Super Bowl XXI

Quarter 1 2 3 4 Tot Broncos 10 0 0 10 20 Giants 7 2 17 13 39
Date	January 25, 1987
Stadium	Rose Bowl Stadium
City	Pasadena, California
MVP	Phil Simms, Quarterback
Favorite	Giants by 9 1/2
National Anthem	Neil Diamond
Coin toss	Willie Davis
Halftime show	"Salute to Hollywood's 100th Anniversary" with Southern California high school drill teams and dancers
Attendance	101,063
U.S. TV
Network	CBS
Announcers	Pat Summerall and John Madden
Nielsen Ratings	45.8
Market Share	66
Cost of 30-sec Commercial	$600,000 USD

Super Bowl XXI was the 21st Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 25, 1987 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California following the 1986 regular season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants defeated the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos, 39–20. Image File history File links SuperBowlXXI.png Super Bowl XXI logo, claiming fair use File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Jump to: navigation, search Conference AFC Division West Year Founded 1960 Home Field INVESCO Field at Mile High City Denver, Colorado Team Colors Broncos Navy Blue, Orange, and White Head Coach Mike Shanahan League Championships (2) Super Bowl: 1997 (XXXII), 1998 (XXXIII) Conference Championships (6) AFC: 1977, 1986, 1987, 1989... Jump to: navigation, search Conference NFC Division East Year Founded 1925 Home Field Giants Stadium City East Rutherford, New Jersey Team Colors Royal Blue, Red, Gray, and White Head Coach Tom Coughlin League Championships (6) NFL Champions: 1927, 1934, 1938, 1956 Super Bowl: 1986 (XXI), 1990 (XXV) Conference Championships (9... Jump to: navigation, search January 25 is the 25th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1987 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search The Olympia Stadium: start and finish lines visible, defining the length of one stadium (in this case 192. ... This article is about the Los Angeles stadium. ... Jump to: navigation, search Pasadena is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. ... The Super Bowl MVP, or Super Bowl Most Valuable Player, is an award given at the conclusion of the Super Bowl, the NFLs national championship, to the player deemed to have made the most significant positive impact on the outcome of the game. ... Phil Simms (born November 3, 1955 in Lebanon, Kentucky) is a former quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League, and currently a television sportscaster for the CBS network. ... The quarterback is a position in the offensive backfield of American and Canadian football, directly behind players of the line. He is generally the leader of the offensive team when it is on the field, responsible for initiating play by receiving the snap of the ball from the center. ... Sports betting is the general activity of predicting sports results by making a wager on the outcome of a sporting event. ... Jump to: navigation, search Conference NFC Division East Year Founded 1925 Home Field Giants Stadium City East Rutherford, New Jersey Team Colors Royal Blue, Red, Gray, and White Head Coach Tom Coughlin League Championships (6) NFL Champions: 1927, 1934, 1938, 1956 Super Bowl: 1986 (XXI), 1990 (XXV) Conference Championships (9... Jump to: navigation, search Nicholson took the copy Key gave him to a printer, where it was published as a broadside on September 17 under the title The Defence of Fort McHenry, with an explanatory note explaining the circumstances of its writing. ... Jump to: navigation, search Essential Neil Diamond album cover. ... Coin flipping or coin tossing is the practice of throwing a coin in the air to resolve a dispute between two parties. ... William Delford Davis was born July 24,1934 in Lisbon, Louisana. ... Jump to: navigation, search Southern California Downtown Los Angeles Skyline Southern California, sometimes abbreviated SoCal, is an informal name for the megalopolis that is the southern one-third of the state of California. ... Jump to: navigation, search A television network is a distribution network for television content whereby a central operation provides programming for many television stations. ... CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) is a major television network and radio broadcaster in the United States. ... A sportscaster is an announcer on radio or television who specializes in reporting or commenting on sports events. ... Jump to: navigation, search George Allen Pat Summerall (born May 10, 1930 in Lake City, Florida) is a former American football player and television sportscaster. ... Jump to: navigation, search Commentator John Madden John Earl Madden (born April 10, 1936 in Austin, Minnesota) is a former American football coach for the Oakland Raiders who later became a TV football announcer, author and commercial pitchman for various products and retail stores. ... Jump to: navigation, search When TV viewers or entertainment professionals in the United States mention ratings they are generally referring to Nielsen Ratings, a system developed by the New York City-based firm Nielsen Media Research to determine which shows television viewers watch at what times. ... Jump to: navigation, search USD redirects here. ... Jump to: navigation, search The winning Super Bowl team receives the Vince Lombardi Trophy The first Super Bowl was played in 1967, as commemorated by this stamp issued in 1999 by the United States Postal Service featuring the ticket for that first game. ... Jump to: navigation, search The National Football League (NFL) is the largest professional American football league, consisting of thirty-two teams from American cities. ... Jump to: navigation, search January 25 is the 25th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1987 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the Los Angeles stadium. ... Jump to: navigation, search Pasadena is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. ... The 1986 NFL season was the 67th regular season of the National Football League. ... The National Football Conference is one of the two conferences of the National Football League. ... Jump to: navigation, search Conference NFC Division East Year Founded 1925 Home Field Giants Stadium City East Rutherford, New Jersey Team Colors Royal Blue, Red, Gray, and White Head Coach Tom Coughlin League Championships (6) NFL Champions: 1927, 1934, 1938, 1956 Super Bowl: 1986 (XXI), 1990 (XXV) Conference Championships (9... The American Football Conference (or AFC) is one of the two conferences that compose the National Football League. ... Jump to: navigation, search Conference AFC Division West Year Founded 1960 Home Field INVESCO Field at Mile High City Denver, Colorado Team Colors Broncos Navy Blue, Orange, and White Head Coach Mike Shanahan League Championships (2) Super Bowl: 1997 (XXXII), 1998 (XXXIII) Conference Championships (6) AFC: 1977, 1986, 1987, 1989...

