15 Players You Won’t Believe Won A Super Bowl
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
The beauty of a 53-man roster in the NFL is…plenty of championship champagne and Super Bowl ring bling to go around.
Thus, it’s impossible to know or recall every notable player of any given Super Bowl-winning team. With that, let’s dive into 15 players you have no idea own a Super Bowl ring.
Which players have surprisingly won a Super Bowl in their careers?
David Carr
Carr is one of the biggest draft busts in NFL history. But the joke’s on the haters. He has more rings than Jim Kelly, Dan Marino, Philip Rivers, Fran Tarkenton, Matt Ryan, et al.
Carr, of course, was selected first overall by the Houston Texans in 2002. They were awarded the No. 1 pick as an expansion franchise, and Carr was easily the best quarterback prospect in the class.
Of course, it’s not fair to blame Carr for all the failures in Houston. It took this franchise a decade to build a winner. And the poor guy was sacked 249 times in 76 games — including a single-season record 76 in his rookie year.
After the Texans ditched Carr in 2007, he spent the remainder of his career as a journeyman backup QB. He joined the New York Giants in 2011 and backed up Eli Manning, who led Big Blue to another Super Bowl triumph over the mighty New England Patriots.
Carr didn’t take a single snap that year. But holding a clipboard resulted in a nice salary and a Super Bowl 46 ring. Take that, critics!
Tyrod Taylor
Taylor spent the 2015, 2016, and 2017 seasons as the Buffalo Bills’ primary starting quarterback. But most of you know him as a well-traveled backup QB, who played for seven different teams over an 11-year period between 2014 and 2025.
So, for you kids who aren’t super familiar with Tyrod Taylor’s early career, we challenge you to guess when he won a Super Bowl.
Yes, it was with the Baltimore Ravens in 2012. Taylor, then a sophomore, appeared in seven games and attempted 29 passes, primarily in garbage time. He had a front-row seat to Joe Flacco’s epic playoff run in 2012, with the Ravens defeating the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl 47. Franchise GOAT Ray Lewis got to retire as a champion.
Vernon Davis
Davis was one of the great San Francisco 49ers during his 10-year run there. He ranks top-10 on the franchise leaderboard in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns.
For longtime 49ers fans, the two-time Pro Bowl tight end will best be remembered as the guy who made “The Catch III”. You know, when Alex Smith threw him that game-winning touchdown pass in the waning seconds against the New Orleans Saints in the 2011 Divisional Round.
Davis quickly became an afterthought in San Fran, however, as his production declined in 2014 and 2015. Looking to bolster their tight end room, the Denver Broncos acquired him in a trade deadline deal for their Super Bowl 50 run.
Davis hardly made an impact, with only 20 catches for 201 yards and no touchdowns. And he didn’t even have a catch in the postseason.
But…it didn’t matter. The Broncos rode the Von Miller and “No Fly Zone”-led defense to a Super Bowl 50 championship. After heartbreaking postseason defeats with the 49ers in 2011, 2012, and 2013, Davis finally got his ring as a Bronco.
You either forgot or never noticed in the first place.
Josh Gordon
Gordon is one of the NFL’s great “what-if” stories. After a superb rookie year with the Cleveland Browns in 2012, Gordon entered another stratosphere in his sophomore campaign. He caught 87 passes for a league-leading 1,646 receiving yards and nine touchdowns.
Sadly, numerous off-field issues led to numerous suspensions for Gordon. From 2014 to 2017, he appeared in only 10 games, and the NFL issued him season-long suspensions in 2015 and 2016.
Early in the 2018 season, the New England Patriots took a chance on Gordon and acquired him in a trade with the Browns. He immediately became a nice fit with Tom Brady, recording 40 catches for 720 yards and three touchdowns.
Late in the season, however, Gordon announced he was stepping away to focus on his mental health. The NFL later warned that a suspension was looming after he violated more rules.
Gordon wasn’t there for the playoff run. But the Patriots went on to win Super Bowl 53, adding a sixth to the Brady-Bill Belichick era dynasty. Gordon was awarded a ring by the Patriots and played six games for them in the ensuing 2019 season before getting waived.
Gordon never got to fulfill his potential in the NFL, but at least he got a ring.
