Super Bowl LV was an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
game played to determine the champion of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) for the
2020 season. The
National Football Conference
The National Football Conference (NFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the American Football Conference ...
(NFC) champion
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
defeated the
American Football Conference
The American Football Conference (AFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The AFC and its counterpart, the National Football Conference ...
(AFC) champion
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The tea ...
, 31–9. The game was played on February 7, 2021, at
Raymond James Stadium
Raymond James Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Tampa, Florida that opened in 1998 and is home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL) and the University of South Florida (USF) Bulls college football program. The se ...
in
Tampa, Florida
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
, the home stadium of the Buccaneers, marking the first time a team played a Super Bowl in its home stadium.
Due to
COVID-19 protocols limiting the stadium's seating capacity to 25,000 fans, it was the least-attended Super Bowl.
The Buccaneers' victory was their second and made them one of two teams, along with the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...
, to be undefeated in multiple Super Bowls. They finished the regular season with an 11–5 record and a
wild card berth to advance to their second Super Bowl appearance through the guidance of several new acquisitions, most notably 21-year veteran quarterback
Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...
in his first season away from the
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
. The Chiefs, aided by their top-ranked offense, finished the regular season with a league-best 14–2 record to advance to their fourth Super Bowl appearance and were the defending
Super Bowl LIV
Super Bowl LIV was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2019 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Kansas City Chiefs defeated the National Football Conferenc ...
champions, seeking to become the first repeat champions since the Patriots in
2004.
For the first time under quarterback
Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). The son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes, he initially played c ...
, the Chiefs failed to score a touchdown and lost by double-digits, making them the third Super Bowl team to not score a touchdown. They also committed 11 penalties for 120 yards, including a record eight penalties for 95 yards in the first half, most of which were called against the defense.
The Buccaneers capitalized on these struggles to take a commanding 21–6 lead at halftime and dominated the remainder of the game. Brady, who also extended his player records for Super Bowl appearances to 10 and wins to seven, was named
Super Bowl MVP for a record fifth time and was the first to receive the award with multiple franchises. He became the oldest player to receive the honor and win a Super Bowl as the starting quarterback at age 43, breaking additional personal records, while
Bruce Arians
Bruce Charles Arians (born October 3, 1952) is an American football executive and former coach in the National Football League (NFL). Since 2022, he has been a senior football consultant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Arians was previously the he ...
was the oldest head coach to win the Super Bowl at 68.
The game was televised nationally by
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
.
Country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
singer
Eric Church
Kenneth Eric Church (born May 3, 1977) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released nine studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's '' Sinners Like Me'', produced three singles on the ''Billboar ...
and
R&B singer
Jazmine Sullivan
Jazmine Marie Sullivan (born April 9, 1987) is an American R&B and soul singer. Born and raised in Philadelphia, her debut album, ''Fearless'' was released in 2008. The record topped ''Billboards Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and was certifie ...
performed the
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European n ...
, while the
halftime show was headlined by Canadian singer
The Weeknd
Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, Romance (love), ...
.
On television, Super Bowl LV was seen by 91.63 million viewers, the lowest ratings for the game since 2006. Combined with viewership on other platforms, viewership was down by 5% overall in comparison to Super Bowl LIV, but with a 69% increase in average streaming viewership.
Background
Host selection process
![Raymond James Stadium (50898195996)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Raymond_James_Stadium_%2850898195996%29.jpg)
On May 19, 2015, the league announced the four finalists for hosting
Super Bowl LIII
Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Confe ...
in 2019 and
Super Bowl LIV
Super Bowl LIV was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2019 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Kansas City Chiefs defeated the National Football Conferenc ...
in 2020. NFL team owners voted on these cities on May 24, 2016, with the first round of voting determining the host for Super Bowl LIII, and the second round deciding the site for Super Bowl LIV. In a development not known in advance, a third round of voting was added to select a Super Bowl LV hosting site.
Atlanta and Miami were awarded Super Bowls LIII and LIV respectively, removing them from the running for LV. Los Angeles was not eligible for Super Bowl LIII, as their stadium was under construction and would not yet be finished; it was eligible for LIV and LV, and opted to bid only on the latter.
The two candidates were:
*
Raymond James Stadium
Raymond James Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Tampa, Florida that opened in 1998 and is home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL) and the University of South Florida (USF) Bulls college football program. The se ...
,
Tampa, Florida
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
: Tampa had hosted four Super Bowls, the last being
Super Bowl XLIII
Super Bowl XLIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champions Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champions Arizona Cardinals to decide the National Football League (NFL) champ ...
in 2009.
*
SoFi Stadium
SoFi Stadium () is a 70,240-seat sports and entertainment indoor stadium in the Los Angeles suburb of Inglewood, California, United States. SoFi occupies the former site of the Hollywood Park Racetrack, from Los Angeles International Airport an ...
,
Inglewood, California
Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...
: Los Angeles had hosted the Super Bowl seven times, most recently in 1993 with
Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Buffalo Bills and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the ...
; that game, along with the four prior Super Bowls in the area, was held at the
Rose Bowl while the first two Super Bowls in the Los Angeles area were held at the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Conceived as a hallmark of civic pride, the Coliseum was commissioned in 1921 as a mem ...
.
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
was originally chosen as the host site for Super Bowl LV in a vote on May 24, 2016.
[ However, due to construction delays, authorities announced that the stadium would not be completed until the start of the ]2020 NFL season
The 2020 NFL season was the 101st season of the National Football League (NFL). The regular season started with the NFL Kickoff Game on September 10, in which defending Super Bowl LIV champion Kansas City defeated Houston. The playoffs were ...
. On May 23, 2017, NFL owners voted unanimously, with the Rams' approval, to move Super Bowl LV to Tampa. The City of Inglewood instead hosted Super Bowl LVI in 2022.
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
As of the start of the 2020 NFL season, the league had forbidden on-field entertainment, such as halftime shows and national anthem performances at games with fans. These elements, which have historically been cornerstones of the Super Bowl entertainment, would have been produced off-site had restrictions remained in place. In case a COVID-19 outbreak forced the postponements of regular season and playoff games, the league stated that Super Bowl LV could have been delayed as far as February 28.
