Tom Brady has lost to only two quarterbacks in Super Bowls: Eli Manning and Nick Foles.
Foles was named MVP of Super Bowl 52 when he led the Eagles over Brady's Patriots, 41-33, in Minneapolis on Feb. 4, 2018. Fast forward to "Thursday Night Football" to open Week 5 of the 2020 NFL season, and in an unlikely event, Foles and Brady are starting counterparts for the first time since that meeting.
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Foles with the Bears and Brady with the Buccaneers will never live up to what they did with their original teams, Foles as Philadelphia's supersub and Brady as New England's six-ringed GOAT QB.
Unlike the two Giants matchups, where Manning got the better of Brady, the shocking result in Super Bowl 52 wasn't about the Eagles' defense vs. Brady. It was a lot more about how their offense operated at a high level with Foles filling in for an injured Carson Wentz, who was playing at an MVP level before suffering a season-ending knee injury.
How the heck did Foles pull it off with Brady having one of his best-ever Super Bowl performances? Here's looking back at how they fared against each other in Super Bowl 52:
Foles vs. Brady going into the game
Brady would end up winning regular-season MVP for the numbers he put during the Patriots 13-3 season in 2017. He passed for a league-leading 4,577 yards, averaging 7.9 yards per attempt over his league-leading 581 attempts. He also rated a stellar 102.8 by carrying a New England team that had major defensive issues and had a mediocre rushing attack.
Had Wentz stayed healthy instead of tearing his ACL in the 13th game, there's no doubt he could have edged Brady for MVP. Foles went 2-1 to finish the Eagles' 13-3 season as the wire-to-wire No. 1 seed in the NFC. He didn't inspire confidence that he would have a great playoffs, with his 79.5 rating and paltry 5.4 yards per attempt, after Wentz hit 101.9 and 7.5 with those numbers.
Foles was a different QB right away in the playoffs. He passed for 246 yards with a 100.1 rating at 8.2 yards per attempt against Atlanta. In the NFC title game, he ripped through Minnesota for 352 yards, three TDs with a 141.4 rating at 10.67 yards per attempt. Brady was on fire, too, in the playoffs, having no trouble lighting up Tennessee and Jacksonville for stellar performances.
Foles vs. Brady in the game
Foles and Brady both had 28 completions in Super Bowl 52. Foles went 28-of-43 for 373 yards passing and three TDs to one interception. He rated 106.1 and averaged 8.67 yards per attempt. Brady went 28-of-48 for 505 yards and three TDs. He rated 115.4 and averaged 10.52 yards per attempt.
So, statistically, Brady did all that he could to beat the Eagles and was the better, more efficient passer, as expected. But Foles made one extra play to create the final separation — his 1-yard TD catch from tight end Trey Burton on the "Philly Special" trick passing play right before halftime that put the Eagles up 22-12.
What was most impressive about Foles' performance was that he mirrored Brady with some Brady-like qualities. He spread the ball around well short-to-intermediate-to-deep. As Brady used his backs, wide receivers and tight end Rob Gronkowski well to his advantage in matchups, Foles did the same with his backs, wide receivers and tight end Zach Ertz.
That was evident early, when the Eagles received the opening kickoff and marched 67 yards on 14 plays for a 7:05 field-goal drive. Foles went 6-of-9 for 61 yards. On the Patriots' first possession, Brady went 6-for-8 for 60 yards in leading them to a tying field goal.
The stage was set for a high-scoring duel that would go deep into the fourth quarter, much like Brady battled the Panthers' Jake Delhomme 14 years earlier in Super Bowl 38. Brady had more passing yards at halftime, 276 to Foles' 215, and combined the quarterbacks set an opening half record with those 491 yards.
When the Patriots finally took their first lead, 33-32 on a second TD pass from Brady to Gronkowski with 9:22 left in the fourth quarter, it looked like the GOAT had gotten Foles in the end.
But Foles showed his clutch worth, using Ertz as his go-to guy to answer. The Eagles kept the next drive alive with Foles completing a seven-yard pass to Ertz on a third-and-6 and a two-yard pass on a fourth-and-1. Moving the ball patiently downfield on another near seven-minute possession, Foles found Ertz a third time for an 11-yard TD catch and run, culminating in a legendary dive across the goal line.
The Eagles needed to force a turnover from Brady to match Foles' earlier INT. They did just that, with Brandon Graham delivering a strip sack to help preserve a 38-33 lead. The time ticking off the clock and a tack-on field goal by Jake Elliott put the game out of reach, with Brady resorting to a desperation Hail Mary that wasn't answered at the end.
The Patriots outgained the Eagles with 500 net passing yards and 613 total yards. But the Eagles played the better situational football. They won time of possession, 34:04 to 25:56. They ran the ball better (165 yards rushing) to support Foles. They also went 10-for-16 on third down and 2-for-2 on fourth down. The Patriots were only 5-of-10 on third down and 1-of-2 on fourth down.
Coach Doug Pederson was aggressive and confident that his team could stay with the Patriots and trusted Foles to lean on Ertz, Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor and their backfield committee like the Eagles had done all season with Wentz.
The Eagles were 5.5-point underdogs in the game, but looking back, they had shown a more complete team than the Patriots with everything clicking. Had Wentz been in there still playing at a high level, Philadelphia might have been favorites. The real surprise was the Eagles getting enough offense from Foles to outlast Brady with the more productive late fourth-quarter possession.
While Manning won Super Bowl MVP twice over Brady, it was more about him getting some crazy catches in close games late to take advantage of Brady having his two worst Super Bowls. With Brady playing like every bit of the GOAT in Super Bowl 52, it was a different tale. Foles needed the night of his life to create the surprise, storybook ending.
Foles is unlikely to play in another Super Bowl for the Bears. Brady might have one more left with the Buccaneers. But with the Eagles, Foles will be forever known as one of sports' ultimate one-hit wonders, leaving Brady to forever think about the third one that got away.
