Everything you need to know leading up to the biggest sports event of the year.
Super Bowl week has finally arrived.
This Sunday, State Farm Field will host Super Bowl 57 in a matchup that features two of the NFL’s top franchises, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs. In this highly anticipated game, we will witness Chief’s head coach Andy Reid face off against his former team who fired him in 2012. This game will also showcase a rare sibling rivalry, as Eagles center Jason Kelce and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce will face off for the ultimate bragging rights, the Lombardi Trophy.
For the first time in NFL history, both teams will be led by a black quarterback. This is a major accomplishment for the league considering only seven black quarterbacks have ever started a Super Bowl in its fifty seven year history. Both quarterbacks were asked about the milestone by reporters last Thursday.
This will be Patrick Mahomes’ third Super Bowl appearance in five years with the team. As for Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, he will be leading his team to the Super Bowl in his second season as the starter for Philadelphia.
The Eagles recently won Super Bowl 52 in 2017 against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. As for the Chiefs, they fell victim to Brady in Super Bowl 55 when he decided to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and led them to the big game in his first season. The Chiefs won their second Super Bowl in franchise history in 2019 against the San Francisco 49ers, giving Mahomes his first Lombardi Trophy in his third season.
Both quarterbacks are going into this game banged up from their last few games.
Hurts sprained his throwing shoulder on December 18th and missed two games as a result. Despite playing the last game of the season and contributing to the Eagles Super Bowl run, Hurts has suffered on the field.
“I’m getting there. I’ve made it clear this whole time it’s something I’m dealing with,” Hurts was quoted on Thursday speaking with Elliot Shorr-Parks of WIP.
The injury that Mahomes suffered is quite different. He sprained his right ankle on January 21st in the AFC Divisional Round matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Mahomes was still able to play at a high level in the AFC Championship the next week in spite of the injury that impacted his mobility and he was seen visibly limping throughout the game.
This game will feature Philadelphia’s dynamic wide receiver duo of A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, who both had over 1,000 receiving yards on the season.
This was the first time in Eagles history that two receivers were able to reach this mark. Brown, who was traded to the Eagles last offseason, has been impressed with Smith’s dedication to the game.
“Our whole room is selfless. As a receiver, every guy in the room wants the ball, but it takes a different type of human to put yourself aside and do it for the team. But most importantly, he has taken a big stride through this year, I would say, and it’s the little things, too.” Brown was quoted last Saturday.
The Chiefs will heavily rely on their 33-year-old playmaker in TE Travis Kelce, who has had a combined 21 completions in his two playoff games this season. His ability to find space and stretch the field will be crucial to the Chiefs success. Both Kelce brothers spent time on their podcast this week talking about how grateful they were to be in this “Kelce Bowl”.
This weekend will answer a lot of questions about either quarterback depending on who comes out holding the Lombardi. If Mahomes wins, he will establish himself as one of the all-time greats. Winning two Super Bowls by the age of 27. As for Hurts, a Super Bowl win for him and the Eagles would prove he is the future that the city of Philadelphia believes he is to be.
Ultimately, this game will come down to the trenches. The Eagles led the league in total sacks with 70, while the Chiefs finished in second with 55. The outcome of this game will heavily rely on which team can control the line of scrimmage.
Two hundred and eighty three games later, and the moment we have all been waiting for has finally arrived. The big game is set to take place in Arizona and millions of fans around the world will tune in to witness the drama ensue. This is the only game that matters, where the best of the best will face off for the rights to the Lombardi Trophy.
The Super Bowl is here.