Giants quarterback Phil Simms was named the Super Bowl MVP. He finished the game completing 22 of 25 passes for 268 yards and three touchdowns. Simms also had 25 rushing yards on 3 carries. The 22 out of 25 (88%) completion percentage not only set a Super Bowl record, but also an NFL postseason record. The quarterback is a position in the offensive backfield of American and Canadian football, directly behind players of the line. He is generally the leader of the offensive team when it is on the field, responsible for initiating play by receiving the snap of the ball from the center. ... Phil Simms (born November 3, 1955 in Lebanon, Kentucky) is a former quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League, and currently a television sportscaster for the CBS network. ... The Super Bowl MVP, or Super Bowl Most Valuable Player, is an award given at the conclusion of the Super Bowl, the NFLs national championship, to the player deemed to have made the most significant positive impact on the outcome of the game. ...

The game was telecast in the United States by CBS. Pat Summerall and John Madden called the game. Broadcast could refer to: Broadcast, an electronica musical group broadcasting, the distribution of audio and video signals Broadcast address, an IP address allowing information to be sent to all machines on a given subnet. ... CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) is a major television network and radio broadcaster in the United States. ... Jump to: navigation, search George Allen Pat Summerall (born May 10, 1930 in Lake City, Florida) is a former American football player and television sportscaster. ... Jump to: navigation, search Commentator John Madden John Earl Madden (born April 10, 1936 in Austin, Minnesota) is a former American football coach for the Oakland Raiders who later became a TV football announcer, author and commercial pitchman for various products and retail stores. ...

Background

The Giants advanced to their first Super Bowl in team history, and were playing for a league championship since they lost to the Chicago Bears in the 1963 NFL Championship Game. The Giants were led by quarterback Phil Simms, who threw for 3,487 yards and 21 touchdowns (but also 22 interceptions). Simms' main target was tight end Mark Bavaro, who caught 66 passes for 1,001 yards and 4 touchdowns. Although the Giants did not have one great wide receiver, they did have several good ones. Receivers Stacy Robinson, Bobby Johnson, and Phil McConkey combined for 76 receptions and 1,307 yards. Jump to: navigation, search Conference NFC Division North Year Founded 1919 Home Field Soldier Field City Chicago, Illinois Team Colors Navy Blue, Orange, and White Head Coach Lovie Smith League Championships (9) NFL Champions: 1921, 1932, 1933, 1940, 1941, 1943, 1946, 1963 Super Bowl: 1985 (XX) Conference Championships (3) NFL... Phil Simms (born November 3, 1955 in Lebanon, Kentucky) is a former quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League, and currently a television sportscaster for the CBS network. ... Mark Bavaro is a former American Football tight end who played for the New York Giants (1985-1990), Cleveland Browns (1992), and the Philadelphia Eagles (1993-1994). ...

