Philadelphia Eagles
Super Recap
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The 2022 NFL season has concluded. Kansas City beat Philadelphia 38 – 35 in Super Bowl LVII. It was the third-most-watched television show in history, with an estimated 113 million people watching, according to preliminary numbers released Monday.
The 2015 game between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks on NBC holds the record at 114,442,000 viewers (not including streaming), followed by Super Bowl LI in 2017 on Fox between Atlanta and New England (113,668,000).
Rihanna’s halftime show averaged 118.7 million viewers, making it the second-most-watched show in Super Bowl history. Katy Perry’s 2015 performance holds the top mark at 121 million.
The Eagles scored a touchdown on their opening possession. The Chiefs responded on their first possession with a touchdown as well. Travis Kelce caught an 18-yard score from Patrick Mahomes.
Kansas City missed a 42-yard field goal on their second possession. Philly made them pay on the next drive. Jalen Hurts threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Brown.
The momentum shifted on the next drive when Hurts fumbled, and Nick Bolton recovered the ball and scored a 36-yard TD. Bolton also lead the team with 9 tackles.
Philadelphia scored a touchdown and field goal on the next two possessions of the first half. They had a 24 – 14 lead going into halftime. Mahomes was tackled toward the end of the first half and he tweaked his high ankle sprain.
KC outcoached the Eagles after halftime and the second half was completely different. They scored three touchdowns and a field goal.
Mahomes was 21/27 for 182 yards, 3 scores, 0 interceptions and he was not sacked. He also ran 6 times for 44 yards. He was named the Super Bowl MVP.
The Eagles led the league for the most sacks with 70 in the regular season so it’s surprising they could not record one in the Super Bowl.
Kelce had 6 catches for 81 yards and a score. JuJu Smith-Schuster had 7 receptions for 53 yards. Isiah Pacheco had 15 carries, 76 yards and a touchdown.
Hurts was 27/38, 304 yards, 1 TD and no 0 interceptions. He also led the team in rushing with 15 carries, 70 yards and 3 touchdowns.
“I thought guys just embraced the moment,” Mahomes said about rallying from a 10-point halftime deficit. “In that first half, we were playing and doing some good stuff, but I felt like the guys were getting consumed by everything around us.”
Coach Andy Reid, who couldn’t win the big game in Philadelphia, beat his former team to earn his second ring with Mahomes and the Chiefs.
“We wanted to get this so bad for him,” Tracis Kelce said. “His legacy in Philly lives on forever. … There’s a lot of pride in knowing that he’s had success in two different organizations, but this was the better one.”
The Chiefs won their second Super Bowl following the 2019 season, 50 years after the first one. Mahomes led them back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter against San Francisco in that one. It took just three years to get another Lombardi.
Mahomes is the best quarterback in the NFL and he’s now adding to his resume as an all-time great. The Chiefs played the third most rookies in 2022. Only Chicago and Houston played more rookies and they have the top two picks in the NFL draft.
KC has reached at least the AFC Championship game in the five seasons that Mahomes started. That has to be the expectation going into the 2023 season.
Super Preview
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Super Bowl LVII is this weekend and it features a matchup of two top seeds. The Kansas City Chiefs (16 – 3) and Philadelphia Eagles (16 – 3) both dominated this season.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid coached the Eagles from 1999 to 2012. In Philadelphia he had a reputation of not being able to win the big game. He coached the Eagles to five NFC Championship games, only winning one. They lost Super Bowl XXXIX to New England.
He became the head ball coach in KC in 2013 and won Super Bowl LIV. They played Tampa Bay the following year in Super Bowl LV and got blown out.
For quarterback Patrick Mahomes, this will help define his legacy. Based on talent he’s an elite QB but he is judged on championships. If the Chiefs win this will be his second Super Bowl win. That will give him more SB wins than Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, Steve Young and Kurt Warner.
This will be the first Super Bowl matchup that features two black starting quarterbacks.
“To be on the world stage and have two Black quarterbacks start in the Super Bowl, I think it’s special, and I’ve learned more and more about the history of the Black quarterback since I’ve been in this league,” Mahomes said. “The guys that came before me and Jalen set the stage for this, and now, I’m just glad that we can kind of set the stage for guys that are kids that are coming up now.”
“I think it’s history,” Jalen Hurts said in Philadelphia. “I think it’s something worthy of being noted. It’s come a long way. I think there’s only been seven African American quarterbacks to play in the Super Bowl. To be the first in something is pretty cool, so I know it will be a good one.”
Mahomes led the league in passing yards (5,250) and passing scores (41).
The game also features the first time two brothers will face off. Tight end Travis Kelce (KC) and center Jason Kelce (Phi) are both Pro Bowlers. Travis was third in the league in receiving yards (1,338) and he had 12 touchdown receptions. It’s safe to say he’s the focal point of the offense.
Philly has the #2 total defense in the NFL, only giving up 20.2 points per game and 301.5 yards per game. They also led the league in sacks with 70 during the regular season. They primarily did that with just their defensive linemen.
Kansas City was second in the league in sacks with 55. They rank 11th in total defense with 21.7 ppg and 328.2 ypg.
The Chiefs had the top offense in the league and Philadelphia is ranked third.
Running back Miles Sanders is an underrated threat. He was fifth in rushing with 1,269 yards and 11 TD’s. Hurts is a true dual threat quarterback, rushing for 760 yards and 13 touchdowns. He was also tenth in passing yards (3,701), 22 TD’s and 6 picks.
The Eagles feature two elite wide receivers is A.J. Brown (1,496 yards) and DeVonta Smith (1,196 yards).
I think this will be a very close and exciting game. I give the slight edge to the Chiefs.
