Terry Bradshaw was always at his best on Super Bowl Sundays. The Pittsburgh quarterback went a perfect 4-0 in Super Bowl play during the 1970s, throwing for 932 yards and nine touchdowns combined as the Steelers became a dynasty. But Bradshaw's most validating season during that run, and perhaps in his entire career, came in 1978. Bradshaw led the AFC in passing as the Steelers went 14-2 during the regular season. His main target was Lynn Swann, who posted career highs in catches and receiving...

By the fall of 1979, Pittsburgh was known as the "City of Champions." That October, the Pirates defeated the Baltimore Orioles to win the World Series, their second championship of the decade. Meanwhile, the Steelers had constructed a dynasty, boasting three world titles over the past five years. The fan base no longer hoped for victories. Now they expected them. So the standards were high for the '79 Steelers. But every player on the team was confident it could meet them. "Once you have the...

Nobody loves reclamation projects more than Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis. Jim Plunkett knew this. A former Heisman winner out of Stanford, Plunkett was cast out of New England and then released by San Francisco before arriving at Davis' doorstep in 1978. It proved to be a perfect match. In week 6 of the 1980 season, head coach Tom Flores gave Plunkett his chance. From there, he rewarded the team's confidence in him by leading Oakland to Super Bowl XV. There, backed by a renegade defense led...

"The Catch." In San Francisco, it means just one thing - Joe Montana's pass...Dwight Clark's leap...and the birth of a dynasty. The dramatic win over Dallas in the 1981 NFC Championship Game became the team's, and the franchise's legacy -- but it's only part of the story. Bill Walsh's groundbreaking West Coast attack, and an upstart defense fueled a remarkable turnaround for a once moribund franchise. San Francisco went from 2-14 in Walsh's first year, to 6-10, to 13-3 in '81, when Clark's...

The 1982 NFL season wasn't a marathon, it was a sprint. A players' strike reduced a 16-week schedule to nine that season, leaving teams scrambling to reach the playoffs. Most clubs appeared frantic and rusty after the layoff. But the Washington Redskins dominated all comers under head coach Joe Gibbs. Washington hired Gibbs in 1981, and just one season later, had molded the team in his hardnosed image. The offensive line, nicknamed "The Hogs," was equally adept at blasting holes for fullback...

Led by head coach Tom Flores, the 1983 Los Angeles Raiders entered Super Bowl XVIII as underdogs. But the Raiders proved that they were the NFL's best as they manhandled the highest scoring team in the league, the Washington Redskins, 38-9 to win their third Vince Lombardi Trophy. Al Davis has done more than anybody in the history of the game - through personal achievement, team achievement and contribution to the game - and has demonstrated more than ever that he is and always will be...

The fabled West Coast offense wasn't invented in San Francisco, but the father of the system, Bill Walsh, certainly perfected it there as head coach of the 49ers. With quarterback Joe Montana at the controls, the Niners were a dominant passing team, winning four Super Bowls in the 1980s. And of those four, their record-setting season in 1984 may have best captured the deadly efficiency of the West Coast attack. The Niners receiving corps had many ways to beat you. To move the chains, Montana...

The 1985 Chicago Bears were larger than life. They had in-your-face personalities. They boasted Hall of Fame-caliber players. But most importantly, the whole was greater than the sum of its parts. Chicago dominated opponents like few others. The Bears offense was a reflection of their hard-nosed head coach, Mike Ditka. First and foremost, Ditka liked to establish the run, with Walter Payton rushing for 1,551 yards on 324 carries. Still, the coach could be creative, too. He occasionally used a...

Bill Parcells has coached many great players over his NFL career, yet only a select few have been allowed to enter his inner circle. These are his "guys." A "Parcells guy" is usually someone you don't have to worry much about. He's reliable, productive, and smart. Even if he plays like a star, he rarely acts like one. The 1986 Giants had a few "Parcells guys". Outside linebacker Lawrence Taylor collected 20.5 sacks that season and won the NFL MVP Award, the first defensive player to do so...

During the 1987 season, Washington Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs had a lot of explaining to do. He told backup quarterback Doug Williams he was being traded to the Raiders, and then reconsidered just hours later. The coach also demoted Jeff Bostic from starting center to snapper on punts, angering the veteran to the point of demanding a trade. Worse yet, Gibbs had to counsel his entire team as they sat out on strike -- while coaching their replacements. But Gibbs had all the right answers that...

A world championship was at stake, and the San Francisco 49ers were in a panic. Trailing 16-13 late in Super Bowl XXIII, the offense was 92 yards away from a championship. It was a moment for legends. Bit by bit, Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana marched the 49ers the length of the field. His 10-yard scoring strike to John Taylor with 34 ticks left on the clock lifted the Niners to a third Super Bowl title. The drive was a culmination of a season's worth of execution, raw athleticism, and...

What's the best way to replace a coaching legend? Quietly. When Bill Walsh retired from the San Francisco 49ers following the 1988 season, the team opted not to sign a big name as his successor. Instead, the organization stayed in-house, hiring defensive coordinator George Seifert. It was perfect casting. The stoic Seifert promptly led the team to new heights in his first year on the job. The 49ers were already a dynasty, winning three Super Bowls over the decade, so Seifert wasn't pressed to...

