Jalen Hurts and Eagles dominate Patrick Mahomes and Chiefs to win Super Bowl LIX

NEW ORLEANS — As he stood on a stage shaped like the NFL shield surrounded by falling green, white and silver confetti, Jalen Hurts smiled and licked his lips in humble satisfaction. The Eagles quarterback’s long-awaited moment in the spotlight was delayed, but not denied.

Hurts was named Super Bowl LIX most valuable player after he threw for 221 yards and two touchdowns while completing 17 of 22 passes in the Eagles’ 40-22 rout over the Kansas City Chiefs. He added a Super Bowl quarterback record 72 yards rushing with another score on the ground.

The Eagles’ quarterback was every bit as magnificent as he was three years ago against the Chiefs when he threw for 304 yards and one touchdown on 27-of-38 passing and rushed for 70 more yards with three touchdowns.

NEW ORLEANS — The Kansas City Chiefs wanted a three-peat in the worst way.

They were half-right.

Although they didn’t get an unprecedented third consecutive Lombardi Trophy, they got the “worst way” part down pat.

Seven years after reaching the NFL mountaintop with a down-to-the-wire win, the Philadelphia Eagles left no room for doubt Sunday, bringing Broad Street to Bourbon Street with a 40-22 Super Bowl victory over the two-time defending NFL champions.

Super Bowl LIX may have just ended, but that doesn’t mean it’s too early to start thinking ahead to next year.

Here’s everything we know about the next NFL championship game:

When is Super Bowl LX?

Feb. 8, 2026.

Where will Super Bowl LX be played?

Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, home field of the San Francisco 49ers. It will be the second Super Bowl at that location, following the Denver Broncos’ 24-10 win over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 following the 2015 season, and the third in the Bay Area, after Stanford Stadium hosted Super Bowl XIX (49ers 38, Miami Dolphins 16) following the 1984 season.

It took the Philadelphia Eagles 52 years to win their first Super Bowl.

It didn’t take them nearly as long to win their second, although it did take two tries.

Seven years after the organization’s first Super Bowl championship, the Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX 40-22 on Sunday at the Superdome in New Orleans. It was their second win in five Super Bowl appearances.

🏈 Eagles 40, Chiefs 22 — FINAL

Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles thwarted the Kansas City Chiefs’ quest to become the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowl titles in a victory at Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans.

Hurts completed 17 of 22 passes for 221 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception. The Eagles quarterback also rushed for 72 yards and a touchdown in 11 carries.

With the game out of reach of a Chiefs comeback, Kenny Pickett finished the game at quarterback for the Eagles. Eagles coach Nick Sirianni also got a Gatorade shower in the final minutes.

Xavier Worthy caught a 50-yard touchdown pass from Mahomes with 1:48 left in the fourth quarter. DeAndre Hopkins converted on a two-point conversions pass, but it was too little, too late for the Chiefs.

🏈 Eagles-Chiefs summary

Check out the game summary from the Eagles’ win.

🏈 Eagles 40, Chiefs 14 — 2:54 left in the fourth quarter

Patrick Mahomes connected on a seven-yard touchdown pass to DeAndre Hopkins to cap a 12-play, 75-yard drive. The Chiefs converted on the two-point attempt, with Mahomes finding Justin Watson.

Unfortunately, it’s too little, too late for Mahomes and the Chiefs.

🏈 Eagles 40, Chiefs 6 — 8:01 left in the fourth quarter

Jake Elliott kicked his fourth field goal of the game, putting a 50-yard attempt through the uprights to extend the Eagles’ already sizable lead.

The field goal came after Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams strip sacked Patrick Mahomes and recovered the fumble, giving Philadelphia the ball at the Kansas City 33 (Williams was called for a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the play).

Mahomes has been sacked six times.

🏈 Eagles 37, Chiefs 6 — 9:56 left in the fourth quarter

Jake Elliott kicked a 48-yard field goal to make it four possession game with under 10 minutes left. Elliott has kicked three field goals today.

Jalen Hurts continues to have a standout game for Philadelphia. He fueled the 10-play, 40-yard drive with a 17-yard scramble and an 11-yard pass to Saquon Barkley.

Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones is doubtful to return after sustaining a knee injury.

🏈 Eagles 34, Chiefs 6 — 34 seconds left in the third quarter

The Chiefs finally got on the scoreboard with Patrick Mahomes connecting on a 24-yard touchdown pass to Xavier Worthy. Their ensuing attempt at two points, however, came up short when Mahomes failed to connect with Travis Kelce.

The five-play drive only took 2:06 off the clock, but the Chiefs are clearing running out of time.