Jason Bishop Show w Kipp Branch February 4
Foles Flying To Jacksonville?
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
As we embark on Super Bowl weekend, I think back to just one calendar year ago when the Jacksonville Jaguars got “Bradyed” just like the Kansas City Chiefs did two short weeks ago.
Everyone was talking about how close Jacksonville was to being an elite team and many, including this writer picked them to go to the Super Bowl this past season. Unlike Jason Bishop this writer owns up to his bogus predictions.
After that playoff run the Jaguars gave Blake Bortles a contract extension through 2020, and banked their future on continuity with Bortles, instead of making an upgrade at the QB position at the time.
That move was a disaster as the Jaguars finished in last place in the AFC South. It got so bad the Jaguars benched Bortles at the end of miserable 5-11 season. Now, it appears almost certain that the Jaguars and Bortles will part ways.
Where do the Jags go at the QB position in 2019? There are rumors that Jacksonville is in talks with Philadelphia to acquire Nick Foles.
The Eagles confirmed that Carson Wentz will be the starting QB once he returns from the back issues he suffered in 2018.
Where does that leave Nick Foles? Apparently as a back-up in Philly, unless the Eagles make a trade. Foles makes perfect sense for the Jaguars. Foles is an instant upgrade at the position for Jacksonville and with the pieces in place already on defense the Jags become a playoff contender again in 2019.
Bringing in Foles could allow the Jaguars to draft a future QB like Drew Lock in the first round and have him learn and develop under a seasoned veteran like Foles. With Foles the team could win now and also be a bridge to the future until the future is ready. That proposition is a win-win for Jacksonville moving forward.
If you watched the Eagles last season you know that Foles was the best performing QB on that roster. Yes, we all know Wentz is the future in Philly, but Foles just has an “it” factor when he is inserted into a football game.
He started five games down the stretch for the Eagles, got them into the playoffs, beat the Bears on the road, and gave the Saints fits in the divisional playoff game. FYI, in case you forgot, Foles was the MVP of Super Bowl LII, as the Eagles upset the Patriots to win Philadelphia’s first Super Bowl.
What would the Jags have to give up to land Foles? Many are speculating that Leonard Fournette could be part of a deal to land Foles. Fournette appears to be on shaky ground in Jacksonville.
Fournette had an injury plagued 2018 season and some of his sideline antics appear to make him expendable at this time. Time will tell on how it will play out. The Eagles need help at running back.
One thing is for sure, if the Jaguars want to be a playoff team in 2019, they need to seriously address the QB position. Yes, I’m stating the obvious, but the obvious has been the obvious for three seasons now. The Jacksonville Jaguars need a playoff quality quarterback.
Make a deal Jags and bring in Nick Foles and trade Fournette if you have to. You can find a quality running back in this year’s draft. The NFL is a QB driven league.
Super Bowl Preview
By: JJ Lanier
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
There’s a line in “Spaceballs” where Rick Moranis’ character, Dark Helmet, says “So, Lone Star, now you see that evil will always triumph because good is dumb.”
As soon as New England defeated Jacksonville, cementing a spot in their 8th Super Bowl over the past 16 years, that was the first thing that popped into my head.
Of course, after Philadelphia completely manhandled Minnesota, I suddenly had that part of movie playing in my head on a loop. (Good lord, I hope the commercials will be enjoyable).
That being said, allow me to be one of approximately 7,385 articles you’ll read on Super Bowl LII.
There will be fair number of juicy stories, mainly coming from the Patriots side. (Did Tom Brady finally win Patriot of the Week?!?!?)
You’ll get your share of “experts” over analyzing every last detail, down to the Eagles conversion rate on 3rd and 3, during their 1st possession of the 2nd quarter.
To me, it’s all going to come down to how Philadelphia performs. I know that sounds kind of basic, but let me explain.
You pretty much know what you’re going to get from New England, for the most part. Their defense will give up a fair amount of yardage, but will tighten up in the red zone. Besides the two drives Jacksonville had at the beginning of the game, they were only able to score 2 fields goals.
Offensively, Tom Brady will do what Tom Brady does in the Super Bowl, basically he’ll throw for 300 yards and 3 touchdowns.
You can almost count on all those things taking place.
So, the question is what will we get from Philadelphia? In regards to this, there are two specific things I’m curious to see.
The first, revolves around Philly’s defense. The Eagles are known for being opportunistic on the defensive side and that hasn’t changed over the past few years.
As great as Tom Brady is, and has been in Super Bowl games, he does take chances that Philadelphia should be able to take advantage of. As someone who had their defense in his fantasy league, when they get an interception they are looking to score. More often than most, they find the end zone.
Don’t get me wrong, Brady will take advantage of their aggressiveness; can Philadelphia capitalize on Brady’s mistakes as well?
The next concerns both the Eagles head coach and offensive coordinator, Doug Pederson and Frank Reich, respectively.
You know the Patriots are going to come up with some sort of scheme to slow down Philadelphia’s running game, which has been one of the league’s best throughout the season.
Knowing that, can Pederson and Reich put together a game plan that will ease the comfort level of Nick Foles, so that he’ll be confident to make the throws you know he is going to have to make.
So far in playoffs, they have done a terrific job with this against two defenses in Atlanta and Minnesota, that should have been more dominant than they were.
Philadelphia has an awful lot of talent on that side of the ball and should be able to move the ball with more success than New England’s first two playoff opponents.
When all is said and done, who will walk away victorious? Well, I’ve learned not to bet against New England, so I guess I’ll go with the Patriots.
Then again, I may not even watch the game- it’s been a while since I sat down and watched “Spaceballs”.
