With preseason story lines such as a quarterback battle and a disgruntled star receiver, along with a history of ineptitude, the 2008 Arizona Cardinals were a longshot to make the playoffs, let alone play in the Super Bowl. But the Cardinals aren’t the only team to make an improbable run to the NFL’s biggest game. Here are 10 Super surprises:
1999 St. Louis Rams
The Rams were 4-12 in 1998, then started 1999 with some unknown quarterback named Kurt Warner. Whoever would have thought a former grocery bagger and arena league player would be able to lead the “Greatest Show on Turf?”
1999 Tennessee Titans
The Titans wouldn’t have made it to the Super Bowl in Atlanta to face the Rams if not for the “Music City Miracle” — a controversial lateral pass on a kickoff return that enabled the Titans to knock off the Bills.
1988 Cincinnati Bengals
Perennial bottom dwellers, the Bengals were coming off a 4-11 season. But led by a rookie running back named Icky and quarterback Boomer Esiason, the Bengals won the AFC Central and the conference title before losing to Joe Montana and the 49ers in the Super Bowl.
1998 Atlanta Falcons
The team won 14 games in the regular season, but the Falcons seemingly had no shot of making it to the Super Bowl. Not with having to play Minnesota, who had set a record for most points scored in a season, on the road. But the Vikings missed a late field goal that would have sealed the game, and the Falcons rallied to tie, then win in overtime. The Falcons then lost to the Broncos in the Super Bowl in John Elway’s final game.
1985 New England Patriots
The runner-up to Miami in the AFC East, the Patriots became the first wild-card team to win three road games and advance to the Super Bowl. The streak ended in the big game though, with a 46-10 loss to the Chicago Bears.
2003 Carolina Panthers
The Panthers won the NFC South but were only two seasons removed from winning just one game in 2001. The path to the Super Bowl included road victories against St. Louis and Philadelphia. The Panthers lost to the Patriots in the Super Bowl.
1990 New York Giants
The Giants, coached by Bill Parcells, became a longshot after quarterback Phil Simms suffered a season-ending injury in December. He was replaced by Jeff Hostetler, and the Giants made do without a powerful offense in the NFC title game, beating the 49ers 15-13 by scoring only field goals.
1981 San Francisco 49ers
The first year of tremendous success for coach Bill Walsh and quarterback Joe Montana and their West Coast offense. The 49ers beat the Cowboys in the final seconds of the NFC championship game with The Catch — a pass from Montana to Dwight Clark, a play that remains among the most memorable in NFL history.
2007 New York Giants
The Giants lost their first two games and two of their final three games in the regular season. As the No. 5 seed in the NFC playoffs, the Giants won three straight road games — including at Green Bay in subzero temperatures in the NFC title game — to advance to the Super Bowl, where they beat the previously undefeated Patriots.
2008 Arizona Cardinals
Arizona won the NFC West, arguably the weakest division in the NFL, and lost five games on the road throughout the season. A late-season swoon — four losses since Nov. 23 — and a defense that gave up 426 points in the regular season had just about everyone counting the Cardinals out in each round of the playoffs.
Lindsay H. Jones, The Denver Post
