Eagles vs. Chiefs: 3 Super Bowl matchups to watch

For several minutes, Jalen Hurts celebrated alone on Sunday evening in the Eagles locker room. After the 24-year-old quarterback directed them to a 31-7 victory over the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game, Hurts soaked in the winning feeling from the privacy of his locker stall at Lincoln Financial Field. He sported a crisp, all-purple outfit, a pair of black shades, a couple of large diamond pendants, and a victory cigar in hand.

“We put a lot of work in to have this opportunity, and to be here, it’s a moment we want to enjoy as a team,” Hurts said. “We’re reflecting on everything we’ve overcome to have this opportunity right in front of us and we want to take advantage of it. The atmosphere here tonight was amazing. The fans showed up with the energy and we need to bring that to Arizona.”

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Next stop for Hurts and the Eagles: Super Bowl LVII vs. the Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 12 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.

Let’s highlight a few key matchups ahead of the showdown in the desert.

Playing quarterback, perhaps the most glorified and scrutinized position in all of sports, Hurts and Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes will present no shortage of story lines. They will become the first Black quarterback duo to start in a Super Bowl. Mahomes has risen to the top of the league, while Hurts showed impressive strides in his second season as the Eagles’ starter. Both quarterbacks are finalists for NFL MVP. If it wasn’t for Hurts’ two-game absence toward the end of the regular season, he might have had a stronger case against Mahomes, already a two-time MVP winner.

Mahomes will be the most talented quarterback the Eagles have faced all season. He’s capable of making every single throw from virtually every single angle. He’s a dynamic threat and one of the league’s best improvisers under former Eagles coach Andy Reid. It’s worth noting that Mahomes is dealing with a lingering high ankle sprain, but like all Super Bowl contestants, he’ll benefit from an extra week of rest leading up to the game.

Mahomes’ top pass-catchers include tight end Travis Kelce (1,338 receiving yards, 12 touchdowns), wide receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster (933 yards, three touchdowns) and Marquez Valdes-Scantling (687 yards, two touchdowns), and running back Jerick McKinnon (512 yards, nine touchdowns).

Hurts also is dealing with aftereffects from his own injury to his throwing shoulder. It apparently hasn’t nagged Hurts as a thrower — he attempted several deep shots during the NFC title game — but he has repeatedly acknowledged he isn’t 100%. Not many players are fully healthy this late in the season. But it’s clear that both quarterbacks will welcome the next 13 days as they continue their rehabs and begin their preparations for the biggest game of the season.

Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland has never backed down from any challenge. And he has proved to be arguably the best guru in the trenches. He consistently churns out quality linemen and gets the best out of his players. Stoutland, undoubtedly, will need to have his players ready for Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones.

Jones is capable of wrecking a game at any moment. He leads all defensive tackles in pass rush win rate (21.5%), according to ESPN, and he finished the regular season with 15½ sacks, which ranked fourth in the NFL. The most impressive part? Jones was double-teamed at a league-high 69.2% rate of his pass rush attempts.

Luckily for the Eagles, they boast the manpower and talent to keep Jones in check. It’ll be a tall task, but the Eagles’ O-line has repeatedly been able to silence some of the league’s very best pass rushers (see: Leonard Williams, Micah Parsons, Nick Bosa). Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo isn’t afraid of lining up Jones at different spots across the line, so it’ll be up to Hurts and Eagles center Jason Kelce to identify and address Jones before every snap.

Already a proven winner at the collegiate level, Eagles receiver DeVonta Smith now gets an opportunity to excel in the biggest game of them all.

With three rookies, the Chiefs are extremely young at cornerback. Their lone veteran, L’Jarius Sneed, entered the concussion protocol during the AFC championship game. His status remains unknown. That leaves Jaylen Watson and Trent McDuffie as Kansas City’s de facto options against A.J. Brown and Smith. The Eagles haven’t relied much on their passing attack over the last month, but Brown and Smith are proven game-changers who can create explosive plays. Watson has recorded interceptions in both of the Chiefs’ playoff games against Trevor Lawrence and Joe Burrow. But Hurts (just six interceptions) has been mighty cautious with the football this season.

If the Chiefs elect to pay more attention to Brown, that could pave the way for a memorable game for Smith, a two-time College Football Playoff championship winner. During Smith’s freshman season at Alabama, he hauled in a 41-yard touchdown reception. During his final collegiate appearance in the 2020 national championship, Smith was named MVP after he recorded a title game-record 12 receptions, 215 yards and three touchdowns ... all in the first half.

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The Eagles typically prioritize their offensive game plan through two waves: No. 1, relying on their offensive line and running game; and No. 2, feeding their top three targets: Brown, Smith, and tight end Dallas Goedert. Based on his history in title games under the brightest lights, Smith’s Super Bowl debut will be must-watch programming.