Weighing more than a quarter-pound and gleaming with 205 diamonds, the New England Patriots’ Super Bowl XLIX Championship rings are the biggest ever.
Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft presented the enormous oval-shape rings to players and staff during a private party at his home on Sunday night. The rings commemorate the team’s fourth Super Bowl title — an electrifying 28-24 comeback win against the Seattle Seahawks.
The National Football League seems to maintain an unwritten rule that allows teams with multiple Super Bowl victories to design the biggest and “blingiest” rings. In the case of the four-time Lombardi-trophy-winning Patriots, the sky was the limit.
"I have been blessed to host four Super Bowl ring ceremonies, and just like the rings we present, we have tried to make each ceremony a little bigger and a little better than the one before," said Kraft.
For the Pats, the rings are, indeed, getting bigger and better than the ones before. In 2001, the team’s first Super Bowl ring weighed in at 74 grams. Two years later, its second Super Bowl ring weighed 100 grams. The next year, 2004, the Pat’s third Super Bowl ring tipped the scales at 110 grams (just under one-quarter pound).
While the newest Super Bowl ring appears to be at least 20 percent larger than the one from 2004, ring manufacturer Jostens could not provide us with the exact specs on the weight. The company did confirm that each ring is set with 205 diamonds weighing a minimum of 4.85 carats.
The front of the Super Bowl XLIX Championship ring features the Patriots’ red, white and blue logo swooping across four Lombardi Trophies in a ground of 143 round pavé diamonds. A marquise-cut diamond represents the football symbol at the top of each trophy. The words WORLD and CHAMPIONS are written in raised letters on the perimeter of the ring face.
The right side of the ring features the season's motto DO YOUR JOB, the final score of the championship game, the team’s season record and the Super Bowl XLIX logo.
The opposite side lists each of the championship years (2001, 2003, 2004, 2014), a rendering of Gillette Stadium, as well as the player's name and number. The example shown above is the owner’s ring.
The interior of the ring features a second team motto. “We are all Patriots” is a phrase the owner coined after the Super Bowl victory in early February. Kraft’s signature and the date of the Super Bowl are also inscribed on the interior.
The NFL awards 150 rings to the Super Bowl victor and spends approximately $7,000 per ring — although teams with multiple Super Bowl victories are allotted a higher budget for diamonds.
Teams often create “B” and “C” level rings — designs with faux diamonds or fewer diamonds — for distribution to the front office staff.
Photos: Jostens, Twitter/New England Patriots.
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