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What can 11 Patriots Super Bowls teach us about No. 12? Let’s hope some of this history repeats.
When the Patriots take the field Sunday night against the Seahawks, it will mark the 12th Super Bowl appearance in franchise history and the 10th this century.
SAN FRANCISCO — A funny thing happens when a football franchise makes a habit over a generation or two of appearing in Super Bowls: It’s almost inevitable that history will repeat itself in one way or another.
When the Patriots take the field Sunday night against the Seahawks, it will mark the 12th Super Bowl appearance in franchise history and the 10th this century.
Patriots:
It’s impossible at the moment to project how the game might play out. But it’s a near-certainty that some pivotal plot twist will remind us of something that has occurred in the franchise’s six Super Bowl victories or, yes, their five losses.
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With that in mind, let’s take a glance back at the Patriots’ previous Super Bowls, and consider which flickers of history may recur . . .
Super Bowl XX: Bears 46, Patriots 10. Richard Dent is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in part due to his dominating performance (two forced fumbles, 1.5 quarterback sacks, a deflected pass, roughly 95 quarterback hurries) in the biggest rout in Super Bowl history to that point. The Seahawks don’t have a singular pass-rushing menace like Dent, but they are loaded in the interior of their defensive line, deep in edge rushers, and are sure to test rookie left tackle Will Campbell.
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Super Bowl XXXI: Packers 35, Patriots 21. The Patriots could have won their first Super Bowl during the 1996 season, despite Bill Parcells all but wearing a Jets jacket on the sideline. A Curtis Martin 18-yard touchdown run cut the Packers lead to 27-21 in the third quarter. But Desmond Howard blew through the middle of the Patriots’ kick coverage team for a 99-yard return TD on the ensuing kickoff. Warning: Seahawks trade-deadline pickup Rashid Shaheed is a Howard-caliber return man.
Super Bowl XXXVI: Patriots 20, Rams 17. “And it’s right down the pipe. [Pause.] Adam Vinatieri, no time on the clock. And the Patriots have won Super Bowl 36.” Pat Summerall’s spare call of Vinatieri’s winning 48-yard field goal was perfect. Wonder what Mike Tirico will say if Andy Borregales finds himself in a similar spot Sunday night.
Super Bowl XXXVIII: Patriots 32, Panthers 29. Can’t explain it and I’m not going to attempt to, but I’ve had a strange feeling over the past few days that Super Bowl LX may well play out like this. The teams engaged in a rock fight for three quarters — the Patriots led, 14-10, entering the fourth — before it suddenly turned into an Arena League matchup, with 37 total points scored in the final 12 minutes. Drake Maye is almost certainly going to have to hit on multiple big plays for the Patriots to prevail. And he’s often his sharpest late in games.
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Super Bowl XXXIX: Patriots 24, Eagles 21. I don’t believe there’s a loudmouth receiver on these Seahawks who is about to get his comeuppance like Freddie Mitchell did in this one. But it is more than plausible that a Patriots receiver — Stefon Diggs, or perhaps the nationally unsung Kayshon Boutte — could end up having an impact like Deion Branch (11 catches, 133 yards) did in winning Super Bowl MVP honors.
Super Bowl XLII: Giants 17, Patriots 14; Super Bowl XLVI: Giants 21, Patriots 17. We’ll pair the two Giants losses, to spare you too much revisiting those heartbreaks, but also to note a common thread besides … well, those heartbreaks. The Patriots had a significant injury concern entering each one — Tom Brady’s ankle in XLII, and Rob Gronkowski’s even worse ankle injury in XLVI. Brady was hindered, while the Giants quickly figured out that Gronk was unable to do anything but act as a decoy. I believe Maye’s shoulder is fine. But if it’s not, the Seahawks will know immediately.
Super Bowl XLIX: Patriots 28, Seahawks 24. Malcolm Butler is the greatest relatively-anonymous-to-hero-for-all-time story in Patriots lore. Will someone whose name isn’t atop the Patriots depth chart emerge as an instantaneous legend again? How about rookie edge Elijah Ponder, who has a knack for being around the football?
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Super Bowl LI: Patriots 34, Falcons 28. You know, I don’t think anyone will be coming back from a 28-3 deficit in this one. But how about another overtime game, just the third in Super Bowl history? Better figure out a way to sneak James White on the roster just in case.
Super Bowl LII: Eagles 41, Patriots 33. Can’t think of anything from this one that I expect to see again, but I know something that I do not want to see. Please, Josh McDaniels, no trickeration pass plays where Maye ends up as the receiver.
Super Bowl LIII: Patriots 13, Rams 3. Tom Brady’s 29-yard pass to a triple-covered Rob Gronkowski, which set up the only touchdown of the game, was one of the best throws of his unparalleled career. The most satisfying way for the Patriots to win come Sunday night may well be if Maye can muster an immediately unforgettable throw of his own in a crucial situation, just as his own career ascends.
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