Multiple ex-Patriots will take the field when the Chiefs and Eagles square off on Sunday.
The Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles will fight for NFL supremacy on Sunday in Super Bowl LIX. Whereas the Chiefs will try to add to their dynasty by completing the first ever three-peat of the Super Bowl era, the Eagles will hope to get revenge for their loss to Kansas City two years ago.
For fans of the New England Patriots, who have a clear rooting preference in this game, there will be plenty of familiar names — mostly on the Chiefs side. Let’s therefore take a look at the club’s connections to the two Super Bowl teams.
Former Patriots with the Chiefs
TE Anthony Firkser (practice squad): A career journeyman who arrived in Kansas City in November, Firkser had a brief three-month stint in New England during training camp back in 2023. He was released before cutdown day, after catching three passes in preseason.
DT Mike Pennel Jr.: The Patriots signed Pennel to a two-year, $5 million free agency pact in 2019, but he too failed to make it out of training camp. New England opted to keep four defensive tackles — Lawrence Guy, Danny Shelton, Adam Butler, Byron Cowart — over him.
WR JuJu Smith-Schuster: When the Patriots signed Smith-Schuster to a three-year, $25.5 million contract in 2023, the hope was that he would take over Jakobi Meyers’ old role as a chain-mover at the wide receiver position. That plan never materialized: Smith-Schuster was a non-factor in his lone season with the team and ended up catching only 29 passes for 260 yards and a touchdown. He was released in August 2024.
WR Tyquan Thornton (practice squad): The Patriots traded up in the second round of the 2022 draft — with the Chiefs of all teams — to pick Thornton 50th overall. While he showed flashes during his first two seasons, he never managed to emerge past rotational or backup status. His third year marked a swift fall from grace: Thornton started the 2024 campaign as the Patriots’ top outside receiver and was waived just two months later.
LT Joe Thuney: The most decorated active player in the NFL as far as Super Bowl rings are concerned, Thuney will compete for his fifth title in his nine-year career on Sunday. A third-round pick by the Patriots in 2016, he won two championships before joining the Chiefs in 2021. Since then, he has only added to his impressive résumé — one that should help the ultra-reliable and ultra-versatile lineman make the Pro Football Hall of Fame one day.
ED Joshua Uche: Similar to Tyquan Thornton, albeit at a higher overall level, Uche’s time with the Patriots also was one of flashes more than anything. The former second-round pick looked like a future force to be reckoned with during his 11.5-sack campaign in 2022, but failed to reach those highs again. Before getting traded to Kansas City in October, he had only registered five more sacks in his 22 games since that supposed breakout campaign.
In addition to those six players, the Chiefs’ support staff also features a handful of ex-Patriots. The most prominent among them is linebackers coach and run game coordinator Brendan Daly, who won three Super Bowls in New England and three since joining the Chiefs in 2019; a Chiefs victory on Sunday would move him up to second all-time behind only Bill Belichick’s eight rings.
National scout Jonathan Howard also was part of the Patriots’ three most recent championship teams and has since earned two more titles in Kansas City. Finally, Chiefs vice president of sports medicine and performance Rick Burkholder was an intern in New England in 1986.
Former Patriots with the Eagles
QB Ian Book (practice squad): Book’s tenure with the Patriots in 2023 is little more than a footnote. He joined the team’s practice squad in September, when it was shuffling through backup options behind then-starting quarterback Mac Jones, and was let go again five days later.
ED Ochaun Mathis (practice squad): The Patriots signed Mathis to their practice squad last August, after he was released by the Rams. He ended up seeing action in five games, primarily on special teams, but was released again in November after registering a pair of tackles and one forced fumble.