Sunday, February 7, 2010

Sunday Funday - Packers Win Super Bowl XXXI

Welcome to the inaugural "Sunday Funday" column where I look back at a great moment, play, game, day, season, etc in Wisconsin sports history.

For the inaugural "Sunday Funday" column I am going to take a look back at Super Bowl XXXI where the Green Bay Packers defeated the New England Patriots 35-21. There are some loose connections between the Green Bay Packers last Super Bowl victory and the New Orleans Saints (one of the participants in this year's Super Bowl). The city of New Orleans hosted Super Bowl XXXI. 72,301 people descended on the Louisiana Superdome on Sunday, January 26, 1997 for Super Bowl XXXI.

Notable Green Bay Packer "Duos": the Packers were a 14-point favorite heading into the game in part because they were two deep at almost every position:
- Running Back: Edgar Bennett & Dorsey Levens
- Wide Receiver: Antonio Freeman & Andre Rison
- Tight End: Mark Chmura & Keith Jackson
- Defensive End: Reggie White & Sean Jones
- Defensive Tackle: Gilbert Brown & Santana Dotson
- Outside Linebacker: Wayne Simmons & Brian Williams
- Cornerback: Craig Newsome & Doug Evans
- Safety: LeRoy Butler & Eugene Robinson

Notable New England Patriots:
- Quarterback: Drew Bledsoe
- Running Back: Curtis Martin & Dave Meggett (KR/PR)
- Fullback: Keith Byars
- Wide Receiver: Terry Glenn & Troy Brown (inactive)
- Tight End: Ben Coates
- Defensive End: Willie McGinest
- Middle Linebacker: Teddy Bruschi
- Cornerback: Ty Law
- Safety: Lawyer Milloy
- Kicker: Adam Vinatieri

Notable Green Bay Packers Coaches:
- Head Coach: Mike Holmgren
- O-Coordinator: Sherman Lewis
- TE Coach: Andy Reid
- QB Coach: Marty Mornhinweg

Notable New England Patriots Coaches:
- Head Coach: Bill Parcells
- WR Coach: Charlie Weis
- RB Coach: Maurice Carthon
- D-Coordinator: Al Groh
- D-Line Coach: Romeo Crennel
- Assistant Head & DBs Coach: Bill Belichick

Quick Game Summary:
The Green Bay Packers had a 29 year gap between Super Bowl appearances. It took the Green Bay Packers 3 hours and 21 minutes to emerge victorious over the New England Patriots 35-21. The Green Bay Packers were able to defeat the New England Patriots because of Green Bay's suffocating defense (5 sacks and 4 interceptions), timely passing by Brett Favre (14 for 27 for 246 yards, 2 TDs and Passer Rating of 107.9) and stellar special teams play.

Before Dante Hall, Devin Hester and Josh Cribbs there was 1996 Desmond Howard1 who was potent on special teams during the regular season2 and the post season3. As a result, it was only fitting that Howard became the first special teams player to win the Super Bowl MVP4.

Scoring Recap:
Game tied 0-0, Green Bay ball on their own 46 yard line, 2nd and 9 with 12 minutes left in the 1st quarter: Brett Favre threw to Andre Rison (caught at the New England 22 yard line) for a 54-yard touchdown. Chris Jacke kicked the extra point.

Green Bay leads 7-0, Green Bay ball on the New England 19 yard line, 4th and 1 with 9 minutes left in the 1st quarter: Chris Jacke kicked a 37-yard field goal.

Green Bay leads 10-0, New England ball on the Green Bay 1 yard line, 1st and goal with 7 minutes left in the 1st quarter: Drew Bledsoe threw to Keith Byars (in the end zone) for a touchdown. Adam Vinatieri kicked the extra point.

Green Bay leads 10-7, New England ball on the Green Bay 4 yard line, 1st and goal with 3 minutes left in the 1st quarter: Drew Bledsoe (bootleg right) threw to Ben Coates (in the end zone) for a touchdown. Adam Vinatieri kicked the extra point.

New England leads 14-10, Green Bay ball on their own 19 yard line, 1st and 10 with 14 minutes left in the 2nd quarter: Brett Favre threw to Antonio Freeman (caught at the Green Bay 45 yard line) for a 81-yard touchdown. Chris Jacke kicked the extra point.

Green Bay leads 17-14, Green Bay ball on the New England 14 yard line, 4th and 13 with 8 minutes left in the 2nd quarter: Chris Jacke kicked a 31-yard field goal.

Green Bay leads 20-14, Green Bay ball on the New England 2 yard line, 1st and goal with 2 minutes left in the 2nd quarter: Brett Favre rolled out left for a 2 yard touchdown run. Chris Jacke kicked the extra point.

Green Bay leads 27-14, New England ball on the Green Bay 18 yard line, 1st and 10 with 4 minutes left in the 3rd quarter: Curtis Martin ran for an 18 yard touchdown run on a draw. Adam Vinatieri kicked the extra point.

Green Bay leads 27-21, New England kicked off to Green Bay with a little less than 4 minutes left in the 3rd quarter: Adam Vinatieri kicked off to the Green Bay 1 yard line. Desmond Howard returned the kickoff up the middle, then cut to the left (at the Green Bay 35 yard line) and returned the ball for a 99-yard touchdown. Brett Favre rolled out right and threw to Mark Chmura for the 2-point conversion.

5 Green Bay Packers of the game:
#5) LeRoy Butler (SS): 7 solo tackles and 1 sack

#4) Antonio Freeman (WR): 3 catches for 105 yards and 1 touchdown

#3) Reggie White (DE): 3 tackles and 3 sacks

#2) Brett Favre (QB):
- Passing: 14 for 27 for 246 yards and 2 touchdowns (2 pt. conversion) for a quarter back rating of 107.9
- Rushing: 4 attempts for 12 yards and 1 touchdown

#1) Desmond Howard (KR/PR):
- Punt Returns: 5 returns (1 fair catch) for 90 yards (long of 34 yards)
- Kickoff Returns: 4 returns for 154 yards (long of 99 yards) and 1 touchdown


Other Resources:
- Super Bowl XXXI Box Score
- Super Bowl XXXI Play-by-play


Footnotes:
1 Howard won the 1991 Heisman Trophy at the University of Michigan. In 1992, Howard was drafted in the 1st round (4th overall) by the Washington Redskins. After flaming out in Washington (1992-1994) and Jacksonville (1995), Howard joined the Green Bay Packers on a one-year $300,000 contract.

2 In 16 regular season games in 1996 Howard had:
- 58 punt returns for 875 yards (long of 92 yards) and 3 touchdowns
- 22 kickoff returns for 460 yards (long of 40 yards) and 0 touchdowns
(source)

3 In 3 playoff games (including the Super Bowl) in 1996 Howard had:
- 9 punt returns for 210 yards (long of 71 yards) and 1 touchdown.
- 9 kickoff returns for 277 yards (long of 99 yards) and 1 touchdown.
(source)

4 Joined Roger Staubach, Jim Plunkett, and Marcus Allen as the only players in history (as of 2010) to win the Heisman Trophy and Super Bowl MVP.

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