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Super Bowl XXXI was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1996 season. The Packers defeated the Patriots by the score of 35–21, earning their third overall Super Bowl victory, and their first since Super Bowl II. The Packers also extended their league record for the most overall NFL championships to 12. It was also the last in a run of 13 straight Super Bowl victories by the NFC over the AFC. The game was played on January 26, 1997, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Roderick Kevin Woodson is an American former professional football cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. Woodson was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the 1987 NFL Draft and played his first ten years there. He was also a key member of the Baltimore Ravens' Super Bowl XXXV championship team. He had two shorter stints for the San Francisco 49ers and two seasons with the Oakland Raiders. Widely considered one of the greatest all-time defensive players ever, Woodson holds the NFL record for fumble recoveries (32) by a defensive player, and interceptions returned for touchdown (12), and was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1993. His 71 career interceptions are the third-most in NFL history. He was an inductee of the Class of 2009 of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio on August 8, 2009. Woodson was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2016. He played most of his career as a cornerback then switched to safety during the later part of his career. Woodson was most recently the head coach of the XFL's Vegas Vipers.
Troy Fitzgerald Brown is an American football coach and former player who was most recently the wide receivers and kick returners coach for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played as a wide receiver and return specialist for 15 seasons in the NFL, spending his entire career with the Patriots. Brown played college football at Marshall University and was selected by the Patriots in the eighth round of the 1993 NFL Draft. During his New England tenure, he was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2001 and was a member of the franchise's first three Super Bowl-winning teams. In 2020, Brown rejoined the Patriots as an offensive assistant. He was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010. Brown also was inducted to the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2012.
Drew McQueen Bledsoe is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons, primarily with the New England Patriots. He played college football at Washington State University, where he won Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year as a junior, and was selected by the Patriots first overall in the 1993 NFL Draft. Considered the face of the Patriots franchise during his nine seasons with the team, Bledsoe helped improve New England's fortunes from 1993 to 2001. Under Bledsoe, the Patriots ended a seven-year postseason drought, qualified for the playoffs four times, clinched their division twice, and made a Super Bowl appearance in Super Bowl XXXI. He was also named to three Pro Bowls and became the youngest quarterback to play in the NFL's Pro Bowl game in 1995.
A punter (P) in gridiron football is a special teams player who receives the snapped ball directly from the line of scrimmage and then punts (kicks) the football to the opposing team so as to limit any field position advantage. This generally happens on a fourth down in American football and a third down in Canadian football. Punters may also occasionally take part in fake punts in those same situations, when they throw or run the football instead of punting.
Thomas Joseph Tupa Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a punter and quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes. He was selected in the third round of the 1988 NFL Draft to the Phoenix Cardinals. He also played for the Indianapolis Colts, Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Washington Redskins.
Bradley Alexander Smith is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football as a quarterback for the Missouri Tigers and was selected in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL draft by the New York Jets. He also played in the NFL for the Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles.
Samuel Aiken is a former American football wide receiver. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the fourth round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at North Carolina.
Ricky Wayne Sanders is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for 12 seasons from 1983 to 1994, two with the United States Football League (USFL)'s Houston Gamblers and 10 in the National Football League (NFL). He played running back, safety, and place kicker as a three-year letterman for Belton High School in Belton, Texas and broke five records.
Bernard Karmell Pollard is a former American football safety. He played college football at Purdue University, and was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft. He has also played for the Houston Texans, Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans. Pollard was dubbed "the Bonecrusher" while at Purdue for his hard hits and tackles, and acquired the nickname "Patriot-Killer" as a professional, after inflicting injuries which would ultimately alter four New England Patriots seasons, including ending Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's 2008 season.
Roland Orlando James is an American former professional football player who spent his entire 11 year career for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL) during the 1980s and early 1990s. James played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers, earning All-American honors. He was selected in the first round of the 1980 NFL Draft.
Michael Eric Saxon is an American former professional football player who was a punter in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots and Minnesota Vikings. He played college football for the San Diego State Aztecs. He won Super Bowl XXVII with the Cowboys over the Buffalo Bills.
The 2004 season was the New England Patriots' 35th in the National Football League (NFL), their 45th overall and their fifth under head coach Bill Belichick. They finished with their second consecutive 14–2 record before advancing to and winning Super Bowl XXXIX, their third Super Bowl victory in four years, and their last until 2014. They were, until the 2023 Kansas City Chiefs did so in Super Bowl LVIII, the most recent team to repeat as NFL Champions, and only the second to win 3 Super Bowls in a 4-year span.
Leodis Anquan McKelvin is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Troy Trojans, earning first-team All-American honors in 2007. He was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft with the 11th overall pick.
The 2009 season was the Buffalo Bills' 40th season in the National Football League (NFL) the 50th overall and the fourth and final under the head coach Dick Jauron.
Robert "Reggie" McClain is a former American football cornerback.
The 2011 Buffalo Bills season was the team's 42nd season in the National Football League (NFL) and its 52nd overall. The Bills improved on their 4–12 record from the 2010 season, winning six games. They won their first three games of the year, which included a victory over New England for their first victory over the Patriots since 2003. However, the team sputtered down the stretch, missing the playoffs for the twelfth consecutive season; the team had not made the playoffs since 1999, the longest standing playoff drought in the NFL at the time after the Detroit Lions made the playoffs for the first time since 1999 during this season.
Daniel Patrick Etling is an American football quarterback for the Michigan Panthers of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at Purdue and LSU, and was drafted by the New England Patriots in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Etling has also been a memer of the Atlanta Falcons, Seattle Seahawks, Minnesota Vikings, BC Lions, Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Michigan Panthers.
Corey Bojorquez is an American football punter for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Cerritos College before transferring to New Mexico, and signed with the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2018. He has also played for the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Rams, and Green Bay Packers.
On October 3, 2021, during week 4 of the 2021 NFL season, the defending Super Bowl LV champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the hosting New England Patriots by a score of 19–17 on NBC Sunday Night Football. The game was highly anticipated as Tampa Bay quarterback Tom Brady played his first game at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts against his former team, his long-time former coach Bill Belichick, and Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Brady had previously spent 20 seasons with the Patriots between 2000 and 2019, leading New England to a league-tying record of six championships. NBC Sports marketed the game with the tagline "The Return" in promotional material.
References
- ↑ Punter Last Qb Available To Purdue
- ↑ "NFL.com - NFL HISTORY". www.nfl.com. Archived from the original on 2004-02-24.
- ↑ "News | Pro Football Hall of Fame Official Site".
- ↑ Will Mccarthy's Kick Distance Staurovky From Pats?