Super Bowl: Which teams have the Patriots beaten for the Lombardi Trophy?

The New England Patriots have chewed up and spit out NFC opponents in the Super Bowl in the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era (just not the New York Giants). Brady’s quest for a record sixth NFL championship will pit him against the team he ousted in 2005.

The Philadelphia Eagles will be looking for revenge after falling victim to the first phase of the New England dynasty in Super Bowl XXXIX. Donovan McNabb and Andy Reid’s title game loss gave the Pats their third NFL title in four years while creating the foundation for Brady being labeled as the best quarterback ever.

There’s no shame in losing to the AFC juggernaut — four other teams have suffered a similar fate against Brady and Belichick in the biggest game of the year. The then-St. Louis Rams, Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks, and Atlanta Falcons have all fallen at the hands of a franchise that looks like it let a random homeless person call plays from the sideline. What’s worse for the Eagles: New England is 3-0 against teams with bird mascots in the Super Bowl.

Here’s a look at all nine of the Patriots’ Super Bowl trips leading up to Sunday’s big game in Minneapolis.

The Patriots’ Super Bowl victories

New England is 5-4 overall in the Super Bowl, but all five of the team’s wins have come in the last 16 years.

Super Bowl XXXVI, Feb. 3, 2002: Patriots 20, Rams 17

New England was a 14-point underdog led by a second-year backup quarterback when it went down to New Orleans and stunned the Greatest Show on Turf. The upset over the Rams was then the biggest win in franchise history. Brady led his team 53 yards in the game’s final 81 seconds, which gave Adam Vinatieri the chance to hit a game-winning 48-yard field goal as time expired. He did, and it set the tone for the league’s greatest dynasty.

Super Bowl XXXVII, Feb. 1, 2004: Patriots 32, Panthers 29

This stop-and-go Super Bowl featured two boring quarters, an explosion of big plays, and Janet Jackson’s nipple. The Patriots coughed up an 11-point, fourth-quarter lead before Brady once again rallied his team back. This time it was a seven-play, 37-yard drive to set up a 41-yard game winner from Vinatieri that gave New England its second NFL title in three years.

Super Bowl XXXIX, Feb. 6, 2005: Patriots 24, Eagles 21

The Pats didn’t need a game-winning field goal this time — just some classic Andy Reid clock management. Despite being down by 10 points, the Eagles took their sweet time in the fourth quarter, burning nearly four minutes on a late touchdown drive that would necessitate a questionable onside kick with 1:55 to play. Philadelphia would get the ball back at its own 4-yard line with 46 seconds on the clock, but a Rodney Harrison interception would seal the game for New England.

Super Bowl XLIX, Feb. 1, 2015: Patriots 28, Seahawks 24

Malcolm Butler announced his arrival to the world with the biggest play in Super Bowl history, picking off a Russell Wilson slant in the end zone to turn what looked like certain defeat into a Patriot championship. Seattle was just one yard from taking a 30-28 lead in the final seconds of the game when Butler’s interception sealed his fate as a man who’ll never have to buy his own beer within Boston’s city limits.

Super Bowl 51, Feb. 5, 2017: Patriots 34, Falcons 28 (OT)

This was the game that launched all the “28-3” jokes at Atlanta’s expense. Brady and the Patriots trailed by 25 points before engineering an epic comeback exacerbated by the Falcons’ steadfast unwillingness to just run the damn ball. James White’s touchdown run in overtime clinched a victory in the only Super Bowl to ever go to overtime and gave New England the win in one of the greatest games ever played.

The Patriots’ Super Bowl losses

It’s hard to imagine a time when the Patriots couldn’t win a Super Bowl, but that was the case for many years, pre-Brady and Belichick.

Super Bowl XX, Jan. 26, 1986: Bears 46, Patriots 10

This one got so out of hand a defensive lineman scored a touchdown. Walter Payton, playing in his first Super Bowl, did not. New England starting quarterback Tony Eason threw six passes and completed NONE of them.

Super Bowl XXXI, Jan. 26, 1997: Packers 35, Patriots 21

The Jaguars’ upset win over the Broncos — a team that owned the Pats in the 1990s — cleared the path for New England’s second Super Bowl appearance. Despite a spirited effort, Desmond Howard’s back-breaking, 99-yard kickoff return proved to be too much for Drew Bledsoe and New England to overcome, giving Brett Favre his first — and only — Super Bowl ring.

Super Bowl XLII, Feb. 3, 2008: Giants 17, Patriots 14

New England’s hopes of a 19-0 season were dashed by Eli Manning, Plaxico Burress, and one of the most unlikely catches in NFL history. The Patriots rewrote the record books thanks to an offense driven by Brady, Randy Moss, and Wes Welker, starching opponents — including the Giants — during an 18-0 start. But New York was able to bully Brady in the pocket and shut down the greatest offense the league had ever seen, leading to the upset win.

Super Bowl XLVI, Feb. 5, 2012: Giants 21, Patriots 17

Giants coach Tom Coughlin once again proved to be the Patriots’ anathema, limiting Brady and winning another defensive slugfest on the game’s brightest stage. Ahmad Bradshaw’s six-yard touchdown run with 57 seconds left shut the door on New England’s shot at revenge and gave Manning his second Super Bowl ring.