The Kansas City Chiefs stand on the verge of history – no team has ever won 3 Super Bowls in a row. That is what they’ll achieve with victory on Sunday night.
The Philadelphia Eagles are intent on crashing the party and avenging their Super Bowl loss 2 years ago. Just 3 points separated these teams in that Super Bowl LVII encounter. A loss made all the more painful for the Eagles, in the knowledge they blew a 10 point half-time lead. So, who will prevail in Super Bowl LIX?
The Eagles have many of the same players from 2 years ago, but they are a different team, and they have one huge difference maker this time – Saquon Barkley. Saquon is the League’s leading rusher this season. In 3 playoff games, he’s amassed a total of 442 rushing yards at 6.7 yards per carry and he’s scored 5 rushing touchdowns. He is a game changing talent wherever he is on the field and if the Chiefs are to win, they will have to shut down the Eagles’ run game. But Philadelphia have a quarterback who can make plays with his legs as well as his arm and Jalen Hurts has a receiving corps that can take the top off of any defense with AJ Brown and Devonta Smith leading the way. Then there’s the Eagles defense. The best in the NFL this season – the number 1 pass defense and number 2 in points allowed, giving up 17.8 points per game. In the post season they’ve become ball hawks as well. The Eagles haven’t given the ball away once, while claiming 10 takeaways from their opponents. If defense wins championships, then surely Philadelphia are in pole position!
However, The Kansas City Chiefs are champions for a reason. They finished the regular season with the best record in the League and when the game is on the line, they have a quarterback who just knows how to win in the moment. Patrick Mahomes hasn’t even been mentioned in the same breath as the NFL MVP race this year. Yet, the Chiefs have only lost 2 games all season – and one of those was in the regular season finale when they rested their starters! He’s led an offense which again has seen a constant change in personnel in the receiving corps, it doesn’t tend to be explosive but when the game’s on the line, he makes game winning plays! Defensively, the stats don’t scream off the page, but this is a unit which is a top 10 defense overall, against the run and in points allowed (19.2ppg) and they’re led by a coordinator in Steve Spagnuolo who has a proven ability to re-invent defenses which win championships. If they win on Sunday, this will be his 5th Super Bowl success as a defensive coordinator – more than any other DC in Super Bowl history. His defense might not be the flashiest this season, but they suck the life out of an offense and then he strikes with a blitz package which can seal the game, as Buffalo found out in the AFC Championship.
This is a tantalising, mouth watering matchup. On paper, the stats say the Eagles are the better team, they have the better roster, and they are ready to win now BUT sport isn’t decided on paper – outcomes are determined on the field. The Chiefs feel right at home in this environment. They embrace the pressure of the big occasion, and they are laser focused on creating Super Bowl history. Immediately after throwing the game winning touchdown 12 months ago in Super Bowl LVIII, Patrick Mahomes stated this was the goal – to win 3 in a row! Well, here they are again – at their 5th Super Bowl in 6 years and with the opportunity to do what no team has done before them. Who would bet against them?
PICKS: Chiefs -1.5
Eagles under 25 points
Total Points over 48.5