The state of Florida removed capacity restrictions for sporting events in October, although the three Florida-based teams have voluntarily maintained 20–25 percent capacity limits. As of late October 2020, the NFL was planning a minimum attendance of 20% of capacity, in hopes that a larger capacity would be possible by game day.
On January 22, 2021, the NFL had originally announced that the game would have 22,000 fans in attendance, 7,500 of whom would be health care workers who had received a COVID-19 vaccine
A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19).
Prior to the COVID19 pandemic, an e ...
, primarily from the Tampa and central Florida region. The NFL also filled in the empty seats by selling 30,000 cardboard cutout
A standee is an American term for a large self-standing display promoting a movie, product or event, or point-of-sale advertising, often in the form of a life-size cut-out figure. They are typically made of foam-board, and may range from large ...
s to fans. On February 2, the league increased the expected attendance to 25,000. Super Bowl LV was the least-attended Super Bowl in the game's history; the next-lowest attendance was the 61,946 who attended the inaugural game in 1967.
NFL protocols for the 2020 season required that the closest rows of seats be blocked with tarps to reduce spectator proximity to the field. For the Super Bowl, they were covered with additional LED video boards.
The traditional events held during Super Bowl week were significantly reduced. Capacity at the Super Bowl Experience at Julian B. Lane Riverfront Park was limited due to health and safety protocols. Instead of holding practices and participating in media events during the entire week in the Super Bowl host city, the Chiefs flew into Tampa on the day before the game as they had during the regular season (had another NFC team advanced to the Super Bowl instead of the Buccaneers, they would have done this as well). The "Super Bowl Opening Night" festivities on the Monday preceding the game were cancelled and replaced with a virtual media availability.
In March, health officials in Hillsborough County, Florida
Hillsborough County is located in the west central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. In the 2020 census, the population was 1,459,762, making it the fourth-most populous county in Florida and the most populous county outside the Miami metrop ...
determined that Super Bowl LV was not a superspreader event. The officials cited 53 cases (out of 14,809 confirmed cases overall in a one-month span surrounding the game) that were traced to official Super Bowl events, three of those being people who attended the game itself; they also noted that unofficial house parties were likely far greater causes of spread during that time span.
Teams
Kansas City Chiefs
As defending Super Bowl Champions, the Kansas City Chiefs recorded an NFL-best record in 2020 under eighth-year head coach Andy Reid. Other than a 40–32 loss against the Las Vegas Raiders
The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West divis ...
in week 5, their only defeat was in the final game of the season against the Los Angeles Chargers
The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...
, when they rested most of their starters because they had already clinched the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. This appearance was the Chiefs' fourth trip to the Super Bowl. They lost Super Bowl I
The first AFL–NFL World Championship Game (known retroactively as Super BowlI and referred to in contemporaneous reports, including the game's radio broadcast, as the Super Bowl) was an American football game played on January 15, 1967, at the ...
(1967), but won Super Bowls IV (1970) and LIV (2020).
Kansas City's offense ranked first in the NFL in yards (6,653) and sixth in points scored (473). Quarterback Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). The son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes, he initially played c ...
made the Pro Bowl for the third consecutive season, throwing for 4,740 yards (second in the league) and 38 touchdowns, with only six interceptions, while also finishing the season as Kansas City's second leading rusher with a career high 308 yards and two scores. His main target was Pro Bowl tight end Travis Kelce
Travis Michael Kelce (; born October 5, 1989) is an American football tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Chiefs in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft and later won Super Bowl LIV ...
, who caught 105 passes for 1,416 yards and 11 touchdowns, making him the NFL's second leading receiver and setting a new league record for receiving yards by a tight end. Pro Bowl receiver Tyreek Hill Tyreek or Tyreke is a given name. Notable people with the name include:
*Tyreek Burwell (born 1992), American football player
*Tyreek Duren (born 1991), American basketball player
*Tyreke Evans (born 1989), American basketball player
* Tyreek Hill ...
had 87 receptions for 1,276 yards and 15 touchdowns, while also rushing for 132 yards and two touchdowns. Mahomes also had receivers Demarcus Robinson (45 receptions for 466 yards), Mecole Hardman (41 reception for 561 yards and 360 return yards on special teams), and Sammy Watkins (37 receptions for 421 yards). The team's leading rusher from 2019, Damien Williams, opted out of the 2020 season due to COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
concerns and because his mother had recently been diagnosed with Stage IV cancer. In his place, rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire
Clyde Edwards-Helaire ( ; born April 11, 1999) is an American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU and was drafted by the Chiefs in the first round of the 2020 ...
stepped up to fill the void, rushing for 808 yards and four touchdowns, while also catching 36 passes for 297 yards and another touchdown alongside Le'Veon Bell
Le'Veon Andrew Bell Sr. ( ; born February 18, 1992) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He played college football at Michigan State and was drafted 48th overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the 20 ...
who had 254 yards and two touchdowns after being released from the New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...
earlier that season. Tackle Eric Fisher led the Chiefs offensive line, making his second Pro Bowl selection. However, he was forced to miss the Super Bowl after suffering a torn achilles tendon in the AFC championship game. Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, a starting guard for the 2019 season, was first NFL player to announce he would not play the season because of COVID-19, instead working as an orderly
In healthcare, an orderly (also known as a ward assistant, nurse assistant or healthcare assistant) is a hospital attendant whose job consists of assisting medical and nursing staff with various nursing and medical interventions. The highest ro ...
at a Montreal long-term care facility during the pandemic. On special teams, kicker Harrison Butker
Harrison Butker (born July 14, 1995), nicknamed Butt Kicker (a play on words on his last name and position), is an American football kicker for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia ...
made 25-of-27 field goals, including all four of his attempts from over 50 yards.
The Chiefs defense was ranked 16th in the league in yards allowed (5,733). The Chiefs defensive line was led by Pro Bowl selections Chris Jones (7 sacks and two forced fumbles) and Frank Clark (six sacks). Linebacker Anthony Hitchens
Anthony Hitchens (born June 10, 1992) is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Iowa.
Early life
Hitch ...
ranked second on the team with 78 tackles. Kansas City's secondary was led by Pro Bowl strong safety Tyrann Mathieu
Tyrann Devine Mathieu (; born May 13, 1992) is an American football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU. In college he developed a reputation for causing turnovers, setting ...
