The Miami Dolphins punctuated their unbeaten 1972 NFL season with a 14-7 Super Bowl win over Washington, cementing their place in football history. Washington would have their revenge 10 years later, winning their first Super Bowl by beating the Dolphins 27-17 at the Rose Bowl in Super Bowl XVII.
The Cincinnati Bengals and the San Francisco 49ers matched up in two vintage Super Bowls in the 1980s, with the Niners coming away victorious in one-score games on both occasions. San Francisco won the 1982 Super Bowl 26-21 at the Pontiac Silverdome before winning Super Bowl XXIII 20-16. Jerry Rice compiled a whopping 215-yard receiving game in the latter.
The Buffalo Bills ran into the Dallas Cowboys twice during the latter's dominant NFC run in the 1990s. Dallas inflicted Buffalo two of its four consecutive Super Bowl losses in blowout wins on both occasions, winning Super Bowl XXVII 52-17 and Super Bowl XXVIII 30-13.
The Patriots beat the St Louis Rams 20-17 during Tom Brady's first full season as a starter as MVPs Kurt Warner and Marshall Faulk were unable to dent Bill Belichick's well-drilled Patriots defense. Brady would then win his sixth Super Bowl against the Los Angeles Rams in 2019 13-3 on the back of another Bill Belichick masterclass, cementing his GOAT status.
The Patriots won Super Bowl XXXIX 24-21 against Andy Reid's Philadelphia Eagles in 2005, cementing Brady as a top quarterback and the Patriots as a dynasty. The city of Brotherly Love would get its revenge in 2018 as Nick Foles and the Eagles won an entertaining shootout 41-33 despite Tom Brady compiling a 505-yard passing game.
David Tyree made perhaps the most clutch offensive play in NFL history with his helmet catch, helping Eli Manning and the New York Giants beat the 18-0 New England Patriots. Manning would play spoiler on yet another vintage Tom Brady season in 2011, beating the Patriots 21-17 and cementing his status as a New York sporting legend.
The Kansas City Chiefs have won two of their three recent Super Bowls against the San Francisco 49ers, dismantling two of the best rosters in NFC footballing tradition. Their first win (35-24) came off a whopping fourth quarter rally, while their 25-22 win in 2024 came in overtime.
The Kansas City Chiefs renew their rivalry with the Philadelphia Eagles in a second Super Bowl matchup in 3 years. The Chiefs won Super Bowl 57 38-35 after an irresistible rally by the Chiefs in the second half. The two will match up extremely evenly across the board in 2025, making for yet another humdinger of a contest.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys are the only teams to match up 3 times against each other in the big game. Terry Bradshaw’s Steelers won the first two showdowns at the Orange Bowl, winning Super Bowl X 21-17 and Super Bowl XIII 35-31. The Cowboys beat the Steelers 27-17 in Super Bowl XXX in Tempe, Arizona, behind Emmitt Smith’s two rushing touchdowns. Pittsburgh and Dallas both have claims as the faces of pro football.
