February 13th, 2025
The Kansas City Chiefs went into New Orleans with the dream of being the first team in the Super Bowl era to three-peat. The Packers did win three consecutive championships, it should be noted that the first win was not a Super Bowl win. However, the Philadelphia Eagles ended those hopes and annihilated the Chiefs 40-22. The Chiefs played terribly, especially through the first three quarters when they were losing 34-6. It was a shame for some fans and some would say it was an embarrassment for the Chiefs, because they had one of the best defenses, and had a player some people consider the GOAT, Quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
The Chiefs defensive plan was to stop Eagles RB Saquon Barkley from running all over them and to dare Eagles QB Jalen Hurts to throw the ball. The game plan did make sense, because the Eagles were almost unstoppable because of Barkley. They executed that part of the plan impressively, and he had only 57 yards on 25 rushing attempts.
Since Barkley was struggling, Hurts had to step up to the challenge and that is what he exactly did. Hurts showed the Chiefs that he was not just a “sidekick” to Saquon, but somebody that can take control of the offense when necessary. Hurts proved that he can be the “boss” when he scored three TDs (two passing and one rushing). Additionally, the Chiefs were so focused on hunting down Saquon, they forgot Hurts could run; he had 72 rushing yards on 11 attempts, which is good for an average of 6.5 yards. Hurts showed that he could make the big-time throws when he threw a 46-yard pass to fellow teammate WR DeVonta Smith for a spectacular TD.
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes had one of his worst games, with two interceptions, one of them returned for a pick-six by Eagles CB Cooper DeJean. For someone that is known as one of the most clutch players in the entire NFL, he overwhelmingly underperformed and failed. However, there is a good explanation for this performance. Mahomes was under constant pressure, taking six sacks throughout the entirety of the game.
The Chiefs offensive game plan did not help them at all. They should have run the ball more at the beginning of the game. The RBs ran the ball three times the entire 1st Half while Mahomes threw an astronomical amount of passes in comparison to the number of rushing attempts they had. Because of this, the Eagles defense was keened in on Mahomes. They should have run the ball much more which would have made the Eagles defense off balance. Philly would have needed to focus on the running game a little bit more, thereby giving Mahomes a chance to play like he usually does. Mahomes would have faced much less pressure. Mahomes did throw three TDs, but it was too little, too late. The Chiefs' offensive line could not hold up against the Eagles vaunted defense. This result, to say at the least, is shocking and unexpected.
The Eagles offense and defense had a fire lit under them, proving themselves to be the best, despite people stating the Chiefs were going to win the game. Ultimately, the Chiefs' quest ended in misery and the Eagles were the better team all along. Not many people expected the dominance that the Eagles showed during Super Bowl 59.