(68 tackles, six interceptions, and one fumble recovery) and free safety Daniel Sorensen
Daniel Sorensen (born March 5, 1990) is an American football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at BYU.
Professional career
Kansas City Chiefs 2014
On May 11, 2014, the Kansas ...
(91 tackles, three interceptions, and two forced fumbles).
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished the 2020 season with an record under second-year head coach Bruce Arians
Bruce Charles Arians (born October 3, 1952) is an American football executive and former coach in the National Football League (NFL). Since 2022, he has been a senior football consultant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Arians was previously the he ...
. Prior to this, the team had not won a playoff game since Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
and had not made the playoffs since 2007–08. The team also recorded only three winning seasons since 2008 and had gone 7–9 the previous year.
During the 2020 off-season, the Buccaneers chose not to re-sign quarterback Jameis Winston
Jameis Lanaed Winston ( ; born January 6, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida State, where he became the youngest player to win the He ...
, whom they selected first overall in 2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
. To replace Winston, they made arguably the biggest off-season acquisition by signing 20-year veteran Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...
, one of the NFL's most decorated players. The signing marked the first time that Brady would play for a team other than the New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
, where he was considered the offensive engine of the franchise's dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
. Tight end Rob Gronkowski
Robert James Gronkowski (born May 14, 1989) is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played h ...
, Brady's teammate in New England and considered one of the greatest in his position, was lured out of retirement and acquired through a trade with the Patriots. Further off-season acquisitions included running back Leonard Fournette
Leonard Joseph Fournette III (born January 18, 1995) is an American football running back for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the LSU Tigers, and was drafted by the Jacksonville Ja ...
, running back LeSean McCoy
LeSean Kamel McCoy (born July 12, 1988), nicknamed "Shady", is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Pittsburgh and was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the ...
, and placekicker Ryan Succop
Ryan Barrow Succop ( "suck-up"; born September 19, 1986) is an American football placekicker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). Succop played college football at South Carolina and was the 2009 Mr. Irrelevant by ...
. In the 2020 NFL Draft
The 2020 NFL Draft was the 85th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2020 NFL season. The first round was held on April 23, followed by the second and third rounds on April 24. The d ...
, Tampa Bay bolstered their offensive line by selecting tackle Tristan Wirfs
Tristan Wirfs (born January 24, 1999) is an American football offensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Iowa.
High school career
Wirfs played high school football at Moun ...
13th overall. After Week 6, they signed accomplished, but controversial wide receiver Antonio Brown
Antonio Tavaris Brown Sr. (born July 10, 1988), nicknamed "AB", is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent, and an American rapper. Raised in Liberty City, Miami, Brown attended Miami Norland High School. He played college ...
, who had been out of the league for over a year.
Tampa Bay's offense was ranked seventh in league yards (6,145) and third in points scored (492). The 43-year old Brady threw for 4,633 yards and 40 touchdowns, 12 interceptions and rushed for three touchdowns. His main targets were Mike Evans who caught 70 passes for 1,001 yards and 13 touchdowns, Chris Godwin
Rod Christopher Godwin Jr. (born February 27, 1996) is an American football wide receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Penn State and was drafted by the Buccaneers in the th ...
who caught 65 passes for 840 yards and seven touchdowns, and Rob Gronkowski who caught 45 passes for 623 yards and seven touchdowns. Brady also had other receivers to go to with Scotty Miller
Scott Thomas Miller (born July 31, 1997) is an American football wide receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Bowling Green and was drafted by the Buccaneers in the sixth round ...
(33 passes, 501 yards and three touchdowns), Antonio Brown (44 catches, 483 yards and four touchdowns), and Cameron Brate
Cameron Brate (born July 3, 1991) is an American football tight end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Harvard.
Early life
Brate grew up in Naperville, Illinois and attended Naper ...
(28 catches, 282 yards and two touchdowns). Ronald Jones was the team's leading rusher with 978 yards and seven touchdowns, while also catching 28 passes for 165 yards and another touchdown. Leonard Fournette also added 367 rushing yards and six touchdowns, while also hauling in 36 passes. Kicker Ryan Succop ranked sixth in the NFL with 136 points, making 28-of-31 field goal attempts.
Tampa Bay's defense was ranked sixth in the league in yardage allowed (5,234). The defensive line was anchored by defensive ends Ndamukong Suh
Ndamukong Ngwa Suh ( , born January 6, 1987) is an American football defensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Nebraska, where he earned All-American honors, and was d ...
(six sacks) and William Gholston
William Gholston (born July 31, 1991) is an American football defensive end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State, and was drafted by the Buccaneers in the fourth round o ...
(20 QB hits and eight tackles for loss). The line was also aided by edge rushing outside linebackers Jason Pierre-Paul
Jason Andrew Pierre-Paul (born January 1, 1989) is an American football outside linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at South Florida and was drafted by the New York Giants in ...
, the team's lone Pro Bowl selection (9 sacks, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries), and Shaquil Barrett (eight sacks and two force fumbles). The team also had linebackers Devin White
Devin Marcel White (born February 17, 1998) is an American football linebacker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU, and was drafted by the Buccaneers fifth overall in the 2019 N ...
(140 tackles and nine sacks) and Lavonte David
Lavonte Lamar David (born January 23, 1990) is an American football linebacker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Nebraska, and was drafted by the Buccaneers in ...
(117 tackles and three forced fumbles). Cornerback Carlton Davis
Carlton Davis III (born December 31, 1996) is an American football cornerback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Auburn and was drafted by the Buccaneers in the second round of the ...
led the team with four interceptions, while rookie safety Antoine Winfield Jr. added 94 tackles, one interception, and three sacks.[
]
Playoffs
The Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The tea ...
won the AFC West
The American Football Conference – Western Division or AFC West is one of the four divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The division comprises the Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Las ...
division title for a fifth consecutive year and the top seed in the AFC playoffs with a league-best 14–2 record. After clinching a first-round bye, the Chiefs defeated the Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
22–17 in the Divisional round to send them to their third straight AFC Championship Game. They then won 38–24 over the Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...
for their second straight Lamar Hunt Trophy. However, the victories proved costly. In the divisional round, quarterback Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). The son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes, he initially played c ...
suffered a turf toe
A metatarsophalangeal joint sprain is an injury to the connective tissue between the foot and a toe (at a metatarsophalangeal joint, one of the joints in the ball of the foot). When the big toe is involved, it is known as "turf toe".
