The readers have spoken, and Vince Lombardi likes what they said. The winner of Newsday's Super Bowl Supremacy are the 1966 Green Bay Packers.
Seeded second in the 16-team tournament, Vince's Pack crushed No. 15 2000 Baltimore Ravens in the first round, then smoked No. 7 1982 Washington Redskins, then rolled right by the local favorite, No. 6 1986 New York Giants to reach the championship, where they ran roughshod over No. 4 1985 Chicago Bears.
So much for Tecmo Bowl's Lawrence Taylor. Apparently, Vince Lombardi and his 1966 Green Bay Packers figured out a way to neutralize him on the edge.
Perhaps that's why the Super Bowl trophy and a rest stop on the New Jersey Turnpike are named after Mr. Lombardi.
And on the other championship sideline for Super Bowl Supremacy are the 1985 Chicago Bears, shuffling on down, doing it for you.
It should be a doozie, this final "game" as our readers decide the greatest Super Bowl team of all time. The poll closes at noon Friday. At 12:30, we'll announce the winner. Happy voting.
(2) 1966 Green Bay Packers vs. (4) 1985 Chicago Bears
By Mark La Monica
I grew up playing Tecmo Bowl, as many of us did. Even when Super Tecmo Bowl came out, I refused to make the switch.
For my money, Tecmo Bowl was the greatest football video game ever made. It's too classic to let go, even better than the old "Put the guy in motion on an end around and it's a guaranteed first down" from Madden '95.
As we learned to master Tecmo Bowl, we learned two things:
1) No one can play as the Raiders because Bo Jackson is untackleable.
2) No one can play as the Giants because Lawrence Taylor will block every extra point.
Could LT and those 1986 Giants do it again? Could they run roughshod over the entire competition and win Super Bowl Supremacy? It's quite possible, again for two reasons:
1) We're based in New York
2) We're based in New York
We finally saw an upset here as the readers chose the 6th-seeded 1986 New York Giants to beat the 3rd-seeded San Francisco 49ers from 1984. Bold, indeed. Clearly the voters know the power of Tecmo Bowl.
It's on to the semifinals, with some interesting pairings:
(1) 1978 Pittsburgh Steelers vs. (4) 1985 Chicago Bears
(2) 1966 Green Bay Packers vs. (6) 1986 New York Giants
Hey look, the 2007 New England Patriots finally lost something!
Now get to voting.
Voting Schedule
Semifinals: Poll closes at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday night.
Final: Poll opens Thursday (Jan. 31) at 12:10 a.m.and closes at noon Friday (Feb. 1)
At 12:30 p.m. Friday, we'll announce the winner. Happy voting.
By Mark La Monica
Chalk. All chalk. One-hundred percent pure chalk!
That's who advanced through the first round of Super Bowl Supremacy. Not one upset. Not even close, either.
The only struggle was the 8-9 game, as it usually is. Even that one wasn't all that close as the 2007 Patriots beat the 1977 Cowboys, 249-144.
The quarterfinals are on. View the bracket, photos and voting schedule below, then vote.
Voting Schedule
Quarterfinals: Poll opens Monday at 12:30 p.m. and closes Tuesday (Jan. 29) at 11:59 p.m.
Semifinals: Poll opens Wednesday (Jan. 30) at 12:10 a.m. and closes at 11:59 p.m. that night.
Final: Poll opens Thursday (Jan. 31) at 12:10 a.m.and closes at noon Friday (Feb. 1)
At 12:30 p.m. Friday, we'll announce the winner. Happy voting.
By Mark La Monica
Who's the best football team ever?
It's a heated debate, to be sure, especially this season as the Patriots march toward a perfect 19-0 record. It's one that's carried on over many a tailgate, happy hour, bar stool and anywhere else people congregate to talk football.
Those conversations last so long, bartenders could put their grandchildren through college without ever filling out a FAFSA.
Well, we've devised a way for you all to join the debate without having to worry about who's driving home.
It's called Super Bowl Supremacy, and it comes with brackets and fan polls. Here's how it works: We picked 15 previous Super Bowl winners and the 2007 Patriots and seeded them 1-16. We limited the teams on the list to one Super Bowl winner per franchise.
Now it's up to you to determine the winner of Super Bowl Supremacy. Below you'll find the voting schedule, the bracket and the poll. Enjoy.
Voting Schedule
Round 1: Poll opens as soon as you read this, (6:30 p.m. Thursday night, to be precise) and closes at noon Monday, Jan. 28.
Quarterfinals: Poll opens Monday at 12:30 p.m. and closes Tuesday (Jan. 29) at 11:59 p.m.
Semifinals: Poll opens Wednesday (Jan. 30) at 12:10 a.m. and closes at 11:59 p.m. that night.
Final: Poll opens Thursday (Jan. 31) at 12:10 a.m.and closes at noon Friday (Feb. 1)
At 12:30 p.m. Friday, we'll announce the winner. Happy voting.
