2007 Bowl Contest Super
2007 Bowl Contest Super
Super Bowl XLI was an American football game that featured the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Chicago Bears to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 2006 season. The Colts defeated the Bears, 29-17, overcoming a 14-6 first quarter deficit to outscore their opponent 23-3, in the last three quarters.
This game, played on February 4, 2007, at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, featured two teams ending long Super Bowl appearance droughts. The Colts made their first appearance in a Super Bowl game since winning Super Bowl V in the 1970 season during the team's tenure in Baltimore; they moved to Indianapolis in 1984. Meanwhile, the Bears made their first appearance since winning Super Bowl XX in the 1985 season. It was only the second time that two pre-expansion era (pre 1960) teams met in the Super Bowl. The first was Super Bowl XIV between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Los Angeles Rams. Also, if one counts the histories of several other franchises as part of that of the Colts, this game would be the first Super Bowl between two NFL charter members from 1920, as the Colts' earliest ancestor, the Dayton Triangles, were part of the league's inaugural season along with the team that became the Chicago Bears, the Decatur Staleys (the only other possible Super Bowl match-up under this criteria would be between the Colts and the Arizona Cardinals).
Colts quarterback Peyton Manning was named the game's Most Valuable Player, completing 25 of 38 passes for 247 yards and a touchdown, with one interception for a passer rating of 81.8, which in the context of 2006 quarterback post-season performance was slightly above the median, according to NFL.com statistics. This was Manning's first Super Bowl title after being one of the league's most dominant quarterbacks throughout his ten-year-old career. It was also the first time two African American head coaches (Lovie Smith and Tony Dungy) were coaching in the Super Bowl, with Tony Dungy being the first to win.
Background
Host selection process
Dolphin Stadium won the bid to host Super Bowl XLI on September 17, 2003 after a campaign against Arizona, Tampa Bay, New York City, and Washington D.C. With this game, the Miami Metropolitan Area tied New Orleans, Louisiana as the city to host the most Super Bowls (9).
This was the fourth Super Bowl at Dolphin Stadium, which has also been known as "Joe Robbie Stadium" and "Pro Player Stadium". The venue previously hosted Super Bowls XXIII (broadcast on NBC), XXIX (on ABC), and XXXIII (on FOX). Super Bowls II, III, V, X, and XIII were also in Miami, but held at the Miami Orange Bowl.
In February 2006, the NFL and the South Florida Super Bowl XLI Host Committee unveiled the slogan "one game, one dream" for the game, referring to the entire South Florida region working together to present the event. The Super Bowl XLI logo was also unveiled, featuring the colors orange (to represent the sun) and blue (for the ocean). The "I" in the Roman numeral "XLI" was drawn to resemble a pylon placed at each corner of an end zone because "the goal is to get to the game." This year's logo has the same shade of orange as the logo of the host city's home team, the Miami Dolphins. The "XL" part is similar to that of Super Bowl XL's logo.
Teams
Chicago Bears
Main article: 2006 Chicago Bears seasonChicago finished the season with an NFC best 13-3 record and advanced to the second Super Bowl in franchise history. The team excelled on defense, ranking third in fewest points allowed (255) and second in fewest points allowed per drive. They also ranked second in scoring (427 points), although only tenth in points per offensive drive thanks to a league leading 65 points scored on defensive or special teams plays.
The Bears offense was led by quarterback Rex Grossman, the team's first round draft pick in 2003. Over the previous three seasons, Grossman had played in just 8 regular season games due to injuries, but he recovered to start in all 16 games in 2006. By the end of the season, he finished with 3,193 yards and 23 touchdowns, the most by a Bears quarterback since 1995. Grossman had difficulty avoiding turnovers, however, and threw 20 interceptions and lost five fumbles during the year. In the last seven games of the season, he turned the ball over 18 times. Many fans and sports writers expected head coach Lovie Smith to bench him at some point, but Smith insisted that Grossman would be the starter throughout the entire season.
Receivers Muhsin Muhammad (60 receptions, 863 yards, 5 touchdowns) and Bernard Berrian (51 receptions, 775 yards, 7 touchdowns) provided the main deep threat on the team, along with tight end Desmond Clark, who caught 45 passes for 626 yards and 6 touchdowns. Chicago's running game was led by running backs Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson. Jones rushed for 1,210 yards and caught 36 passes, while Benson rushed for 647 yards and scored 6 touchdowns.
Chicago's defense allowed the 5th least total yardage, allowed less than 100 yards per game on the ground, and allowed the fewest yards per drive of any NFL team. The line was anchored by Adewale Ogunleye, who had 6.5 sacks, and Pro Bowler Tommie Harris, who recorded 5, along with rookie Mark Anderson, who led the team with 12 sacks. Behind them, two of the three Bears starting linebackers, Lance Briggs, and Brian Urlacher, were selected to the 2007 Pro Bowl. In the secondary, cornerbacks Ricky Manning, Jr. and Charles Tillman each recorded five interceptions.
The loss of Harris to injury after the twelfth game of the season coincided with a decline in defensive performance. Before his loss, the Bears allowed only two opponents to score more than twenty points (23 points to the Arizona Cardinals in week six and 31 to the Miami Dolphins in week 9). After his injury, Chicago opponents scored more than 20 points in six of the seven remaining games, including two of three playoff games. Only the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Championship game were held below 21 points.