Causes
Turf ...
injury before being removed in the third quarter due to a concussion
A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, ...
. The former continued to afflict Mahomes entering the Super Bowl, with him required to undergo toe surgery after the game. Additionally, left tackle Eric Fisher departed the conference championship with a torn Achilles, forcing him to miss the Super Bowl. The loss of Fisher compounded Kansas City's offensive line troubles, as right tackle Mitchell Schwartz
Mitchell Bryan Schwartz (born June 8, 1989) is a former American football offensive tackle who played nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL). Schwartz was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the second round (37th overall) of the 20 ...
had been lost earlier in the season with a back injury.
Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
finished as the fifth seed and second place in the NFC South
The National Football Conference – Southern Division or NFC South is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It was created prior to the 2002 NFL season, when ...
with an 11–5 record. They were the first team under quarterback Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...
to reach the playoffs as a wild card. In the Wild Card Round, the Buccaneers defeated the Washington Football Team
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) E ...
31–23, to advance to the divisional round against the Saints, who had swept them in the regular season. Tampa Bay then defeated New Orleans 30–20 to advance to the NFC Championship Game. The Buccaneers then upset the top-seeded Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...
in the NFC Championship Game 31–26 advancing to the Super Bowl. Tampa Bay became the fifth team to win three away games en route to the Super Bowl. They also became the first team to make the Super Bowl as a Wild Card team since the 2010 Green Bay Packers. Tampa Bay became the first team to play and win a Super Bowl in its home stadium, and only the third to play in their home metro area (alongside the 1979–80 Los Angeles Rams and 1984–85 San Francisco 49ers).
Pre-game notes
The Buccaneers were the designated home team for Super Bowl LV, as the home team alternates between the two conferences annually. The fact that the Buccaneers were designated as the "home" team in their home stadium was a coincidence. As the designated home team, the Buccaneers elected to wear their white jerseys with pewter pants. The Chiefs wore their red jerseys with white pants.
Even though the game was played in the Buccaneers' home stadium, the league treated this as a neutral site game. The Buccaneers were only allowed to fire the cannons from the stadium's signature pirate ship for player introductions and after the end of the game, but not during every scoring play and when the offense enters the red zone as they usually would. In addition, the stadium decor including the replica pirate ship sails were accordingly changed from Buccaneers' logos to those promoting the Super Bowl.
Gambling establishments had the Chiefs as three-point favorites and projected 57 points scored.
The Chiefs and Buccaneers played each other during the regular season. The Chiefs won the Week 12 game in Tampa, 27–24. This marked the 14th time the Super Bowl featured a rematch of a regular season game and the first time this has happened since Super Bowl XLVI in 2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
.
This was the first time that both Super Bowl starting quarterbacks – Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). The son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes, he initially played c ...
and Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...
– have won the AP NFL MVP
The Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player Award is presented annually by the Associated Press (AP) to a player in the National Football League (NFL) deemed to have been the " most valuable" in that year's regular season. While there have b ...
and Super Bowl MVP awards; as Brady is Mahomes' senior by 18 years, some billed the matchup as comparable to Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...
versus LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest pl ...
.
Since the Buccaneers reached the Super Bowl, Tampa was nicknamed "Champa Bay", as all three of the area's major professional sports teams had made their league's championship round during the past five months; A few months prior, the Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play th ...
had won the 2020 Stanley Cup Finals, while the Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...
had advanced to but lost the 2020 World Series.
Super Bowl LV set the record for the oldest combined age between both coaches.
Chiefs linebackers coach Britt Reid
The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell (director), James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in ...
, the son of head coach Andy Reid, was involved in a car accident on February 4, 2021. Two young children were injured in the crash. The younger Reid admitted to consuming two to three alcoholic drinks and being on Adderall
Adderall and Mydayis are trade names for a combination drug called mixed amphetamine salts containing four salts of amphetamine. The mixture is composed of equal parts racemic amphetamine and dextroamphetamine, which produces a (3:1) ratio bet ...
, a prescription medication, while driving. He did not coach in the game.
Media coverage
United States
Super Bowl LV was televised by CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
. Although NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
was to air this game under the current rotation, they traded the game to CBS in exchange for Super Bowl LVI, which falls during the 2022 Winter Olympics
The 2022 Winter Olympics (2022年冬季奥林匹克运动会), officially called the XXIV Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Beijing 2022 (2022), was an international winter multi-sport event held from 4 to 20 February 2022 in Beij ...
and is the first to be scheduled during an ongoing Olympic Games (this also upholds a gentleman's agreement
A gentlemen's agreement, or gentleman's agreement, is an informal and legally non-binding agreement between two or more parties. It is typically oral, but it may be written or simply understood as part of an unspoken agreement by convention or th ...
between the NFL's broadcasters not to counterprogram the Super Bowl, as NBC also holds the U.S. broadcast rights to the Olympics). CBS, to an extent, also benefited from holding rights to the Super Bowl in the same year that it held the rights to the NCAA Final Four, which is cycled with WarnerMedia
Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States.
It was originally established in 1972 by ...
Entertainment channels on a two-year cycle with TBS, as well as the AFC Championship Game in primetime, which contractually alternates between afternoon and primetime on a two-year cycle with the NFC Championship Game on Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
. CBS also simulcast the game on CBS All Access
Paramount+ is an American subscription video on-demand service owned by Paramount Global. The service's content is drawn primarily from the libraries of CBS Media Ventures (including CBS Studios), Paramount Media Networks (formerly Viacom Media ...
, CBSSports.com, and the CBS Sports mobile app.
CBS used 120 cameras in total, including ten 4K cameras, two 8K cameras, a crane camera, a Trolley Cam running parallel with the field, and two Sony Venice cameras that were used to produce cinematic and "3D-like" scenes reminiscent of video games. Production was decentralized due to COVID-19 protocols, with some production duties being conducted remotely from the CBS Broadcast Center
The CBS Broadcast Center is a television and radio production facility located in New York City. It is CBS's main East Coast production hub, similar to CBS Studio Center in Los Angeles as the West Coast hub. The Broadcast Center is one of t ...
in New York City and at individual employees' homes. CBS officially introduced a rebranding of the CBS Sports
CBS Sports is the sports division of the American television network CBS. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on W 52nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on W 5 ...
division during Super Bowl LV, as part of a larger brand unification process between the CBS network's main divisions.
