Top 10 Super Bowls of the 2010's

Whether you watch football on a regular basis or not, I don't think it's far fetched to assume you know what the Super Bowl is and, odds are, you've seen one or two of them in your life. If you asked me about the Super Bowl when I was 9, I would have told you it was the football game that has the halftime show. Thankfully, the 2010 NFL season happened and my appreciation for the game, its history, and the league it represents grew exponentially by the time February 2011 rolled around. I am going to rank these games on several things: how the experience of watching them was (as I remember watching each of these games pretty vividly), how they are remembered, and just how good of a contest they were. I rewatched each of them from kickoff to triple-zero over the past month and a half and I will say we have been spoiled with a lot of great football and storylines in the last game of the season for the past ten years.

10. XLVIII

Seattle Seahawks: 43 Denver Broncos: 8

The 2013 NFL season was particularly exciting, I remember. The story of the year was Peyton Manning's revived prime and the best season of his career (or any other QB's). But the league also boasted stellar play from Tom Brady, the 49ers rebounding from a Super Bowl loss the year before, and Russell Wilson and the Seahawks breaking through, led by an all-time team defense. The year's last game was less exciting. Joe Namath's premature pre-game coin toss and Bruno Mars' halftime performance competed for the most intense moments of XLVIII. It was honestly shocking just how dominant Seattle's "Legion of Boom" was against the best offense ever. Even the best receiver Denver had, Demaryius Thomas, paid for his SB record 13 catches with a clean forced fumble by Hawks corner Byron Maxwell and an early tone-setting hit from safety Kam Chancellor. As for the QBs, Russell Wilson has all the validation for a first-ballot Hall of Fame selection with this being his lone title win to date and Peyton's best season is once again punctuated with a playoff disappointment. But this was the definition of a team win for head coach Pete Carroll with the Seahawks scoring on a safety, a run, two passes, an interception return, and a kick return. I am sure Seahawks fans would have appreciated more of this than what would transpire the next year.

9. L

Denver Broncos: 24 Carolina Panthers: 10

Talk about a game of attrition. Super Bowl 50 was basically which offense will execute first. The story coming in was faintly reminiscent of the previous year's SB: an older all-time great quarterback believed to be on his last legs facing off against a young, athletic gunslinger with a run game and defense-centric upstart squad. The difference is that Peyton Manning, who two years earlier broke every single-season passing record, had just won his job back from Brock Osweiler after stinking up the joint for the majority of the season. Denver earned the number one seed in the AFC on the strength of their defense spearheaded by linebacker and former #2 overall pick, Von Miller, who did not play in XLVIII because of injury. The #1 pick in that draft? Cam Newton; the opposing signal-caller who had just been named league MVP after leading the Panthers to a 15-1 record along with a defense that boasted their own star linebacker, Luke Kuechly.

There are two important plays in this game. They were both made by Von Miller at the expense of Cam Newton. A first-quarter strip-sack turned touchdown to give Denver its first touchdown and a fourth-quarter strip-sack, up 16-10 with four minutes left, to set up the touchdown that would put the game away. Other than that, the "golden" Super Bowl reeked of bad officiating, terrible ball security, and many sad faces replacing the MVP's trademark smile. Neither offense could get much of anything going against either defense but it was Wade Phillip's group that won the battle of capitalizing on fleeting opportunities. Today, neither team is recognizable from this game, and to anyone other than Broncos fans, Super Bowl 50 is National Cam Newton didn't fall on the fumble Day.

8. LIII

New England Patriots: 13 Los Angeles Rams: 3

I was working at a sports restaurant during Super Bowl LIII, and although, in rewatching the game, it was better than I remember, if I had to miss the live showing of one of these games, it would be this one. Apart from the actual game, the visuals of this spectacle are one of my favorites. Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is a complete masterpiece and the Rams' decision to rock their throwbacks, the home version of the threads they won their lone title in 19 years earlier in the same city, was a good choice. The game was a defensive slugfest never seen before in the Super Bowl. The clashing of young offensive minds John McDaniels and Sean McVay turned into a chess match between old-dog defensive giants Wade Phillips and Bill Belichick.

