My Super Bowl breakdown and prediction

All NFL fans are getting ready for the Super Bowl with the NFC and AFC Championships in the rearview mirror. The two teams that will play in the Super Bowl this year are the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles enter the game after a dominant 31-7 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, while the Kansas City Chiefs enter after winning a close 23-20 game over the Cincinnati Bengals.

Courtesy of ESPN

Looking at how each team's defense and offense ranked this year, the Eagles are definitely the favorite to win the Super Bowl. Throughout the regular season, Philadelphia had the eighth-best scoring defense and the third-best scoring offense compared to the Kansas City Chiefs' number one scoring offense and their number sixteen scoring defense. The Eagles have one of the best scoring defenses because they have a pass rush win rate of 52%, meaning they got pressure on the quarterback on over half the pass plays they defended this year. The constant pressure makes it challenging for the quarterbacks to complete passes.

Courtesy of ESPN

Many fans think that with how spectacular the Eagles' defense is, they will be able to shut down the potency of the Chiefs' offense. However, this scenario is all too familiar to the Chiefs, who, in 2021, played a dominant Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense in that year's Super Bowl and got demolished because their offensive line was so injured and depleted. After that Super Bowl, the Chiefs went and rebuilt their offensive line and made it one of the best in the league. In addition to this boosted offensive line, Philadelphia will be facing Patrick Mahomes, one of the best quarterbacks in the league. Another aspect of the game that people are worried about is the high ankle sprain that Patrick Mahomes has been dealing with this postseason. Even though Mahomes has shown that he can tough it out and perform at a high level, the Super Bowl presents a tougher test for that ankle since the Eagles' pass rush is so fierce. This means that Mahomes will likely have to roll or scramble away from pressure when it arrives. However, Andy Reid and Eric Bieniemy's game plan will most likely have Mahomes getting rid of the ball quickly so he does not continue to aggravate the injury.

I do not think this game will be as one-sided as some do. I predict the game will be a close-back and-forth fight, with Mahomes and the Chiefs ultimately prevailing 27-23 in an exciting Super Bowl matchup that will go down to the wire, with the Chiefs scoring in the final minute to win the game.