(Reuters) – Super Bowl LIX will be a rematch of the February 2023 clash between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.
It will take place on Sunday at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, where all eyes will be on the battle between starting quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts.
WHO IS KANSAS CITY CHIEFS QUARTERBACK PATRICK MAHOMES?
With Kansas City on the hunt for an unprecedented third consecutive Super Bowl crown, three-times Super Bowl MVP Mahomes will once again be front and centre, as he has been for all three of the Chiefs’ Super Bowl wins since 2020.
Last year, he threw a touchdown pass to Mecole Hardman in overtime to give the Chiefs a 25-22 win over the San Francisco 49ers.
The year before, the 29-year-old threw two touchdowns in the fourth quarter of the Chiefs’ 38-35 win over the Eagles and put them in position for the game-winning 27-yard kick.
He first wrote himself into the history books in 2020, leading the Chiefs on three touchdown drives in the final six minutes of a 31-20 win over the San Francisco 49ers and at 24 becoming the youngest quarterback to be named Super Bowl MVP.
In recent months, Mahomes’ numbers have perhaps not been as eye-catching as in previous seasons, with the Texan himself admitting in September that he had had a poor start and needed to work on his fundamentals.
Despite that, the Chiefs went 15-2 in the regular season before Mahomes threw for 245 yards and a touchdown against the Buffalo Bills to put them into the Super Bowl for a fifth time in six seasons.
Mahomes is the betting favourite to be named Super Bowl MVP for the fourth time in his career, and a fourth ring would see him move a little closer to seven-times champion Tom Brady in the race for greatest quarterback of all time.
WHO IS PHILADELPHIA EAGLES QUARTERBACK JALEN HURTS?
For Hurts, this Super Bowl represents a shot at redemption.
When the teams met in 2023, it marked the first time two Black quarterbacks had started in the Super Bowl.
Hurts lived up to the occasion and put in an impressive display, throwing for 304 yards and a touchdown as well as rushing for 70 yards and three scores.
However, the game ended on a sour note for the 26-year-old, who made a major flub when the ball slipped out of his hand near midfield and allowed the Chiefs’ Nick Bolton to scoop it up and return for a touchdown.
Asked on Friday about losing his debut Super Bowl, Hurts said: “I can be a good influence on the guys that have not been there before.
“They can ask questions and that can open the door so everyone is that much closer when we go out there and experience. In the end, it’s a business trip and it’s an opportunity that we have … I’ve moved on (from the previous defeat).”
Hurts, who the Eagles took in the second round as the 53rd pick of the 2020 NFL Draft, began his career as back-up to Carson Wentz.
Wentz, who led the Eagles to an NFC East title in 2019, was considered the team’s long-term starter but the next year Hurts, in his rookie campaign, started the final four games of the season and has held the job ever since.
The Houston native has been in fine form heading into the Super Bowl, passing Hall of Famer Steve Young for most career rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in the playoffs, and will have a large part to play if the Eagles are to win their second title this week.
(This story has been refiled to change the headline, no changes to the story)
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Nashik, India; Editing by Frank Pingue and Ken Ferris)
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