Building upon its involvement in a youth-oriented broadcast of one of the Wild Card games, Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
contributed family-oriented social media content, including "Nick-ified" highlight videos with similar augmented reality effects to the aforementioned Wild Card broadcast. These "slime-lights" were also featured during a highlights package on CBS at halftime. Nickelodeon also aired a half-hour preview special for the game, and an NFL-themed edition of '' Unfiltered'' aired as a segment during CBS's pre-game show ''The Super Bowl Today''.
ESPN Deportes
ESPN Deportes (, ''ESPN Sports'') is an American multinational Spanish-language pay television sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hearst Communications (whi ...
aired a Spanish-language broadcast. Unlike the two other networks in the Super Bowl rotation, CBS does not have a Spanish-language sports or general entertainment network; it has sold the Spanish-language rights to ESPN Deportes for each of its Super Bowl broadcasts since Super Bowl 50
Super Bowl 50 was an American football game to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2015 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) cha ...
.
The game was also available with exclusive camera angles through the NFL mobile app and Yahoo! Sports
Yahoo! Sports is a sports news website launched by Yahoo! on December 8, 1997. It receives a majority of its information from STATS, Inc. It employs numerous writers, and has team pages for teams in almost every North American major sport. Bef ...
mobile app. Viewers with an iPhone 12 who were in the stadium could see seven exclusive angles, and viewers at home could see five.
Lead-out programs
On December 3, 2020, CBS announced that its lead-out program would be the series premiere of '' The Equalizer''. After late local programs, CBS also aired a special Sunday-night episode of ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Spartina Productions and CBS Studios, it is the second it ...
''.
Ratings
Around 91.6 million viewers watched Super Bowl LV on linear television
Broadcast programming is the practice of organizing or ordering (scheduling) of broadcast media shows, typically radio and television, in a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly or season-long schedule.
Modern broadcasters use broadcast automation ...
, an 8% decline over Super Bowl LIV and the least-watched game since 2006. CBS reported a total of 96.4 million viewers when combined with viewership of the Spanish-language broadcast and digital platforms, a 5% year-over-year decline overall. CBS reported an average of 5.7 million streaming viewers per-minute, a 69% increase year-over-year that made it the most-streamed Super Bowl to-date.
Advertising
The estimated cost of a 30-second commercial
Commercial may refer to:
* a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television)
** Radio advertisement
** Television advertisement
* (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...
at Super Bowl LV remained steady with 2020, with CBS reportedly charging around $5.5 million. The economic impact of COVID-19 prompted some brands to skip the game, including Avocados from Mexico, Budweiser
Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, part of AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States.
''Budweiser'' may also refer to an unrela ...
(who donated the airtime it purchased to the Ad Council
The Advertising Council, commonly known as the Ad Council, is an American nonprofit organization that produces, distributes, and promotes public service announcements on behalf of various sponsors, including nonprofit organizations, non-governme ...
for public service announcement
A public service announcement (PSA) is a message in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge to raise public awareness and change behavior. In the UK, they are generally called a public information film (PIF); in Hong Kong, ...
s regarding COVID-19 vaccination
A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID19).
Prior to the COVID19 pandemic, an est ...
; Budweiser parent company Anheuser-Busch
Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC is an American brewing company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Since 2008, it has been wholly owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (AB InBev), now the world's largest brewing company, which owns multiple glo ...
would still air ads for Bud Light and Michelob Ultra during the game, as well as its first-ever corporate spot, directed by filmmaker David Fincher
David Andrew Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American film director. His films, mostly psychological thrillers and biographical dramas, have received 40 nominations at the Academy Awards, including three for him as Best Director. Fin ...
. The company's total purchase remained in line with that of Super Bowl LIV), Coca-Cola, Hyundai, and Pepsi (focusing more on its halftime show sponsorship). As of January 25, CBS had not yet sold out its advertising inventory.
Companies such as DraftKings
DraftKings is an American daily fantasy sports contest and sports betting company. The company allows users to enter daily and weekly fantasy sports–related contests and win money based on individual player performances in five major American ...
, Fiverr, Logitech
Logitech International S.A. ( ; often shortened to Logi) is a Swiss multinational manufacturer of computer peripherals and software, with headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, and Newark, California. The company has offices throughout Europe, ...
, and Vroom made their Super Bowl debut as advertisers. Robinhood, which had recently gained mainstream media attention due to the GameStop short squeeze
In January 2021, a short squeeze of the stock of the American video game retailer GameStop () and other securities took place, causing major financial consequences for certain hedge funds and large losses for short sellers. Approximately 140 ...
, aired its first Super Bowl commercial at the game. Reddit
Reddit (; stylized in all lowercase as reddit) is an American social news aggregation, content rating, and discussion website. Registered users (commonly referred to as "Redditors") submit content to the site such as links, text posts, images ...
ran a five-second ad in nine of the top ten media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...
s, saying that was all it could afford.
Amazon Studios
Amazon Studios is an American television and film producer and distributor that is a subsidiary of Amazon. It specializes in developing television series and distributing and producing films. It was started in late 2010. Content is distributed th ...
and Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
aired commercials for upcoming films during the game, including '' Coming 2 America'' and '' Old''. Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
aired commercials for its upcoming films and Disney+
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment
Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...
series. CBS promoted the upcoming relaunch of its subscription streaming service CBS All Access as Paramount+.
International
In Canada, CTV and TSN televised this game in English and RDS in French. As with the 2020 edition, CTV invoked simultaneous substitution
Simultaneous substitution (also known as simsubbing or signal substitution) is a practice mandated by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) requiring broadcast distribution undertakings (BDUs) in Canada to dist ...
over U.S. network signals (including ads) distributed in Canada, as a CRTC
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; french: Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes, links=) is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasti ...
ban on such substitutions during the Super Bowl had been overturned by a December 2019 Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; french: Cour suprême du Canada, CSC) is the Supreme court, highest court in the Court system of Canada, judicial system of Canada. It comprises List of Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada, nine justices, wh ...
decision.
