I will admit. I’m not overly excited about watching tonight’s Super Bowl game. I expected a battle between the two best teams during the regular season. Instead we have to spend yet another Super Bowl Sunday watching Tom Brady and the Patriots.
Even before this season the Patriots had appeared in more Super Bowls than any other franchise (10). The New England Patriots (5–5), Dallas Cowboys (5–3), and San Francisco 49ers (5–1) have five wins. The Pittsburgh Steelers (6–2) have won the most Super Bowls with six. The Denver Broncos (3–5) and Patriots have each lost a record five Super Bowls. With a win the Patriots will move into a tie with the Steelers for most wins. Otherwise they will possess the dubious distinction of biggest losers.
Before the season the Rams played in three Super Bowls. They were 0-1 in Los Angeles and 1-1 in St. Louis.
Pregame Notes
This is a rematch of Super Bowl XXXVI when the Rams were based in St. Louis. Only one player, Patriots starting quarterback Tom Brady, remains on either roster from that contest. Bill Belichick, the Patriots’ head coach in that contest, also remains in that position.
The Patriots defeated the Rams by the score of 20–17. It was New England’s first Super Bowl championship, and the franchise’s first league championship of any kind. The game was also notable for snapping the AFC East’s long streak of not being able to win a Super Bowl championship. The division had lost eight Super Bowls in total (prior to the Patriots victory in XXXVI). It would be the last time the Rams reached a Super Bowl during their time in St. Louis.
Super Bowl LIII features record setting age differences between rival coaches and quarterbacks, pitting the 41-year old Tom Brady against the 24-year old Jared Goff, as well as the 66-year old Bill Belichick against 33-year old Sean McVay.
Super Bowl XXXVI Halftime Show
The halftime show featured a three-song set from Irish rock band U2. They had just completed their successful Elevation Tour. After a rendition of “Beautiful Day“, the band played “MLK” and “Where the Streets Have No Name” as the names of the victims from the September 11 attacks were projected onto a sheet behind the stage. While singing “Where the Streets Have No Name”, the group’s lead singer Bono replaced the lyrics “take shelter from the poison rain” with “dance in the Louisiana rain”, “high on a desert plain” with “where there’s no sorrow or pain”, and the final line “it’s all I can do” with “it’s all we can do”. At the conclusion of the song, Bono opened his jacket to reveal an American flag printed into the lining. U2’s halftime show captivated the audience as a poignant tribute to those who had been lost in the attacks. In 2009, SI.com ranked it the best halftime show in Super Bowl history.
Thanks for the info, Brad! I’m still a closet Rams fan.
Brad, thanks for the look back. It just wasn’t one of the more “up” games was it? I wish U2 had done the show, too. Oh well, there’s the six month wait for now. Let’s hope the Saints, Cowboys and Chiefs see successful 2019 seasons and maybe, just maybe we’ll have a Super Bowl to heer about next year!