Honestly, trying to keep track of the NFL’s rotating door of champions is a headache. One year a backup quarterback is the king of the world, and the next, a 45-year-old is hoisting the trophy for the seventh time. It’s wild. If you’re looking for the Super bowl winners for the last 10 years, you’re basically looking at a decade-long tug-of-war between the Kansas City Chiefs and everyone else.
We just saw the Philadelphia Eagles pull off a massive upset in Super Bowl LIX, taking down the Chiefs 40–22 in New Orleans. It was a statement. It stopped the "three-peat" dead in its tracks. But before that, the league felt like it was basically owned by Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady.
The Mahomes Era and the Dynasty That Almost Was
Kinda crazy to think about, but the Kansas City Chiefs have been in four of the last six Super Bowls. They won three of them. Until the Eagles broke the streak in early 2025, the Chiefs were the undisputed villains of the NFL.
In 2024, at Super Bowl LVIII, the Chiefs took down the San Francisco 49ers in a 25–22 overtime thriller in Las Vegas. That game was a defensive slog for three quarters. Then, Mahomes just did Mahomes things. People forget how close San Francisco came to winning that. One muffed punt changed the entire momentum.
The year before that? Super Bowl LVII in 2023. Chiefs versus Eagles. Mahomes was basically playing on one leg after a high ankle sprain, yet he still managed to scramble for 26 yards on the final drive to set up Harrison Butker’s winning field goal. 38–35. High scoring, no defense, pure entertainment.
When the Rams Went "All In"
Before the Chiefs took over completely, we had the 2021 Los Angeles Rams. This was the "F*** Them Picks" season. They traded everything for Matthew Stafford, Von Miller, and Odell Beckham Jr.
It actually worked.
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They beat the Cincinnati Bengals 23–20 at their own home stadium (SoFi). Cooper Kupp was basically unguardable that night. He caught the game-winning fade from Stafford with just over a minute left. It was a one-year window that they forced open with sheer cash and aggression.
The Brady Factor: Tampa Bay and the New England Twilight
You can't talk about Super bowl winners for the last 10 years without mentioning the guy who wouldn't retire.
In 2021 (Super Bowl LV), Tom Brady did the unthinkable. He left New England, went to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and won it all in his first year there. They beat the Chiefs 31–9. It wasn't even close. The Bucs' defense harassed Mahomes all night long. He was literally running for his life on every play.
But let’s look back at his New England exit.
- 2019 (SB LIII): The Patriots beat the Rams 13–3. It was, frankly, the most boring Super Bowl ever. Just a defensive grind in Atlanta.
- 2017 (SB LI): The 28–3 game. If you’re an Atlanta Falcons fan, I’m sorry for bringing this up. The Patriots were down by 25 points in the third quarter. They won 34–28 in the first-ever Super Bowl overtime. It defies logic.
The Underdog Special: Philly Special
2018 gave us arguably the best story of the decade. Nick Foles. A backup quarterback who was considering retirement a year prior. He goes toe-to-toe with Tom Brady in Super Bowl LII.
The "Philly Special" play—where Foles caught a touchdown pass on fourth down—is basically folklore now. The Eagles won 41–33. It was the first title in franchise history, and the city of Philadelphia nearly leveled itself in celebration.
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Defense Still Wins Championships (Sometimes)
While we love the high-flying offenses, two games in this ten-year stretch were decided by the guys who hit hard.
Super Bowl 50 in 2016 was Peyton Manning’s farewell. But he didn't win that game; Von Miller did. The Denver Broncos' defense absolutely demolished the Carolina Panthers and Cam Newton. Final score: 24–10. Manning barely had to throw the ball. He just had to not turn it over.
And in 2020 (Super Bowl LIV), the Chiefs won their first title in 50 years by coming back from 10 points down against the 49ers. It was the birth of the Mahomes legend, but a late interception by the Chiefs' defense is what actually iced the game.
The Complete List of Champions (2016-2025)
If you need the quick cheat sheet of the winners, here is how the last decade shook out:
Super Bowl LIX (2025): Philadelphia Eagles 40, Kansas City Chiefs 22
Super Bowl LVIII (2024): Kansas City Chiefs 25, San Francisco 49ers 22
Super Bowl LVII (2023): Kansas City Chiefs 38, Philadelphia Eagles 35
Super Bowl LVI (2022): Los Angeles Rams 23, Cincinnati Bengals 20
Super Bowl LV (2021): Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31, Kansas City Chiefs 9
Super Bowl LIV (2020): Kansas City Chiefs 31, San Francisco 49ers 20
Super Bowl LIII (2019): New England Patriots 13, Los Angeles Rams 3
Super Bowl LII (2018): Philadelphia Eagles 41, New England Patriots 33
Super Bowl LI (2017): New England Patriots 34, Atlanta Falcons 28
Super Bowl 50 (2016): Denver Broncos 24, Carolina Panthers 10
What Most People Get Wrong About These Wins
People love to say the NFL is "rigged" or "predictable." Honestly? Look at the list again.
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The Eagles won twice with two completely different cores. The Rams bought a trophy. The Broncos won with a legendary quarterback who could barely throw 20 yards at that point in his career.
The biggest misconception is that the "best" team always wins. In reality, the team that stays healthy through January usually takes the ring.
Take the 2023 Eagles. They were arguably better than the 2018 version, but a slick field in Arizona and a few missed assignments on motion plays let Mahomes slice them up in the second half. Success in the NFL is about a three-hour window on a Sunday, not who had the better regular season record.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Bettors
If you’re tracking these trends to see who might win next year, look at the "Post-Super Bowl Slump." Only a few teams in the last decade (Chiefs, Patriots) have managed to stay relevant the year after a win. Most teams—like the Rams or the Buccaneers—fall off a cliff due to the "salary cap hell" they put themselves in to win that one ring.
To stay ahead of the curve:
- Monitor the "Coordinator Drain": Winners almost always lose their offensive or defensive coordinators to head coaching jobs elsewhere. This usually causes a regression the following year.
- Watch the Trenches: While everyone watches the QB, the winners of the last 10 years (especially the 2025 Eagles and 2016 Broncos) won because of dominant defensive line play.
- Evaluate the "Window": Most teams have a 3-year window before they have to pay their star players and lose their depth. The Chiefs are the only team to successfully navigate this recently.