Super Bowl Time: 8 Million Ways to Sunday

Here’s a fun fact. Research shows Super Bowl advertisers see a 68% increase in people talking about a brand for three days following the game.

Amazing, right?

Until you realize a lot of that is comprised of silly people like me loving ads, crushing ads, or folks crying because they know in their hearts the baby Clydesdale would’ve rather had a wine cooler.

$8 million for 30 seconds of airtime during Super Bowl 2025 is a lot of Burrito Supremes to push through the drive-thru window. And keep in mind, that’s just to run the ad. We’re not even talking about production, talent fees, the works.

So why the investment?

Well, where else are you going to get 100 million-plus sets of eyeballs on your logo?

Nowhere.

Who’s viewing the Super Bowl? Everyone

There’s very little destination TV anymore, and brands who want to play big need to be seen on the biggest stage, regardless of short-term ROI.

The ones who did it right last night didn’t sell too hard and understood the task at hand was to entertain, amuse and leave people with a smile.

This year, nothing was amazing. There were a few I really liked, a whole bunch that were average at best and a couple that probably should’ve been rethought. Of course, I have ideas how to fix them.

That’s me, judgy and jury.

The Best (and Worst) Super Bowl Ads of 2025

The beauty of this business is it’s not an exact science. It’s all about taste. There are no right or wrong answers, and your opinions may be completely different than mine.

Enjoy. I didn’t make a top or bottom five, although I did have a favorite and an absolute worst. This is more of a meandering list of ads I felt were worth critiquing. Feel free to tell me I’m crazy. It wouldn’t be the first time.

Hellman’s: When Harry Met Sally, 2025

Thirty-six years later, a reboot of the iconic scene from Katz’s Deli in NYC. Such nostalgia.

Sorry, not a fan.

They essentially reshot the exact same scene with the stars of When Harry Met Sallyand a couple of extra meh jokes. After the first two seconds, you knew exactly what was going to happen — and it did. The only surprise was who was going to deliver the last line — Sydney Sweeney. I just wish there had been a little more effort.

Humor me. Suppose there was a slightly different twist at the end, like, oh I don’t know, she looked over and says, “I’ll have what she’s having — and can I get mine to go?” Something that freshened it up a bit and played into her personality.

Two other things:

1) There were 28 edits in 30 seconds. Twenty-eight.

2) Putting mayo on a turkey sandwich at a Jewish deli? Absolutely criminal.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Stella Artois: The Other David

Really well done. The dummy who hired me for my first job always said, “The last line is as important as the first line.” It was perfect. Great.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Michelob Ultra: The Ultra Hustle

Painful. Catherine O’Hara and Willem Dafoe nailed their roles as two old people playing pickleball against young people. Winner gets the Michelob Ultra. Shockingly, the young people keep thinking they’re going to crush the old folks. Plot twist! Thanks to editing and stunt doubles, Cat and Bill are really good and really, really, really want beer. Who saw that coming?

Also, anytime I have a chance to say, Schitt’s Creek was the least funny show ever, I’m all in.  

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Hims and Hers: Sick of The System

Nice ad, wrong place.

So one of my pet peeves is a Super Bowl spot with a nicely-written script and a thoughtful emotional story, but guess what? Most people are watching in a group setting. Lots of noise and distractions. No one is really listening. Any ad where viewers are asked to focus like this is a huge swing and a miss.

Plus, it’s Super Bowl Sunday. Nobody wants to be told to stop shoving food down their pie hole today.

(This is so unfair of me, but I have the keyboard right now.)

If I was working on this, I might’ve considered running a different kind of ad.

Imagine a series of 15-second spots spread out across the game. Supers (or text on screen) that said things like:

The biggest eating day of the year is Thanksgiving.

The second biggest is today.

Enjoy today. Tomorrow we start.

hims.com

forhers.com

Think simple. Do three or four like that. Far more impactful, and more relevant to the moment.

You’re welcome. Now send me some samples. I could drop a few.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

WeatherTech: Born To Be Wild

For 13 years, they’ve been the most boring brand in the Big Game.

“We make car mats. We’re in America. We love working here.”

This year, they decided to actually try and do something entertaining.

Not great, but they tried. A- for effort. C+ for execution.

No longer the car mat of the Super Bowl.

Sorry, that just happened.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Mountain Dew Baja Blast: Kiss from a Lime

I could’ve worked on this for 20 years and never got here. This either speaks to my decided lack of creativity, or that I’m normal.