Jeff Fisher
The longtime coach of the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans franchise became the butt of jokes during his five seasons as head coach of the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams.
Yes, we all remember the savage “7-9” Jeff Fisher jokes. Soooooooo much better than “SIX-SEVEN!”
No, Fisher never won a Super Bowl as a head coach. He got the Titans to Super Bowl 34, where they barely fell to Kurt Warner’s Rams. They also got to the AFC Championship Game in 2002, falling to the Oakland Raiders.
Mock Fisher’s tenure with the Rams all you want. But this guy became a winner decades ago, winning a Super Bowl 20 ring as a member of the legendary 1985 Chicago Bears’ squad.
Fisher was a cornerback and return specialist for Mike Ditka’s Bears. An ankle injury, unfortunately, ended his career early, and he missed the entire ‘85 season.
Fisher helped coach the defense while recovering from the ankle injury that year, and he was awarded a Super Bowl ring when Chicago crushed the New England Patriots.
Morris Claiborne
Jets
Dallas Cowboys fans are all too familiar with this name.
At the 2012 NFL Draft, Jerry Jones made a bold trade with the St. Louis Rams. The Cowboys moved up eight spots from No. 14 to select LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne. Notably, Dallas passed on future stars like Luke Kuechly, Stephon Gilmore, Fletcher Cox, Chandler Jones, and Harrison Smith, all subsequent first-round picks.
Claiborne never came close to reaching his potential in Dallas. But Claiborne technically went out on top like, like John Elway, Peyton Manning, and Ray Lewis.
The Kansas City Chiefs signed Claiborne in 2019, and they went on to win Super Bowl 54. Claiborne earned a championship ring in what would be his final NFL season.
Stan Humphries
Humphries is remembered fondly among Chargers fans. He was San Diego’s primary starter from 1992 to 1997, helping them to three playoff appearances. Of course, that was highlighted by a trip to Super Bowl 29, where they were crushed by the heavily-favored 49ers.
It was hard not to feel for Humphries and the lovable underdog Bolts. But shed no tears for Humphries. He won a Super Bowl ring in the 1991 season as Mark Rypien’s backup in Washington. The Commanders defeated the Bills to win their third Super Bowl, cementing a dynasty.
Richie James
Hey, remember him, Giants fans?
After three uneventful seasons with the 49ers, James was waived ahead of the 2021 campaign. The Giants signed him in 2022, a move that seemed totally insignificant at the time.
But James emerged as a key difference-maker on the Giants, catching 57 passes for 569 yards and four touchdowns. New York won its first playoff game in over a decade, and Brian Daboll took home Coach of the Year honors.
The Chiefs signed James in the 2023 offseason, where he got most of his snaps as a returner. Kansas City defeated its old team, the 49ers, in Super Bowl 58. This would be James’ final NFL game, as a knee injury forced the little-known Super Bowl champion into retirement.
Drew Stanton
Stanton had to start 13 games during his tenure with the Arizona Cardinals because of numerous injuries to Carson Palmer. He went 5-3 in the 2014 season before suffering a season-ending injury, weeks after Palmer tore his ACL.
That would be it for peak Drew Stanton. But he didn’t leave the NFL empty-handed.
Though he hadn’t played a snap since 2017, Stanton was signed to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ practice squad in 2020. They promoted him to the active roster ahead of Super Bowl 55, with Tom Brady leading the Bucs to a blowout win over the Kansas City Chiefs.
While everyone was going nuts over Brady’s seventh ring, they didn’t notice that Stanton got his first ring as well. He, too, technically, retired on top. Stanton was out of the NFL soon after winning his long-awaited championship ring.
Phillip Dorsett
Indianapolis Colts fans, unfortunately, remember Dorsett as one of the biggest franchise busts of the 21st century. Quite frankly, it made no sense for then-GM Ryan Grigson to use the No. 29 pick of 2015 on Philip Dorsett when the Colts had enough weaponry as is.
But hey, the Patriots and their fans aren’t complaining.
After two lackluster seasons with the Colts, he was traded to the Patriots in 2017, with backup QB Jacoby Brissett coming the other way. Dorsett was one of New England’s unsung heroes in their Super Bowl 53 run, catching touchdowns in the Divisional Round and AFC Championship Games.
