New England Patriots: Ranking all five Super Bowl winning teams
By Stephen Ur
2. 2004 New England Patriots (14-2; Won Super Bowl XXXIX)
In 2004, the Patriots were the defending Super Bowl champion and were looking to become the first repeat champion since John Elway and the Denver Broncos won Super Bowl XXXII and XXXIII in 1998 and 1999.
The Patriots got off to a hot start in the 2004 season, winning their first six games. A big addition to the team was running back Corey Dillon. The Patriots acquired him in a trade from the Cincinnati Bengals just days before the 2004 NFL Draft. He turned out being a big part of their offense, as he rushed for 1,635 yards over the course of the season.
New England also set several records in 2004. They set the then record of 18 consecutive regular season wins and 21 consecutive wins overall. Their first loss came on Halloween against the Steelers.
They lost cornerback Ty Law, a big part to their two other Super Bowl runs, to a foot injury that same game. That made New England use wide receiver Troy Brown on both offense and defense.
After yet another 14-2 season, they dominated Peyton Manning and the Colts and upset rookie Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers, both led by defense, en route to defeating the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX. The win was what gave the Patriots the title of a dynasty.