For the 11th year in a row, a former Michigan football standout has won a Super Bowl title, as the Philadelphia Eagles trounced the Kansas City Chiefs, 40-22, to capture Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans Sunday evening.
With the win, two former Michigan players earned Super Bowl wins, as veteran edge rusher Branton Graham and rookie offensive lineman Trevor Keegan both took part in the Eagles’ second Super Bowl win.
Most prominent of the two was Graham, who returned from a torn tricep injury that was thought to be season-ending in week 12. Not only did Graham play in the game, totaling 13 snaps in the return from injury, but Graham also served as one of the team’s captains for the game. He recorded one tackle in the game, and was able to bask in the win with his children and family after the game.
Of course, one question Graham will be asked plenty in the coming days is if his postgame celebration will be his last one. Graham had previously said he planned on the 2024 season being his last season, and raised some eyebrows with a resurgent 20 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, 7 quarterback hits and 11 quarterback pressures in the Eagles’ first 11 games. All of those numbers tied with or more than he recorded in 17 games last year.
Then, Graham endured what was thought to be a season-ending injury, and the former All-American at Michigan began to hedge on 2024 being his final season.
Ending his career with a Super Bowl win is the kind of high note most players dream about, so Graham may retire, but there do seem to be mixed emotions. Graham told reporters Sunday that “I’m not there yet” with regards to a decision.
”I’m excited to play this last game,” Graham told reporters in New Orleans ahead of the Super Bowl. “I don’t know what the future holds, but if this is my last game, I’m going to give it everything I have.
“… Let’s get through this one and then we’ll talk about it.”
If Graham retires with the Eagles, he’ll join the Flyers’ Bobby Clarke and the Phillies’ Mike Schmidt as the only Philadelphia athletes to have a career of at least 15 years, and spend it exclusively in Philadelphia. He is also one of just four Eagles players to capture two Super Bowl titles with the franchise, as he was a part of Philadelpha’s 2017 title-winning team.
Speaking of multiple titles, Keegan joined rare air with the Super Bowl win. Keegan joins Charles Woodson, Tom Brady, Jerame Tuman and Brian Griese as the only Michigan players to win both a national title at Michigan and a Super Bowl title as an NFL player. He and Griese are the only ones to pull of the feat in consecutive years.
Keegan did not play Sunday, and only played in one game all season, but the former Michigan captain was a three-year starter for the Wolverines, and will get to enjoy his second championship parade in 13 months.
For the Chiefs, one-time Michigan standout and two-time reigning Super Bowl champion Michael Danna played in 43 snaps, and recorded one tackle in the defeat.
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