In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the game was televised on the free-to-air channel BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...
and paid-subscription channel Sky One
Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non-terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...
(as well as its sister channels Sky Sports
Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...
Main Event and NFL). It was carried on radio via BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that broadcasts mainly news, sport, discussion, interviews and phone-ins. It is the principal BBC radio station covering sport in the United Kingdom, broadcast ...
. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, free-to-air channel ProSieben
ProSieben (, ''sieben'' is German for "seven"; often stylized as Pro7) is a German free-to-air television network owned by ProSiebenSat.1 Media.
It was launched on 1 January 1989. It is Germany's second-largest privately owned television company ...
broadcast the event through its ''ran'' format; 2.2 million Germans watched the game, which encouraged the NFL to further consider adding Germany to the International Series in the future. In Belgium and Portugal the game was televised by paid-subscription channel Eleven Sports
Eleven Sports is a multinational sports and entertainment media group. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, it is owned by Andrea Radrizzani's sports and media investment platform Aser Ventures.
Eleven Sports' business model initially centred a ...
. In Poland the game was broadcast on the free-to-air channel TVP Sport
TVP Sport is a Polish sport channel owned by TVP launched on 18 November 2006. The channel is available on Canal+, Cyfrowy Polsat, as well as over cable providers.
Broadcast
SD broadcasting via satellite (''Eutelsat Hot Bird'') stopped on 6 A ...
, marking the first time an NFL game was available on a Polish open channel.
Subscription streaming platform DAZN
DAZN ( "da zone") is a global sports entertainment platform. Different to traditional linear and satellite broadcasting, DAZN is an over-the-top (OTT) streaming service meaning that it is delivered directly to viewers via the internet.
The ...
also streamed the Super Bowl in several countries including Canada, Germany, and Japan.
Entertainment
Pre-game ceremonies
A special pre-game concert for the invited health care workers attending the game—the ''TikTok
TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes.
TikTok is an international version ...
Tailgate''—was held in the afternoon prior to Super Bowl LV, and was headlined by Miley Cyrus
Miley Ray Cyrus ( ; born Destiny Hope Cyrus on November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her distinctive raspy voice, her music spans across varied styles and genres, including pop, country, rock, hip hop ...
, with guest appearances by Joan Jett
Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...
and Billy Idol
William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is a British-American singer, songwriter, and musician. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer o ...
. Portions were aired during CBS's pre-game show, while the full concert was streamed on the TikTok app. While performing her song "Wrecking Ball
A wrecking ball is a heavy steel ball, usually hung from a crane, that is used for demolishing large buildings. It was most commonly in use during the 1950s and 1960s. Several wrecking companies claim to have invented the wrecking ball. An e ...
", Cyrus broke down and said that it "never gets easier".
A pre-game segment addressing racial unrest in the United States and the NFL's ''Inspire Change'' campaign featured a pre-recorded performance of "Lift Every Voice and Sing
"Lift Every Voice and Sing" is a hymn with lyrics by James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938) and set to music by his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson (1873–1954). Written from the context of African Americans in the late 19th century, the hymn is a pray ...
" by Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...
from the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Conceived as a hallmark of civic pride, the Coliseum was commissioned in 1921 as a mem ...
. National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman
Amanda S. C. Gorman (born March 7, 1998) is an American poet and Civil rights activist, activist. Her work focuses on issues of oppression, feminism, Race and ethnicity in the United States, race, and Social exclusion, marginalization, as well a ...
recited an original poem recognizing the game's three honorary captains participating in the coin toss ceremony: Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
teacher Trimaine Davis, Tampa
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...
nurse Suzie Dorner and Marine veteran James Martin.
R&B singer H.E.R.
Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson (born June 27, 1997), known professionally as H.E.R. (pronounced "her", an acronym for "Having Everything Revealed"), is an American singer, songwriter, musician and actress.
She has received several awards includin ...
performed "America the Beautiful
"America the Beautiful" is a patriotic American song. Its lyrics were written by Katharine Lee Bates and its music was composed by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward at Grace Episcopal Church in Newark, New Jersey. The two neve ...
", and country music singer Eric Church
Kenneth Eric Church (born May 3, 1977) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released nine studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's '' Sinners Like Me'', produced three singles on the ''Billboar ...
and R&B singer Jazmine Sullivan
Jazmine Marie Sullivan (born April 9, 1987) is an American R&B and soul singer. Born and raised in Philadelphia, her debut album, ''Fearless'' was released in 2008. The record topped ''Billboards Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and was certifie ...
performed "The Star-Spangled Banner
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written on September 14, 1814, by 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the b ...
". This was the second time that the national anthem was sung as a duet in a Super Bowl, the first time being in 2006
File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
. At the end of the national anthem, a flyover was performed by the United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
consisting of their three strategic bomber
A strategic bomber is a medium- to long-range penetration bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of air-to-ground weaponry onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating the enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike tactical bombers, ...
s currently in active service: The B-1 Lancer
The Rockwell B-1 Lancer is a supersonic variable-sweep wing, heavy bomber used by the United States Air Force. It is commonly called the "Bone" (from "B-One"). It is one of three strategic bombers serving in the U.S. Air Force fleet along with ...
, the B-2 Spirit
The Northrop (later Northrop Grumman) B-2 Spirit, also known as the Stealth Bomber, is an American heavy strategic bomber, featuring low-observable stealth technology designed to penetrate dense anti-aircraft defenses. A subsonic flying ...
, and the B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
.
Halftime show
The halftime show was headlined by the Weeknd
Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, Romance (love), ...
. Dave Meyers was the show's executive producer, while Roc Nation
Roc Nation is an entertainment agency founded by Jay-Z in 2008. The company is headquartered in Manhattan and has additional offices in Los Angeles and London. Roc Nation comprises a comprehensive talent agency, sports agency, record label, mana ...
produced and creatively directed. Additionally, Hamish Hamilton directed the performance. The show featured a number of his hit songs, including "Can't Feel My Face
"Can't Feel My Face" is a song performed by Canadian singer the Weeknd from his second studio album ''Beauty Behind the Madness'' (2015). The song was released on June 8, 2015, as the third single from the album. It was written by Max Martin, Pet ...
