Superlative Bowl: The Best and Worst of This Year’s Ads

Best AI: Google Pixel 9 | Dream Job
As a man chats with Gemini Live, a Google artificial intelligence tool, to prep for a job interview, scenes flash on the screen showing his relevant experience from raising his daughter: long nights with a newborn, driving lessons and an emotional college send-off. “That’s a great answer. Sounds like you’re ready,” Gemini says.

Yaveroglu: I really appreciate the fact that it was a stay-at-home dad re-entering the workforce. It wasn’t the mom, like we’d expect it to be. And then it was a great story from there on. We watched his little girl grow up with dad by her side and go off to college. I think at some point, I was wiping away a tiny tear. As a parent, it was something I could relate to, and I thought it was a fresh take on masculinity, too. It was a beautiful storyline with great product integration.

Boyd: Truly the brand in the spot was the hero, helping Dad to elevate his interview game so that he could plug back into corporate America. I appreciate how this ad drove home the point that raising a child develops certain management skills that are transferable.

Boldest: Nike | So Win.
In Nike’s first Super Bowl ad since 1998, a star-studded slate of female athletes, including Caitlin Clark, Jordan Chiles and Sha’Carri Richardson, show off their skills, defying a society that tells them they can’t dominate, can’t flex, can’t fill stadiums. “You can’t win,” the ad concludes, “so win.”

Yaveroglu: That was timely at a time when women’s sports are racking up a greater number of viewers. And Nike was being Nike. They were being very on-brand for this one: They’re bold and they’re unafraid.

Boyd: They just go right at it, saying, “No. The double standard need not apply in women’s sports. In 2025, it’s a new day where female athletes can express a wide range of emotions when competing. It’s a sweeping change that’s working itself through our culture.” And the spot incorporated a classic rock tune from Led Zeppelin—”Whole Lotta Love”—in the background. It was infused with sheer attitude, and the viewers can feel the energy.

Best Twist: Novartis | Your Attention, Please
Closeups of women’s chests as they bounce in cheerleaders’ uniforms, walk the runway and try on bras converge on a call to action: “Let’s start paying attention to breasts when it matters the most,” says comedian Wanda Sykes. “Early detection for breast cancer is a game-changer, and why I’m able to be here today.”

Yaveroglu: It was very attention-grabbing in the beginning with the attention to the breasts. I was watching it and going, “What is this going to be about? Is this another beer commercial?” But then it had this unexpected, more serious ending, drawing attention to breast cancer awareness, and I thought that was effective.

Boyd: To have Wanda Sykes close with that quote? Wow.

Worst Sequel: Dunkin’ | DunKings 2
After Ben Affleck, Tom Brady and Matt Damon formed a Bostonian boy band in the coffee brand’s Super Bowl ad last year, Affleck returned with a new regional squad: Casey Affleck, Bill Belichick, Druski and Jeremy Strong, who, true to form, went full method actor by submerging himself into a barrel of coffee grounds. They take on the Barista Buds in what’s dubbed a “Java Jam.” “We should’ve paid for Matt,” Casey quips.

Yaveroglu: I think that one was great last year. I think the sequel wasn’t as great.

Boyd: I concur. There was something that was missing this time around. The ad lacked its original intent, je ne sais quoi. You’d have to be in on the joke to catch the meaning behind this spot. You’d have to know the history.

Weirdest Facial Hair: Little Caesars | Whoa!
Not to be confused with Pringles’ spot featuring facial hair flying off famously mustachioed men like Nick Offerman, Andy Reid and James Harden, Little Caesars highlighted its Crazy Puffs with the help of actor Eugene Levy’s signature look. “Whoa!” he exclaims as he takes an eyebrow-raising bite, with the brows flapping away onto babies and joining mirror-image caterpillars.

Yaveroglu: I really didn’t care for all the facial stuff. It takes away from the emphasis of the product. I don’t remember anything about Little Caesars from that ad. All I remember is the flying eyebrows. The one with the mustache, the only point it made was to sort of re-emphasize the Pringles logo.

Boyd: The one with the Pringles, did you catch the soundtrack? It was the “Batman” theme song from 1966-68, with Adam West and Burt Ward. I know that I am revealing my age—I was born in the ’60s—so that riff would right away resonate with my cohort. But in the end, you’re right. Does it really move the needle?

Best Matthew McConaughey: Uber Eats | A Century of Cravings
The “alright, alright, alright” actor, who also promoted Salesforce this year, pitches a new movie idea to director Greta Gerwig, focusing on the conspiracy that football was created to sell food. “This year, we’re not even hiding it anymore,” he says to a boardroom in one scene. “We have Super Bowl ‘licks.’”

Yaveroglu: I thought that was confusing (that he appeared twice), but the Uber Eats plotline was fun. It was a complex plot, but at the end, it all came together nicely.

Boyd: Over the years, Matthew McConaughey has earned a place as one of the NFL’s pitchmen. In this celebration of football, having him play different head coaches like Mike Ditka was spot on. And we even have Kevin Bacon popping in there to remind us why a football is called a pigskin—that was a fun one.