The matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX is the ninth rematch in Super Bowl history, the second involving head coach Andy Reid, who will be facing Nick Sirianni once again after edging him in Super Bowl LVII 38-35, thanks to a field goal in the final seconds.
One of the most exciting Super Bowls of all time gets a highly anticipated rematch. All of the head coach rematches in the Super Bowl have taken place in a five-year span, similar to Reid and Sirianni as they square off in the championship game for the second time in three years.
The Chiefs are seeking their third straight Super Bowl title, the first team since the 1965-1967 Green Bay Packers to win three straight NFL championships. The Eagles are looking for their second Super Bowl title, the first in the Nick Sirianni-Jalen Hurts era.
As Reid and Sirianni are set to square off for the second time in the Super Bowl, history is certainly in Reid’s favor to beat Sirianni again. Here’s how the previous four Super Bowl head coach rematches panned out:
- Super Bowl X (1975) and Super Bowl XIII (1979)
The Steelers and the Cowboys met twice in the 1970s for the Lombardi Trophy, with Noll’s Steelers coming out on top in both occasions. Both of the victories occurred at the Orange Bowl, as the Steelers beat the Cowboys 21-17 in Super Bowl X and 35-31 in Super Bowl XIII.
Lynn Swann had four catches for 161 yards and a touchdown to win MVP honors in Super Bowl X while Terry Bradshaw went 17 of 31 for 318 yards and four touchdowns with an interception to claim the MVP for Super Bowl XIII. The Steelers won both meetings to solidify themselves as the team of the 1970s, winning four championships in six years.
The Cowboys won two titles in the 1970s, but could have been the team of the decade with one win over the Steelers.
Jimmy Johnson (Dallas Cowboys) vs. Marv Levy (Buffalo Bills)
- Super Bowl XXVII (1993) and Super Bowl XXVIII (1994)
The Cowboys’ dynasty got started in the 1990s with back-to-back Super Bowl victories over the Bills, as Johnson and Levy were the first pair of coaches to meet in the Super Bowl in consecutive seasons. Johnson got the better of Levy both times, even though Levy and the Bills were in the two previous Super Bowls prior to facing the Cowboys.
Dallas won 52-17 over Buffalo in Super Bowl XXVII, the last Super Bowl to be played at the Rose Bowl. Troy Aikman won MVP after completing 22 of 30 passes for 273 yards and four touchdowns. In Super Bowl XXVIII, the Cowboys trailed 13-6 at halftime before outscoring the Bills 24-0 in the second half for a 30-13 victory. Emmitt Smith rushed for 132 yards and two scores to win MVP.
The Cowboys won three Super Bowls in four years to become the team of the 1990s while the Bills were the first team to play in four consecutive Super Bowls — and lose all four. Johnson stepped down as Cowboys head coach after the Super Bowl XXVIII victory.
- Super Bowl XLII (2008) and Super Bowl XLVI (2012)
The Giants pulled off the one of the biggest upsets in NFL history when they shocked the 18-0 Patriots and cost New England its perfect season — and the fourth title in seven years for Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. Eli Manning took home Super Bowl XLII MVP honors by going 19 of 34 for 255 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in the 17-14 win.
In the rematch four years later, the 9-7 Giants upset the Patriots again — as Manning led another game-winning drive in the final minute. Super Bowl XLII had Manning toss the winning touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress with 35 seconds left to give the Giants the lead while Ahmad Bradshaw had a touchdown run with 55 seconds left to give the Giants a 21-17 victory in Super Bowl XLVI. Manning went 30 of 40 for 296 yards and a touchdown to win MVP honors again.
The Giants have won one playoff game since while Belichick won three more titles with New England (all with Brady). The Patriots won three titles in five years from the 2014 through 2018 seasons, but went 0-2 against Coughlin’s Giants in the Brady-Belichick era.
Andy Reid (Kansas City Chiefs) vs. Kyle Shanahan (San Francisco 49ers)
- Super Bowl LIV (2020) and Super Bowl LVIII (2024)
The Chiefs dynasty isn’t written without Reid’s victories over Shanahan, as the current era of dominance started when Kansas City rallied from a 20-10 fourth-quarter deficit and scored 21 unanswered points to capture Reid and Patrick Mahomes‘ first of three Super Bowls in five years.
Damien Williams scored two touchdowns in the final three minutes, but the game is known for the Chiefs running “Jet Chip Wasp” on a third-and-15 throw to Tyreek Hill that went 44 yards and catapulted the comeback with just over six minutes to play.
In the rematch in Super Bowl LVIII, Mahomes and the Chiefs rallied from a 19-16 deficit with under two minutes to play and an overtime deficit to capture the title. Trailing 25-22 with three seconds left in overtime, Mahomes found Mecole Hardman for the game’s winning touchdown to seal the Chiefs’ 25-22 victory.
The 49ers are 0-3 in Super Bowls since their last title in the 1994 season. The Chiefs are going for their third straight championship in Super Bowl LIX. Shanahan’s legacy would be significantly different if the 49ers held one (or both) of their fourth-quarter leads.
How will Reid and Sirianni Part II play out?
The head coach who wins the first meeting in Super Bowl matchups is 4-0 in the second meeting, and that includes Reid beating Shanahan in both his matchups (and Shanahan started a different quarterback in both games). All the other head coach rematches in a Super Bowl featured the same starting quarterbacks, which will be the case between Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts.
Only Bill Belichick has been to more Super Bowls than Reid (the Chiefs head coach is tied with Don Shula with six Super Bowl appearances), so experience is certainly on Reid’s side. This Eagles team is different than the one the Chiefs faced in Super Bowl LVII, as Saquon Barkley is the running back and the Eagles have a more explosive run game than two years ago. Philadelphia has the most rush yards in a season in NFL history (3,731) and the second-most rushing touchdowns in a season (39, including playoffs).
The Eagles also have a different play-caller in Kellen Moore (offensive coordinator) and a different defensive coordinator in Vic Fangio, who led the Eagles to the No. 1 defense in yards allowed this season after finishing 22nd the year before (the first coach to have a turnaround of 22nd or lower to first in one year). Philadelphia is also younger in the secondary (Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean) and defensive tackle (Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, and Milton Williams) while getting All-Pro linebacker play wit Zack Baun.
Mahomes is 8-0 against teams that had Fangio as a head coach or defensive coordinator, as the Chiefs have averaged 26.8 points per game in those starts. This is also arguably Fangio’s best defense against Mahomes; the chess match will be Reid vs. Fangio. Sirianni does the preparation in all facets during the week, instead of focusing on the offense and quarterback room (the Super Bowl LVII offense was his design and scheme).
Reid has the championship pedigree — and three of the four teams that won the head coach rematch had a top-two defense in points allowed per game. The Chiefs are actually fourth in points per game allowed after finishing second last year, so that could be a factor.
History is certainly on Reid’s side, but the Eagles are equipped to be the first team to win a Super Bowl rematch between head coaches. Then again, so were the 1978 Cowboys and 2011 Patriots.
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Author: Jeff Kerr
February 3, 2025 | 11:20 am