The Bears special teams unit was considered to be the best in the league. This unit sent 3 players to the Pro Bowl, including special teams ace Brendon Ayanbadejo, kicker Robbie Gould (who led all NFL kickers with 143 points), and rookie return man Devin Hester, who gained 600 punt return yards with a 12.8 yards per return average, the second highest in the NFL. He also set a league record with 6 touchdowns on special teams.
Indianapolis Colts
Main article: 2006 Indianapolis Colts seasonThe Colts's first trip to the Super Bowl in 36 years set a record for longest time between appearances by a team. Their return was the culmination of a nine year long building process. In 1998, they drafted quarterback Peyton Manning to lead the team. Over the next four seasons, Manning, along with other stars such as receiver Marvin Harrison and running back Edgerrin James, turned the Colts into one of the best offensive teams in the NFL, but the team struggled to find consistency on defense and always ended up with either a losing season or elimination from the playoffs in the first round. In 2002, Indianapolis fired head coach Jim Mora and replaced him with Tony Dungy. Dungy had developed one of the best defenses in the NFL while coaching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and it was hoped he could solve the Colts' defensive problems as well.
Over the next four seasons, the Colts won 48 of 64 games, but still could not find much success in the postseason. In 2002, they were blown out 41-0 in the wildcard round by the New York Jets. In 2003, they won their first two playoff games behind impressive offensive performances, and reached the AFC title game. There they lost to the eventual champion New England Patriots 24-14, with Manning throwing four interceptions. In 2004, the Colts had one of the most spectacular offensive seasons in NFL history, scoring 522 points and gaining 6,582 yards, while Manning set NFL records for most touchdown passes and highest passer rating. But again the Patriots defense (and snowy conditions) proved too formidable, as they lost 20-3 in the divisional round of the playoffs.
In 2005, the Colts defense improved, making the team the clear favorites in the NFL. They won the first 13 games of the season and finished with a 14-2 record, while ranking second in the NFL in both points scored and fewest points allowed. But once again they lost in the divisional round of the playoffs, this time to the #6 seeded Pittsburgh Steelers, 21-18. After another disappointing loss, Manning had developed a reputation of being unable to make it to a championship, a reputation that followed him from college after he was unable to win an NCAA title with the Tennessee Volunteers (who won a title the year after he graduated). The Colts lost some key players after the 2005 season, including James, who departed the Colts for the Arizona Cardinals, and kicker Mike Vanderjagt, the NFL's all-time leader in field goal percentage, who left for the Dallas Cowboys.
Still, the Colts remained one of the AFC's top teams in the 2006 NFL season. Manning made the Pro Bowl for the 7th time in his career, completing 362 of 555 passes for 4,397 yards and an NFL best 31 touchdowns, with an additional 4 rushing touchdowns and with only 9 interceptions and 15 sacks. His favorite targe
Doritos® Presents: CRASH THE SUPER BOWL
This year the stakes are even higher with $5 million on the line. And the challenge is bigger. To take the Top 3 spots on the USA Today Ad Meter with a Super Bowl commercial ...
Footblog: Super Bowl 2007 Archives
Kristin Dehnert, the Aurora native who was a finalist in the Doritos ad contest, didn't win; Doritos went with another spot that romanticized reckless driving instead.
Super Bowl XLI - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
At the 2007 Indianapolis 500 pre-race ceremonies on May 27, 2007, eventual Super Bowl XLI MVP Peyton ... The five finalists each received $10,000 in this contest. General Motors ...
Super Bowl XLII - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In that contest, the Patriots won 38–35 to complete the first perfect regular ... Ben Roethlisberger, the latter of whom had already won a Super Bowl (Super Bowl XL). By the 2007 ...
Super Bowl 2007 - Adrants
Get comments on Super Bowl 2007 Category emailed to you: ... died from water intoxication - the result of KDND/Sacramento's water-drinking contest ...
Super Bowl Ads: 2007 - SPIKE
2007 Super Bowl Commercials ... A finalist for the Doritos Crash the Super Bowl contest. Play ...
$13 Super Bowl Ad Wins Contest, Airs In First Quarter - Post I.T. - A ...
Only a few months ago, Wes Phillips was a 22-year-old audio-visual equipment installer in North Carolina who had a vague idea about starting an advertising agency.
Chevy Super Bowl Contest Finalists
Chevrolet asked college students across the U.S. to submit their best ideas for a Super Bowl XLI commercial. Only five teams remain for the Chevy Super Bowl Ad Challenge.
Doritos: Crash the Super Bowl Contest Video by Doritos Crash The Super ...
Doritos: Crash the Super Bowl Contest by Doritos Crash The Super Bowl. Watch it on MySpace Videos. ... Dec 10, 2007 7:11 PM
YouTube - Doritos® - Crash the Super Bowl 2007 Finalist - Live ...
Doritos® - Crash the Super Bowl 2007 Finalist - Live the Flavor ... DORITOS CRASH THE SUPERBOWL CONTEST 2009 THE PR...