The football version of the Boston and Los Angeles sports rivalry saw a plethora of moving parts and notable names not give anything to their opposition.

For some, it was refreshing to see the Super Bowl tied at 3 in the fourth quarter. One of the only standouts was MVP, Julian Edelman, who caught ten balls for over 140 yards (Is Jules the best Super Bowl performer at his position? The easy answer is Jerry Rice but I will look into it). On the Rams side, workhorse running back Todd Gurley had only 10 carries due to a knee injury and quarterback Jared Goff had chances in the waning moments to pull a Tom Brady and tie it up after the Pats broke through and housed it in the middle of the fourth. After a near-perfect ball was dropped by Brandin Cooks in the endzone, future DPOY, Stephon Gilmore, picked off a ball on a similar route on the next play. A Stephon Gowtowski field goal clinched the Pats' sixth ring and cemented them as the greatest dynasty in history. The Patriots have won titles in every way except easily.

7. LIV

Kansas City Cheifs: 31 San Fransisco 49ers: 20

The last Super Bowl of the decade was between two teams with interesting stories of the past ten years. The Cheifs had spent the first three seasons of the decade earning #1 picks and things of the like. They then acquired great, but postseason-snakebitten, head coach, Andy Reid, along with 49ers QB, Alex Smith, after San Fransisco made their first Super Bowl in nearly 20 years behind Colin Kaepernick who would spend the next five years changing the world. After many other playoff disappointments for Kansas City and a few high first-round picks for San Fran, both teams found their QBs for this game in 2018 when the Cheifs drafted Patrick Mahomes and the Niners, Pats backup Jimmy Garoppolo, who they traded for the year before.

Super Bowl LIV was not a battle of Mahomes versus Garoppolo. It wasn't even a battle between Andy Reid and Niners coach Kyle Shanahan. It was a battle between Kansas City's best players versus San Fransisco's best players. In an evenly matched first half, 49ers' receiver Deebo Samuel looked like the best player on the field. The Cheif's one-two punch of wideout, Tyreek Hill, and tight end, Travis Kelce, was widely held in check and you can tell they were itching for separation and the big play when they caught the ball. Besides a Breeshaud Breeland interception of Jimmy G that set up Mahomes' first touchdown run, the offenses didn't come alive until the second half. D-linemen for KC, Chris Jones and Frank Clark, made it tough on San Frans' rhythm and synchronization-based offensive attack. In the third quarter, the Niners had linebacker Fred Wagner pick off a pass intended for the speedy Hill, receiver Kendrick Bourne made a big catch on 3rd and 8, and Raheem Mostert made it 20-10 with a one-yard TD. After an early fourth-quarter interception by 49ers' Tavarius Moore, San Fran melted the rest of the clock and took their sixth ring back to the Bay Area.

Nahhhhhhhhh, I'm just playin.

The players for Kansas City popped out. Damien Williams did his best James White impression, Travis Kelce scored a touchdown that was too intense for a dance, and Tyreek Hill caught a sixty-yard punt from Mahomes right arm that will be played for years on repeat. After outscoring KC 20-10 in the first 3, Kyle Shanahan's redemption tour was derailed by an avalanche of the wrong shade of red. Yet, there was hope for baby Brady. He did a good job on the first few plays of the drive, too. Kettle for 8, Bourne for 16. If only post patterns were as easy to complete as they are satisfying to see completed. On the bright side, Emmanuel Sanders can say he played in both the first and last Super Bowls of the decade. Don't ask how they ended for him.

In the end, the question for the 49ers was if they would execute offensively.

The question for the Cheifs was when.

