Chiefs vs Eagles: Super Bowl 59 Could Create a New Record
By Ras H. Siddiqui
The National Football League (NFL) will be hosting Super Bowl LIX (59) at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sunday, February 9, 2025. This time it will be a battle between the American Football Conference (AFC) champions the Kansas City Chiefs (15-2), and the National Football Conference (NFC) champs the Philadelphia Eagles (14-3) in a rematch after two years. In their last Super Bowl faceoff in 2023, the Chiefs edged the Eagles 38-35 in an exciting high-scoring game. This year may be a repeat with the difference that the Chiefs are going for a three-peat which will be a new NFL record. No NFL football franchise has ever won three Super Bowls in a row. And the only thing that is standing in the way of the Chiefs to achieve that goal is a pumped-up Eagles team looking for revenge.
There is little love lost for the Chiefs here in Northern California since they have beaten the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl twice in the past five years including the 25-22 win last year at Allegiant Stadium in Nevada. We are not happy about this fact and if you find football fans in our part of California rooting for the Eagles this time, it should come as no surprise. But the million-dollar question is: can Philadelphia pull it off? The Chiefs look almost invincible but there must be a crack in their armor somewhere. If we only knew where it was, we would quickly inform the Eagles team! But till then let us review the NFC and AFC championship games held on Sunday, January 26 th to get some idea of the strengths and weaknesses of the two teams.
Philadelphia has played remarkable football recently. They beat the Washington Commanders (former Redskins) 55-23 in what must be the highest single-team score in an NFC championship game ever. And they scored twenty-one of those points in the fourth quarter! In that game, the Eagles (literally) ran their way to victory with only one passing touchdown (from Quarterback Jalen Hurts to A.J. Brown) in the second quarter and seven touchdowns from their running game with three each from Saquon Barkley and Hurts and one from Will Shipley. Philadelphia ranked second in rushing yards and 29 th in passing yards this season. So, the Eagles will be bringing a formidable running game to Super Bowl LIX.
The Kansas City Chiefs are the team to beat once again. They edged the Buffalo Bills in the hard-fought AFC championship game 32-29. And they have Quarterback Patrick Mahomes who can also become a formidable runner when necessary. In the championship game against the Bills, Mahomes scored with one pass (to Xavier Worthy) and two rushing touchdowns (himself) besides the one by Kareem Hunt. From the looks of it, in this Super Bowl, both teams will be bringing a strong running game with them. But the Chief’s superior passing game does give them an edge. They ranked 22 nd in rushing yards and 14 th in passing this season. The Eagles, even though they have a stronger running game, will have to figure out how to stop Mahomes.
The offense makes points but the defense wins the big games. To go by the rankings, the Eagles were Number one in pass defense in the 2024 season allowing an average of 174.2 yards per game in the regular season. The Chiefs were 18 th, allowing an average of 218.8 yards. Against the rush the Chiefs were eighth, allowing 101.8 yards per game, and the Eagles 10 th allowing 104.2 yards. The two teams are more closely matched on defense. Yet in this Super Bowl, they are also relying on the rush to score points!
The Eagles may be able to put pressure on the Mahomes passing game (watch out for Tight End Travis Kelce who has millions of Taylor Swift fans supporting him), but his rushing abilities are another story. The Chief’s offensive line has done an excellent job protecting their quarterback so far this season, giving Mahomes the time and room to run. Let us see if they are successful once again in this Super Bowl. Otherwise, it will be an advantage for the Eagles, who have Running Back Saquon Barkley (2005 yards this season), one who continues to be a game-changer.
It is tough to make a prediction against the Chiefs on the outcome of a Super Bowl game because we have been wrong before. But if any team can do it and stop their three-peat attempt, it is the Eagles this year. And from someone who lives in Northern California, it should come as no surprise: Go Eagles!
