were back in the postseason in 2000 as a wild card entry, losing in the first round, and returned to the Super Bowl in ’01, when they were upset by the Patriots. Kurt Warner’s career was derailed by a hand injury and he lost his starting job to Marc Bulger; he would eventually return to the Super Bowl with the Arizona Cardinals following the 2008 season. As for the Titans, they improved to 13-3 in 2000 but were upset by Baltimore in the Divisional playoff round.