The Los Angeles Rams won Super Bowl LVI just a few years ago, but Sunday night the team will honor the 25th anniversary of the franchise’s first championship win in Super Bowl XXXIV. The former team, then found in St. Louis, gained notoriety and fame for their explosive offense and unexpected turnaround, going from 3-13 the previous year, to 13-3 en route to winning it all.
Kurt Warner, Isaac Bruce, Orlando Pace, Marshall Faulk, Torry Holt and Mike Jones are all expected be in attendance for the Rams matchup vs the Eagles on Sunday Night Football to be celebrated by the team and fans prior to the game.
“The history of the Rams cannot be written without names like Bruce, Faulk, Holt, Pace and Warner, and the history of the NFL cannot be written without The Greatest Show On Turf and The Tackle,” Rams president Kevin Demoff said in the release. “As their legacies live on in Canton, in their hometowns and across the world thanks to on-field heroics and a Super Bowl championship, their impact continues to be felt in communities across the country through their commitment to important causes. We look forward to teaming up with our ’99 team and our partners to give back this weekend and we are thrilled to celebrate one of the greatest teams in league history on Sunday Night Football.”
Known as “The Greatest Show on Turf”, the 1999-2001 roster has already placed four players (Warner, Bruce, Faulk and Pace), as well as one coach (Dick Vermeil), in the NFL Hall of Fame. WR Torry Holt has also been a finalist every year since his eligibility was opened and is more than deserving of his place in Canton among his teammates. The Rams also claimed three NFL MVP titles in the same amount of years, with Warner winning in 1999 and 2001 and Faulk winning it in 2000.
The team is highly regarded as one of the best offenses to ever play in the NFL, with many arguing that they are number one. From 99-01 the Rams went 37-11, reaching the playoffs each of their three years, and making two Super Bowl Appearances along with winning one ring.
In 1999, the Rams were first in the league in passing with 4,580 yards, yards per pass attempt with 8.64, passing touchdowns with 41 and total offensive yards with 6,639. In 2000, the team set a NFL record with 7,335 total offensive yards, 5,492 of which were just passing yards - also an NFL team record. In 2001, the Rams were again first in the league in total offense with 6,930 yards, passing yards with 4,903, passing touchdowns with 37, and rushing touchdowns with 20. For a three-year period the Rams offense was completely dominant unlike any seen before them.
Recently, Warner explained why he believed their team was the greatest offense in NFL history saying:
“I would always argue that our offense was the greatest offense that the league has ever seen” said Warner “We’re on there (a list) three times. You could argue that Tom Brady had the greatest season, but to do it for three straight years the way that we did, I don’t know if there’s ever been an offense that good. We had Hall of Famers and a system that fits what all of us do. That’s what we’re speaking to, the idea of getting a system that fits your players.”
The 99-01 Rams teams personally hold a special place in my heart. It was the first team that really got me into football as a young kid, and had me going to school in a different Rams Warner jersey every day of the week. After their move to LA in 2016, the St. Louis Rams and their history was kind of put into NFL limbo, but with the franchise choosing to honor the STL team, despite the location change, hopefully new generations of Rams fans will continue to recognize and appreciate how special those years were.