However, running the ball was the Giants' primary offensive attack. Running back Joe Morris finished the regular season with a franchise record 1,516 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, while also catching 21 passes for 223 yards and another touchdown. One reason for his success was fullback Maurice Carthon, who provided Morris with excellent blocking and was the team's second leading rusher with 260 yards. Another reason was the play of their offensive line, led by Pro Bowl tackles Brad Benson and Karl Nelson. This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

The Giants also had weapons on their defense, nicknamed The "Big Blue Wrecking Crew". After giving up 31 points in their opening regular season loss to the Dallas Cowboys, the Giants had not given up more then 20 points in a game until the last game of the season, in a 55-24 win over the Green Bay Packers. The Giants' defensive leader was linebacker Lawrence Taylor, who was widely considered the best linebacker in NFL history. Taylor led the league with 20 1/2 sacks during the regular season, won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award for the third time in his career, and became just the second defensive player to ever win the NFL Most Valuable Player Award. At 6'3 and 245 pounds, Taylor was big enough to break through the offensive lines of many teams, but he still had enough speed to chase down running backs. The Giants' other starting linebackers, Gary Reasons and Harry Carson, did not get as much media attention as Taylor, but both of them had been selected to play in the Pro Bowl. Defensive tackle Jim Burt and right end Leonard Marshall, who were also both selected to the Pro Bowl, anchored the defensive line. Jump to: navigation, search Conference NFC Division East Year Founded 1960 Home Field Texas Stadium City Irving, Texas Team Colors Royal Blue, Metallic Silver, Blue, and White Head Coach Bill Parcells League Championships (5) Super Bowl: 1971 (VI), 1977 (XII), 1992 (XXVII), 1993 (XXVIII), 1995 (XXX) Conference Championships (10) NFL... Jump to: navigation, search Note: Basketball teams from Chicago and Anderson once used the name Packers as well. ... Lawrence Julius Taylor (born February 4, 1959, in Williamsburg, Virginia) is a retired Hall of Fame American Football linebacker for the NFL New York Giants. ... The NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award is given by the Associated Press to the leagues most outstanding defensive player at the end of every NFL season since 1971. ... The NFL Most Valuable Player Award is given by various entities, most notably the Associated Press, to the player who has contributed the most to the success of the players team. ... Jump to: navigation, search Harry Carson Played for 13 years with the New York Giants at Inside Linebacker. ...

With the play of their defense, the running attack led by Morris, and Simms' passing game, the Giants reached a 14-2 regular season record. Then they went on to only allow a combined total of 3 points in their playoff victories over the San Francisco 49ers, 49-3, and the Washington Redskins, 17-0. Jump to: navigation, search Conference NFC Division West Year Founded 1946 Home Field Monster Park City San Francisco, California Team Colors Metallic Gold, Cardinal Red, and Beige Head Coach Mike Nolan League Championships (5) Super Bowl: 1981 (XVI), 1984 (XIX), 1988 (XXIII), 1989 (XXIV), 1994 (XXIX) Conference Championships (5) NFC... Jump to: navigation, search Conference NFC Division East Year Founded 1932 Home Field FedEx Field City Landover, Maryland Team Colors Burgundy and Gold Head Coach Joe Gibbs League Championships (5) NFL Champions: 1937, 1942 Super Bowl: 1982 (XVII), 1987 (XXII), 1991 (XXVI) Conference Championships (5) NFC: 1972, 1982, 1983, 1987...

Meanwhile, the Broncos advanced to their second Super Bowl in team history, largely through the play of their quarterback John Elway. In just his fourth season in the league, Elway made an impact to the team with his ad-libbing skills. During the regular season, he had thrown for 3,480 yards and 19 touchdowns, while also rushing for 257 yards, the third leading rusher on the team. John Albert Elway (born June 28, 1960) was an American football quarterback in the National Football League for the Denver Broncos from 1983 through 1998. ...

Elway did not really have a particular receiver who caught the most of his passes during the regular season, but wide receivers Mark Jackson, Vance Johnson, Steve Watson, and tight end Orson Mobley all combined for 136 receptions and 2,132 yards. Running back Sammy Winder was the Broncos' top rusher with 789 yards and 9 touchdowns, while also catching 26 passes for another 171 yards and 5 touchdowns. Fullback Gerald Willhite also contributed by rushing for 365 yards and 5 touchdowns, while also leading the team in receptions with 64, good for 529 yards and 3 touchdowns. Jump to: navigation, search Steve Watson (born April 1, 1974 in North Shields) is an English footballer who currently plays for West Bromwich Albion as a defender. ...

