39. Super Bowl XI – Oakland Raiders 32, Minnesota Vikings 14 – Jan. 9, 1977
Great matchup on paper, but this was never in doubt for John Madden’s steady Raiders.
38. Super Bowl XVIII – Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington Redskins 9 – Jan. 22, 1984
This was yet another blowout at a time when Super Bowls were almost never competitive, but at least Marcus Allen put on a hell of a show.
37. Super Bowl XL – Pittsburgh Steelers 21, Seattle Seahawks 10 – Feb. 5, 2006
When you think of this game, you think of bad officiating. Combine that with bad quarterback play and it’s hard to reminisce too fondly.
36. Super Bowl XXXV – Baltimore Ravens 34, New York Giants 7 – Jan. 28, 2001
It was fun to see that incredible Ravens defense dominate one more time, and at least Baltimore didn’t make it a blowout until late in the third quarter.
35. Super Bowl XVI – San Francisco 49ers 26, Cincinnati Bengals 21 – Jan. 24, 1982
Although the final score line was close, San Francisco was in control throughout and this was probably the least entertaining of the the 49ers’ Super Bowl victories.
34. Super Bowl XLI – Indianapolis Colts 29, Chicago Bears 17 – Feb. 4, 2007
After starting with the bang that was Devin Hester’s 92-yard kickoff return touchdown, the 41st Super Bowl was rather boring. Neither quarterback played particularly well in a turnover-filled game that Indy won rather handily.
33. Super Bowl XIX – San Francisco 49ers 38, Miami Dolphins 16 – Jan. 20, 1985
At least this was a hell of a quarterback matchup between Joe Montana and Dan Marino, but the tit-for-tat many anticipated never came to fruition. This was over in the third quarter.
32, Super Bowl XV – Oakland Raiders 27, Philadelphia Eagles 10 – Jan. 25, 1981
A large chunk of America probably tuned out when it was 21-3 early in the third quarter, but at least this was a nice little upset for Tom Flores and the Raiders.
31. Super Bowl XXIV – San Francisco 49ers 55, Denver Broncos 10 – Jan. 28, 1990
Yes, it was the most-lopsided blowout in Super Bowl history, but that incredible performance from Joe Montana and Jerry Rice is what made this so entertaining. Unless you’re a Broncos fan.
30. Super Bowl XLV – Green Bay Packers 31, Pittsburgh Steelers 25 – Feb. 6, 2011
I was at this game, and yet while it was a neck-and-neck battle and the Steelers had a chance to win it in the final seconds, I can’t actually recall one particularly special play. Not saying there weren’t some big ones, but the most notable play that night was a first-quarter Nick Collins pick-six that was more like a punt return. That’s not a good sign, which is a shame because on paper this was a hell of a matchup.
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