For the second time in four years, the Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl champions. The Chiefs, led by star quarterback Patrick Mahomes, defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 in Glendale, Arizona, on Sunday. Harrison Butker kicked a 27-yard field goal with eight seconds left to all but cinch the victory. Things looked bleak for the Chiefs at halftime, as they trailed 24-14 and Mahomes appeared to aggravate an ankle injury. But Mahomes came back strong in the second half, and the Chiefs' offense — the best in the NFL this season — delivered down the stretch. Mahomes, who threw for three touchdowns and 182 yards, was named the game's Most Valuable Player. He was also named the league's MVP on Thursday.
Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs needed to overcome a 10-point deficit to win Super Bowl 54 back in 2021, so they weren't intimidated when they faced the same deficit in Arizona on Sunday night. Kansas City found a new gear in the second half, coming away with points on each of their drives to outlast the Eagles and capture their second championship in four years.
Kansas City went up 35-27 after a historic punt return by Kadarius Toney set up a Skyy Moore walk-in touchdown, but Philadelphia quickly answered. Jalen Hurts found DeVonta Smith for a game-changing catch and quickly took it in himself to tie the game. The Eagles left 5:15 on the clock, and the Chiefs used all but eight seconds of it to take the lead. Kansas City methodically moved down the field and into field goal range. Just when the Eagles had a glimmer of hope and appeared to force a field goal with plenty of time left, a defensive holding penalty came in on James Bradberry and allowed Kansas City to run the clock all the way down to eight seconds. Harrison Butker drilled a 27-yard field goal, Hurts' Hail Mary throw came up well short, and the Chiefs walked off the field as champions once again.
The 27-year-old Mahomes became the third player to win his second NFL MVP award before age 28. He also became the youngest QB to start three Super Bowls. Then, Mahomes became the first player to win the Super Bowl the same season he was MVP after nine straight players lost. Just five years after winning the first Super Bowl in franchise history, the Eagles (16-4) came close with a different coach and new quarterback. Nick Sirianni replaced Doug Pederson in 2021 and Hurts took over for Carson Wentz in late 2020. Hurts set a Super Bowl record with 70 yards rushing and tied a record with three rushing scores. He also threw for 304 yards and one TD. The Eagles marched 75 yards down the field with Hurts scoring from the 1 for a 7-0 lead, and controlled the ball for almost 22 minutes in the first half. Hurts, who missed two games late in the season with a shoulder injury, had no trouble throwing a perfect deep ball to A.J. Brown, giving the Eagles a 14-7 lead with a 45-yard connection on the first play of the second quarter. But Hurts then made a rare mistake on the next drive when he fumbled without being hit while scrambling away from pressure. Nick Bolton picked it up and raced 36 yards for a score that made it 14-14. Hurts had just eight turnovers this season, six picks and two fumbles. Undeterred, Hurts kept running.
It was a somewhat anticlimactic ending to an otherwise thrilling game, one that will add fuel to the fire for anyone critical of officiating in the NFL. No one will be thinking about that in Kansas City this week when two-time champions Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid take the Lombardi Trophy for a stroll through the city on Wednesday for their victory parade. When the NFL picks up where it left off in September, 31 teams will again have their sights set on knocking off the two-time Super Bowl MVP. The Sporting News tracked live scoring updates and highlights from Super Bowl 57 between the Chiefs and Eagles. Check out all of the key moments you might have missed from the NFL season finale.
With the score tied at 35-35, the Eagles tried to let the Chiefs score a touchdown with under two minutes left so they could get the ball back after a defensive holding call on cornerback James Bradberry on third-and-8 gave Kansas City a first down. But Jerick McKinnon slid at the 2, forcing the Eagles to use their last timeout.
“We wanted to get this so bad for him,” Travis Kelce said. “His legacy in Philly lives on forever. I know that city loves him. I know that the organization loves him. But ever since he’s been here in Kansas City — I’ve seen it firsthand — he poured his heart and his mind and his soul into this organization, into this team and led a group of men. … There’s a lot of pride in knowing that he’s had success in two different organizations, but this was the better one.”