The Broncos also led the AFC with the fewest rushing yards allowed (1,651). The defensive line was anchored by Pro Bowl Defensive End Rulon Jones. And Tom Jackson and Karl Mecklenberg formed the core of Denver's linebacking core, who many thought were comparable to the Giants' Pro Bowl linebackers. The American Football Conference (or AFC) is one of the two conferences that compose the National Football League. ...

The Broncos won the AFC West with an 11-5 regular season record. But it was Elway's ad-libbing skills that helped Denver barely make it through the playoffs, narrowly defeating the New England Patriots, 22-17, and the Cleveland Browns, 23-20, in the AFC Championship Game. The AFC Championship Game against the Browns was particular significant because Elway displayed why many NFL experts thought Super Bowl XXI would be the first of many Super Bowls for him. In what became known as The Drive, the Broncos started from their own 2-yard line, trailing 20-13, with 5:32 left to play. But in 15 plays, Elway led Denver 98 yards for a game-tying touchdown pass with 39 seconds left. The Broncos then won in overtime after Elway's 60-yard pass completion set up kicker Rick Karlis' game winning field goal. The American Football Conference (or AFC) is one of the two conferences that compose the National Football League. ... Jump to: navigation, search Conference AFC Division East Year Founded 1960 Home Field Gillette Stadium City Foxborough, Massachusetts Team Colors Blue, Red, Silver, and White Head Coach Bill Belichick League Championships (3) Super Bowl: 2001 (XXXVI), 2003 (XXXVII), 2004 (XXXIX) Conference Championships (5) AFC: 1985, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2004 Division... Jump to: navigation, search Conference AFC Division North Year Founded 1946 Home Field Cleveland Browns Stadium City Cleveland, Ohio Team Colors Brown, Orange, and White Head Coach Romeo Crennel League Championships (8) AAFC Champions: 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949 NFL Champions: 1950, 1954, 1955, 1964 Conference Championships (11) NFL American: 1950... The Drive refers to the January 11, 1987 AFC Championship Game between the Denver Broncos and the Cleveland Browns. ...

Much of the pre-game hype centered around the confontation between Elway and Taylor, and whether or not Taylor would be able to hurry Elway's throws or sack him.

Game summary

The Broncos took a 10-9 lead at halftime, but the Giants scored 30 points in the second half to win the game.

Denver took the opening drive 45 yards for a 48-yard field goal from Karlis. The Giants responded with a nine play, 78-yard drive to take a 7-3 lead with Simms' 6-yard touchdown to tight end Zeke Mowatt. Then on their second drive, the Broncos marched 58-yards in six plays, ending with Elway's 4-yard touchdown run, to take the lead again 10-7.

The "Big Blue Wrecking Crew" of the New York Giants made a key defensive stand early in the second quarter when the Broncos had a first down at the Giants' 1-yard line. The Giants defense stopped Denver short of the end zone on three straight running plays, and actually drove the Broncos back to the 5-yard line. Denver tried to salvage the drive with a 23-yard field goal attempt, but Karlis missed, making it the shortest missed field goal in Super Bowl history.

With 2:46 left to go in the second quarter, Giants defensive end George Martin sacked Elway in the end zone for a safety, cutting Denver's lead to 10-9. Then with less than a minute remaining in the half, Elway completed 31-yard pass to receiver Steve Watson and an 11-yard pass to running back Gerald Willhite, giving the Broncos a first down at the Giants 20-yard line. But the Giants defense forced 3 consecutive incompletions, and Denver ended the drive with no points after Karlis missed another field goal, this time from 34 yards. Jump to: navigation, search Steve Watson (born April 1, 1974 in North Shields) is an English footballer who currently plays for West Bromwich Albion as a defender. ...

In the second half, everything seemed to go right for the Giants, while everything went wrong for the Broncos.

