New England Patriots: Ranking the Patriots Super Bowls

#8 Super Bowl XX: Chicago Bears 46 New England Patriots 10

The Patriots first foray in the Super Bowl is probably the one Patriots fans remember least. Them being 10-point underdogs to the Bears notwithstanding, the Patriots were fortunate to have even advanced that far. Traveling on the road three straight times, the Patriots defeated the New York Jets 26-14, the Los Angeles Rams 27-20, and the Miami Dolphins 31-14. Their win in Miami was their first win in the Orange Bowl since 1966 after losing 18 times in a row there.

But their storybook season came to a crushing halt against the now legendary ’85 Chicago Bears. Despite leading 3-0, the Bears outscored the Patriots 46-7 the rest of the way, registering a Super Bowl record seven sacks, on their way to the largest margin of victory in a Super Bowl (36 points). The Bears DE Richard Dent was named the Super Bowl MVP by turning in 1.5 quarterback sacks, two forced fumbles, and blocked a pass. 

Game Watchability: 1

Game Importance: 2

Game Legacy: 0

Total: 3, in the end, this Super Bowl was decided before kickoff. The Bears defense was too good from the onset for the Patriots to recover from and they simply overwhelmed the upstart team from New England. This game, while not entertaining, solidified the 1985 Chicago Bears as one of, if not the, greatest team in NFL history.

Fun Fact(s): This remains the most recent Super Bowl in which both contestants were making their first appearance in the championship game. To date, the only possible match ups in which both teams would make their first appearance would be the Detroit Lions versus either the Houston Texans, Cleveland Browns, or Jacksonville Jaguars.