NFL

The best games in Super Bowl history

As Super Bowl XLVIII at MetLife Stadium draws near, The Post ranks the 10 best of the big games:

  1. 1. Super Bowl XLII -- Giants 17, Patriots 14

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    Plaxico Burress catches the game-winning touchdown. Charles Wenzelberg

    New England may have been rooting for the Patriots to complete their unprecedented 19-0 season, while the rest of the nation rooted against coach Bill Belichick, in the wake of Spygate. What they all got was the greatest Super Bowl ever played.

    Tom Brady threw a touchdown to Randy Moss for a 14-10 lead with 2:42 to play. But Eli Manning answered by completing a miracle heave that David Tyree famously caught with his helmet, and a go-ahead touchdown with just 35 seconds left to Plaxico Burress — who had guaranteed victory to The Post. Burress had his Joe Namath moment, and the 1972 Dolphins still had their undefeated perch to themselves.

  2. 2. Super Bowl XXV -- Giants 20, Bills 19

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    Jeff Hostetler celebrates with ball in hand after kneeling down on the final play of the game. AP

    All of The Post’s Top 10 Super Bowls were great games, but this one had everything: Big stars, high-level play, an against-all-odds upset and last-second drama.

    The Giants — coached by Bill Parcells and Belichick, his young defensive coordinator — were big underdogs, and trailed 12-3 in the second quarter. But quarterback Jeff Hostetler led a touchdown drive to close the first half, and they went on a 10-minute march to start the second, capped by MVP Ottis Anderson’s score. They answered Thurman Thomas’ score with Matt Bahr’s field goal to set up the dramatic finish.

    As both teams prayed, Buffalo kicker Scott Norwood’s 47-yard attempt sailed wide right in the first game-deciding kick in Super Bowl history. In the end, the Giants took the air out of the game, holding the ball for a Super Bowl-record 40 minutes and handing the Bills the first of their four title losses.

  3. 3. Super Bowl XLIII -- Steelers 27, Cardinals 23

    It’s hard to say any fan gets his or her money’s worth at a Super Bowl, but this game far exceeded expectations, thanks to huge calls and some of the greatest plays the title game ever has seen.

    Pittsburgh jumped ahead 10-0 before James Harrison’s Super-Bowl record 100-yard interception return touchdown on the last play of the half. Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald had 115 yards and two scores in the fourth quarter to give Arizona the lead — until Ben Roethlisberger hit Santonio Holmes for the last-minute, game-winning touchdown, with Holmes just getting two feet down tip-toeing the sideline.

  4. 4. Super Bowl XXIII -- 49ers 20, Bengals 16

    This game wasn’t as clean as some others, but was as dramatic as any, stamping San Francisco as the Team of the ’80s and Joe Montana, Jerry Rice and Bill Walsh as legends. Trailing, 16-13, with 3:20 left and the ball at the San Francisco 8, the Niners appeared destined for defeat.

    Montana, however, lived up to the “Joe Cool” nickname. He turned to Harris Barton in the huddle and picked out actor John Candy in the stands. Then he picked apart the Bengals on an 11-play, 92-yard drive, working Cincinnati over with Rice (215 receiving yards) and — with intended receiver Roger Craig covered — finding John Taylor for the winner with 34 seconds left.

  5. 5. Super Bowl XXXVIII -- Patriots 32, Panthers 29

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    The Patriots sideline erupts after Adam Viniateri's game-winning kick. AP
  6. 6. Super Bowl XXXVI -- Patriots 20, Rams 17

    St. Louis had Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk, Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt and the Greatest Show on Turf. But the 14-point underdog Patriots — led by Brady who had replaced an injured Drew Bledsoe, then benefited from the Tuck rule in the playoff win over Oakland — pulled off a huge upset.

    New England harassed the Rams receivers and jumped out to a 17-3 lead on Ty Law’s pick-six and David Patten touchdown before St. Louis rallied to tie. Brady marched the Pats for Vinatieri’s 48-yard kick as time expired.

    “When Adam hit it, it was so true,” Belichick said afteward. “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.’’

  7. 7. Super Bowl XXXIV -- Rams 23, Titans 16

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    Dick Vermeil and Kurt Warner celebrate the victory. AP

    The Rams went from 4-12 the season earlier to Super Bowl champs. Warner from grocery store clerk to MVP in four short years. That’s how shocking the Greatest Show on Turf’s ascent was.

    St. Louis raced to a 16-0 lead, but had to work to hold it. Surprisingly, it was defense that did the job. The Titans tied it with 2:12 left, and even after Warner’s 73-yard bomb to Bruce, marched down the field again. But St. Louis linebacker Mike Jones wrestled Titans receiver Kevin Dyson down at the 1 as time expired. Game of inches indeed.

  8. 8. Super Bowl XIII -- Steelers 35, Cowboys 31

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    John Stallworth scores a touchdown for the Steelers in the first quarter. AP

    These iconic teams met in three Super Bowls, with the Steelers’ two wins in the 1970s stamping them the team of the decade. Coaches Chuck Noll and Tom Landry and 14 eventual Hall of Fame players made this perhaps the most star-studded title game of all-time in any sport.

    In their classic 1978 game, quarterbacks Terry Bradshaw and Roger Staubach combined for seven touchdowns. Bradshaw threw four, and Staubach should have had a game-tying fourth, but tight end Jackie Smith dropped the ball in the end zone. Dallas settled for the game’s only field goal and a 21-17 hole it never escaped.

  9. 9. Super Bowl III -- Jets 16, Colts 7

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    Joe Namath AP

    It wasn’t the closest Super Bowl or the cleanest, but it was the most important. The AFL champion Jets were 18-20 point underdogs against one of the best teams of all time, but cocky Joe Namath said, “I think we’ll win it. In fact, I’ll guarantee it.” Then he delivered it.

    Matt Snell gashed the Colts’ front for 121 yards, the defense picked off Johnny Unitas and Earl Morrall four times, and Namath jogged wordlessly off the field with his index finger held aloft for No. 1, a win that preceded the AFL-NFL merger.

  10. 10. Super Bowl XXXII -- Broncos 31, Packers 24

    This game featured iconic quarterbacks John Elway and Brett Favre at different stages of their legacies, and it lived up to the billing. Favre was defending champ, while Elway was going for his first ring after going 0-3 in his prior Super Bowls.

    Elway helped earn his first title with his signature play, his famous scramble and “helicopter” play leaping into — and through — multiple defenders for a key first down that set up MVP Terrell Davis’ touchdown run. The Broncos went up 31-24 and held off Favre to win.