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For the second time in three years, the Philadelphia Eagles are going to the Super Bowl.
That's right, all the players' hard work paid off, the new coaching staff meshed perfectly, and the depth Howie Roseman assembled proved more than adequate, with reserve players like Fred Johnson, Tyler Steen, Moro Ojomo, Jalyx Hunt, and Oren Burks all playing key snaps for the team. Philadelphia rode an incredible series of performances from their top offensive stars like Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, AJ Brown, and DeVota Smith on offense, while defenders like Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, Nolan Smith, and Zack Baun all stepped up in a major way alongside established stars like Darius Slay, Josh Sweat, and Jalen Carter.
And yet, just like in February of 2023, the Eagles will have to take on one of the best teams fans have seen in recent years, the Kansas City Chiefs, who have won the last two Super Bowls due to the potent trio of Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, and Travis Kelce.
Widely considered the favorite to win it all for the third straight year, it makes sense that some Eagles fans feel rather worried about the final outcome of the 2024 NFL season's grand finale, but should that be the case? While the Chiefs are a darn-good NFL team, having won the most regular season games in franchise history at 15, that doesn't mean the Eagles can't take them down, as they won 14 regular season games, which ties a franchise record, and have the firepower needed to hang with pretty much any team in the NFL.
Will it be easy? No, playing the Chiefs never is, but there is a path for Philadelphia to pull out a win in New Orleans, as they have multiple different ways to give their foes fits in the big game.
1. The Eagles establish the tone on the ground
When it comes to the Eagles in 2024, it's hard to talk about the team for too long without touching on the team's unique ability to run the ball down an opposing team's throat.
Averaging the most rushing attempts and second-most rushing yards in the NFL over the course of the regular season, with 29 rushing touchdowns to put those efforts over the top, the dynamic duo of Saquon Barkley plus Jalen Hurts, plus supplemental runners like Kenenth Gainwell and Will Shipley consistently found ways to get things going on the ground, with Philadelphia averaging an incredible 179 rushing yards per game.
From zone runs between the tackles, to outside zones where offensive linemen become lead blockers in the open field and the team's signature play, the RPO, Jeff Stoutland's offense has powered through the NFL's best-rushing defenses with ease, with only one team, the New York Giants in Week 18, surrendering less than 100 rushing yards on the season.
Who didn't play in that Week 18 contest? Well, Barkley, Hurts, and the majority of the Eagles' top players, for that matter.
In the playoffs, the Eagles have averaged 227 rushing yards per game, which is the best mark in the NFL, and 134.5 more per game than the Chiefs, but that only tells half of the story. No, in the playoffs, the Chiefs are allowing an average of 148 yards per game on the ground, good for an average of 4.85 yards per carry.
Do the Chiefs have some talent in their front seven who could slow down the Eagles' rushing offense? Yes, Chris Jones is still one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL, and the team has defenders like Leo Chenal, Mike Pennel, and George Karlaftis, who all present unique challenges for Stoutland and company. Still, the combination of Philadelphia's offensive line plus Barkley plus Hurts is simply too good to be shut down completely, especially with Brown and Smith waiting in the wings to capitalize on single-coverage opportunities down the sidelines.
2. Vic Fangio dials up a defensive masterclass against Patrick Mahomes
Turning attention to the other side of the ball, it doesn't matter how well the Eagles are running the ball if the Chiefs can counter every punch Nick Sirianni throws at them with their high-powered offense.
While the Chiefs' offense isn't what you would call an elite unit by any means, as they rank 15th league-wide in points, 16th league-wide in yards, and 14th or worse in both passing yards and rushing yards, they do have an elite head coach who can dial-up creative concepts, and two players who will go down as some of the very best to ever play their positions in Mahomes and Kelce.
Fortunately, the Eagles have a darn good collection of defensive players and a defensive coordinator who might just be the best in the NFL in Vic Fangio, who has faced off against Mahomes eight times in his NFL career.
Now, as you may have read from the viral excerpt from Garrett Podell's Chiefs predictions story, Mahomes has had incredible success against Fangio's defense, going “8-0 with an average of 26.9 points per game against Fangio from their AFC West battles as the Denver Broncos head coach (2019-2021) and two matchups when he was the Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator (2023).” But it's been quite some time since a Fangio defense clicked this well, with none of his other units having the best passing defense plus a top-10 rushing defense and 41 sacks over his incredible coaching career.
Goodness, Fangio has never had a top-3 passing defense, let alone the best passing defense in the NFL, and he's doing it with two rookies, an undrafted free agent, and a former reserve edge/special teamer as key parts of his back seven.
Since the bye week, Fangio has kept his guys aggressive, with the Eagles routinely winning the turnover battle due to their ability to keep coverage for multiple seconds and force opposing quarterbacks to think on the fly, which can lead to mistakes considering the level of talent spread across the defense. Factor in the Chiefs' issues across the offensive line, with the team set to start career left guard Joe Thuney at left tackle and 2022 UDFA Mike Caliendo taking his place next to Creed Humphrey, and Fangio might actually be able to play offense against Mahomes and company, instead of having to react to what they bring to the table. Unleash Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith on a shakey left side of the offensive line, and the All-Pro passer may be out of balance for the entirety of the Sunday evening contest.
3. Philadelphia controls the clock and the scoreboard
When it comes to defeating the Chiefs, one thing is clear: you have to control the clock and the scoreboard.
In Super Bowl 57, the Eagles got up to a 10-point lead, only to watch the Chiefs slowly chip away at it until they ultimately left the game with the Lombardi Trophy and bragging rights in the “Andy Reid Bowl.” The Eagles took their foot off the gas when they could have kept driving and ultimately found themselves unable to get back up to speed when they needed to, with the Chiefs scoring on all four of their second-half drives, whereas Philadelphia left the game with just 11 second-half points.
If the Eagles are going to win the Super Bowl, they can't solely try to play the clock and hope a two-score lead is good enough to secure the win: they need to run up the score and never take their proverbial foot off the gas. Fortunately, the Eagles are built around their run game, so in a way, they can have their cake and eat it, too.
