Super Bowl 57 Recap

After Sunday night, the 2022 NFL season came to a close. The Kansas City Chiefs ended up on top, edging out the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 in a Super Bowl battle for the ages. Despite its underwhelming ending, Super Bowl 57 will go down as one of the most exciting scoring fests in recent memory. This game featured the ultra-talented and beloved Patrick Mahomes and his Chiefs taking on the up-and-coming dual-threat quarterback Jalen Hurts and his Eagles.

Despite Mahomes and the Chiefs losing All-Pro receiver Tyreek Hill in the off-season, they were able to stay potent on the offensive side of the ball in 2022. Mahomes was able to win his second MVP award, despite an underwhelming cast of receivers. Regardless of still having future Hall of Fame tight end Travis Kelce, their sub-par receiving core featured receivers like Juju Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Kadarius Toney, and Mecole Hardman. Although these players stepped up and made big plays throughout the postseason, like Toney’s huge punt return and receiving touchdown in the Super Bowl, they are incomparable to the likes of Tyreek Hill and other dominant receivers. This makes it all the more mesmerizing to see how Mahomes could take this cast and still win the MVP while propelling his team to the Super Bowl yet again. And what's even more impressive is the fact that he finished the postseason on a bum ankle. On the other side of the ball, the Chiefs defense stepped up big time this season. Defensive tackle Chris Jones was a finalist for defensive player of the year, and the Chiefs defense stepped up on many occasions throughout the post season to help Mahomes and the offense. When you combine this stout defense with the likes of Mahomes and the big play potential on offense, the Chiefs were poised for a Super Bowl run, let alone a second Super Bowl Victory.

The Eagles on the other hand, just got to the prime stage in their reboot. They spent a few seasons after winning Super Bowl 52 as a mediocre team with a past-his-prime Carson Wentz and an aging defense. Howie Roseman then started one of the most impressive reboots in recent NFL memory. He started by drafting Wentz’s eventual replacement in Hurts, and continued to upgrade his arsenal by drafting, trading, and signing a plethora of playmaking studs like A.J. Brown, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Jordan Davis, Landon Dickerson, Kenneth Gainwell, Devonta Smith, Darius Slay, and Haason Reddick over the next couple of seasons. He also kept older veterans like Jason Kelce, Lane Johnson, Fletcher Cox, and Brandon Graham, all of whom were members of that 2017 Eagles Super Bowl team. The Eagles also went from Super Bowl winning head coach Doug Pederson, to their current head coach Nick Sirianni. Although many disliked the move of firing a proven head coach in Pederson, Sirianni has proven himself over the past two seasons, making the postseason both times. The Eagles offense burst onto the scene in 2022 with a ferocious run game led by Jalen Hurts, Miles Sanders, and that enforcing offensive line that includes All-Pro center Jason Kelce, All-Pro tackle Lane Johnson, and the six-foot-eight Australian tackle Jordan Mailata. This stellar offense combined with the league leading defense in sacks were prime for a Super Bowl run in 2022.

When you combine two powerhouse teams like the Chiefs and the Eagles, you are bound to have an amazing game. That is exactly what happened. The game opened up with both teams trading touchdowns on their opening drives. The Eagles then took control with a 14-7 lead and got the ball back in prime position to grab a hold of this game early. However, Jalen Hurts fumbled the ball away and it was picked up and brought back for a touchdown by Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton. Despite this momentum swing, the Eagles were able to continue their offensive dominance, taking a 24-14 lead into the half. The Eagles defense was holding tough, and their offense was marching at will. They continued their trend of being able to control the run game. One couldn't help but be amazed at their QB sneak play. They ran it a handful of times throughout the game, and it was seemingly unstoppable.

(Image via: Adam Bow/Icon Sportswire, Getty Images)

After the half, the third quarter was much of the same. A little back and forth, but the Eagles remained on top 27-21 heading into the fourth and final quarter. This is where the Chiefs took over. It was their turn to march down the field at will. Running back Isiah Pacheco was running wild, and the Chiefs offensive creativity was fooling the Eagles. They would march down the field, and when they got close to the goal line they caught the Eagles on their heels. On both their fourth quarter touchdowns, they ran a return motion and caught the Eagles defensive back biting on the motion both times. These turned into easy completions and touchdowns for Mahomes and the Chiefs. Let's also not forget the amazing punt return that Kadarius Toney had to set up their second fourth quarter touchdown to Skyy Moore. Now as for the Eagles offense, if you didn’t watch the game you may be wondering why the sudden halt of momentum. Well, the Eagles didn’t really lose momentum, they were just unfortunate throughout the fourth quarter. The Chiefs had their fair share of punts and stalled out drives, but those occurred earlier in the game. Unfortunately for the Eagles, they had a couple stalled out drives in the fourth quarter which ended up being costly for them. The whole fourth quarter wasn’t like this however, as the Eagles were still able to muster a fourth quarter touchdown to tie the game late.

After the Eagles scored, Mahomes and the Chiefs had about five minutes left to work with. They marched methodically down the field, with a mix of short passes and tough runs, draining the clock. They eventually came to a 3rd down at the Eagles 15 yard line, and this is when the controversy began. Was it a hold? I am a defensive guy myself, however I must admit it was a hold. Despite how insignificant it may have seemed, that extra second of time where Smith-Schuster could have released quicker on his whip route could have been the difference in him getting to the ball on time. The penalty gave the Chiefs a first down, and the ability to run the clock all the way down before attempting a field goal. The field goal was good, and the Eagles were unable to pull off a miracle.

In the end, the Chiefs big offensive momentum swing in the fourth quarter was just enough for them to squeeze out a tight victory. And although the Eagles came out on the losing end, they should not be embarrassed by their performance, as they put up a great fight and a great show. Many will only remember its controversial ending, however whichever way one looks at it, almost all can agree it was an amazing Super Bowl that definitely didn’t disappoint. Although the commercials were a little underwhelming this year in my opinion.

(Cover Image via: Marcio J. Sanchez, AP)