The most unlikely heroes in Super Bowl history

1. Doug Williams, Super Bowl XXII

Williams began the season as the Redskins’ backup quarterback, only appearing in five games and making two starts — both losses. Nevertheless, he was chosen as the team’s starter in the playoffs, and went 18-for-29 with 340 yards and four touchdowns as the underdog Redskins trounced the Broncos 42-10 in the Super Bowl. All four of Williams’ TD passes came in a 35-point second quarter, still the most points scored in any quarter in Super Bowl history. He also accomplished that after twisting his knee and missing several plays early in the game, and undergoing a root canal the night before. Williams, the first black quarterback to start a Super Bowl, went on to win the MVP.

2. David Tyree, Super Bowl XLII

During the 2007 regular season, Tyree had just four catches for 35 yards for the Giants and was mostly used on special teams. But in the Super Bowl, he surpassed both those totals with three catches for 43 yards and a touchdown. His second catch was a 5-yard TD pass from Eli Manning, which gave the Giants a 10-7 lead over the undefeated Patriots early in the fourth quarter. But it’s his third catch that will go down as one of the best catches in Super Bowl history. With the Giants trailing 14-10 facing a third-and-5 with 1:15 left in the fourth quarter, Manning somehow escaped Patriots defenders and threw up a pass, which Tyree leaped up and pinned against his helmet for a 32-yard gain. The Giants would go on to score and win the game 17-14.

“My opportunities are too far and few to let that one go,” Tyree said after the game. “It was supernatural, you know? Some things just don’t make sense, and that catch is a good example.”

3. Max McGee, Super Bowl I

McGee started out as a punter before converting to receiver. He had success, leading the Packers in receiving for four years, but in 1966, his production slipped. He had one touchdown and four catches for 91 yards, and didn’t think he would even play in the Super Bowl when the Packers got there. He actually told fellow receiver Boyd Dowler, “I hope you don’t get hurt. I’m not in very good shape,” but Dowler separated his shoulder early in the game.

McGee, who was hungover and broke curfew the night before, ended up with 138 yards and two touchdowns — including a 37-yard pass from Bart Starr, the first TD in Super Bowl history. The Packers would go on to win the game 35-10.

4. Mike Jones, Super Bowl XXXIV

In an unlikely Super Bowl matchup (Titans vs. Rams), one of the most unlikely of players turned out to make the biggest tackle of the game. The Rams scored a quick fourth-quarter touchdown to take a 23-16 lead with 1:48 left, but the Titans drove the length of the field and were on the Rams’ 10-yard line with one last chance to tie the game. Steve McNair found Kevin Dyson streaking over the middle of the field, but Jones raced toward the open Dyson and wrapped up his legs, tackling him 1 yard short of the end zone to preserve St. Louis’ victory. Jones had eight tackles in the game, but none bigger than that final play, which has been dubbed “The Tackle.”

“From that moment on, every great defensive play in the Super Bowl will always be measured by Mike’s,” Rams coach Dick Vermeil said. “And I doubt if they’ll ever be a greater play made on the final play of a Super Bowl with one second left on the clock. It just isn’t possible.”

5. Larry Brown, Super Bowl XXX

Selected in the last round of the 1991 draft, Brown was never a strong part of the Cowboys defense, and even left training camp as a rookie before returning. But the cornerback more than held his own against the Steelers’ receiving corps in the Super Bowl, picking off Neil O’Donnell twice for 77 total yards, as Pittsburgh opted to throw toward Brown instead of Deion Sanders. The second interception came with the Cowboys nursing a 20-17 lead, as Brown picked off O’Donnell and returned it to the Pittsburgh 6-yard line. Dallas scored two plays later to put the game away 27-17 and Brown was named MVP.

“To be honest with you, [my life] changed a little,” Brown told NFL.com. “I went on ‘Letterman,’ I did ‘Married With Children.’ It was a blast. I felt like I knew what it was like to be Emmitt Smith or Troy Aikman for a month.”

6. Deion Branch, Super Bowl XXXIX

Branch played just nine games for the Patriots in the 2004 regular season, surpassing 100 receiving yards once. He tied a Super Bowl record, however, with 11 receptions and had 133 yards as the Patriots defeated the Eagles 24-21. Although Branch didn’t record a touchdown, he was named the MVP for his big catches, keeping scoring drives alive. He had four catches for 71 yards on the Patriots’ first drive of the second quarter.

“All the hoopla was about [Eagles receiver Terrell Owens],” Branch said. “He’s a great player. But I want to show I have the same type of talent as those guys. They say big players step up in big games.”

7. Timmy Smith, Super Bowl XXII

The Redskins rookie running back, making his first NFL start, had 22 carries for a Super Bowl-record 204 rushing yards and two touchdowns, including a 58-yard score in the second quarter of a 42-10 blowout win against the Broncos. He only had 29 attempts and 126 yards (no touchdowns) during seven regular-season games, and finished his career with three rushing touchdowns.

8. Dexter Jackson, Super Bowl XXXVII

The actual game was never in doubt — a 48-21 Buccaneers victory against the overmatched Raiders — and that was due in large part to the Tampa Bay defense. Jackson, who had four interceptions in the regular season, had two in the Super Bowl to go along with two tackles, leading a defensive unit that forced five interceptions (three for touchdowns) and had five sacks. The safety was named the game’s MVP.

“I hadn’t even played the game yet, and I figured that I could be the difference,” Jackson said. “I told somebody that I was going to be the Most Valuable Player.”

9. Rod Martin, Super Bowl XV

Martin, who would later go on to make two Pro Bowls, wasn’t as well known before his record-setting three-interception performance in Super Bowl XV. On the first play of the game, the Raiders linebacker intercepted the Eagles’ Ron Jaworski, and Oakland scored a touchdown later on the drive. Martin recorded two second-half interceptions and the Raiders ran out the clock for a 27-10 victory. Despite the performance, quarterback Jim Plunkett ended up winning the MVP.

“People come up to me and say, ‘There’s the MVP!’ and of course I have to tell them I wasn’t,” Martin said years later. “Plunkett was the MVP … but you have Super Bowl MVPs every year. You don’t have Super Bowl record holders every year.”

10. Mark Ingram, Super Bowl XXV

Ingram had a decent season, with 26 receptions for 499 yards and five scores, but made the key play leading to the Giants’ second Super Bowl title in a 20-19 win over the Bills. He caught a pass from Jeff Hostetler and broke a handful of tackles for a 14-yard gain with the Giants facing a third-and-13 in the third quarter. The Giants ended that nine-minute, 29-second drive with a touchdown to take a 17-12 lead. Ingram had five catches for a game-high 74 yards. Of course, Ingram wouldn’t even be on this list if not for a missed field goal by Scott Norwood as time expired, but that’s a different list.