THE Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles faced off in a Super Bowl rematch on Sunday, and the Eagles once again won the matchup.
However, this time the game was much closer, with the Eagles just edging out the win 20-17.
The Kansas City Chiefs lost the Super Bowl rematch against the Philadelphia Eagles[/caption]
Many fans are calling out the Eagles for the Tush Push play[/caption]
There were some big swings in the game, including a massive error from Travis Kelce and some deep balls from both Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts.
On top of that, the Eagles went to work with the Tush Push once again, with many fans calling for the play to be banned.
Should the NFL stop the Eagles from running the Tush Push? Did Kelce cost the Chiefs a win?
Those questions and more were answered on the latest episode of The U.S. SunSport’s Football Xs and Os.
KELCE’S TIP DRILL
The Super Bowl rematch was tight for most of the game, but the game really swung in the Eagles’ favor in the fourth quarter.
It was at this time that Philadelphia was leading 13-10, but the Chiefs were in a goal-to-go scenario.
In this spot, Mahomes looked to his favorite target, Kelce, in order to get into the end zone.
Mahomes did his job, however, Kelce was unable to corral the pass, popping it up in the air.
That allowed the ball to float right to Andrew Mukuba who intercepted it and ran it for a decent return.
“If you’re an NFL receiver, especially one of the caliber of Travis Kelce, if the football hits your hands you should catch it,” football expert David Scott said.
That error led to a scoring drive for the Eagles, which eventually sealed the game in their favor.
DEEP BALL DEVONTA SMITH
Soon after the interception came a deep ball from Hurts to DeVonta Smith.
This took the Eagles immediately from their good field position to within the Chiefs’ 10-yard line.
The reality of this play is that it wasn’t a very good throw Hurts, as Smith was wide open for a touchdown.
Hurts underthrew the ball, forcing Smith to put on the brakes and move back for the ball.
He was able to do so, but it stopped him from scoring.
“The defender didn’t think that Smith could track the ball the way he did,” host Ryan Sanudo said.
While Smith didn’t make it into the end zone on this play, the Eagles made quick work of the Chiefs’ defense with a few Tush Push plays to make the score 20-10.
VINTAGE PATRICK MAHOMES
Facing a 10-point deficit, Mahomes and the Chiefs were desperate for a score late in the fourth quarter.
It was this that brought out a vintage moment from the Chiefs quarterback.
With the Eagles in zone coverage, Mahomes saw a wide open Tyquan Thornton down the field and launched a deep ball to the receiver.
This was as easy of a touchdown as they come, but the play design helped open up the zone coverage for Thornton to get open.
It is these kinds of plays that the Chiefs need to run more, as they were the plays that Mahomes was famous for early in his career.
However, the Chiefs offense has strayed away from the deep ball in recent years.
“We saw none of this in the Super Bowl,” Scott said.
“We saw it once in the game against the Eagles this year. This is what the Chiefs need to do, this is how they started their dynasty.
“If they don’t want their dynasty to end, they have to get back to this style of offense.”
MVP QB MATCHUP
The Super Bowl rematch was also a matchup of Super Bowl MVPs, and it was apparent that neither of them lived up to that title.
Both Mahomes and Hurts struggled in the passing game, Hurts especially so, and both team relied on their defenses heavily.
In an odd twist, it was Mahomes who was the better rusher, going for 66 yards and a touchdown on seven attempts.
Hurts managed just 15 yards and a touchdown on nine attempts.
Mahomes had the edge in the passing game too, throwing for 187 yards and a touchdown, but he did have an interception.
Meanwhile, Hurts threw for just 101 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.
TUSH PUSH TERROR
The story of the game was the Tush Push, and there is more attention than ever on the play.
That is mostly due to how poorly it was officiated on Sunday.
In multiple instances, the Eagles either lined up offsides or jumped early on the play, but it was never flagged.
This led to fury among fans, and even NFL rules analysts.
Fox rules analyst Dean Blandino said he is “done with the Tush Push.”
As far as our experts, they say the play is “unfair,” and that it should be banned from the league.
“I think this play has no place in football,” Scott said.
“At this point it is not a football play, and at this point it is such an advantage over another team.”