", "Earned It
"Earned It", alternatively titled "Earned It (Fifty Shades of Grey)", is a song by Canadian singer the Weeknd. The song was released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the 2015 film ''Fifty Shades of Grey'' and was included on the Weeknd' ...
", and "Blinding Lights
"Blinding Lights" is a song by Canadian singer the Weeknd. It was released on November 29, 2019, through XO and Republic Records, as the second single from his fourth studio album, '' After Hours'' (2020). The song was written and produced by ...
", among others.
It was reported that he had spent US$
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
7 million of his own money on the show, which featured men dressed in all black with red jackets and bandages on their face as backup dancers. The halftime show garnered mixed reviews from critics, noting that while the logistical side of the performance was impressive, the lack of guest performers and the poor audio mixing were heavy drawbacks to the occasion.
Game summary
First half
Kansas City won the coin toss and deferred possession to the second half. The opening kickoff from Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker
Harrison Butker (born July 14, 1995), nicknamed Butt Kicker (a play on words on his last name and position), is an American football kicker for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia ...
was returned to the Tampa Bay 24-yard line. The Buccaneers' opening drive stalled to a three-and-out
A down is a period in which a play transpires in gridiron football. The down is a distinguishing characteristic of the game compared to other codes of football, but is synonymous with a "tackle" in rugby league. The team in possession of the ...
, and the resulting Bradley Pinion punt was downed at the Kansas City 33-yard line. The Chiefs' first drive ended similarly, with the offense able to gain only one first down and Tommy Townsend
Thomas Townsend (born November 12, 1996) is an American football punter for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He went to high school at William R. Boone High School in Orlando, Florida. He played his freshman year of ...
's punt resulting in a touchback
In American football, a touchback is a ruling which is made and signaled by an official when the ball becomes dead on or behind a team's own goal line (i.e., in their end zone) and the opposing team gave the ball the momentum, or impetus, to trav ...
. Tampa Bay's second drive started with a promising 13-yard rush by Ronald Jones II, but stalled from there and resulted in another punt by Pinion, this one downed at the Chiefs' 38-yard line. Kansas City's ensuing drive took them 31 yards in eight plays, culminating in the first points of the game: a 49-yard field goal
A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...
by Butker. On the next drive, Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette
Leonard Joseph Fournette III (born January 18, 1995) is an American football running back for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the LSU Tigers, and was drafted by the Jacksonville Ja ...
rushed four times for 26 yards on an eight-play, 70-yard drive that ended on Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...
's eight-yard touchdown pass to Rob Gronkowski
Robert James Gronkowski (born May 14, 1989) is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played h ...
, giving Tampa Bay a four-point lead. This was the 13th postseason touchdown pass from Brady to Gronkowski, setting a new record, which they had previously shared with Joe Montana
Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", ...
and Jerry Rice
Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. Known primarily as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, winning three championsh ...
. It was also the first time in Brady's 10 Super Bowls that he threw a touchdown pass in the first quarter. The Chiefs' next drive, which started on their own 37-yard line, ended in a three-and-out, and the Buccaneers took over on their own 30-yard line following the punt.
On their first drive of the second quarter, Brady's 31-yard completion to Mike Evans gave Tampa Bay a first and goal at the Chiefs six-yard line. However the Bucs were only able to reach the Chiefs' one-yard line with their next three plays, and Ronald Jones II was stopped short of the goal line on a fourth down rushing attempt (a ruling that was challenged by Tampa Bay and upheld), giving the ball over on downs to Kansas City. The Chiefs were unable to capitalize off of the stop. The Chiefs' Tommy Townsend punted deep into Tampa Bay territory, but Kansas City was flagged for a holding call and had to punt again. Townsend's follow-up punt went out-of-bounds at the Chiefs' 38-yard line, for a net of only 29 yards. On the next drive, Brady threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Gronkowski, increasing the Buccaneers' lead to 14–3. The Buccaneers' drive was aided by two significant penalties – first, an interception by the Chiefs' Tyrann Mathieu
Tyrann Devine Mathieu (; born May 13, 1992) is an American football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU. In college he developed a reputation for causing turnovers, setting ...
was negated by defensive holding call. Later, after Kansas City stopped the Buccaneers on third down, the Chiefs' Mecole Hardman was called for offsides during the ensuing field goal attempt, giving the Buccaneers a first down as a result of the five-yard penalty. Kansas City responded by moving the ball 61 yards in 10 plays, with Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). The son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes, he initially played c ...
completing three passes to Travis Kelce
Travis Michael Kelce (; born October 5, 1989) is an American football tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Chiefs in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft and later won Super Bowl LIV ...
for 36 yards and rushing for 11. Butker finished the possession with another field goal, this from 34 yards, making the score 14–6. Tampa Bay's final first half drive began on their own 29-yard line with just over a minute on the clock, and increased their lead to 21–6 with a five-play, 71-yard drive, the longest a 15-yard catch by Fournette. Brady finished it with a one-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Brown
Antonio Tavaris Brown Sr. (born July 10, 1988), nicknamed "AB", is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent, and an American rapper. Raised in Liberty City, Miami, Brown attended Miami Norland High School. He played college ...
with six seconds to play. Again, Tampa Bay was aided by penalties – in particular a 34-yard pass interference call against Bashaud Breeland
Bashaud Breeland (born January 30, 1992) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at Clemson, and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He also played for th ...
who was covering Evans, and an eight-yard pass interference call against Mathieu in the end zone. All told, in the first half the Chiefs were penalized eight times for 95 yards – the most penalties called on any team in one half in any game of the 2020–21 NFL season, while the Buccaneers were flagged for one five-yard penalty. At halftime
In several team sports, matches are played in two halves. Half-time (also written halftime or half time) is the name given to the interval between the two halves of the match. Typically, after half-time, teams swap ends of the field of play in ...
, the Buccaneers led the Chiefs 21–6.
