Super Bowl LVII will be the 56th playing of “the big game.” Over the course of that time, a number of records have been set. Nine Super Bowl records have been set by Jerry Rice. Rice’s 220 yards from scrimmage in a single game or 604 career yards from scrimmage are unlikely to be ever broken. There are plenty of records besides Jerry Rice’s personal haul though, so which, if any may fall this week?
The Super Bowl – A Game for the Ages
The Longest Field Goal in a Super Bowl
The longest field goal in Super Bowl history is 54 yards. kicked by Steve Christie in Super Bowl XXVIII. That game, like this one, was played in a dome stadium. Christie’s kick came in the first quarter as the Bills tied up their opponents the Dallas Cowboys. Despite that kick making the score 3-3 the Cowboys would eventually go on to win 30-13. Dallas held the Bills scoreless in the second half.
Both kickers playing this week have successful field goal attempts over 54 yards this season. Jake Elliot’s longest is 56 and he has kicked five of his six attempts from 50 yards or further out. Harrison Butker made the longest successful field goal in the NFL this season. His 62 yarder came in a loss to the Bills back in Week 6. Butker has only made three of his seven long attempts this season. With a very strong Eagles defense there’s a good chance he’ll get a chance to try another long range effort or two.
Most Receiving Touchdowns
Five players have caught three touchdowns in a Super Bowl, Rice has done it twice just to cement his place in the pantheon of NFL greats.
Only Davante Adams caught more touchdowns than Travis Kelce during the regular season. Kelce caught multiple touchdowns in three games this season. He caught three against the Chargers back in week 11 as he was targeted 10 times. In Week 5 he caught four touchdowns as Mahomes threw him eight passes and he caught seven of them.
For the Eagles A.J Brown caught 11 touchdowns in 2022, he only had two games with multiple touchdown catches though. He caught two against the Titans in week 13 and three against the Steelers back in Week 8 as he was targeted 10 times.
The Most Pass Completions
Tom Brady holds the record for most completed passes in a Super Bowl after throwing 43 completions against the Falcons. That game did go to overtime so he had a slight advantage over most quarterbacks who play in the big game. It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that this game could head to an extra period though and if the Eagles take an early lead Kansas City will throw more to get back into the game.
Mahomes lead the league in pass yards this season with 5,250. He threw 648 passes in 2022, only Justin Herbert and Brady threw more. Kansas City threw on 60% of their downs in 2022 and 14% of those throws went to running backs. Overall 48% of the Chiefs targets were thrown to running backs or tight ends and with run plays making up just 38% of their total snaps in 2022 it’s easy to see them abandoning the run against this Eagles defensive front. Mahomes attempted 43 passes attempts in the AFC Championship game, so it could happen.
The Most Rushing Touchdowns in a Super Bowl
Terrell Davis’ three rushing touchdowns in Super Bowl XXXII is still the record number of rushing scores 25 years later. Davis propelled the Broncos to an underdog win against the Packers in San Diego. He was famously suffering from a migraine (and complaining of sight loss) when Mike Shanahan told him to go back out on the field with less than two minutes left on the clock. On that play Davis promptly scored his third touchdown giving Denver a 31-24 lead.
Only Jamaal Williams scored more rushing touchdowns than Jalen Hurts this season. Hurts scored 13 times and three games with multiple rushing scores. He got into the endzone twice against the Vikings in the second week of the season and against the Cardinals in the same stadium the Super Bowl will be played in. His last game with multiple rushing scores came against Chicago in week 15 when he scored three times.
Only seven players scored more rushing touchdowns than Miles Sanders did in 2023 and four teams scored fewer than him. Sanders ran in 11 scores in 2022 and had three games with multiple touchdowns. In 2022 he scored two touchdowns on three occasions against the Jaguars, the Packers and again last week against the 49ers. Although Kansas City’s defense only conceded 10 rushing touchdowns all season but they did allow the Jaguars to run for 144 yards in the Wildcard game. In Week 9 against the Titans, who are as run-heavy as the Eagles (49% to 48.3%) they allowed 172 yards so the Chiefs defense may well tire out late in the game.
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Michael Chow-USA TODAY Sports
