Liam Koch, Contributing Writer
Kansas City is left in tears after a humiliating 40 – 22 loss. The score does not truly represent how one-sided the game was. It took until the last minute of the third quarter for them to finally put points on the board. Until then, Kansas City was shut out, with Philadelphia leading by 34 at the height of its lead. Kansas City attempted to build a comeback, scoring 16 points in the fourth. However, they failed both onside kick attempts, leading to Philadelphia icing the game.
The story of this game was pure defensive dominance by Philadelphia. Their defense held the Patrick Mahomes-led offense to 23 yards in the first half and one first down. This is opposed to the 179 yards and 13 first downs by Jalen Hurts’ offense. Sacks were also one of the major components of this game. Without playing a single blitz, the Philadelphia defensive line combined to sack Mahomes six times. It also took ten drives before the Chiefs were finally able to cross mid-field, the same drive that resulted in their first touchdown.
The most surprising part of this game was ball security. Patrick Mahomes had been perfect after his week 11 loss to the Bills with no interceptions. His ball security was incredible at that time. However, Mahomes threw two interceptions in this game and fumbled once. All three turnovers resulted in points for Philadelphia, two touchdowns, and a field goal. The first interception was caught by Cooper DeJean, a rookie cornerback on his birthday. DeJean returned this interception for a touchdown. And on his next passing attempt, Mahomes threw another interception. While Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts threw one interception, it did not result in any points.
The unsung hero of this game is Jake Elliot, the kicker for Philadelphia. Elliot was coming off a tough postseason where he missed three extra points and one field goal. However, he showed up during the Superbowl, going a perfect 4 – 4 on field goals and 4 – 4 on extra points. One field goal coming at over 50 yards, where Elliot has struggled from going only 1 – 7 in the regular season. In addition, he had to re-kick three times due to penalties, however, he was perfect even on those attempts as well. Overall, he is responsible for 16 of Philadelphia’s points.
However, the number one hero of this game is quarterback Jalen Hurts. Hurts has long been underrated, long been criticized. But, in this game, he played incredible. His final line was 293 total yards, three total touchdowns, and an interception. He earned the Super Bowl MVP award because of this performance. He managed to outrun Saquan Barkley, who was well-contained by Kansas City’s defense. Hurts remained calm during the biggest game of his career against one of the strongest defenses in the NFL.
Philadelphia’s Nick Siriani finally proved himself as one of the strongest head coaches in the league. Siriani has long been one of the most underrated coaches in the NFL with fans and doubters constantly calling for his job. However, with this win, he has silenced many of his critics and cemented himself in the league for years to come.
Overall, while many football fans are dissatisfied with the result, and hoping for a closer, more competitive game, Philadelphia is celebrating a long-deserved win to cap off an incredibly strong season.
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