He made up for the “bust” label by winning a Super Bowl 53 ring with the Pats — undoubtedly the highlight of an otherwise underwhelming career.
Antonio Pierce
After four seasons as an assistant at Arizona State, Pierce got his first coaching gig with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022. He took over as the interim HC in 2023 after Josh McDaniels was fired and became the full-time HC in 2024.
Of course, Pierce was let go after a dismal 2024 season. Not that it was his fault, because successor Pete Carroll went one-and-done.
But long before Pierce began his coaching career, he was a standout linebacker for Washington and later the Giants. The 2006 Pro Bowler was part of the Giants’ squad that stunned the 18-0 Patriots in Super Bowl 42.
Pierce played a big role on that defense. He was just overlooked by more notable stars like Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck, Corey Webster, and Osi Umenyiora.
Jacoby Brissett
If you were to show 100 football fans a list of every active quarterback with a Super Bowl ring? Most of them would probably be shocked to see Brissett’s name on there. But he did it, folks.
The Patriots used a third-round pick on the NC State product in 2016. He was the third-stringer behind Tom Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo. The latter had to start the year as the QB1, though, with Brady serving a four-game suspension for Deflategate.
When Garoppolo went down in Week 2 with a shoulder injury, Brissett had to take over as the temporary starter. He went 1-1 before handing the offense back to a returning Brady in Week 5.
And, well, Brissett just got to relax from there. Brady and the Patriots ran through the AFC before defeating the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl 51. Brissett got his ring, then was traded to the rival Indianapolis Colts to temporarily replace the sidelined Andrew Luck as the starting QB. Well, he got injured there, too.
Brissett has since cemented himself as one of the better backup QBS of his era. But like Jimmy G, Brissett’s career started off with a bang — a Super Bowl champion as a rookie!
Todd Bowles
Bowles has been coaching in the NFL since 2000. His first head-coaching stint lasted from 2015 to 2018 with the hapless New York Jets. He then reunited with Bruce Arians to become the Bucs’ defensive coordinator in 2019, a move that would be a career difference-maker for Bowles.
He was the defensive coordinator and guru who helped Tampa to a surprise Super Bowl 55 triumph in the 2020 season. In 2022, he succeeded Arians as Tampa Bay’s head coach after the latter’s retirement.
Little did ya’ll know that the 2020 season was lucky No. 3 for Bowles. He won his second Super Bowl ring as a player personnel staffer with the Green Bay Packers in 1995.
As for his first ring? Bowles was a safety on the star-studded Washington NFL squad that crushed John Elway’s Broncos in Super Bowl 22. That year, Bowles posted a career-high four interceptions as Washington claimed its second of three Lombardi Trophies under Joe Gibbs.
Byron Leftwich
Leftwich is well-known in two different ways: One, the former starting quarterback of the Jacksonville Jaguars, the guy who led them to a surprise playoff appearance in the 2005 season.
Second, he’s also known as the longtime assistant who worked under Bruce Arians. Leftwich was the Bucs’ offensive coordinator during the Tom Brady era, winning Super Bowl 55 in the 2020 season.
But ya’ll had no idea that Leftwich held the Lombardi Trophy more than a decade before the Super Bowl 55 triumph. He was Ben Roethlisberger’s backup QB when the Pittsburgh Steelers won Super Bowl 43 in the 2008 season.
Brian Griese
The son of Miami Dolphins legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer Bob Griese, Brian wasn’t too shabby himself. He was handpicked as John Elway’s successor after the Denver Broncos’ icon retired in 1999.
Griese earned a Pro Bowl nod as a member of the Broncos in 2000. He went on to play three seasons for the Buccaneers as well, even leading the NFL with a 69.3 completion percentage in 2004.
And of course, long-suffering Bears fans remember his awful 2007 season as Rex Grossman’s replacement. Today’s generation knows him as a longtime NFL analyst for ESPN.
But folks, the guy has been a Super Bowl winner for three decades. He was Elway’s backup as a rookie in 1998 when the Broncos won their second of back-to-back Super Bowls. That’s two Griese family members with a championship ring!