The Giants took the opening kickoff in the third quarter, but faced fourth down after their first 3 plays. Instead of kicking the ball to Denver, they ran a sucessful fake punt. Playing from the blocking back position on the punt formation, backup quarterback Jeff Rutledge took the snap and ran to the Giants 48-yard line for a first down. On the next play, Simms completed a 12-yard pass to running back Joe Morris, and then followed it up with a 23-yard completion to running back Lee Rouson. Two plays later, Simms finished the drive with a 13-yard touchdown pass to tight end Mark Bavaro to give the Giants a 16-10 lead. The Broncos were forced to punt on their next drive, and receiver Phil McConkey returned the punt 25 yards to Denver's 32-yard line. The Broncos managed to keep the Giants out of the endzone, but New York kicker Ron Allegre kicked a 21-yard field goal to increase their lead to 19-10 This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Mark Bavaro is a former American Football tight end who played for the New York Giants (1985-1990), Cleveland Browns (1992), and the Philadelphia Eagles (1993-1994). ...

Denver was again forced to punt on their ensuing possession. Afterwards, Simms completed a 17-yard pass to receiver Lionel Manuel. Then the Giants fooled Denver on a flea flicker play: Morris took a handoff from Simms and ran up to the line of scrimmage as if it was a run play. But before he crossed the line, Morris pitched the ball back to Simms, who then passed the ball to McConkey, who was wide open at Denver's 20-yard line. After catching the pass, McConkey ran all the way to the 1-yard line before being tackled. Morris then scored on a 1-yard touchdown run on the next play, increasing New York's lead to 26-10. A flea-flicker is an unorthodox play (often called a trick play) in American football. ...

Elway barely avoided a turnover by recovering his own fumble on the last play of the third quater, but on the first play of the fourth quarter, he threw an interception to Giants defensive back Elvis Patterson. After that, Simms completed a 36-yard pass to receiver Stacy Robinson. Two plays later from Denver's 6-yard line, Simms threw a pass to Bavaro in the endzone. The pass bounced off Bavaro's fingertips, but fell right into the arms of McConkey for touchdown, making the Giants lead 33-10

The Broncos finally managed to get a good drive going on their next possession, advancing the ball 74 yards in 13 plays and scoring on Karlis's 28-yard field goal, cutting their deficit to 33-13. But the Giants stormed right back and scored another touchdown. On the drive, Rouson ran for 18 yards and then Simms ran for a 22-yard gain. Running back Ottis Anderson finished the drive off with a 2-yard touchdown run to make the score 39-13 after Allegre's extra point attempt failed. Ottis Jerome Anderson (born January 19, 1957) is a retired American football running back. ...

Denver later managed to cut their deficit to 39-20 with Elway's 47-yard touchdown pass to receiver Vance Johnson, but by then there was only a little more than two minutes left in the game.

Morris was the top rusher of the game, gaining 67 yards, and added another 20 yards on 4 receptions. Elway finished the game with 22 out of 37 pass completions for 304 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception. He also was the Broncos' leading rusher in the game, with 27 rushing yards and a touchdown on 6 carries. Denver's Vance Johnson was the top receiver of the game, with 5 receptions for 121 yards, an average of 24.2 yards per catch, and a touchdown.

Scoring summary

• DEN- FG Karlis 48
• NYG- Mowatt 6 pass from Simms (Allegre kick)
• DEN- Elway 4 run (Karlis kick)
• NYG- Safety, Martin sacked Elway in end zone
• NYG- Bavaro 13 pass from Simms (Allegre kick)
• NYG- FG Allegre 21
• NYG- Morris 1 run (Allegre kick)
• NYG- McConkey 6 pass from Simms (Allegre kick)
• DEN- FG Karlis 28
• NYG- Anderson 2 run (kick failed)
• DEN- Johnson 47 pass from Elway (Karlis kick)

Trivia

• The Giants scored the most points in a 2nd half in Super Bowl history with their 30 points.
• The 17 total points scored in the 1st quarter tied a Super Bowl record, set by San Francisco and Miami two years earlier in Super Bowl XIX.
• Rich Karlis' 48-yard field goal was the longest field goal in Super Bowl history at the time.

Jump to: navigation, search Date January 20, 1985 Stadium Stanford Stadium City Stanford, California MVP Joe Montana, Quarterback Favorite 49ers by 3 National Anthem Childrens Choir of Los Angeles Coin toss Ronald Reagan (via satellite from the White House) and Hugh McElhenny Halftime show World of Childrens Dreams...

See also

• 1986 NFL season
• NFL playoffs, 1986-87