Super Bowl LIX predictions: Experts — and animals — pick winners of Eagles-Chiefs rematch
Opinions are split as the Eagles head into Sunday’s big game as 1.5-point underdogs
Super Bowl LIX will be a rematch of the first Super Bowl meeting between the Eagles and Kansas City in 2023, when the Birds lost 38-35, which started the Chiefs’ quest for a three-peat. This time around, the Eagles are heading into Sunday’s big game as 1.5-point underdogs. Will the Eagles win their second Lombardi Trophy in franchise history? Or will the Chiefs become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls?
This sounds like a job for the experts. They for sure know who should come out victorious on Sunday — maybe.
Inquirer beat writers
First, here’s what our own Eagles beat writers think about the Eagles’ chances this week. Here’s an excerpt from Jeff Neiburg’s prediction …
» READ MORE: Eagles vs. Chiefs predictions: Our writers make their picks for Super Bowl LIX
To read more of Neiburg’s take, plus how our other beat writers are predicting this one, check out our full predictions here.
ESPN analysts
On Thursday, Mike Greenberg and the experts on ESPN’s Get Up picked the Chiefs to win at the Superdome. But all it took was 24 hours for them to change their minds. On Friday morning, Greenberg, Domonique Foxworth, and Jeff Saturday all flipped their picks, shifting from Chiefs red to Eagles green.
“I have picked Kansas City this entire week, and I had a genius I sat beside yesterday who said, ‘You talk all the time about the O-line, the D-line,” Saturday said on Friday’s broadcast, referring to Foxworth. “And you know what? I’m putting my money where my mouth is. I flip my pick — fly, Eagles, fly!”
Greenberg said he had a similar experience. He started the week picking the Chiefs, but every conversation he’s had this week focused on the Eagles’ balanced offense and tough defense. ”While it scared me to death to do it, I’m going to pick the Eagles,” Greenberg said.
Foxworth, who stirred the pot in December after claiming Jalen Hurts benefits from “pretty privilege” due to his good looks, also flipped his pick from the Chiefs to the Eagles after all his colleagues went with the Birds. “So that is a great lesson for all the journalism students who are here,” Greenberg said. “Just pick both sides.”
Another ESPN announcer who may win a few Eagles fans over after making his pick: Joe Buck. He won’t be in the booth Sunday to call the game but he’ll be home watching with his family and rooting for the Birds. His final score prediction: Eagles 28, Chiefs 25.
“I guess only an idiot, and I qualify, would pick against the Chiefs in a close game,” Buck told The Inquirer. “I feel like this is where [Eagles defensive coordinator] Vic Fangio gets it done for the city of Philadelphia.”
One ESPN analyst who isn’t siding with the Eagles is Chris Berman. He has picked the winner in five of the last six years — including the exact margin of victory and the winner the last three years. This year’s prediction: Chiefs 27, Eagles 24.
“I call him [Patrick Mahomes] the “electric eel,” because he will slither for a key third-down run in the biggest moments of the game,” Berman said. “His arm and his ability to find Kelce, or the right receiver at the right time, remains something to behold. I’ve wondered all season whether the Chiefs could carry their quest for three straight Super Bowl titles from start to finish. If so, understand that we might never see this again. I’m a sucker for history — I majored in it at Brown — and I certainly don’t mind seeing it every now and then.”
» READ MORE: The best Eagles Super Bowl hype videos to get you pumped for Sunday
More national media predictions
Here’s what some others around the country think about the Eagles’ chances in Super Bowl LIX …
NFL.com: Seven of 21 panelists for NFL.com picked the Eagles.
CBS Sports: One of eight panelists are backing the Eagles.
Pro Football Talk: Mike Florio is picking the Chiefs and Chris Simms is picking the Eagles.
Sports Illustrated: Two of nine experts picked the Eagles.
The Ringer: Two of seven experts are backing the Eagles.
Local media predictions
Here’s what media in Philadelphia think will happen on Sunday …
Philly Voice: Three of four panelists are backing the Eagles.
Animal predictions
Yes, there is a section for animal predictions. In a world where fans rely on a corgi to pick the NFL wild-card rounds, NBA championship series and World Series outcomes, we must have a section solely dedicated to animals predicting the Super Bowl.
Fiona the hippo from the Cincinnati Zoo picked the Eagles to win in Super Bowl LIX. It’s important to note the last time she picked the Eagles to win the Super Bowl was in 2018 … could she be the good luck charm the Eagles need?
A bear from Rosamond Gifford Zoo also chose the Eagles.
And so did a pack of wolves from the Memphis Zoo.
A rescued sea turtle at SEA LIFE in New Jersey also got in on the action, picking the Chiefs. And, oh yeah, that corgi we mentioned earlier — he’s siding with Fiona the hippo and choosing the Eagles to come out with the win on Sunday.