With a historic moment of two Black quarterbacks, complicated coaching connections, maybe the NFL’s first flawless team, and the game’s biggest star, Super Bowl LVII, which has the Kansas City Chiefs facing off against the Philadelphia Eagles, has more than a couple wild storylines to go with it.
Mohammed Jbara
Freelance Contributor
This year’s Super Bowl will be the first in NFL history to have two Black starting QBs, Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts. In the past, a total of three Black quarterbacks have started and won a Super Bowl (Doug Williams in Super Bowl XXII, Russell Wilson in Super Bowl XLVII, and Mahomes in Super Bowl LIV).
On top of that, both teams holding the number one seed in their respective conferences are now meeting each other for a championship. The last time that happened was in 2015, when the Denver Broncos played the Carolina Panthers.
We also have the Kelce brothers facing off, with Jason Kelce playing center for the Eagles and Travis Kelce playing tight end for the Chiefs.
And who can forget the story between the two head coaches in this game? Chiefs head coach Andy Reid was fired by the Eagles after the 2012 season. To stir the pot even more, the current head coach of the Eagles, Nick Sirianni, was an offensive assistant coach for the Chiefs. Once the Chiefs hired Reid, he didn’t want Sirianni on his coaching staff, so Sirianni was let go before the 2013 season.
Chiefs’ defense may cost them the Bowl
The Chiefs’ success has come off the back of a stellar campaign by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, beating the Jacksonville Jaguars in the divisional round and then the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC championship.
Mahomes finished with 5,250 passing yards and 41 touchdowns in the regular season, the most in the NFL this season. He is the frontrunner to win MVP this season for the second time in his short career.
After losing his star wide-receiver last offseason, Tyreek Hill, putting up these numbers are nothing short of extraordinary. Mahomes suffered a high-ankle sprain in the Chiefs’ first playoff campaign against the Jaguars, but still fought through the injury, cementing himself as the best quarterback in football.
The only problem I see with the Chiefs is that their performances on defense haven’t been up to par. Chris Jones and Frank Clark have been bright spots on this unit, helping the team finish second in sacks with 55 in the league. But they have been vulnerable in the secondary. We saw this time and again throughout the season, allowing the most passing touchdowns in the league and giving up the most red zone touchdowns as well.
Eagles may be first flawless NFL team
The Philadelphia Eagles are going to smell blood in the water. One word to describe their season? Impeccable. On both sides of the ball, they have been nothing short of spectacular.
In my opinion, this team has no weaknesses.
They made the right move every time last offseason, whether trading for star wide receiver AJ Brown or for star defensive back James Bradberry, or for signing Hassan Reddick in free agency. The team has been built to perfection, including having incredible play from third-year quarterback Jalen Hurts.
Hurts finished with 3,700 passing yards with 22 passing touchdowns, while also adding 760 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns. His play also earned him a chance for MVP. But his numbers don’t seem surprising.
This whole offense is just a juggernaut. The Eagles’ offensive line is ranked as one of the top units in the NFL, having two elite receivers in Brown and Devonta Smith. Both finished with more than 1,000 receiving yards this season.
But the defensive side of the ball is where I see the Eagles winning this game, led by the front seven who have been relentless all season. The Eagles as a team have recorded 70 sacks. Those are video game numbers.
Defensive linemen Hassan Reddick, Javon Hargrave, and Brandon Graham all finished with more than 10 sacks. Reddick had 16, which also benefited the secondary as well.
Unlike the Chiefs, the Eagles’ secondary has played up to par. Defensive back Darius Slay was named to the Pro Bowl after having a great season, along with James Bradberry and CJ Gardner Johnson.
How will these storylines end?
The key for the Chiefs is the health of Mahomes. If that ankle is no longer bothering him come game time, he’s going to have to play like he has been all season. As for the Eagles, they need to attack that Chiefs secondary. Hurts has been torching defenses all season.
A matchup to look out for is near the line of scrimmage, between both offensive and defensive line units for these teams. We’re going to see the two teams with the most sacks in this season, and they’ll be going against the two top offensive line units in the league, making for a difficult match-up.
I am picking the Philadelphia Eagles to bring home their second Vince Lombardi trophy in franchise history by a score of 31-17.
Jalen Hurts will become the fourth Black QB to win the Super Bowl, and he will be named Super Bowl MVP.
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