Upsets in the Super Bowl

Written January 24, 2008 by Jack Jones

People all over are talking about if the New York Giants can upset the undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. Many are asking the question if it would be the biggest upset anyone has witnessed? While many would say that there is no question it would be, others would be quick to remind you of their teams dramatic upsets from previous Super Bowls. For instance I would like you to convince Jets, Broncos, Chiefs, and even yes these same New England Patriots, that their teams weren’t the biggest dogs going into a Super Bowl game. While fans of these teams will most likely tell you that they knew their team would win, everyone else was giving them no chance at all to pull off the upset. So I figure lets look at these four games and see how they match-up.

Super Bowl XXXII – Denver vs. Green Bay

The Denver Broncos walked into Super Bowl XXXII as big time dogs. They were facing the defending Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers. The Packers came into this game as 12pt favorites, but what had almost everyone thinking the Pack would win was that this was during a time of NFC supremacy. With 13 straight victories fans were beginning to look at the AFC as undeserving for a shot at the trophy. What people didn’t understand was that they were witnessing the beginning of AFC dominance that is still going today. The Broncos shocked everyone and John Elway finally won the big game. The Broncos defeated the Packers 31-24 in their first of consecutive Super Bowl Victories.

Super Bowl XXXVI – New England vs. St Louis

Super Bowl XXXVI was a match up of one of the greatest offenses to ever step foot on a football field, and these no bodies out of New England. The Rams came in as two touchdown favorites and were demolishing teams on their way. While many gave New England no shot they were able to pull off the upset with a last second field goal to win the game 20 – 17. While many players from this team will be playing in this year’s Super Bowl, they will be the ones that are unbeatable and will have to fight off being upset.

Super Bowl III – New York Jets vs. Baltimore Colts

It didn’t take long for fans to see one of the best upsets to ever take place in Super Bowl History. Super Bowl III seen the New York Jets come in as 20-point underdogs against the feared Baltimore Colts, and simply had no chance of even competing in this game. One of the most shocking things was if you are going to get 20 points before the game even starts, mean that’s people were thinking that either you weren’t going to score at all, or the other team was going to score so much it didn’t matter. What ended up happening was the exact opposite; the Jets won the game 16 – 7. With the addition of the point spread it gave them a victory of 29 points the largest in Super Bowl History.

Super Bowl IV – Kansas City vs. Minnesota Vikings

One year later the Kansas City Chiefs played the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV. With the Jets amazing victory over the Colts, some might of thought that it would of gave the AFL more credibility, but instead they were still lightly of. Kansas City came in getting 12pts, and was suppose to crumble at the hands of the NFL’s Vikings. By half time the game was pretty much locked up, the Chiefs took a 16 – 0 lead, and went on to win the game 23 -7.

So with the Giants coming in as 11pt underdogs, they certainly aren’t the worst underdog ever. The thing to remember is that they are facing a team that has yet to lose a game, a team they will have lost to just 5 weeks ago, a team that has embarrassed everyone its faced by an average of almost 20 points, set numerous records, and might have the best quarterback ever in Super Bowl games. So why 11 points is all that separates the two teams, there is much more than just a point spread to decide on whether the Giants have enough magic left in them to upset possibly the best team ever.

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