Super quarterbacks

Our picks for the top five performances by a quarterback in the Super Bowl.

By TOM JONES
Published February 1, 2008

Here are our picks for the top five performances by a quarterback in the Super Bowl:

1. Phil Simms, Giants, Super Bowl XXI. Completed 22 of 25 passes (including 10 in a row in second half) with three touchdowns and no interceptions in a 39-20 victory over Denver.

2. Steve Young, 49ers, Super Bowl XXIX. Threw six touchdowns in a 49-26 victory over San Diego. Also rushed for 49 yards.

3. Joe Montana, 49ers, Super Bowl XXIV. Went 22-for-29 for 297 yards with five touchdowns in 55-10 victory over Denver.

4. Joe Montana, 49ers, Super Bowl XIX. Threw for 331 yards with three touchdowns and rushed for another in 38-16 victory against Dan Marino and the Dolphins.

5. Doug Williams, Redskins, Super Bowl XXII. With the pressure of being first African-American quarterback to start in a Super Bowl, Williams went 18-for-29 for 340 yards, four TDs and one interception in 42-10 victory against the Broncos.

By the way, did you notice the Broncos defense showed up three times on this list?

He said it

"In a strange way the Giants have the Patriots to thank for the reason they are in the Super Bowl. I do believe the Giants got better after that game. If they had not been playing the New England Patriots in the final game of the season, in all likelihood, a number of their starters wouldn't have been playing that game. They had not been playing great football, at least offensively, going into the last game of the season. The fact that they were playing New England and that New England was going for an undefeated season, the Giants wanted to keep that from happening, I think that made them a better football team and ultimately landed them here in Super Bowl XLII."

Fox football analyst Troy Aikman

Who would you rather date, Tom or Eli?

ABC's Good Morning America ran an online poll, asking women who would they rather date - Giants quarterback Eli Manning or Patriots quarterback Tom Brady? A stunning 64 percent said Manning. Meantime, GMA also asked men who they would rather "hang out" with, Manning or Brady? And 55 percent said Manning.

GMA co-host Diane Sawyer said, "What does this mean?"

Celebrity predictions

Sports Illustrated asked dozens of celebrities their picks for the Super Bowl. A sample:

John Travolta: Pats 34-24

Mark Harmon: Pats 33-27

Omar Epps: Pats 35-24

Charles Barkley: Giants 31-28

Jimmy Buffett: Pats 24-17

What they're saying

When the group returned to the Giants' hotel in the desert, quarterback Eli Manning, guard Chris Snee, center Shaun O'Hara and guard Rich Seubert relaxed in the hotel lounge. What was on the television? The Giants' 39-20 victory over the Broncos in Super Bowl XXI, which was being replayed on the NFL Network.

"It got me ready to play," Snee said. "I was fired up."

How about Manning?

"Is there ever any reaction from Eli?" Snee said. "He was just watching the game and enjoying it like everybody else. I'm sure he got fired up in his own way."

Phil Simms completed a Super Bowl record 22 of 25 passes in that game and outplayed John Elway, just as Brett Favre admitted that Manning "outplayed me" 10 days ago in the NFC Championship Game. Now Manning has to outplay Tom Brady in Super Bowl XLII for the Giants to have a chance.

They might need him to play like Simms did 21 years ago.

"It's working right now for the Giants," Simms said. "They are about as hot as a team, physically and emotionally, as I've seen. I can't remember a team like this going into the Super Bowl."

Gary Myers, New York Daily News

You want to know what makes Super Bowl XLII something special, even among Super Bowls? It is not just a game, no matter what the players and coaches say. It is not even just a Super Bowl, not just a championship game for the team that has made a habit of playing in them.

The Patriots have advanced to four of the last seven Super Bowls, but they have never played in one with so much on the line, where the stakes are so high and the pressure to win so immense.

It is fitting that this Super Bowl will be played near the Grand Canyon because, in the eyes of history, the gulf between winning and losing has never been wider for the Patriots. Think about it. At about 9:45 Sunday night, the 2007 Patriots' place in history will be firmly established, and this team can only go down as one of two things:

1. Greatest ever.

2. Biggest disappointment ever.

It's that simple.

Gerry Callahan, Boston Herald

[Last modified February 1, 2008, 00:51:34]