6. XLV

Green Bay Packers: 31 Pittsburgh Steelers: 25

The first big game of the decade was a monumental one for the many great players who would never even taste a Super Bowl appearance for the next nine seasons. Ben Roethlisberger, who was playing in his third SB in six years, hasn't made it back despite having teammates like Le'Veon Bell and Pittsburgh's return man for XLV, Antonio Brown. The latter would turn into a particularly nice pass-catcher. Also, the game's MVP, Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers, would go on to win two NFL MVPs and make three more conference championships but has yet to play the last game of the season again. This was a physical game with two solid-to-great defenses. And though, the defense's presence was felt on both sides (a pick-six by GB defensive back Nick Collins and multiple drops from GB receivers), that didn't stop A-Rod from producing his patented stellar TD-INT ratio of 3-0 and Pittsburgh from throwing for over 250 and rushing for over 120. The game included defensive highlights (Clay Matthews forced fumble, etc.), long pass plays from both teams, and a mini-comeback on the part of the Steelers when they found themselves down 21-3 late in the first half. A very solid game to start the decade and Aaron Rodgers' biggest justification for possible GOAT status. A very evenly matched, physical battle between one team that turned the ball over and one team that didn't.

5. XLVI

New York Giants: 21 New England Patriots: 17

Now, this was something. I remember this game not even feeling like a Super Bowl. That's how unexpected the Giants' run was in the 2011-12 playoffs was. However, it is hard to believe (now) that this was the Pats' first appearance in the big game since they lost to New York in 2007. I'll tell you though, this was a great game to watch. I love how in football it doesn't matter what the records are coming in. Super Bowl XLVI wasn't a far cry from its predecessor; XLII. It seemed as if the Giants were the better team to start out and New England and Tom Brady's ability to settle into the game is as good as ever. However, the Giants' defensive line, boasting Justin Tuck, Jason Pierre-Paul, and Osi Umenyiora made life incredibly tough for Brady at times, much like in 07. Brady and his guys would show resilience time and time again, including a 96-yard TD drive to finish the half and another one to open the third quarter to make it 17-9. Made even more impressive when you realize they had the second greatest Super Bowl receiver of all time returning their punts (Edelman). Two field goals set the stage for MVP, Giants QB Eli Manning, to do something he is as good as anyone (not named Brady or Montana) at doing: orchestrating playoff game-winning drives.

Spoiler: someone made a once-in-a-lifetime catch and New York won. XVLI included salsas, interceptions, sacks, fourteen straight completions, squats popped on the one-yard line, and yet another 'no-name' receiving core spelling the difference in an all-time upset.

Hey! Ochocinco!

4. XLVII

Baltimore Ravens: 34 San Fransisco: 31

Two teams that had not been in a Super Bowl since I was born and with plenty of intriguing storylines coming in made for one of the most unique championship games I have ever seen in any sport. The phenomenon of 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick intertwined with the fittingly spiritual run of the Ravens and the imminent retirement of their leader, Ray Lewis, on top of the fact that the head coaches of each team were literally brothers. The halftime show wasn't half-bad either, but that's for another list. With Jerome Boger officiating, Kap being the first black quarterback since Donovan McNabb in 2004 to start a Super Bowl, and the game being played in New Orleans, XLVII was almost an extension of Black History Month, which began two days before kickoff. After a highly energetic and chippy first 28 min of game time, the Super Bowl was a 21-3 game for the second time in three years thanks to stellar play from Joe Flacco and the Baltimore pass-catchers and missed opportunities and miscues on the part of the younger brother, Jim Harbaugh's, 49ers, Jacoby Jones went on a heat check after his 56 yard TD catch to end the half and brought out the second half's opening kick from his own goal post to the crib in the longest play in the history of the Super Bowl. Pretty boring game thus far.

So boring half the stadium's lights went out for 35 real-time minutes not soon after. This has to be the weirdest occurrence in a Super Bowl that doesn't actually have to do with the game but, I just remember using this time to finish some homework I had due that Monday morning. The delay proved beneficial for San Fransisco as they would go on a 23-3 run of their own thanks to Michael Crabtree, Vernon Davis, Frank Gore, and opportune plays made by the 49ers defense. With four minutes left, Kap had the chance to etch his name with the GOATs of his team's history and who knows? Maybe he's remembered for this game-winning Super Bowl drive rather than his real-life bravery and willingness to risk his job as an athlete for what he believed in. Or maybe both. But Ravens corner Jimmy Smith and Crabtree had a spat at the pylon that ended in Ray's second ring.

