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ESPNTheMag.Com Presents: All-World Power Rankings

by Ted Bauer

Getty Images
Did "Broadway" gain more cultural importance when this happened?

FOR MOST ICONIC IMAGE IN SUPER BOWL HISTORY, WE'LL GO WITH JOE NAMATH TROTTING OFF THE FIELD AT SUPER BOWL III

[Ed's note: Not sure what All-World Power Rankings is? Please click here.]

There have been forty-two Super Bowls played to date. Obvious: some have been thrillers, some have been blowouts. More obvious: lots of photographers (and videographers!) attend these games. Most obvious: you nail a good Super Bowl shot (moving or still image), it can make your career. As a result, there's been quite a few iconic images to emerge from "The Big Game" in four-plus decades. What are some of the most iconic?

TOP 5
RANK (YESTERDAY) WHAT WHY
1 (6) JOE NAMATH RUNNING OFF THE FIELD (SUPER BOWL III) This is what we mean. At this moment, the "Super Bowl Era" basically began. (There's a good pic of Terry Bradshaw doing this too, but we can't find a good link to it.)
2 (10) SCOTT NORWOOD WITH HIS HEAD DOWN (SUPER BOWL XXV) Here it is. If Namath represents "absolute elation" (and also "shock"), this is the other end of the spectrum. Also, didn't most people have the Bills in this game? (We did.) That would classify under "shock" as well.
3 (7) DAVID TYREE'S CATCH (SUPER BOWL XLII) Steve Sabol, who has been to every Super Bowl, did call it the greatest play in SB history, so we'd argue the image is fairly iconic.
4 (19) TONY DUNGY WITH THE LOMBARDI TROPHY (SUPER BOWL XLI) Say what you will about the two people in this photo and their problem in big playoff games, but this was a heckuva deserved moment, right?
5 (16) MAX MCGEE STARTS IT OFF (SUPER BOWL I) Ya gotta nod to the past sometimes. McGee racked the first TD in Super Bowl history.

HONORABLE MENTION
RANK (YESTERDAY) WHAT WHY
12 (39) JOHN ELWAY HELICOPTER (SUPER BOWL XXXII) This was Elway's first ring ("This one's for John" - Pat Bowlen) and his gutsy play helped 'em get it. Does it define him? Maybe as one photo, sure.
21 (35) LYNN SWANN CATCH (SUPER BOWL X) Still have no idea how Ed Rendell beat him that badly, but man, this catch is on sooooo many Super Bowl highlight reels/photo galleries, isn't it?

RISING AND FALLING
MOVEMENT WHAT
ELI MANNING SCRAMBLE (We realize this is the same play as Tyree, but we wanted to break it up.)
BRETT FAVRE RUNNING AROUND EXCITED (We'd like to remember him this way. Right now, we're not sure we will.)


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