Yuku free message boards

Alright, since we need something to do during the 2 weeks of super bowl hype, I'm going to list the 10 best NFL games I've ever seen. These will be the 10 best of MY NFL viewing life, and they have to be games I actually watched(not just saw highlights of)

Coming soon...

Alright, I'm just doing playoff games, cause I can't recall that many regular season games.

1. Super Bowl 32: Broncos over Packers: There may never be a Super Bowl like this again. You had Elway going for his 1st ring. You had this would-be Packer dynasty trying to repeat. You had the fact that Denver was a huge underdog and the AFC hadn't won a title in 13 years. And then you had an amazing game, with Elway's 1st down dive, and TD's gutty running and Favre almost leading the game into OT.

2. 1998 NFC Championship: Falcons over Vikings: Oh this one hurt. I cried actual tears at the end of this game. The 15-1 Vikings, the best offense ever that year(better than any Indy team), sure to go to the super bowl...until the HUGE underdog Falcons came in and ruined everything. I don't hear this game talked about much among the all time greats but up here all one needs to do is say "Gary Anderson" or "the knee" and we all know what you're talking about. This game was SO dramatic. Atlanta tying the game on the last drive, and then a LONG overtime. Amazing game, and the last time I was ever an all the way Viking fan.

3. 1992 AFC Wild Card: Bills over Oilers: Down 35-3, Frank Reich leads the Bills to the biggest comeback ever.

4. 2002 Divisional Playoffs: Steelers over Browns/49ers over Giants: On the same afternoon, 2 mammoth comebacks. And both went the way I wanted, which made them all the more unlikely. The Niners espeically seemed dead, but Jeff Garcia played the 2nd half of his life.

5. Super Bowl 25: Giants over Bills: The only super bowl ever w/o a turnover. Norwood's miss. Thurman Thomas shoulda been MVP.

6. 1996 AFC Divisional Playoff: Jaguars over Broncos: The biggest upset I've ever seen. Denver was the #1 seed, the Jags were the 6 seed in their 2nd year of existence, and were down 2 scores early. But somehow they pulled of the win at Mile High.

7. 2001 AFC Divisional Playoff: Patriots over Raiders: WHAT? I have the tuck rule game here? Oh yes, cause before it became the beginning of tyranny, this was a classic. How can you beat a close, dramatic playoff game in the nighttime snow?

8. Super Bowl 34: Rams over Titans: Would be higher except the first 3 quarters stunk. Fabulous finish of course, with Warner's long TD to Bruce after the Titan comeback, and McNair leading the final drive that ended at the 1.

9. 2003 NFC Wild Card: Packers over Seahawks: "we want the ball and we're gonna score" said Hasselbeck. Then Al Harris picked him off for six! Also, this is almost surely the last playoff win for Brett Favre.

10. 2005 AFC Divisional Playoff: Steelers over Colts: Could rise higher if the Steelers seal the deal on Sunday.

twigskin

Troy Aikman: Can't argue with this. He has the stats. He has the rings. Sadly this clinches it that Brady will make it one day.

Warren Moon: Yay! For some idiotic reason he was not considered a sure hall of famer. Ok, he never played in a super bowl, or even a conference championship, but stats wise he's easily one of the most accomplished passers of all time. The first black QB in the hall too. Cunningham is soon to follow I hope.

Reggie White: One of the great defensive players of all time.

John Madden: I assume this is based in part on his broadcasting career, cause he only made it to one super bowl as a coach. Does that mean Barry Switzer and Brian Billick are hall of famers?

Harry Carson: Part of those great Giants teams of the 80's. I'd have put Derrick Thomas in ahead of him however.

Rayfield Wright: Hmm. I have the DVD "The Complete History of the Dallas Cowboys" and I don't recall him being mentioned ONCE.

STEELERS 21
SEAHAWKS 10

Recent years had nearly destroyed my NFL fandom. Seriously, go to the classics forum and look at my posts following the last 2 super bowls. I was teetering. Baseball was on the verge of supplanting pro football as my favorite sport. Those blasted Patriots were sapping me of all my enjoyment of the game. Had they won again my NFL fandom would have been gone.

