CHIEFS and Eagles, Super Bowl LVII: OPEN THREAD

Laddie Morse

Isn’t this the best day ever. Well, at least since February 2nd of 2020 when our Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers 31-to-20. That experience may be what gives the Chiefs their advantage in this game, then again, the Eagles beat the Patriots in LII by a score of 41-to-33.

First, you can go here to make sure you can watch the game:

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Possible difference makers in this game include: the referees, the health of each QB, the Eagles DL vs the Chiefs OL, and Travis Kelce. Let’s take a longer look at each.

The Referee Crew: Carl Cheffers

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In article by Charles Goldman called, “Referee Carl Cheffers assigned to work Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl LVII game” he says:

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“Cheffers’ crew also had the highest rate of defensive pass interference penalties in the league this season (17). Kansas City, of course, led the NFL in defensive pass interference penalties called against (15). On the flip side, Cheffers and his crew called the fifth-most offensive holding penalties (41) and the second-most false start penalties (40).”

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I may be incorrect about this but… I seem to have noticed that, whichever refereeing crew is assigned to a Super Bowl, allows more potential penalties to go un-called. So, that’s something to keep an eye on in this game.

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Two Years Ago (A Super Bowl Nightmare)

The biggest difference between the 2020 Chiefs and the 2022 version is… the Offensive Line. In an article written by Michael Weyer called: “10 NFL Super Bowl Games With The Most Penalties, Ranked” in which the Chiefs SB game against the Bucs was ranked #10, he said:

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“The Chiefs ended up with a total of eleven penalties for 120 yards which, combined with their surprisingly bad offense, led to a bitter 31-9 defeat. The Chiefs made history in this game, just not the kind they wanted.”

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It’s hard to see these Chiefs not scoring even one TD.

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The Health of Each QB

Patrick Mahomes has already won the Super Bowl MVP Award, three years ago in SB LIV. However, if he gives a similar type of performance in this game today, it won’t look good for the Chiefs. Versus the 49ers in SB LIV, he had a 78.1 Passer Rating when his career rating is 105.7. He also had two INTs in that game and if he throws two today, the outcome doesn’t look positive for K.C.. The biggest question is, will PMII be able to move well enough to make the “magical” plays he usually likes to make, or the ones his fans have become accustomed to seeing him make. I don’t beleive there are any outside influences that will keep him from being as focused as possible. He said recently that his wife Brittany Matthews has been takign care of their children, Sterling and Bronze, and when asked if they were getting to spend time together this week, Brittany said:

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“We have been able to spend most of the afternoons with him this week. I think it has made his days a little better ending it with his family, eating dinner and chilling with us. Making us feel a little more at home during this exciting time.”

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In a “Super Bowl Injury Report” by Forbes online magazine, they said this of Jalen Hurts injury:

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“… December 18 when Chicago Bears defensive lineman Trevis Gipson drove Hurts shoulder into the cold, cold field. That gave Hurts’ right sternoclavicular (SC) joint a rocking, resulting in a sprain—which is a medical term for a tear—in a ligament spanning the SC joint. This injury kept Hurts out of the ensuing two regular season games. He did return for the regular season finale against the New York Giants and playoff games against the Giants and the San Francisco 49ers where Hurts clearly wasn’t at full strength.”

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Since Hurts throws the ball with his right arm, we can assume he will be ready to run more than usual. In that last game of the regular season (his first game back) he threw for 229 yards with no TD and one (1) INT and a Passer Rating of 65.0. In his first Postseason game, also versus the Giants, he had a 112.2 Passer Rating with 154 passing yards, and two (2) TDs. In the NFC Championship game, Hurts had 121 Passing yards, no TDs and no INTs and a Passer Rating of 72.3. If Hurts has to sit out at all in this game, the Chiefs will have a decided advantage. Hurts seasonal numbers look like this:

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The Quarterbacks Each Team Has Faced

Earlier this week, I wrote a piece called: “Chiefs v Eagles: QBs They Faced in 2022” in which I posted a list of the QBs each team faced this season. While I have removed the Wins and losses from this graphic, here it is again:

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While the Chiefs have face eleven (11) QBs this year with Passer Ratings of 99 or higher, the Eagles have faced two (2). Those include (for the Chiefs): Justin Herbert (twice), Matt Ryan, Tom Brady, Derek Carr, Josh Allen, Jimmy Garoppolo, Trevor Lawrence, Joe Burrow, and Russell Wilson. The Eagles have faced, QBs: Justin Fields and Dak Prescott. If you want to base the answer to the question, “which team has faced the tougher QBs this season,” the overwhelming answer has the be the Kansas City Chiefs.

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Philly DL: An Avalanche of Talent

There’s no denying that the Philadelphia Eagles have a Defensive Line as deep as I’ve ever seen. Now, allow me to qualify that… the Los Angeles Rams of the 1960’s had perhaps the best starting four I’ve ever seen. Does that conflict with the previous sentence? No. Not at all. The 1960’s L.A. Rams had Deacon Jones, Merlin Olsen, Rosey Greer, and Lamar Lundy and many referred to them as the “Fearsome Foursome” (and yes, I’m aware that there have been many other DLs called the Fearsome Foursome). However, the Eagles have DEs: Haason Reddick (16 sacks), Josh Sweat (11 sacks), and DTs Javon Hargrave (11 sacks), Fletcher Cox (7 sacks), and super subs: Brandon Graham (11 sacks), plus Robert Quinn and Ndamukong Suh (who was on the 2020 Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ roster when the Bucs beat K.C. in SB LV) off the bench.

While the Chiefs OL is much improved this year, especially since they played the Bucs in the Super Bowl two years ago, the real challenge will be to see if they can handle, wave after wave of talented Philly defensive linemen.

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The Travis Kelce Factor

Sure, Patrick Mahomes gets and deserves a ton of recognition, but the performance of TE Travis Kelce should in no way go unnoticed, or diminished. Here’s a look at Kelce’s career stats:

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Obviously, Kelce’s 7 years in a row of 1,000+ season jumps out at you. So, now let’s take a look at his career playoff stats:

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Travis Kelce’s performance in this game, and his production, are as crucial as any other performer who is not a QB. If he has a great game, the Chiefs will 99% likely be the victor.

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Patrick Mahomes Difference

While Jalen Hurts may be a very, very good QB, there is no one like Patrick Mahomes and hasn’t ever been. He is not only a great performer on the field, but off it as well.

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Annoucing the Game

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Last Game At Last

Not that I’m happy the season is coming to an end today, but this has seemed like an incredibly long season. I think the slow burn development of this rookie class has had something to do with that.

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Two years ago, K.C. didn’t score a TD the whole SB game. That was the year K.C.’s OL was indecent and then GM Brett Veach spent the whole offseason rebuilding the OL with free agents and draft picks. Now, with more than suitable protection, the OL should be able to hold off the considerable Philly pass rush. Patrick Mahomes is not only an MVP player we’ve waited a lifetime for… but he’s an MVP as a person. And so, he is the main reason I’m predicting a Chiefs victory: 31-to-21.

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LATE UPDATE:

Both IOL Austin Reiter and WR/ST Marcus Kemp

were elevated from the Practice Squad.

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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne

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