Super Bowl LIX Tale of the Tape: How do Eagles, Chiefs compare?
The Super Bowl rematch between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs is set for Sunday, Feb. 9 in New Orleans. The AFC champions are seeking a historic three-peat with their main cornerstones, but the NFC side made big roster changes since losing to K.C. two years ago.
Here's how the Eagles and Chiefs stack up against each other at every position ahead of Super Bowl LIX.
Quarterback
There's a big gap between Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts. Granted, we didn't see the Chiefs star's best in 2024, and his 26 touchdown passes tied a career season low. However, the three-time Super Bowl MVP continues to step up when it matters most. He led the NFL with seven game-winning drives this season and has been very effective in the playoffs, accounting for four TDs with no interceptions. In the AFC title game, Mahomes set a season high in dropback EPA and success rate, according to Next Gen Stats. He remains the perfect QB for Andy Reidy's offense.
Hurts is also the right guy for the Eagles. He may not make off-script plays like Mahomes, but Hurts' rushing ability has made Philly nearly unstoppable. Hurts does have limitations as a passer, but he's taken great care of the football. Philadelphia hasn't lost a game in which Hurts started and finished since September.
Mahomes (288) and Hurts (209) haven't been intercepted in their last 497 pass attempts combined. When they met in the Super Bowl two years ago, fans saw a great battle. Hurts had one of the best performances ever for a losing QB, while Mahomes added to his legend with another game-winning drive. There's only one right answer when it comes to which QB you'd rather start in a Super Bowl.
Advantage: Chiefs
Running backs
The Eagles run away with this one.
The Chiefs have done a good job getting the most out of their backs, but the rushing attack isn't one of their main strengths. Pacheco missed nine regular-season games due to injury and hasn't been as explosive since returning. Hunt joined after Pacheco went down and showed he had some game left, but he's not an elite running back anymore.
Meanwhile, Barkley's campaign may be the greatest rushing season in NFL history. The 27-year-old became only the ninth player to rush for 2,000 yards in a regular season and was just 101 yards shy of Eric Dickerson's record of 2,105 before the Eagles opted to rest their starters in their final game. Playoff Barkley has been just as unstoppable, rushing for 442 yards (6.7 per carry) and five touchdowns in three games.
Philly scored seven (!) rushing TDs in the NFC title game, as Hurts and Barkley had three each and Shipley also found the end zone.
Advantage: Eagles
Receivers
Kelce, 35, remains the Chiefs' leading pass-catcher. He topped the team with 823 receiving yards in the regular season and had 117 yards in the divisional round. He was quieter in the AFC title game, but rookie receiver Worthy stepped up with six catches for 85 yards and one touchdown. Hopkins and Brown have been limited to four receptions combined in the last two games. Ahead of his first Super Bowl, Hopkins is on his fourth team in his 12th NFL season after landing with the Chiefs following Rashee Rice's season-ending injury. Mecole Hardman, who scored a walk-off TD to win Super Bowl LVIII over the San Francisco 49ers, is also on injured reserve.
Brown, Smith, and Goedert have each recorded at least 120 receiving yards in the playoffs, giving Hurts excellent weapons in the passing game. Dotson, acquired in August to solve Philly's WR depth issues, has had very limited impact, though he scored a touchdown in the wild-card round.
The Chiefs have seen at least one pass-catcher step up when it matters most after an inconsistent regular season, but few teams - if any - have a better WR-WR-TE combination than Brown-Smith-Goedert.
Advantage: Eagles
Offensive line
Philadelphia and Kansas City have strong offensive lines, but they each have questions leading into the Super Bowl.
Injuries were a concern for the Eagles last week, as Jurgens - now the starting center after Jason Kelce's retirement - didn't start the NFC Championship Game due to a back issue, which forced Dickerson to play center and Tyler Steen to start at left guard. However, Dickerson injured his knee and Jurgens entered the game after all. The expectation is they'll both be available Sunday with an extra week to recover. Philly's O-line still features Mailata and Johnson - two of the best at their positions - and Becton, whose redemption story continues. The 2020 No. 11 pick has been solid for the Eagles' strong group of blockers after signing a one-year deal and moving from tackle to guard.
The Chiefs don't have injury concerns, but Reid has a decision to make about Thuney. We expect the star lineman to remain at left tackle after standing out in his last five starts, even though Thuney won multiple Super Bowls with the New England Patriots and Chiefs at guard. Kansas City only needed his help at LT after veteran D.J. Humphries and rookie Kingsley Suamataia struggled to stay healthy and hold their own while protecting Mahomes' blind side. Could K.C. move Thuney back to LG over the inexperienced Caliendo to face Philly's disruptive defensive tackles? With Thuney, Humphrey, and Smith, the Chiefs have the NFL's best trio of interior linemen (and a concern at left tackle still).
Advantage: Eagles
Front seven
Both front sevens head into the Big Game with momentum.
