USA Today
Eagles in Elite Company Heading Into Super Bowl
With their 31-7 victory against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles joined some elite company when it comes to the NFL playoffs.
The Eagles became just the fifth team to win both its divisional round game and its conference championship game by 20 or more points, and precedent bodes well for their chances against the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII in two Sundays.
To underscore how impressive what the Eagles did was, consider that no team had been able to do it since the 1989 San Francisco 49ers.
The four teams that preceded the Eagles in winning their two playoff games heading into the Super Bowl by at least 20 points went on to win the Lombardi Trophy.
So now the Eagles, who defeated the New York Giants 38-7 in the divisional round, will look to duplicate the feat of:
-- The 1989 49ers, who defeated Minnesota 41-13 and the L.A. Rams 30-3 before defeating the Denver Broncos 55-10 in Super Bowl XXIV.
-- The 1988 49ers, who defeated the Vikings 34-9 and the Chicago Bears 28-3 before defeating the Cincinnati Bengals 20-16 in Super Bowl XXIII.
-- The 1985 Bears, who shut out the Giants (21-0) and Rams (24-0) before routing the New England Patriots, 46-10, in Super Bowl XX.
-- The 1978 Pittsburgh Steelers, who defeated the Denver Broncos 33-10 and the Houston Oilers 34-5 before defeating the Dallas Cowboys 35-31 in Super Bowl XIII.
TITLE GAME BLOWOUTS AND THE SUPER BOWL
The Eagles also became the 14th team to win a conference championship game by 24 points or more, and the first to do it since their 38-7 victory against the Minnesota Vikings in the 2017 NFC Championship Game.
The historical precedent for Super Bowl success isn’t quite as encouraging, with the previous 13 teams to win by 24 or more points in a conference title game sporting a 7-6 record in the ensuing Super Bowl.
Here’s the rundown:
2017 Philadelphia Eagles — beat Minnesota 38-7 in NFC title game, beat New England 40-33 in Super Bowl
2015 Carolina Panthers — beat Arizona 49-15 in NFC title game, lost to Denver 24-10 in Super Bowl
2014 New England Patriots — beat Indianapolis 45-7 in AFC title game, beat Seattle 28-24 in Super Bowl
2006 Chicago Bears — beat New Orleans 39-14 in NFC title game, lost to Indianapolis 29-17 in Super Bowl
2000 New York Giants — beat Minnesota 41-0 in NFC title game, lost to Baltimore 34-7 in Super Bowl
1991 Washington team — beat Detroit 41-10 in NFC title game, beat Buffalo 37-24 in Super Bowl
1990 Buffalo Bills — beat L.A. Raiders 51-3 in AFC title game, lost to N.Y. Giants 20-19 in Super Bowl
1989 San Francisco 49ers — beat L.A. Rams 30-3 in NFC title game, beat Denver 55-10 in Super Bowl
1988 San Francisco 49ers — beat Chicago 28-3 in NFC title game, beat Cincinnati 20-16 in Super Bowl
1985 Chicago Bears — beat L.A. Rams 24-0 in NFC title game, beat New England 46-10 in Super Bowl
1978 Pittsburgh Steelers — beat Houston 34-5 in AFC title game, beat Dallas 35-31 in Super Bowl
1978 Dallas Cowboys — beat L.A. Rams 28-0 in NFC title game, lost to Pittsburgh 35-31 in Super Bowl
1975 Dallas Cowboys — beat L.A. Rams 37-7 in NFC title, lost to Pittsburgh 21-17 in Super Bowl
Alain Poupart is a contributor for Eagles Today and is the publisher of All Dolphins for Fan Nation/SI. Follow him on Twitter at @PoupartNFL.
