The Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs will face off for the second time in three years to compete for the Vince Lombardi Trophy, awarded to the winner of the Super Bowl. This 59th Super Bowl in NFL history will determine whether the Chiefs will become the first champion of the modern era to achieve a “three-peat” or if the Eagles will claim their second Super Bowl title in franchise history.
Neither team would have made it this far without their star quarterbacks. The quarterback position is the most crucial on the field, and both the Chiefs and Eagles have identified, recruited, and developed elite players to fill this role. Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes have grown under high-level direction and have been tested in battle during the last seasons, leading up to their next confrontation at the New Orleans Caesars Superdome in Louisiana.
Hurts and Mahomes have faced each other three times, including a thrilling comeback victory for Mahomes at Super Bowl LVII at the end of the 2022 season. In those three clashes, Mahomes has thrown for 637 yards and 10 touchdowns against two interceptions, with a 69% pass completion success rate. Hurts, on the other hand, has a 68% pass completion success rate in three games against Mahomes’ Chiefs, with three touchdown passes and one interception.
However, Hurts has a slight advantage over Mahomes in the ground game, particularly when the Eagles execute their famous “push” play in short-yardage situations. Hurts ran for 70 yards and three touchdowns against the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII and added 76 yards and two more touchdowns in their two regular-season clashes. Mahomes has not been as successful against the Eagles’ ground defense, with 108 rushing yards in 17 attempts and no rushing touchdowns against Philadelphia.
Playing behind the Eagles’ elite offensive line, Hurts overcame ball-loss issues that plagued him throughout 2023 and delivered a rebound season for the NFC champions. In the regular season, Hurts achieved the best pass completion rate of his career (68.7%) and registered 32 total touchdowns while the Eagles secured the second position in the NFC.
In three postseason games this January, Hurts threw for three touchdowns without interceptions and added four more touchdowns on the ground. In the NFC title game, Hurts threw for 246 yards and achieved four total touchdowns as the Eagles dominated the Commanders 55-23 to seal their passage to New Orleans.
In Kansas City, Mahomes led the Chiefs to share the best NFL record and continued his streak of winning the AFC West Division in each of his seasons as a starter. After struggling in the first weeks of 2024, Mahomes established a new personal record for pass completion percentage (67.5%) while throwing 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. The three-time Super Bowl champion was not always at his best level in the regular season but achieved five comebacks in the last quarter and seven winning drives, adding to his legend of invincibility when the stakes are highest.
In the playoffs, Mahomes has only lost one ball in the two games he has played. Against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC final, he achieved three total touchdowns (one passing and two rushing) to lead Kansas City to a comeback win, 32-29. The rematch between Hurts and Mahomes is now set.