Ask Mark

A look at the past 10 Super Bowls and what distinguished the two teams that made it to the big game.

XXXVI, Feb. 3, 2002,

New Orleans Patriots (AFC) 20, Rams 17

New England rides hot hand of young quarterback Tom Brady into playoffs. St. Louis makes second Super Bowl appearance in three years with a high-powered offense led by quarterback Kurt Warner.

XXXV, Jan. 28, 2001, Tampa

Ravens (AFC) 34, Giants 7

Baltimore muscles its way into the playoffs on back of coordinator Marvin Lewis' record-setting defense. Quarterback Kerry Collins is missing piece that puts a good New York team into title game.

XXXIV, Jan. 30, 2000, Atlanta

Rams (NFC) 23, Titans 16

St. Louis is a surprise participant because of unknown quarterback Kurt Warner and high-scoring offense. Tennessee, the last draft-built team in the Super Bowl, acquired 18 of its 22 starters in the draft.

XXXIII, Jan. 31, 1999, Miami

Broncos (AFC) 34, Falcons 19

Denver has enough of a supporting cast for a second consecutive year to give superstar quarterback John Elway a victory in his final game. One-year wonder Atlanta goes from 7-9 to 14-2 and the Super Bowl, then back to 5-11.

XXXII, Jan. 25, 1998, San Diego

Broncos (AFC) 31, Packers 24

John Elway benefits from a running game (Terrell Davis) for the first time in his career. Green Bay rides its franchise quarterback, Brett Favre, into a second consecutive Super Bowl.

XXXI, Jan. 26, 1997, New Orleans

Packers (NFC) 35, Patriots 21

Green Bay scores an NFC-high 456 points in the regular season behind Favre, the heart and soul of the team. New England also lives and dies on the arm of its quarterback, Drew Bledsoe.

XXX, Jan. 28, 1996, Tempe

Cowboys (NFC) 27, Steelers 17

Dallas wins the third and final championship for the NFL's last dynasty. Pittsburgh's defense, under coordinator Dick LeBeau, carries the team down the stretch.

XXIX, Jan. 29, 1995, Miami

49ers (NFC) 49, Chargers 26

San Francisco's pre-free agency dynasty wins its third world title in seven years (and record fifth overall) thanks to a potent offense and another star quarterback, Steve Young. San Diego is lucky to upset the superior Steelers in the AFC title game.

XXVIII, Jan. 30, 1994, Atlanta

Cowboys (NFC) 30, Bills 13

Dallas wins its second consecutive Super Bowl with a star-studded team built before free agency and the salary cap. Buffalo's Jim Kelly-led AFC dynasty comes to an end with its fourth consecutive Super Bowl loss.

XXVII, Jan. 31, 1993, Pasadena, Calif.

Cowboys (NFC) 52, Bills 17

Dallas has its big three of Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin, but its defense allows fewer than 16 points a game in its three postseason victories. Wild-card qualifier Buffalo makes a third consecutive Super Bowl appearance thanks to its own star-studded roster.

What does it take to get to the Super Bowl these days?

'Consistency, fighting through the roller-coaster season everybody has in this league. We fought through that four-game losing streak. During that time, no one (strayed) from our game plan. Nobody pointed fingers. There were no ill feelings toward offense, defense or special teams. We worked through it. We were 7-1 the second half of the season. We had a roll going into the playoffs.'

Oakland safety Rod Woodson, who also played on Super Bowl teams in Pittsburgh and Baltimore

'There are only two organizations in the National Football League who have not demonstrated a willingness to do what it takes to be competitive: the Arizona Cardinals and the Cincinnati Bengals. Until the owners and the administrators of the football team hire the right people to put together the right team and are willing to spend the dollars to put the best team together and let football people do what they do best, they will not be a competitive franchise. It will be luck. If your front office is not committed to winning, it doesn't matter who you have coaching or playing.'

Lynn Swann, former Steelers wide receiver and current ABC Sports commentator

'What makes us a Super Bowl team is we've got a group of experienced players who have never been here and are driven by being here. We've got a head coach (Jon Gruden) whose message from Day 1 - first of all, he was brought in here to do this, and he clearly communicated that this was our objective, how we were going to do it, and we never wavered from that. We've, as every team does, gone through tough circumstances to get here.'

Tampa Bay safety John Lynch

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