Super Bowl LVII will take place this Sunday, February 12, with kickoff scheduled for 6:30pm at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The Kansas City Chiefs, led by experienced quarterback Patrick Mahomes, will take on the high-flying Philadelphia Eagles, with both teams seeking to hoist the Lombardi at the end of the night. Here’s how Voice Staffers think the game will go…
Bradshaw Cate: If you told me last off-season that the Chiefs would make the Super Bowl, I would have been skeptical. I am a lifelong Chiefs fan (you can find my name on a brick outside of their stadium), but after losing Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins, it felt like the Chiefs’ window for another Super Bowl was slammed shut. Patrick Mahomes and the front office proved me wrong. Both JuJu Smith-Schuster and Kadarius Toney were amazing pickups that created a new magic in the passing game. Though Clyde Edwards-Helaire being placed on injured reserve midseason should have hobbled the Chiefs’ rushing attack, Jerick McKinnon’s pass catching ability electrified Kansas City’s offense beyond any other team. Finally, while Steve Spagnuolo’s defensive unit has been inconsistent, Jalen Hurts will need to soar in order to avoid a menacing pass rush.
I won’t pretend to know as much about Philadelphia as I do the Chiefs. Nick Sirianni has done an incredible job reforming the Eagles, and Hurts has played lights out (though he will still lose MVP to Mahomes). I think experience really will matter in this Super Bowl, especially when the teams the Eagles played to win the NFC are nowhere near as formidable as the Chiefs. If injuries to Kansas City persist, I think Philly has a strong chance to win, but otherwise I am excited to celebrate another Super Bowl after years of Matt Castle.
Finally, my key matchup to watch is if either team brings in one of the Kelce brothers to play against the other, so we can definitively say which one is better.
Final Prediction: Chiefs 27, Eagles 23
Sam Lynch: So, this is it. After a long, grueling five months of competitive play, only two teams remain—the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs. Both teams boast rosters packed with talent and both have championship pedigree, each winning one of the past five Super Bowls. I expect a tense, competitive game as Andy Reid and Nick Sirianni duke it out with their former employers, but what will be the deciding factor? The Eagles have one of the best interior lines in the league on both sides of the ball as well as the offensive firepower to match; Jalen Hurts has put up impressive numbers with talented wideouts AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith at his disposal. I think the Chiefs have a slightly worse roster overall, but with magical MVP-in-waiting QB Patrick Mahomes and future hall of fame TE Travis Kelce on the field, anything is possible.
In the end, injuries will decide this outcome for me. Mahomes has been hobbled by an ankle injury for weeks, and multiple Chiefs receivers are also injured. If they have not fully recovered, the Eagles will take it. Yes, the Chiefs have beaten some tough opposition even with these hindrances, but the Eagles are too complete of a team to beat without a fully healthy squad.
Final Prediction: Eagles 31, Chiefs 27
Andrew Arnold: As one of the Voice’s resident Eagles haters™, I cannot in good conscience choose the Ph*ladelphia E*gles as Super Bowl champions. Do they have the most complete roster top-to-bottom in the NFL? Yes. Do they have elite play in the trenches on both sides of the ball? Also yes. Has Jalen Hurts blossomed into a top 10 quarterback in the league? Yes again. Logic might dictate that I should therefore choose the Eagles. But I … I just … can’t. I was raised to despise everything Philadelphia sports-related. There’s something innate within me that will not allow me to pick any team from the City of Brotherly Love to win a championship. I have a visceral reaction every time my brain even considers the idea of a Philly team winning it all.
But nevermind my absolute hatred of all things Philadelphia, let’s talk about why it’s not dumb to pick the Chiefs. First and foremost: Patrick Mahomes. What’s left to be said about him? He’s hands-down the most talented football player I have ever seen and you’d be hard-pressed to see me ever bet against this guy. He does have an ankle sprain that might affect his play, but with the extra week off before the Super Bowl, I’m confident that he’ll be fully back to speed for the big game. Mahomes was the best quarterback in this year in EPA per dropback both when he was blitzed (0.31 EPA per dropback, according to TruMedia) and when he wasn’t blitzed (0.25 EPA per dropback). While Mahomes will be under a lot of duress with an Eagles front seven that led the league in sacks this year, the Kansas City offensive line—led by pro-bowlers Creed Humphrey, Joe Thuney, and Orlando Brown Jr.—are as capable as any line to slow down the Philly d-line.
I am concerned about the Kansas City defense matched up against the diverse, multi-faceted Eagles offense, but you know what? I’m choosing to ignore that matchup.
Final Prediction: Chiefs 34, Eagles 27
Henry Skarecky: America watched with horror early in this year’s divisional round game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Jacksonville Jaguars as Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a leg injury, which sparked fears of him missing the rest of the postseason. After being diagnosed with a high ankle sprain and missing just one drive, Mahomes went back into the game, and on one good leg shocked the world with magical wins over both the Jaguars and Bengals, securing a ticket to the championship game. The message was clear: Never doubt Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.
The Eagles, on the other hand, have not needed to rely on magic this year. Jalen Hurts stands at the helm of a team which has looked unstoppable against many of their opponents this season—but it’s no secret that their path through the NFC was not the most challenging, with dominant postseason wins against the Giants and the 49ers (the latter of which played most of the NFC Championship without a healthy quarterback). The Eagles have yet to be challenged this postseason. Sunday’s game will certainly be the challenge America has been waiting for.
In the end, I’m choosing Mahomes’ magic. After two weeks of practice and time to heal his ankle, Mahomes and the Chiefs will be more than ready to take on an Eagles team which has looked stellar on both sides of the ball so far this season. Look for the Chiefs to win a close one and for Mahomes to secure his second of many Super Bowl MVPs to come.
Final Prediction: Chiefs 30, Eagles 28
Maanasi Chintamani: Let’s be real: The majority of fans tuning into this year’s Super Bowl will be neither Philadelphia Eagles fans nor Kansas City Chiefs fans, but rather members of the Rihanna Navy, eagerly anticipating the singer’s return to music after a multi-year hiatus. But halftime show aside, the game is shaping up to be an exciting one. This year’s matchup boasts several much-talked-about—but nevertheless fascinating—storylines, like the square-off between the Kelce brothers and the historic showdown of Black starting quarterbacks. The game will be close, but I expect the Eagles to prevail in the end.
Throughout the season, Philly’s offense has centered around the run game, with the team averaging over 150 yards on the ground per game. During the NFC Championship, the Birds scored their 38th rushing touchdown, breaking the single-season record. The Chiefs will need to contain the Eagles’ lethal trio of running backs— Miles Sanders, Kenneth Gainwell, and Boston Scott—in addition to quarterback Jalen Hurts, who set the record for the most rushing touchdowns in a season by a quarterback two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs offense, with a potentially still-injured Patrick Mahomes at the helm, will have to contend with the Eagles’ formidable pass rush. So far, the Eagles defense has logged 78 sacks—third place all time—and an unprecedented four players have over 10 sacks on the season (Hasson Reddick, Josh Sweat, Javon Hargrave, and Brandon Graham). Even if the Eagles are able to put pressure on Chiefs quarterback Mahomes, though, Kansas City has capable weapons of its own, like tight end Travis Kelce and the team’s speedy—but banged-up—wide receiving corps.
The game is unlikely to be a runaway, but Philly will manage to eke out a tight win.
Final Prediction: Eagles 27, Chiefs 24.
(Oh, and one final thought about the halftime show: Maybe this is just wishful thinking, but my money’s on a Drake cameo.)