Seal of not approval.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Instacart: We’re Here

Very good. Crisp. Fun. Nostalgic and fresh at the same time. Also, I admire how upright Mr. Clean runs. Excellent posture.

Dare I say, it delivers?  I dared.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Coors Light: Slow Monday

So, a couple of weeks ago, there was a Coors Light billboard in Times Square that read, “Mountain Cold Refershment.”

People lost their minds. Typo City. It went viral and Coors Light blamed it on a “Case of the Mondays.”

Bzzz, not a typo — they built an entire campaign around the idea, including releasing a literal “Case of the Mondays.”

This ad features a bunch of animated sloths acting like fans who can’t quite keep up with the pace of life today, the day after the Big Game.

Yuck. I think the sloths are nothing more than a cliché metaphor. Wouldn’t it have been more fun to carry through on the typo shtick and just see people who were a little off today? Better yet, they could’ve just followed me around. Same difference.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

CoffeeMate: Foam Diva

Tongues down, worst spot of the game. Like, what was that?

It’s not shock value. It’s not attention-grabbing. It’s a Shania-Twain Wreck.

And that joke, friends, was better than this disaster. Appalling.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Uber Eats: A Century of Cravings (Extended Cut)

Just great. A continuation of their “conspiracy theory” campaign connecting football with food. Matthew McConaughey is awesome. They hit it out of the park. Wait, wrong sport.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Lay’s: The Little Farmer

The sweet, sweet tale of a young girl passionately growing a single potato. Isn’t it beautiful how that spud winds up in Grandpa’s bag – plus extra calories, fat, sodium and carbohydrates. Don’t worry little farmer, sure Grandpa’s bag of Lay’s is lacking in essential nutrients such as fiber, protein and vitamins, but he looks so happy, doesn’t he? You did a great job. I’m crying.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Disney +: “What If?” (Extended Cut)

So here’s the thing: I actually love what they tried to do here – weaving the strength and power of Disney+ storytelling into our lives. It’s a really nice clean, simple thought.

Where I think Disney’s Super Bowl ad fell a little — and details matter — is that I don’t think they needed to repeat everything. We already heard it all. Let the visuals play out without hammering us over the head reminding us that all those things did, in fact, happen.

We know they did, Disney. You don’t have to tell us again. The second half of the script could’ve been stronger, more playful and emotional.

Happy to do a rewrite. Give me a call.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Ram Trucks: Goldilocks and The Three Trucks

Yikes. I feel like somebody held up the storyboard and said, “This is going to be so hilarious: Glen Powell playing Goldilocks. Explosions! Bears! Dragons! Chainsaws! Screaming! Multiple trucks! When do we shoot?”

Tell me when the hilarious part starts.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Bud Light: Big Men on Cul-de-Sac

This Budweiser Super Bowl ad felt like an old-school Big Game beer ad. Not high-concept, but the right energy for Super Bowl Sunday. I was okay with it.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Google Pixel: Dream Job (Extended Cut)

Similar to hims and hers above, not the right environment. Complicated storytelling for SB Sunday. Nice execution and story, but you’re asking people to be heavily invested in an emotional narrative.

If you don’t believe me, watch it, then watch it again with the sound off as if you’re in a crowded environment. You have no idea what’s happening.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

DoorDash: DashPass

This DoorDash Super Bowl ad, starring comedian Nate Bargatze. Ouch. The premise is that Nick saves $6 with DoorDash DashPass and knowing that, he buys all these silly things. His accountant wants to have a word.

Two things:

1) The mania of the ad is not built for a 30-second spot.
2) It’s not funny.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Ritz Crackers: Salty Club. (Extended Cut)

Good. Aubrey Plaza, Michael Shannon and Bad Bunny play into their personas at the Salty Club.

Nice idea. Nice use of celebs. Nice script.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

Tubi: Cowboy Head (extended cut)

I really liked this. They committed to their theme, “If it’s in you, it’s in here,” and took it to the next level. Understatedly weird and memorable in the best way possible. Having said that, I hope his mom had a C-section.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

ChatGPT: The Intelligence Age

Wow, I love this. Smart. Thoughtful. Visually engaging. My favorite ad of the night.

I swear I wrote this without any prompts.

Watch the commercial on YouTube

So, what did you think? Something you loved or didn’t that I missed? Or are you still moving too slowly to think?

Let me know in the comments. Or let me have it. Either way is fine.