Second half
The second half began with a kickoff by Pinion, which was returned to the Chiefs' own 19-yard line. On the next play, Clyde Edwards-Helaire
Clyde Edwards-Helaire ( ; born April 11, 1999) is an American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU and was drafted by the Chiefs in the first round of the 2020 ...
rushed for a 26-yard gain. Edwards-Helaire also had a 10-yard run on the drive, which went for 47 yards in seven plays and concluded with a 52-yard field goal, Butker's third of the game, making the score 21–9. Tampa Bay stormed right back with a six-play, 74-yard drive, featuring a 25-yard completion from Brady to Gronkowski. On the next play, Fournette's 27-yard touchdown burst increased the Bucs lead to 28–9. Following a touchback, Kansas City began their drive on their own 25-yard line, but an interception by Antoine Winfield Jr. at the Chiefs' 45-yard line gave Tampa Bay the ball back. Despite the fact that the Buccaneers were only able to gain eleven yards on their next eight plays, they were able to capitalize on the turnover, as Succop ended the drive with a 52-yard field goal, increasing their lead to 31–9. On the next drive, Tampa Bay forced a turnover on downs at their own 11-yard line with 13:43 left in the game, stuffing a running play for a one-yard gain and then forcing Mahomes to throw three straight incompletions.
The Chiefs defense forced Tampa Bay to punt for just the third time, allowing their offense to take the ball at their own eight-yard line. They got the ball across midfield, but turned the ball over to Tampa Bay on downs at the Bucs' 27-yard line. The Buccaneers then went three-and-out, and punted the ball to the Kansas City 42-yard line. Kansas City drove the ball to the Buccaneers 10-yard line, but Mahomes threw an interception to Devin White
Devin Marcel White (born February 17, 1998) is an American football linebacker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU, and was drafted by the Buccaneers fifth overall in the 2019 N ...
with 1:33 left in the game, which was downed in the end zone for a touchback. Brady then kneeled the ball three times for Tampa Bay, running out the clock, ending the game at 31–9. Brady, who completed 21 of 29 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns, won the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award
The Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award, or Super Bowl MVP, is presented annually to the most valuable player of the Super Bowl, the National Football League's (NFL) championship game. The winner is chosen by a panel of 16 football writers ...
for a record fifth time in his career, extending his previous record of four.
Fournette was the game's leading rusher with 16 carries for 89 yards and a touchdown, while also catching four passes for 46 yards. Gronkowski, who caught only two passes in Tampa Bay's previous three postseason games, was the team's leading receiver with six receptions for 67 yards and two touchdowns. White had eight solo tackles (two for a loss), four assisted tackles, and an interception. Mahomes finished the day 26-of-49 for 270 yards and two interceptions, while also rushing for 33 yards. Kelce caught 10 passes for 133 yards, setting a new Super Bowl record for receiving yards by a tight end. Out of 110 Super Bowl teams, Kansas City became just the third to finish the game without scoring a touchdown, joining the Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
in Super Bowl VI
Super Bowl VI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Miami Dolphins to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the ...
and the Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
in Super Bowl LIII
Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Confe ...
. Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians
Bruce Charles Arians (born October 3, 1952) is an American football executive and former coach in the National Football League (NFL). Since 2022, he has been a senior football consultant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Arians was previously the he ...
became the oldest coach to win a Super Bowl, at 68 years and 127 days, while the team became the first to score at least 30 points in four games during the same postseason.
Box score
Final statistics
Statistical comparison
Individual statistics
Completions/attempts
Carries
Long gain
Receptions
Times targeted
Starting lineups
Both teams used a single set back formation as their base offense, with three wide receivers, one tight end
The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...
and one running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...
. On defense, both teams used a variation of the nickel defense
American football, a nickel defense (also known as a 4–2–5 or 3–3–5) is any defensive alignment that uses five defensive backs, of whom the fifth is known as a nickelback. The original and most common form of the nickel defense features ...
, as their base defense, with five defensive backs. Kansas City used a 4–2–5 variation with four down linemen and two linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...
s, while Tampa Bay used a 2–4–5 with two down linemen and four linebackers. Kansas City's normal starter at left tackle
Tackle is a playing position in gridiron football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and defense. In the modern system of specialized units, o ...
, Pro Bowl
The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players.
The format has changed thro ...
selection Eric Fisher, was out with an achilles tendon
The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus (h ...
injury he suffered in the AFC Championship Game. With his injury and others along the offensive line, the Chiefs were starting their fourth option on the depth chart at left tackle, third option at right guard, and third option at right tackle.
Officials
Super Bowl LV featured seven officials
An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority, (either their own or that of their s ...
. Sarah Thomas was the first woman to officiate a Super Bowl and any championship event in the major North American professional sports leagues. This was the first Super Bowl to have an alternate official for every position on the field since Super Bowl I
The first AFL–NFL World Championship Game (known retroactively as Super BowlI and referred to in contemporaneous reports, including the game's radio broadcast, as the Super Bowl) was an American football game played on January 15, 1967, at the ...
. It was also the first time the replay official had a backup. The numbers in parentheses below indicate their uniform numbers.
* Referee: Carl Cheffers
Carl Cheffers (born July 22, 1960) is an American football official in the National Football League (NFL) since the 2000 NFL season, who wears uniform number 51.
Personal life
Cheffers and his wife Nanette have a son and a daughter. Cheffers's ...
(51)
* Umpire: Fred Bryan
Fred Bryan (born 1961) is an official in the National Football League wearing uniform number 11, part of two Super Bowl crews.
Officiating career
Bryan began refereeing in 2009, and is an umpire. He was part of the Alternate Team of Officials ...
(11)
* Down judge: Sarah Thomas (53)
* Line judge: Rusty Baynes (59)
* Field judge: James Coleman (95)
* Side judge: Eugene Hall (103)
* Back judge: Dino Paganelli (105)
* Replay official: Mike Wimmer
* Replay assistant: Sean McKee
* Alternates:
** Referee: Shawn Smith (14)
** Umpire: Ramon George (128)
** Down judge: Jerod Phillips (6)
** Line judge: Mark Steinkerchner (84)
** Field judge: Tom Hill (97)
** Side judge: Jabir Walker (26)
** Back judge: Brad Freeman (88)
** Replay official: Mark Butterworth
See also
*
Notes
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Super Bowl 055
2020 National Football League season
2021 in American football
2021 in American television
2021 in sports in Florida
21st century in Tampa, Florida
American football in Florida
Events in Tampa, Florida
February 2021 sports events in the United States
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports
Kansas City Chiefs postseason
Sports competitions in Tampa, Florida
Super Bowl
Tampa Bay Buccaneers postseason
Tom Brady