As annoying as it is that the Patriots are in Super Bowl EVERY! FREAKING! YEAR! (I've taken to simply calling it "the Patriots game"), there's no denying that what they've done over the past 17 years is nothing short of remarkable. Especially in this salary cap era, it's completely unfathomable to think of the same team playing in nine Super Bowls (so far) over a 17-year period. With all due respect to the 70s Steelers, 80s 49ers and 90s Cowboys, this is the greatest dynasty the NFL has ever seen, and we'll almost certainly never see another like it again.
The numbers in the Bradicheck Era are mind-boggling (10 straight division titles, 8 straight AFC Championship Games, 3 straight Super Bowls), but owner Robert Kraft deserves just as much credit for building the NFL's model franchise. When he bought the team in 1994, they'd made a grand total of one Super Bowl appearance in their history. Since then, they've made 10. Or, one every 2.5 years.
To put it another way, the Dallas Cowboys played in eight of the first 30 Super Bowls and haven't been back since. Meanwhile, the Patriots, who played in one of those first 30, have appeared in 10 of the last 23. (It's also crazy to think that more than half of all AFC Championships have been won by just three teams--the Patriots, Steelers and Broncos.)
They went to three in four seasons a decade ago, and now they've been to four of the last five. They're the first team to win three straight conference championships since the 1990-93 Bills lost four straight Super Bowls. And the 1971-73 Dolphins are the only other team in history to make three consecutive Super Bowl appearances.
One thing you can say about the Patriots' annual Super Bowl appearance is that it usually means we're in for a good game. They got blown out by all-time great teams (the '85 Bears and '96 Packers) in their two pre-Bradicheck appearances. But the eight Bradicheck games have all been decided by a touchdown or less (the first three by a field goal, the next three by four, the last two by a touchdown).
It all started against the Rams, back when America wasn't sick of them and most people were actually rooting for them. (Fun fact about Super Bowl XXXVI, it was the first non-Pro Bowl NFL game ever played in February.) Now it's come full circle as they play the Rams again. (For perspective, when the Patriots played the St. Louis Rams 17 years ago, current Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay was 15 and current Rams quarterback Jared Goff was is second grade.)
My guess is we'll have another competitive Patriots Super Bowl. But where will 53 rank compared to the other eight? Here's how I think they stack up:
8. XXXIX vs. Eagles: Easily the most forgettable of Bradicheck's eight previous Super Bowl trips. Not that it was a bad game. It just wasn't nearly as memorable as the others. It was their third three-point win in four years, and it's the only time during this run that they won back-to-back titles. The biggest difference between this one and the first two is that the winning field goal came in the middle of the fourth quarter instead of on the final play.
7. XXXVIII vs. Panthers: About 18 minutes of scintillating football and 42 minutes of a snoozefest. Neither team scored in the first or third quarter, but the fourth quarter was one of the greatest in Super Bowl history. Punching and counter-punching to the tune of 37 total points. The Panthers tied it at 29-29 with 1:08 left, but the kickoff went out of bounds, setting the stage for Brady and Adam Vinatieri to do their thing for the second time in three years. (This was also the night the term "wardrobe malfunction" entered the American vocabulary.)
6. XLVI vs. Giants: Four years later, they did it again. Was it as memorable as the first one? No. But it did have its moments, capped by Ahmad Bradshaw reluctantly falling into the end zone with the game-winning touchdown, then the Giants' defense stopping Brady on New England's final drive. If not for Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning, Bradicheck would be already be working on their second hand's worth of rings.
5. LII vs. Eagles: Bradicheck had been undefeated against all teams other than the Giants until Nick Foles was unleashed on them last year. It was by no means a defensive clinic. It was, however, a highly-entertaining shootout. The Eagles scored nine unanswered points in the fourth quarter after New England took a one-point lead, then their defense made the play at the end to claim their first Lombardi Trophy.
4. XXXVI vs. Rams: Hall of Famers Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk and the Greatest Show On Turf were looking for their second title in three years, and they were the heavy favorites against a then-unknown Tom Brady. The Patriots led 17-3 until Warner led two fourth quarter touchdown drives to tie it with 1:30 left. And that's when the Legend of Brady began. He put the Patriots in position, and Vinatieri ended it with the first walk-off field goal in Super Bowl history. Little did any of us know what this game would start.
3. XLIX vs. Seahawks: What everyone remembers most about this game is an idiotic play call by the Seahawks on the 1-yard line that resulted in Malcolm Butler's game-sealing interception. What people don't remember is the Patriots overcoming a 24-14 deficit with two fourth quarter touchdowns, including Brady's three-yard strike to Julian Edelman with two minutes left that gave New England the lead.
2. LI vs. Falcons: Never count Tom Brady out. Although, you can't really blame people for doing just that when it was 28-3 Atlanta midway through the third quarter. No problem. It was just setting the stage for the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history. When the Falcons punted up eight late in the fourth quarter, you knew Brady was going to drive the Patriots down to tie the game and send the Super Bowl to overtime for the first time ever. Just like when the Patriots won the overtime coin toss, you knew Brady would drive them down and win the game.
1. XLII vs. Giants: Yes, I'm a Giants fan, but that's not why I have this as No. 1. Many experts consider right at the top, if not AT the top, of the list of all-time great Super Bowls. This was supposed to be the culmination of the Patriots' 19-0 season. Instead, it was one of the biggest upsets in history.
These rankings are, of course, completely subjective. Your order could look completely different than mine and be just as correct. The Patriots Super Bowls have simply been that good in terms of game quality. And I'd expect no different from this year's matchup against the Rams.
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