Go back and watch how strong Anquan Boldin was in this game. Sheesh.

3. LI

New England Patriots: 34 Atlanta Falcons: 28

I wanted a rematch of XLV which would have happened if these two teams lost their championships two weeks before. I was tired of the Patriots in this game and I dislike the Falcons. So I wasn't too excited for either team, I thought the game would be bad. And for three quarters, I was proven right. The Super Bowl felt like a birthright to New England and they were treating it like that. Atlanta did not. The Falcons, led by league MVP, QB Matt Ryan, spared no weapon in dismantling the Patriots defensively and offensively. They just had players, man. Devonta Freeman took his first carry 37 yards weaving through Bill Belichick's soul and scored the first touchdown soon after. Linebacker Deion Jones made a beautiful strip play on Pats RB LeGarrette Blount to set that touchdown up. And Julio Jones... goodness. Just look up the highlights.

Late in the second, Tom Brady threw a long pick-six to Atlanta corner Robert Alford and I remember two conflicting thoughts came into my mind as I saw Alford's arms spread open as he glided into the red endzone: (1) The freaking Falcons are going to win the Super Bowl the year after the Panthers couldn't. (2) This is all an NFL narrative build-up that started with Deflate-Gate, included a four-game suspension for Brady, and brought home with a never before seen 21-point Super Bowl comeback.

Then Tevin Coleman scored annnnndddd that was it for thought number two.

I'm sure you know the story from 28-3 but I want to highlight a couple of things. Firstly, Kyle Shanahan. Much has been made of this monumental collapse and in revisiting the Falcons' playcalling, knowing their doom, Atlanta was vertically aggressive the whole game and was pretty one-dimensional in that. They rarely got in third-down situations and were not good (1/8) when they were. They scored quickly but couldn't put it away when they needed to. The next is Tom Brady. From 3;30 left in regulation to the end of the game, Brady did something I have rarely seen in football. He took the game over. Most of his passes were outside of the numbers and some down the field in adverse down and distances. The last thing: the deserved MVP, New England RB James White. As well as Brady played down the stretch (all-time GREAT), James White is the reason New England won this Super Bowl. Go back and watch this game. Fourteen receptions. Super Bowl record.

I still don't know how legit I feel about that last touchdown, though.

2. LII

Philadelphia Eagles: 41 New England Patriots: 33

Because the Philly Special was so unexpected and eye-opening, I didn't understand how great this game was before and after it. This was an offensive clinic. But not in the way you may think of when someone talks of a shootout or a barn burner. The defense of each team had its share of plays, there were turnovers. These defenses and special teams (not the punters) came to play too. The offenses were just moving like well-oiled machines for most of the game. Go back and watch the Eagles' offensive line on the Blount touchdown. The only sack in this game, that featured two less than athletic QBs, came in the fourth quarter. The more athletic passer in this game was MVP, Nick Foles, who came in with one of the most roller-coaster resumes of any SB quarterback I can think of. Multiple teams, multiple roles, his prime seemingly beginning and ending four years before. And he looked so darn comfortable the whole game. Some guys like him, Ryan Fitzpatrick and others, just know how to play the position at an average to an above-average level all the time. Give a guy like that a plethora of weapons at the receiver and running back positions and a line that played like this: you have a Super Bowl MVP.

On the other side, you had Brady, who I am honestly tired of analyzing at this point. But his performance in this game was anything but tiring. After trailing for the whole first half, he used his security blanket, Rob Gronkowski, to the fullest on the opening second-half drive and let everyone know he hadn't grown fatigued of winning championships. Even with the back-up magic, Philly-Phillys, athletic TD grabs, and E-A-G-L-E-S, EAGLES chants, Tom along with receivers Chris Hogan, and Danny Amendola took the lead in the fourth quarter because of course, they did.

