Two years ago, and two time zones away from New Orleans, these two teams met on the sport’s biggest stage.
But the backdrop for Super Bowl LVII was much different than it is for LIX. The Philadelphia Eagles came in with Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts bursting onto the scene, a fresh-faced staff and a loaded roster around them—and house money to play on in Arizona. The Kansas City Chiefs, meanwhile, were in their third Super Bowl in four years and had dealt with consecutive winters of postseason disappointment after winning Andy Reid’s first Lombardi Trophy in February 2020.
Twenty-four months later, the Eagles arrive in Louisiana with Sirianni having survived a year on the hot seat, a reworked veteran staff behind him and Hurts on a blockbuster second contract. The Chiefs enter New Orleans as the unquestioned kings of the league, making their fifth trip to this stage in six years, in search of a fourth Lombardi Trophy for Reid and Patrick Mahomes—which would put them even with Terry Bradshaw and Chuck Noll for second in Super Bowl wins as a coach/quarterback combo, behind only Bill Belichick and Tom Brady.
And just as these teams’ circumstances have changed, so have their rosters. Kansas City’s young defense has grown up. The Eagles have gotten younger and faster on that side of the ball. The Chiefs have infused speed back into their offense, with Xavier Worthy and Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, after initially going with a bigger more physical skill group post-Tyreek Hill. Saquon Barkley’s here now, too.
We are as well, and will be breaking the whole thing down for you with six days left until kickoff at the Superdome.
Over in the takeaways, we’ve covered it all, from the impact of Barkley’s year, to the Dallas Cowboys ownership on the Brian Schottenheimer hire, to the Minnesota Vikings QBs, to the top of the draft … and a whole lot more. But we’re starting here, with 10 nitty-gritty elements to watch for in the big game.
And to help, I brought in a head coach, an offensive coordinator, a defensive coordinator and two pro scouting directors that faced both the Eagles and Chiefs this year.
Let’s go …
