In FedEx and BBDO’s Super Bowl triumph of story, humor and special effects, a caveman attempts to deliver a stick via Pterodactyl but is stymied by a hungry Tyrannosaurus. The caveman is fired because he didn’t use FedEx (proof that themes of job insecurity, which would become pronounced amid the Great Recession, were part of the mix even when the economy was humming).

"Caveman" came in at No. 3 on USA Today’s measure of popularity of Super Bowl ads, elbowing its way into a top 10 dominated by beer ads and two for a subprime mortgage lender (did we mention the approaching Great Recession?). New York Times ad columnist Stuart Elliott called it one of the funniest ads in the game.

FedEx was a perennial Super Bowl advertiser for many years. In 2005 it commented on, and incorporated, the 10 most important tropes of big game commercials ("Top Ten"). In 2007 it swung from prehistory to the future with "Moon Office."

For other Super Bowl ads in prehistoric settings, see also Bud Light's "The Wheel" in 2008 and Avocados From Mexico's "First Draft Ever" in 2015. 

Director: Traktor, the collective whose other Super Bowl credits include Dodge's "Monkey on Your Back" and GE's "Scarecrow." Production Company: Partizan. Director of Photography: Tim Maurice-Jones.

BBDO chief creative officers: David Lubars, Bill Bruce. Executive creative director: Eric Silver. Associate creative director/art director: Jonathan Mackler. Associate creative director/copywriter: Jim LeMaitre. Executive producer: Elise Greiche. Director of Music Production: Rani Vaz. 

Visual effects: Framestore. FX supervisor/senior Flame artist: Murray Butler. FX supervisor/head of CGI: David Hulin. FX producer: James Razzall.

Sound Designers: Marc Healy, Kim Christensen. Editorial: MacKenzie Cutler. Editor: Gavin Cutler.

BRAND: FedEx

YEAR: 2006

AGENCY: BBDO

SUPERBOWL: XL

QUARTER AIRED: Q1