The entire NFL calendar has built up to a crescendo at the Super Bowl, but what’s wrong with a little extra football? We have six full decades of history to look back on, showing just how often the Big Game finishes regulation with the two teams tied. Let’s look at the overtime data following the Seattle Seahawks’ blowout win over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX.
Super Bowl Overtime History
Only two Super Bowls have ever gone to overtime. There was not a single overtime in the first 50 years of the Super Bowl era, although there were a few close calls.
The Baltimore Colts broke a 13-13 tie with the Dallas Cowboys by nailing a field goal in the final seconds of Super Bowl V, for example. The Denver Broncos and St. Louis Rams avoided overtime with last-minute touchdowns in 1998 and 2000, respectively, while the Patriots hit tie-breaking field goals with time winding down in 2002 and 2004. The Kansas City Chiefs also hit a late game-winning field goal to break a 35-35 tie with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023.
As for the games that did feature overtimes, here is a breakdown of how those extra periods came to be.
Super Bowl LI
February 5, 2017
New England Patriots def. Atlanta Falcons, 34-28
The first Super Bowl ever to go to an extra period was, unsurprisingly, one of the most dramatic. New England famously trailed Atlanta 28-3 midway through the third quarter, thanks in large part to Tom Brady’s crushing pick-six in the second. Even when the Patriots did finally find the end zone, Stephen Gostkowski missed the ensuing extra point.
Gostkowski proceeded to hit a field goal, then Brady led back-to-back touchdown drives both capped by two-point conversions. Along the way, Matt Ryan took sack after sack and even fumbled at the Falcons’ own 25-yard line. That helped the Patriots tie the score at 28-all, forcing overtime. New England won the coin toss and elected to receive, back when postseason overtimes were still sudden-death. Brady completed six consecutive passes before a penalty brought the Patriots down to the 2-yard line, where James White rushed it in for the game-winning touchdown.
Super Bowl LVIII
February 11, 2024
Kansas City Chiefs def. San Francisco 49ers, 25-22
Seven years after the Patriots accomplished a Super Bowl-first, the Chiefs matched them. Kansas City never trailed by more than one score in the second half, but they were down 16-13 before Harrison Butker’s 24-yard field goal with 5:46 remaining. San Francisco leapt back ahead with a 53-yarder from Jake Moody with 1:53 left on the clock, forcing the Chiefs to drive the field with their backs up against the wall again. Patrick Mahomes gave Butker a 27-yard chip shot thanks to his 22-yard connection with Travis Kelce, and the kicker converted with just six seconds left on the clock.
In the early days of the new overtime rules, the 49ers won the toss and elected to receive. Moody put San Francisco on top with a 27-yard field goal, then the Niners defense had the Chiefs down to their final play on a 4th-and-1. Mahomes ran for an 8-yard gain, then continued to lead Kansas City down the field. His 3-yard pass to Mecole Hardman sealed the deal, vaulting Kansas City ahead with a kill-shot touchdown.