I'm going to tell you why head coach, Doug Pederson, and OC Frank Reich beat the Patriots and Falcons coach Dan Quinn and OC Kyle Shanahan did not. The Eagles, from their first possession, orchestrated every drive like they were down 4. The difference was Philiadpehia's ability to run the ball as a viable option for advancing the ball on second and third down. They were able to do that and make it hard for Belichick's defense to lock in on one dimension. The Eagles' Zach Ertz TD was the second of two controversial scores in key moments by Philly which I am sure still haunt Pats fans to this day.

Philly [ass rushers Brandon Graham's single aforementioned strip-sack was really shocking because it came on the second play of Tom Brady's classic Super-Bowl winning drive. The clutch kick by rookie Jake Elliot was good, Philadelphia fans the world over were validated, and Kobe Bryant served multiple fist pumps whilst holding his toddler.

1.XLIX

New England Patriots: 28 Seattle Seahawks: 24

I remember watching this game with one of my best friends at my old church in 2015. I remember John Legend sang 'America The Beautiful' and I was so excited for Russell Wilson to cement himself as a pantheon great QB and Seattle to legitimize their dynastic run. I didn't know until later but the 'LOB', namely safety Kam Chancellor, corner Richard Sherman, and safety Earl Thomas were all injured in some way. Which was not surprising judging from the toughness of the NFCC they came back to win two weeks earlier. The Patriots' story coming in was a bit different. If my memory serves me, Deflate-Gate was in its infancy when this game started. Bill and Tom were both under great scrutiny for their possible cheating in their demolition of the Colts in the AFCC. Regardless of that, this game was awesome from start to finish. I thought I knew how Super Bowls unfolded and how NFL storylines usually finished. The young gun and the old great duke it out in a passing of the torch moment. The short, savvy, veteran receiving core going against the big, fast, dominant defense. The team of the 2000s versus the team of the 2010s (at the time). Honestly, I was pretty right throughout. The Seahawks went blow for blow with New England even though Tom looked very sharp against the banged-up secondary. The Seattle offense leaned on running back Marshawn Lynch's bruising style and Wilson's unparalleled playmaking in and out of the pocket along with great plays made by Chris Matthews, a receiver who hadn't caught a ball before this game and would have gotten my vote for MVP. The Patriots played with a full squad, Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman continued to make their individual cases for all-time Super Bowl pass-catchers. Up 17-14 in the second half, a Bobby Wagner interception and Hawks receiver Doug Baldwin using the back judge to pick corner Darrelle Revis on a crosser made it 24-14 late in the third.

I'm sure you know what happened after that.

Brady-Amendola. Brady-Gronk. Some more Brady. Jules. More Brady. More Jules.

28-24.

This last drive is the most important sequence of any NFL game this decade because it provided two possible roads. But only one was imminent to those who were watching. Seattle was going to make an amazing catch on New England. Jermaine Kearse, check. They were going to drive it down the field. Beast Mode, check. Russell was going to throw the touchdown and beat Tom Brady and Peyton Manning in back-to-back bowls. No check.

I love Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth on the call but I truly believe that a lot of the criticism Pete Carroll and the offense get from the decision to throw the ball so close to the end zone comes from Collinsworth saying he "can't believe the call". When it happened, I was shocked, of course. But I wasn't shocked they threw it. I was shocked at the abruptness and quickness of the interception. Malcolm Butler made the play of plays. The break on the ball of breaks.

But back to the two roads. Instead of cementing a legacy and dominating the league for years to come, Seattle would never make it back to the NFC Championship and the Legion of Boom would be completely decimated by 2019. On the other hand, New England would begin a whole 'nother dynasty. Including XLIX, they made 5 big games in the decade and one three. It's crazy how one play can change the course of a decade's worth of NFL History.