Now, they got beat by Denver and that was spectacular. But had the Steelers lost this game to Seattle it still would've been another crushing letdown.

NOT THIS YEAR!

My favorite head coach, and by association my favorite team(or at least top 3 or 4) have won the Super Bowl! I've watched 19 super bowls now, and I'm not sure I've wanted a team to win more than I wanted Pittsburgh to win this game. Maybe Denver when Elway won his first. Maybe Cincy in the game Montana beat em at the end. Maybe the Rams in 99. Maybe the Packers. But I think this was the best! And I'm no fair weather fan.

I had a bad feeling about this game for 2 weeks. Early on I seemed to have been justified feeling uneasy. I was SO mad early in the game, because Bill Cowher played it so conservatively at the start of the game. Ben played a terrible game, but how could he have played good when he's babied like that? Its a self-fulfilling prophecy to call a game like he did in the first half.

Seattle wasn't great at the start, but they were basically dominating. Every receiver was wide open. Alexander got 5 or 6 on every run. And their defense was not being challenged at all. Yet they only got up 3-0. Darrell Jackson's push off was obvious, and yes the ref was reaching for the flag before the Steeler complained. They blew a chance to blow the game open early, and paid for it in the end.
Ben's 1st pick wasn't that awful. It was like a punt. It still killed the first momentum they had. But Ben(who's still only in year two) is a playmaker, and he made a nice shovel pass to Hines Ward. He was great on the 3rd and long pass to Ward. His runs were good. He WAS in by a sliver on the TD. Had it been overturned it wouldn't have been an outrage though.

Seattle killed themselves with awful clock management before the half. Then that ex-Nebraska kicker(HAHA!!) missed a field goal. It was 7-3, and the Steelers had been awful in every way. I was optimistic.

Optimism turned to euphoria in the 3rd. I screamed at Parker's TD run. I still think the guy's a bad back(he's like Michael Bennett). Then the loser Husker missed another kick. Then Bettis got going and I was FINALLY starting to allow hope to creep in.
CRAP! Herndon picks off a TERRIBLE pass and nearly houses it. Seattle then scores with no resistance and I was back to extreme anxiety.

It looked like that now with Ben not being allowed a shot to redeem himself, Seattle would come back and win. The holding call WAS right. The guy didn't totally fall down, but the lineman tried tackling him. He simply kept his balance. Hasselbeck threw a bad int to Taylor and there was a reprieve.

I knew the Randle El to Ward pass was coming the second the play began! YES! Perfect time to run that play. Perfect throw. 21-10!

I'm surprised Holmgren punted with 7 minutes left, following Townsend's awesome sack. Then the Steelers FINALLY did the really good ball control thing, and ran off most of the time. Seattle did awful clock management at the end too.

I cheered! Cowher got his Gatorade dunk. When he was hugging his family I nearly cried! WHOOHOOO!!!!

Of the 19 super bowls I've now seen, this was maybe the worst played on both sides. Neither team played a good game. But it was at least close, and it had some great big plays. This was sure a lot better than endless depression of last year.

It was made obvious that the Steelers had already played their better teams. Seattle is a product of a pathetic conference, a team that coasted through an easy schedule and playoffs. I don't know why anyone believed this was not so. The oddsmakers knew this. There were probably TEN AFC teams better than Seattle this year. I know I'D take San Diego and KC over them.

I picked Pittsburgh in the game. I also changed my score pick duing the week to 21-10. I had Ward as MVP. I knew Parker would break Marcus Allen's TD record, and I had Ben's QB rating correct to the exact point.

Anyway, bravo to the Steelers! This NFL thread and season began with me having no hope, but now that hope is back. Thanks guys!

Also, like Jerome Bettis, I now retire from my NFL analysis on AQ. This was the final season for me here, and like the BUS I get to go out on top

twigskin
(and we out)