Super Bowl LII

The Eagles' first Super Bowl victory, ending a 57-year championship drought.

Super Bowl LII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2017 season. As a rematch of Super Bowl XXXIX from 13 years earlier, the game was between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles and the American Football Conference (AFC) and defending Super Bowl LI champion New England Patriots. The underdog Eagles defeated the Patriots with a score of 41–33 to win their first Super Bowl and their first NFL title since 1960, ending what was the third longest championship drought in the league at the time.

As a result of the Eagles’ victory, the NFC East became the first and currently only division where every team has won a Super Bowl. The game was played on February 4, 2018, at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This was the second time that a Super Bowl was played in Minneapolis, the northernmost city to ever host the event, after Super Bowl XXVI at the Metrodome during the 1991 season. It was also the sixth and most recent Super Bowl held in a cold-weather city, although the stadium is indoors.

Quick Facts

Visitor: Philadelphia Eagles
Visitor coach: Doug Pederson
Visitor record: 13–3
Visitor place: 1
Home: New England Patriots
Home coach: Bill Belichick
Date: February 4, 2018
Stadium: U.S. Bank Stadium

Lore & Background

New England finished the regular season with an AFC-best 13–3 record, then extended their record Super Bowl appearances to ten, their third in four years, and their eighth under the leadership of head coach Bill Belichick and MVP quarterback Tom Brady. Philadelphia also finished the regular season with an NFC-best 13–3 record but entered the playoffs as underdogs after starting quarterback Carson Wentz suffered a season-ending injury late in the regular season; prior to his injury, Wentz was the media and fan favorite to win MVP after leading his team to an 11–2 start.

Backup quarterback Nick Foles was the Eagles' starting quarterback for the rest of the season. With Foles, the Eagles advanced to their third Super Bowl appearance, having previously lost to the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XV and to the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXIX. Several records were set during Super Bowl LII, including most yards gained in any NFL game by both teams combined (1,151) and fewest punts from both teams in a Super Bowl (one); the Patriots also set the record for the fewest punts by a team in a Super Bowl.

The game was settled after the Eagles converted a fumble recovery deep within Patriots territory leading to a field goal with 1:05 remaining to extend their lead to eight points, and Brady's Hail Mary pass fell incomplete as time expired. Foles, who completed 28 of 43 pass attempts for 373 yards and three touchdowns with one interception, and also caught a one-yard touchdown pass on a trick play, was named Super Bowl MVP. The Patriots' loss made them the fifth defending Super Bowl champions to lose the next year's title game, after the 1978 Dallas Cowboys, the 1983 Washington Redskins, the 1997 Green Bay Packers, and the 2014 Seattle Seahawks.

They were later joined by the 2020 and 2024 Kansas City Chiefs. Retrospectively, Super Bowl LII is considered among the greatest ever played, with the Eagles' performance being regarded as highly influential in professional football in the years that followed. Foles' touchdown catch, nicknamed the "Philly Special", is often remembered as one of the greatest play-calls of all time.

Reader's Guide

The game was played at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The host city was selected on May 20, 2014, at the league owners' meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. Associated events included the Super Bowl Live festival on Nicollet Mall, the Super Bowl Experience at the Minneapolis Convention Center, and various concerts at venues such as the Minneapolis Armory, Paisley Park, Xcel Energy Center, and Mystic Lake Casino. The slogan "Bold North" was developed by the Minnesota Super Bowl Host Committee. The official logo for Super Bowl LII was a cerulean-colored version of a standardized design, with secondary branding featuring blue and purple aurora motifs.