Super Bowl LIX Eagles vs. Chiefs roundtable: Expert picks, bold predictions from Rotoworld staff – NBC Sports
Source: NBCSports.com
With Super Bowl LIX a little over 24 hours away, the Rotoworld crew gathered around to touch on what they believe it will take for each team to win, what a third-straight Super Bowl title would mean for Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, and how they believe things will ultimately unfold come Sunday.
Denny Carter: I think KC will edge the Eagles if their short-area pass catchers — namely Xavier Worthy and Travis Kelce — can be productive after the catch. It’s a tall task against a Philly defense that allowed the fourth lowest adjusted yards per attempt on passes between 0-10 yards this season. The Chiefs are going to get nothing downfield; they’ll have to be ultra-efficient in the short areas.
Kyle Dvorchak: Kansas City wins by taking an early lead and keeping its foot on the gas. The Eagles are capable of making a comeback, but it’s not what they’re built for.
Lawrence Jackson Jr.: If they continue to out-coach their opponents and win the situational football battles like they always do. They also cannot allow the Eagles’ defense to get pressure with four pass rushers while the defensive backs have success in coverage, both of which they are capable of. Chiefs have to pick their poison on defense and keep the Eagles off-balanced on offense.
Patrick Daugherty: We get a normal football game. Normality is the Chiefs’ friend. Normality means limited turnovers and sacks. Normality means grinding drives that end with points. It doesn’t really matter if it’s field goals or touchdowns. This iteration of the Chiefs has won more normal football games than any team in NFL history. The Eagles need variance.
Zachary Krueger: They stick to the plan. It’s hard to imagine one of the best quarterbacks in the game also being one of the league’s more conservative passers, but Mahomes and the Chiefs know what’s gotten them here. Over the last three seasons, the Chiefs have been in the bottom 10 in both ADOT and deep throw rate but have been in the top 10 in EPA per dropback and YPA over that span. How does this happen? Good downfield blocking and perfect execution. The Eagles’ young pass defense has been surprisingly strong this season, and has allowed the third-lowest yards after catch per reception (YAC/REC) on passes of 5.0 air yards or less. The Chiefs’ offense, on the other hand, has the 10th-highest YAC/REC on those passes. This is a strength-on-strength matchup that the Chiefs will need to win if they hope to three-peat on Sunday.
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Carter: The Eagles have a great shot of knocking off the Chiefs if AJ Brown continues dominating against man coverage looks, the way he has throughout the past two seasons. The Chiefs, I think, will sell out to stop Saquon Barkley and see if Jalen Hurts is up to the task. Hurts could (should) target Brown heavily in such a scenario, and Brown — who topped the league in yards per route against man coverage schemes in 2024 — could make Kansas City pay.
Dvorchak: The Eagles need to defend the short area perfectly. They have done so all year, but no one executes those throws better than Mahomes and the Chiefs. If Philly can shut down KC’s quick-passing game, they can neutralize Mahomes.
Jackson: If they don’t get tricked out of leaving who they came to the prom with, and that’s mostly Saquon Barkley. I’m not one of these ignorant folks who thinks Jalen Hurts is incapable of throwing the ball at a high level, but Barkley was the best player in the NFL this season behind Lamar Jackson. Don’t get scared away from the run game. In the passing game, I expect the Eagles to take what the defense gives them. For the Eagles on defense, you’ve got to find a way to get Mahomes off his mark; it’s a simple answer but not a simple task.
Daugherty: If the Chiefs’ run defense falls apart. Kansas City has been uneven on the ground but highly adaptable. If it ends up Sunday they don’t actually have the horses, they’re going to have to commit too many extra resources up front, and then A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith can start soul reaving down the field. Steve Spagnuolo has had an answer for almost everything, but it would be difficult to come up with a solution for that.
Krueger: Saquon Barkley does “Saquon Barkley” things. Jalen Hurts is unfairly criticized as a passer, but look no further than the man who rushed for 2,005 yards and scored 15 touchdowns as the primary reason the Eagles are where they are. Having an elite run-blocking unit and a top-five defense also helps. The Eagles are unlikely to win the coaching battle, but Barkley can make life easier for Nick Sirianni and the offense by keeping the offense on schedule and breaking off one or two of his signature long runs. This would force the Chiefs into a more aggressive style of play, which could play into Philly’s hand.
Carter: Because Mahomes lost to Tom Brady in the Super Bowl, he can never really be the greatest quarterback of a
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