Super Bowl Has Rare Matchup Of Top 2 Regular-Season Teams

This year’s Super Bowl features a rare meeting of the NFL’s top two regular-season teams.

The Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs were the league’s only 14-game winners, marking only the sixth time since the 1970 merger that the teams with the best regular-season records met for the championship.

The last time it happened was after the 2013 season when Seattle defeated Denver 43-8 in a game between two teams with 13 wins.

The margin of victory in the previous five powerhouse matchups was 21 points, which was relatively typical of these meetings.

Washington’s 37-24 victory over Buffalo following the 1991 season was the closest game. San Francisco defeated Miami 38-16 at the end of the 1984 season, Dallas defeated Denver 27-10 at the end of the 1977 season, and Oakland defeated Minnesota 32-14 the previous year.

This is the 15th time that the top team from each conference has advanced to the Super Bowl since seeding began in 1975. The previous time followed the 2017 season when the Eagles won their first Super Bowl by defeating New England 41-33.

Breaking Records At The Super Bowl

This is also the third time that both Super Bowl teams won at least 14 games during the regular season, though both Kansas City and Philadelphia needed victories in the extra 17th game to do so. In 1998, Atlanta and Denver did it in 16-game seasons, as did Miami and San Francisco in 1984.

The Chiefs and Eagles have also dominated the postseason, with neither team trailing in the standings. The only other times both Super Bowl teams did this were in 2004 (Patriots vs. Eagles), 1991 (Bills vs. Washington), and 1966. (Packers vs. Chiefs).

Patrick Mahomes will attempt to do something unprecedented in NFL history by winning the Super Bowl after leading the league in passing yards during the regular season.

During the regular season, Mahomes threw for 5,250 yards, 511 more than second-place Justin Herbert, the largest margin between first and second place since Kurt Warner beat Peyton Manning by 699 yards in 2001.

Manning is the only player to have reached the Super Bowl after throwing for more yards in the regular season than Mahomes, with a record 5,477 yards in 2013. In the Super Bowl, his Broncos were defeated by Seattle 43-8.

An Impressive Tight-End Move By Mahomes

Before Mahomes, the player who led the league in passing yards made it to the Super Bowl six times, all losing. Tom Brady (2017 season), Brady (2007), Rich Gannon (2002), Warner (2001), and Dan Marino were the others (1984).

Andy Reid, the coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, joins Dan Reeves as the only coach to have previously faced a franchise in the Super Bowl.

Reid led the Eagles to their second Super Bowl victory after the 2004 season before being fired at the end of the 2012 season. He quickly transformed Kansas City into a powerhouse and is now preparing for his fourth Super Bowl appearance as a head coach, making him the ninth coach to do so.

Reid will hope for better fortune in his rematch than Reeves did after the 1998 season against a Denver team, he led to the Super Bowl in 1986, 1987, and 1989 before losing all three. In the Super Bowl, the Broncos defeated Reeves and the Atlanta Falcons 34-19.

Many Catches And Touch Downs By players

Two other coaches defeated their former teams in the Super Bowl: Jon Gruden led Tampa Bay past the Raiders following the 2002 season, and Weeb Ewbank led the Jets to a huge upset over the Colts following the 1968 season.

Nick Sirianni will join Doug Pederson, Reid, and Dick Vermeil as the sixth franchise to reach the Super Bowl under four coaches.

The Raiders, 49ers, Colts, and Rams had four coaches, while the Broncos had a record five.

Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs has a playoff career that is perhaps only surpassed by Jerry Rice, the greatest receiver of all time.

Kelce has 127 catches for 1,467 yards and 15 touchdowns in 17 career playoff games. Rice was the only player with more than 151 catches for 2,245 yards and 22 touchdowns in 29 playoff games.

The Mahomes-Kelce connection is also one of the best, with 13 touchdown passes in the playoffs trailing only Tom Brady’s 15 to Rob Gronkowski.

SOURCE – (AP)