Super Bowl ring

• 1. Introduction

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  The Super Bowl ring is the National Football League's highest honor, awarded to every member of the championship-winning team each year. But what exactly goes into one of these rings, and who decides who gets one? The answers reveal a surprisingly complex world of tiered jewelry, diplomatic controversy, and stories of loyalty, generosity, and in at least one case, a confrontation between two billionaire team owners.

  These rings are typically crafted from yellow or rose gold, set with diamonds, and engraved with the team name, logo, and the phrase "World Champions." Each player's ring carries his name and uniform number. The NFL contributes between ,000 and ,000 per ring for up to 150 rings for the winning team; costs beyond that are paid by the franchise itself. Most rings are manufactured by Jostens, a memorabilia company.

  The questions worth asking: Who really gets a ring? What happens when a ring becomes a diplomatic incident? And who holds the record for most Super Bowl rings ever collected?

• 2. Tiers and Traditions

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  The first Super Bowl ring to split its recipients into quality tiers came from the Washington Redskins' Super Bowl XVII victory, when many front office staff received rings that were not solid gold and contained cubic zirconia stones rather than real diamonds. That precedent set the pattern now known across the league.

  Today, a trend spanning roughly the past 15-20 years has formalized this into a three-level system. Player-level rings are considered "A" rings. Staff members below that threshold receive "B" or "C" level rings, which are typically smaller and contain fewer diamonds, or imitation diamonds in place of genuine ones.

  When Tampa Bay won Super Bowl XXXVII, the distinction was made explicit. Players and coaches received "A" rings with a diamond-centered Lombardi trophy. Some staff got rings where the Lombardi trophy was metal rather than diamond, though real diamonds surrounded it. The lowest tier contained no diamonds at all. Per the collective bargaining agreement, players on the winning team's practice squad at the time of the Super Bowl are also entitled to a ring, though it may be of lesser value.

  The winning team has broad discretion over who else receives a ring. Teams have given rings to former players and coaches who were part of the roster at some point during the season, even if they were not on the winning roster for the Super Bowl itself. Some franchises have even made rings available to fans through charity raffles.

• 3. Diamonds With a Story

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  Green Bay's Super Bowl XLV ring contained more than 100 diamonds. The Packers logo at the center was formed by 13 diamonds, one for each championship title the team had won since 1929. That kind of symbolic arithmetic has become standard across the league.

  The New England Patriots' Super Bowl XLIX rings were reported to cost $36,500 each, making them the most expensive rings Jostens had ever produced at that point. That record was then surpassed by the rings for Super Bowl 50 and then again by Super Bowl LI.

  The Patriots' Super Bowl LI ring featured 283 diamonds, chosen to mark their comeback from a 28-3 deficit against the Atlanta Falcons late in the third quarter. Falcons owner Arthur Blank reportedly confronted Patriots owner Robert Kraft in August 2017 over what he saw as an insult delivered in karat form.

  The Philadelphia Eagles' ring for Super Bowl LII carried 127 diamonds on the bezel, a number derived from the jersey numbers of the three players involved in the Philly Special trick play: Corey Clement (30), Trey Burton (88), and Nick Foles (9). The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Super Bowl LV ring contained 319 diamonds on the face to represent their 31-9 victory over Kansas City. That ring also introduced a first in the sport: a removable top that, when opened, reveals a hand-carved replica of Raymond James Stadium, the site where Tampa Bay became the first team ever to win a Super Bowl on their home field.

• 4. The Kremlin Ring

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  In 2005, a minor international incident unfolded when reports surfaced that Russian President Vladimir Putin had taken a Super Bowl ring from New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Kraft initially issued a statement saying he had given Putin the ring out of respect and admiration for the Russian people and Putin's leadership.

  Kraft later said that earlier statement had not been true, and that it had been issued under pressure from the White House. The ring remains on display at the Kremlin, listed among other gifts. No record of the ring's return or replacement exists in the source materials.

• 5. Value on the Open Market

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  Replicas of Super Bowl rings are popular collectibles, and genuine rings also change hands. Two rings from the 1970s Pittsburgh Steelers sold on eBay for more than $69,000 apiece in mid-2008. Dave Meggett is known to have listed his ring for sale on that same platform.

  Not every ring that leaves its owner's hands goes to the highest bidder. Patriots safety Je'Rod Cherry raffled his ring from Super Bowl XXXVI in November 2008, with proceeds benefiting charities working with children in Africa and Asia. Tight end Shannon Sharpe chose a more personal route, giving his first Super Bowl ring to his brother Sterling, whose own NFL career had been cut short by injury.

• 6. The Record Holders

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  Bill Belichick holds the record with eight Super Bowl rings: six as head coach of the New England Patriots and two as defensive coordinator of the New York Giants. Tom Brady follows with seven as a player: six won with the New England Patriots and one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

  Charles Haley stands as the player with the most Super Bowl wins without a loss: five rings, two as a linebacker with the San Francisco 49ers and three as a defensive end with the Dallas Cowboys. Matt Millen earned four rings while playing for four different cities, the only player ever to accomplish that: one with the Oakland Raiders, one with the Los Angeles Raiders, one with the San Francisco 49ers, and one with the Washington Redskins.

  The first player to win four Super Bowl rings was tight end Marv Fleming, who collected a pair with the Green Bay Packers in 1966 and 1967, then added another pair with the Miami Dolphins in 1972 and 1973. Twenty-two players earned four rings with the Pittsburgh Steelers during the 1970s alone, a list that includes Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, Lynn Swann, and Jack Lambert.

  Willie Davis occupies a category of his own. He won all four of Green Bay's Super Bowl rings: two as a player, one as a member of the team's board of directors, and one as an emeritus director. He also collected rings from Green Bay's NFL Championship wins in 1961, 1962, and 1965, years before the Super Bowl existed. His total championship ring count reached seven, a figure that spans the pre- and post-Super Bowl eras of professional football.