When Phil Simms sprained his foot against the Buffalo Bills in Week 15, an unproven Jeff Hostetler was thrust to the forefront. Hostetler exceeded expectations by winning four straight starts, including two playoff games, to reach Super Bowl XXV. Veteran Ottis Anderson, a fill-in for the hobbled Rodney Hampton, rushed for 102 yards as New York beat Buffalo, 20-19, in one of the most thrilling Super Bowls ever.

The Washington Redskins always possessed a terrific offensive line under coach Joe Gibbs. Era after era, from one Super Bowl to the next, Gibbs' line was a huge, run-blocking, pass-protecting force. Nicknamed "The Hogs," the unit was probably at its best in 1991, allowing Mark Rypien ample time to become the premier long-range passer in the NFL. Over time, Gibbs noticed that Rypien threw an accurate deep ball, so the coach had the quarterback throw less, but go deep more to wide receivers Gary...

In 1992, many pundits felt that the Dallas Cowboys were too young to contend for a Super Bowl title. But head coach Jimmy Johnson and team knew otherwise. The Cowboys set out to prove they were already a force to be reckoned with. And so they did. Dallas shined thanks in part to its "Triplets" on offense: quarterback Troy Aikman, receiver Michael Irvin, and the NFL's leading rusher, Emmitt Smith. The defense was just as impressive. Linebacker Ken Norton Jr. and pass rusher Charles Haley...

Talent is a cure-all in the NFL. That's the lesson of the 1993 Dallas Cowboys. That season, the Cowboys were saddled with injuries, a key holdout, and tension between the owner and head coach. But Dallas overcame all those distractions thanks largely to the star power of its roster. For starters, the Dallas "Triplets" were in their primes. Quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith and wide receiver Michael Irvin were among the best at their positions. In all, 11 Cowboys were named to...

Prior to the 1994 season, quarterback Steve Young had already enjoyed great success in the NFL. A two-time All-Pro with the San Francisco 49ers, Young was considered one of the NFL's most nimble and accurate passers. But Niners fans felt differently about him. In their estimation, Young had a flaw that was difficult to overcome: He wasn't Joe Montana. Montana led San Francisco to four Super Bowl victories. Young, as the starter, had yet to win one. So the team was determined to build a...

Dominance in the NFL starts at the very top. There have been only five NFL dynasties during the Super Bowl era -- four of them were forged by the vision of a single head coach. The 1995 Dallas Cowboys were the exception. They won their third world championship of the 1990s under new leadership in Barry Switzer. Despite being without Jimmy Johnson, who had led the Cowboys to two Lombardi Trophies, and being burdened with free agent losses, off-the-field distractions and injuries, Dallas was...

The Lombardi Trophy was on its way back to Lombardi Country. Vince Lombardi's Packers won Super Bowls I and II in the mid-1960s by playing with confidence and faith. Nearly 30 years later, Green Bay's 1996 team, led by coach Mike Holmgren, used those same virtues to carry the franchise to its third Super Bowl title. Holmgren was known for his intensity on game days, and an ability to mentor quarterbacks, qualities that would serve him well with the Packers. By '96, Holmgren had molded Brett...

By 1997, there was little else for John Elway to prove. Entering his 15th NFL season, the Denver quarterback was in third place in most major passing categories, behind only Dan Marino and Fran Tarkenton, and had made the two-minute offense into his own personal playground. But something was missing from Elway's resume: a Super Bowl ring. The Broncos no longer relied on Elway to win games by himself. Terrell Davis, a former sixth-round draft choice, led the AFC in rushing with 1,750 yards and...

The 1972 Miami Dolphins were getting antsy. Their title as the league's only undefeated team was in jeopardy. With just three games left in the 1998 season, the 13-0 Denver Broncos played relentlessly and boasted a Hall of Fame talent in exactly the right spot. At quarterback, 38-year-old John Elway played with the joy of an athlete in the prime of his career. Plus, star tailback Terrell Davis was on his way to becoming just the fourth player in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards in one...

America's Game uses the insight of Kurt Warner, Dick Vermeil and D'Marco Farr to tell the story of the 1999 Rams. With the humble Warner at the controls, the team's high-powered offense including: Torry Holt, Isaac Bruce and Marshall Faulk, became known as "The Greatest Show on Turf." Warner saved his best for the game's ultimate stage, throwing for 414 yards and two touchdowns to win.

The debate over the NFL's greatest defense has raged for some time. Fans in Dallas are squarely behind the Doomsday Defense. Minnesota had the "Purple People Eaters", while Chicago had the "46". Still, in 2000, the Baltimore Ravens were as good as any in that group, and possibly even better. Statistically speaking, the Ravens' defense was without equal. Led by Pro Bowlers Ray Lewis, Sam Adams and Rod Woodson, Baltimore allowed the fewest points ever in a 16-game season - 165, an average of...

It was the hit felt from Boston to Bangor. In Week 2 of the 2001 season, New England Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe absorbed a vicious blow from Jets linebacker Mo Lewis, shearing an artery behind his ribs. He was out indefinitely. The 2001 season appeared lost. But in stepped backup Tom Brady, a former sixth round draft choice, and New England sports history was changed forever. Over the next few weeks, Brady compiled a 5-3 record as a starter. When Bledsoe returned to reclaim the starting...