You should be familiar with Jones, Karlaftis, and Bolton by now. Jones and Karlaftis are Kansas City's most disruptive defenders, and Bolton - also a leader of this unit - scored a TD in the first Super Bowl versus the Eagles on a fumble return. This group helped K.C. finish the season with the sixth-most pressures. The Chiefs also roster linemen Charles Omenihu, Tershawn Wharton, and Felix Anudike-Uzomah, which shows how deep this defensive front is. Wharton's recorded one sack in each playoff game this year while Omenihu and Anudike-Uzomah each rank second on the team with two tackles for loss.
The Eagles' front seven looks very different compared to two years ago. Carter leads the way and forms a spectacular duo with Davis. Philly also has Baun and Nolan Smith, who's posted four sacks in three games this postseason. Six different Eagles have at least one sack this postseason (Smith, Carter, Davis, Burks, Moro Ojomo, and Jalyx Hunt). Burks has also already forced two fumbles. And don't forget about Sweat, the Eagles' regular-season sacks leader, who's been quieter in the playoffs.
Philly's front seven has been this good despite not having linebacker Nakobe Dean due to a season-ending injury and pass-rusher Bryce Huff not living up to expecatations as a big offseason acquisition. Finally, could veteran Brandon Graham potentially recover from a November torn triceps injury in time to try to win his second Super Bowl with the team?
Jones may be the NFL's best interior lineman and the Chiefs' front seven deserves credit for what they've done in recent years. However, the Eagles may have even more momentum and even more star power at the moment.
Advantage: Eagles
Secondary
This is another battle.
Yes, Kansas City's secondary could use more depth. But McDuffie and Reid are among the best players at their positions. Watson's also looked good in two games since returning from injury after missing most of the season. Other K.C. contributors include Cook, Conner, and Jaden Hicks, who each had multiple regular-season interceptions. Hicks' three picks were a team high.
Philadelphia has even more reasons to be excited about its defensive backs. The club's registered four interceptions this postseason alone, including two by Mitchell after the first-round rookie didn't have any regular-season picks. Mitchell's one of two Defensive Rookie of the Year finalists on this team along with DeJean. Slay, Maddox, Gardner-Johnson, and Blankenship faced the Chiefs two years ago. Slay leads the team in pass breakups this year and Gardner-Johnson and Blankenship combined for 10 INTs.
The Eagles and Chiefs both stood out in pass defense this season. Philly allowed an 82.5 passer rating to opposing QBs - the NFL's third-best mark - while Kansas City's 90.6 rate ranked 12th.
Advantage: Eagles
Special teams
Special teams were a major factor in the first Super Bowl between the Eagles and Chiefs, as Kadarius Toney returned a punt 65 yards to set up a Kansas City TD and Butker kicked the game-winning field goal in the dying seconds. Reid's outfit should feel good about this matchup again.
An injury sidelined Butker for multiple games earlier this season. He did miss a couple of kicks after returning in December but is perfect in the postseason, including 4-for-4 on field-goal attempts.
Remigio has also been solid, averaging 31 yards per kickoff return and 26 yards per punt return in K.C.'s two playoff games. He had a 63-yard return in the divisional round and a 41-yarder in the AFC title game.
Elliott hasn't been reliable all season. He missed eight of his 36 regular-season field-goal attempts to finish with a 77.8% FG percentage. He's missed one field goal and three extra points in the playoffs. Philly's special teams did have a good Shipley return and a forced fumble in the NFC title game, but the unit still gave up a first down on a fake punt.
Advantage: Chiefs
Coaching
The Chiefs are more proof that great coaching is a big part of sports dynasties. Reid, facing his former team in the Big Game again, remains the NFL's finest play-caller. His staff - which includes offensive coordinator Matt Nagy and is headlined by defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo - has done a tremendous job getting the most out of its players and preparing for opponents. The Chiefs have almost never been outcoached in the Reid era and rarely shoot themselves in the foot during games.
Nick Sirianni's no Andy Reid, but the Eagles coach has a 48-20 career record and has now helped the team make a pair of Super Bowls. He was criticized after 2023 but responded by making great staff additions in defensive coordinator Vic Fangio and offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. With Fangio, Philly's EPA/play defense went from ranking 29th in 2023 to third in 2024. Interestingly enough, Fangio signed a two-week deal to help Philadelphia prepare for Kansas City in 2023, when Jonathan Gannon was the DC.
Reid vs. Sirianni will be the fifth head coach rematch in the Super Bowl era. The sideline boss who won the first meeting also took the second matchup on all four previous occasions, including Reid against Kyle Shanahan last year.
Advantage: Chiefs
Final results
Kansas City won arguably the most important categories in our Tale of the Tape - QB and coaching - but Philadelphia takes the head-to-head 5-3 after building one of the league's most well-rounded rosters by adding Barkley, Mitchell, DeJean, and Baun in the offseason. Along with Carter, none of them were on the field when the Eagles lost to K.C. two years ago.