Super Star

For most professional football players, getting a chance to play in the Super Bowl is the pinnacle of their career. For former NC State All American Joe Thuney ’14, it’s almost par for the course.

Thuney returned to the Super Bowl as an offensive guard for the Kansas City Chiefs, his fourth appearance in the big game in his seven years in the NFL. Thuney played in three Super Bowls for the New England Patriots (winning two of them), setting a record as the only player ever to start in the Super Bowl in each of his first three years in the league.

“This isn’t normal, right?” Thuney said in a telephone interview as he prepared to take on the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII on Sunday. “I’ve got to pinch myself a little bit. It’s been amazing.”

While he recognizes it’s not just another game, Thuney doesn’t seem to vary in his workmanlike approach to the job. It’s an attitude that has led to him becoming one of the most dependable offensive linemen in the NFL, missing only two games during his five years with the Patriots and two years with the Chiefs. He has started every other game, including his first game as a rookie after the Patriots drafted him in the third round in 2016.

“There’s definitely a string of luck in there for sure,” he says. “It’s such a physical game, with bodies flying all over the place. It’s just one of those things.”

Thuney describes his approach to his job in simple terms: “At the end of the day, I try to prevent my guy from getting to the quarterback. I just always try to play through to the whistle.”

Despite typically being among the league leaders in playing time, Thuney is one of the NFL’s least penalized offensive linemen. Again, he says it’s just a matter of doing his job. “Our coaches do a great job of training us,” he says. “We’re trying to play with technique that doesn’t lead to [holding penalties]. I just try to lock in on each play.”

Just doing his job, as it turns out, has worked out pretty well for Thuney. Not only did he play in his fourth Super Bowl, Thuney was named second-team AP All-Pro this year, the second time he has earned that honor. He was also selected to the New England Patriots 2010s All-Decade Team.

Thuney has done all that while earning an MBA, through online studies from Indiana University, to go with his undergraduate degree in accounting from NC State. “It took four offseasons in a row to knock that out,” he says. “But football will end someday. You’ve got to be prepared for life after football.”

For now, though, Thuney acknowledges that there was something special about getting the chance to play in another Super Bowl. “These are the only two football teams left in the whole football world,” he says. “It’s the ultimate competition.”