When Did the St. Louis Rams Last Win the Super Bowl?

The St. Louis Rams last won the Super Bowl on January 30, 2000, defeating the Tennessee Titans 23–16 in Super Bowl XXXIV at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. It was the championship game for the 1999 NFL season, even though it was played in the next calendar year. ESPN’s game record records the date, score and venue; the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s team history places the title in the Rams’ 1999 season.

That was their only Super Bowl victory while based in St. Louis. The same franchise won again in 2022, but by then it had returned to Los Angeles.

How St. Louis won: a touchdown, then “The Tackle”

The final score hides how close Tennessee came to extending the game.

St. Louis led 9–0 at halftime on three Jeff Wilkins field goals. A nine-yard touchdown pass from Kurt Warner to Torry Holt stretched the lead to 16–0 in the third quarter. Tennessee then answered with two Eddie George touchdown runs and an Al Del Greco field goal, tying the game at 16–16 with 2:12 remaining.

Warner responded with a 73-yard touchdown pass to Isaac Bruce. With Wilkins’ extra point, the Rams were ahead 23–16 with 1:54 left. The contemporary scoring summary records each score and its time. But the Titans still had time for another drive.

The championship was secured on the final play, when Rams linebacker Mike Jones tackled Tennessee receiver Kevin Dyson one yard short of the goal line. Dyson’s reach could not turn the completion into a touchdown, and St. Louis held on. The play became known as “The Tackle,” the subject of FOX 2’s anniversary interview with Jones.

Warner earned Super Bowl MVP honors after throwing for 414 yards and two touchdowns. His passing-yard total set the Super Bowl record at the time, according to his Hall of Fame biography.

The unexpected quarterback behind the title

Warner had not entered 1999 as the intended starter. He took over after Trent Green suffered a season-ending knee injury during the preseason.

Under head coach Dick Vermeil, Warner helped turn that setback into a championship season. St. Louis finished 13–3, scored 526 regular-season points, and Warner threw 41 touchdown passes, earning the NFL’s regular-season MVP award before adding the Super Bowl MVP. The Hall of Fame’s account of Warner’s career documents both his unexpected promotion and the season that followed.

The offense remembered as the “Greatest Show on Turf” had delivered a title, but its last act in Atlanta depended on a linebacker’s stop rather than another long completion.

Why 2002 and 2022 are different answers

The Rams returned to the Super Bowl as St. Louis following the 2001 season, but lost Super Bowl XXXVI, 20–17 to the New England Patriots, on February 3, 2002. That was a later appearance, not a later win. The team’s Super Bowl photo archive documents the defeat.

The franchise moved back to Los Angeles in 2016, as recorded in its Hall of Fame team history. It won again on February 13, 2022, beating Cincinnati 23–20 in Super Bowl LVI for the 2021 season—but it won that championship as the Los Angeles Rams, not the St. Louis Rams. The LVI game record identifies the team, season, date and score.

For a season-by-season comparison beyond the Rams, see our history of Super Bowl champions.