Editing Super Bowl XXXIV (section)

===St. Louis Rams===
{{Main|1999 St. Louis Rams season}}
The Rams entered 1999 having been among the league's stragglers for a decade.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Los Angeles Rams Team Records, Leaders, and League Ranks |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/ram/index.htm |access-date=2024-06-17 |website=[[Pro Football Reference]] |language=en}}</ref> The reasons are many, including, some suggest, mismanagement by executive John Shaw. The franchise [[National Football League franchise moves and mergers|moved]] to [[The Dome at America's Center|a taxpayer-funded stadium]] in [[St. Louis|St. Louis, Missouri]] for [[1995 St. Louis Rams season|the 1995 season]] but continued to struggle. In 1997, the team hired [[Dick Vermeil]] as their head coach, bringing him back to the NFL after 15 years of retirement. Vermeil had previously turned the [[Philadelphia Eagles]] from one of the worst teams in the league into a Super Bowl team in 1980, but his first two seasons in St. Louis were hardly stellar, winning just five games in 1997 and four in 1998.

Little was expected of the Rams for 1999. Indeed, ''[[ESPN The Magazine]]'''s 1999 NFL preview predicted the Rams would be the worst team in the NFL, worse even than [[1999 Cleveland Browns season|the Cleveland Browns]], who had returned as an [[expansion team]] that year. [[Trent Green]], who had just been signed as the Rams starting quarterback, suffered a season-ending knee injury in the preseason, making undrafted [[quarterback]] [[Kurt Warner]] the team's new starter. Warner, who started the season as a backup to Green, had previously played for the [[Iowa Barnstormers]] of the [[Arena Football League]] and the [[Amsterdam Admirals]] of [[NFL Europe]].<ref>Sandler (2007) p. 18</ref>

The Rams proceeded to shock the NFL with an NFC-best 13–3 regular season record and outscored their opponents 526–242, the highest scoring margin (284) of any Super Bowl champion.<ref>{{Cite web |title=St. Louis Rams 1999 Games and Schedule |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/ram/1999/gamelog/ |access-date=2024-06-17 |website=[[Pro Football Reference]] |language=en}}</ref>

The Rams' high-powered offense, run by offensive coordinator [[Mike Martz]], was nicknamed "[[The Greatest Show on Turf]]". In Warner's first NFL season in [[1998 St. Louis Rams season|1998]], he played only one game and threw just 11 passes. But in 1999, he experienced one of the most spectacular seasons ever by a quarterback, recording a [[passer rating]] of 109.2, completing 65.1 percent of his passes for 4,353 yards, 41 touchdowns, and just 13 interceptions, and earning the [[National Football League Most Valuable Player Award|NFL Most Valuable Player Award]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kurt Warner 1999 Game Log |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/W/WarnKu00/gamelog/1999/ |access-date=2024-06-17 |website=[[Pro Football Reference]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=1999 Awards Voting |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/awards/awards_1999.htm |access-date=2024-06-17 |website=[[Pro Football Reference]] |language=en}}</ref> Besides Warner, several other Rams compiled significant statistics. Halfback [[Marshall Faulk]], in his first year in St. Louis after spending five seasons with [[Indianapolis Colts|Indianapolis]], had the best season of his career and won the [[AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award|NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award]], while finishing second in MVP voting to Warner. He scored 12 touchdowns, rushed for 1,381 yards, and recorded a team-leading 87 receptions for 1,048 yards. In all, Faulk gained a record 2,429 total yards and became just the second running back in NFL history to gain over 1,000 yards rushing and receiving in the same season ([[Roger Craig (American football)|Roger Craig]] was the first to do it, in 1985).<ref name=Sandlerp1819>Sandler (2007) p. 18-19</ref> Faulk held the NFL record for yards from scrimmage in a single season until Tennessee's [[Chris Johnson (running back)|Chris Johnson]] broke it in 2009. Faulk wasn't the only weapon at Warner's disposal in 1999. Veteran receiver [[Isaac Bruce]] was the top Rams receiver with 77 receptions for 1,165 yards and 12 touchdowns. while breakout rookie wide receiver [[Torry Holt]] recorded 52 receptions, 788 yards, and 6 touchdowns. Even the team's third wide receiver, [[Az-Zahir Hakim]], was a big contributor by catching 36 passes for 677 yards and 8 touchdowns, while also returning punts for 461 yards and another touchdown. The Rams' offensive line was led by [[Pro Bowl]]ers [[Orlando Pace]] and [[Adam Timmerman]]. Timmerman, acquired by the Rams in 1999, had previously won [[Super Bowl XXXI]] with the [[1996 Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers]]. On special teams, receiver [[Tony Horne]] returned 30 kickoffs for 892 yards and 2 touchdowns, giving him an NFL-leading 29.7 yards per return average.<ref>Sandler (2007) p. 19</ref> Overall, St. Louis's offense led the league in total yards gained (6,639), scoring (526 points), and passing touchdowns (42).

The Rams' defense led the league in fewest rushing yards allowed (1,189) and fewest rushing touchdowns allowed (4), while giving up just 242 points. Overall, the defense ranked 4th in the league in fewest total yards (5,056).<ref>{{Cite web |title=1999 NFL Opposition & Defensive Statistics |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1999/opp.htm |access-date=2024-06-17 |website=[[Pro Football Reference]] |language=en}}</ref> The line was anchored by Pro Bowl defensive end [[Kevin Carter (American football)|Kevin Carter]] and defensive end [[Grant Wistrom]]. Carter led the league with 17 [[Quarterback sack|sacks]], while Wistrom recorded 8.5 sacks and 2 interceptions, returning both for touchdowns and a combined total of 131 yards. Behind them, the Rams had three linebackers: [[London Fletcher]] (66 tackles and 3 sacks), [[Mike Jones (linebacker)|Mike Jones]] (4 interceptions for 96 return yards and 2 touchdowns, and 2 fumble recoveries for 51 return yards and a touchdown), and [[Todd Collins (linebacker)|Todd Collins]] (72 tackles, a sack, and 2 interceptions for 16 yards). The secondary was led by Pro Bowler [[Todd Lyght]] (6 interceptions), [[Dexter McCleon]] (4 interceptions), and rookie [[Dré Bly]] (3 interceptions).<ref>Sandler (2007) p. 20-22</ref>

This was the Rams' first playoff appearance since [[1989 Los Angeles Rams season|1989]] and only the second [[Super Bowl XIV|Super Bowl]] appearance in team history.<ref>{{cite book |title=Kurt Warner and the St. Louis Rams: Super Bowl XXXIV (Super Bowl Superstars) |last=Sandler |first=Michael |year=2007 |publisher=Bearport Publishing |isbn=978-1-59716-539-6}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Los Angeles Rams Playoff History |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/ram/playoffs.htm |access-date=2024-06-17 |website=[[Pro Football Reference]] |language=en}}</ref>