How many times have No. 1 seeds played in Super Bowl? Eagles, Chiefs look to add to NFL playoffs history

Vinnie Iyer

•
How many times have No. 1 seeds played in Super Bowl? Eagles, Chiefs look to add to NFL playoffs history image

The Eagles and Chiefs both entered the 2023 NFL playoffs as mighty No. 1 seeds. After the top regular-season teams in the NFC and AFC opened with strong home divisional playoff victories on Saturday night to advance to the conference championship games, Philadelphia and Kansas City are one more win away from facing each other in Super Bowl 57.

Based on Super Bowl history, if it's the Eagles and Chiefs playing for a ring in Glendale, Ariz., on Feb. 12, that would be a rare occurrence. Here's looking back at the history of top-seed matchups in the Super Bowl:

MORE: Eagles dominate Giants | Chiefs, Mahomes tough out win over Jags

When is the last time two No. 1 seeds played in the Super Bowl?

The last time the Eagles were the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs, after the 2017 season, they advanced to Super Bowl 52. There they beat the AFC No. 1-seeded Patriots 41-33. If the Eagles and Chiefs both make it this season, they would end a five-year drought.

How many times have the two No. 1 seeds made it to the Super Bowl?

Believe it or not, No. 1 vs. No. 1 has happened only 13 times in the previous 48 Super Bowls since the NFL implemented playoff seeding during the 1975 season. The first time it happened was in Super Bowl 11, which was played after the 1976 season.

No. 1 vs. No. 1 was the Super Bowl matchup six times before the playoff field expanded to 12 teams (six from each conference) during the 1990 season:

  • Super Bowl 11: No. 1 Raiders 32, No. 1 Vikings 14
  • Super Bowl 12: No. 1 Cowboys 27, No. 1 Broncos 10
  • Super Bowl 16: No. 1 49ers 26, No. 1 Bengals 21
  • Super Bowl 18: No. 1 Raiders 38, No. 1 Redskins 9
  • Super Bowl 19: No. 1 49ers 38, No. 1 Dolphins 16
  • Super Bowl 24: No. 1 49ers 55, No. 1 Broncos 10

Here are the seven times it happened before the NFL expanded the playoffs to 14 teams starting with the 2021 season:

  • Super Bowl 26: No. 1 Redskins 37, No. 1 Bills 24
  • Super Bowl 28: No. 1 Cowboys 30, No. 1 Bills 13
  • Super Bowl 44: No. 1 Saints 31, No. 1 Colts 17
  • Super Bowl 48: No. 1 Seahawks 43, No. 1 Broncos 8
  • Super Bowl 49. No. 1 Patriots 28, No. 1 Seahawks 24
  • Super Bowl 50: No. 1 Broncos 24, No. 1 Panthers 10
  • Super Bowl 52: No. 1 Eagles 41, No. 1 Patriots 33

During the 2022 playoffs, both the No. 1 Packers and No. 1 Titans lost in the divisional round. That made it 28.1 percent of top seeds (18 of 64) failing to win a playoff game since 1990. Another 21.9 percent of top seeds (14 of 64) lost in the conference championship round.

MORE: Mahomes' ankle injury doesn't hurt Chiefs' AFC championship, Super Bowl 57 chances

Also, since 1990, just 50 percent of No. 1 seeds (32 of 64) made it to the Super Bowl. Of those, 14 won the game while 18 lost.

How many No. 1 seeds have won the Super Bowl?

Going back to 1975, 52 percent of No. 1 seeds (25 of 48) have won the Super Bowl. Of those 25 teams, 16 have represented the NFC and nine have represented the AFC.

The last NFC No. 1 seed to win the Super Bowl was the 2017 Eagles.The last AFC No. 1 seed to win the Super Bowl was the 2016 Patriots. No. 2 seeds have won the Super Bowl 10 times in all, the last being the Chiefs in Super Bowl 54 after the 2019 season.

Vinnie Iyer

Vinnie Iyer Photo

Vinnie Iyer, has been with TSN since 1999, not long after graduating from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. He has produced NFL content for more than 20 years, turning his attention to full-time writing in 2007. A native of St. Louis, Mo. but now a long-time resident of Charlotte, N.C. Vinnie’s top two professional sports teams are Cardinals and Blues, but he also carries purple pride for all things Northwestern Wildcats. He covers every aspect of the NFL for TSN including player evaluations, gambling and fantasy football, where he is a key contributor. Vinnie represents TSN as host of the “Locked On Fantasy Football” podcast on the Locked On network. Over his many years at TSN, he’s also written about MLB, NBA, NASCAR, college football, tennis, horse racing, film and television. His can’t-miss program remains “Jeopardy!”, where he was once a three-day champion and he is still avid about crossword puzzles and trivia games. When not watching sports or his favorite game show, Vinnie is probably watching a DC, Marvel or Star Wars-related TV or movie.