🏈 Eagles 34, Chiefs 0 — 2:03 left in the third quarter

Philadelphia wide receiver DeVonta Smith caught a spectacular 46-yard touchdown pass from Jalen Hurts another Eagles touchdown straight off a Chiefs turnover on downs.

Smith broke away from Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson and managed to haul in the pass and hang on while being tackled by Watson in the end zone.

🏈 Eagles 27, Chiefs 0 — 2:47 left in the third quarter

The Philadelphia defense continues to frustrate Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.

Eagles cornerback Avonte Maddox broke up a pass intended for Chiefs receiver DeAndre Hopkins on fourth-and-five to bring another Kansas City possession to a grinding halt.

The Chiefs have just three first downs and 65 total yards. The Eagles took over at the Kansas City 46.

The smile — mirthful, mischievous, utterly without mercy — was when you knew: Kendrick Lamar was enjoying this.

As the headlining act of the halftime show at Sunday’s Super Bowl LIX, the 37-year-old Compton-born rapper spent the first 10 of his 13 minutes on the field of New Orleans’ Caesars Superdome pretending that he wasn’t going to perform “Not Like Us,” the knockout blow from his beef with Drake last year that brought this most proudly cerebral of hip-hop stars to new heights of pop renown.

He played other songs — songs about love and family and a yearning for authenticity — before “Not Like Us.” He enlisted the actor Samuel L. Jackson as a red-white-and-blue-clad Uncle Sam figure warning him against being “too loud, too reckless, too ghetto.” He admitted, “I wanna perform their favorite song, but you know they love to sue,” which was reasonable enough: Although “Not Like Us” topped Billboard’s Hot 100 and last week won Grammy Awards for record and song of the year — a first for a diss track in which the disser describes the dissee as a pedophile — it also spawned an unprecedented federal lawsuit in which Drake accuses both his and Lamar’s record label of defamation.

🏈 Eagles 27, Chiefs 0 — 5:18 left in the third quarter

Philadelphia continued to pile on, with Jake Elliott kicking a 29-yard field goal to cap a 12-play, 69-yard drive.

Jalen Hurts picked up a pair of first downs on runs of 16 and 14 runs, and Saquon Barkley caught a 22-yard pass to set up the field goal.

Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones sustained an apparent leg injury during the Eagles’ drive and was being examined by trainers on the sideline.

🏈 Eagles 24, Chiefs 0 — 12:00 left in the third quarter

On the opening possession of the second half, the Chiefs went nowhere. Philadelphia’s Jordan Davis and Josh Sweat sacked Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes on back-to-back plays, leading to Kansas City’s sixth punt.

The Eagles have sacked Mahomes five times today.

The Philadelphia Eagles lead the Kansas City Chiefs 24-0 midway through Super Bowl LIX.

If Patrick Mahomes is somehow able to lead the Chiefs to victory, it will be the biggest halftime deficit to be overcome in Super Bowl history, breaking a record set eight years ago.

The Atlanta Falcons led the New England Patriots 21-3 at halftime during Super Bowl LI in 2017. No team had ever erased a double-digit halftime deficit to win the Super Bowl.

🏈 Eagles 24, Chiefs 0 — HALFTIME

It was all Eagles in the first half as they capitalized on two Kansas City turnovers and a stifling pass rush to dominate Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.

The Eagles sacked Mahomes three times and Cooper DeJean returned a Mahomes interception 38 yards for a touchdown. Another Mahomes interception led to a Eagles touchdown two plays later.

Mahomes completed just six of 14 passes for 33 yards for a Chiefs team that was held to just one first down and 23 total yards. It hasn’t been all Mahomes’ fault — dropped passes also took a big toll.

Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts completed 11 of 15 passes for 123 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. Philadelphia dominated time of possession (19:59 to 10:01).

The Chiefs have had success stopping the Eagles’ run game, holding Saquon Barkley to 31 yards on 12 carries.

Will we see an epic Chiefs comeback in the second half or will the Eagles go on to win their second title of the Super Bowl era?

🏈 Eagles 24, Chiefs 0 — 1:35 left in the second quarter

A.J. Brown scored on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Jalen Hurts two plays after another Eagles interception to give Philadelphia a commanding lead.

Linebacker Zack Baun intercepted a first-down pass from Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes to give the Eagles the ball at the Chiefs’ 14.

Mahomes has completed just five of 11 passes for 24 yards and has thrown interceptions on back-to-back passes. Kansas City has just 14 total yards (the Eagles have 177).

A popular conspiracy theory has taken root among many non-Kansas City Chiefs football fans this postseason that the NFL and its officials are in cahoots to insure the two-time defending Super Bowl champions become the first three-time defending champions.

A controversial call that ended the first series of Super Bowl LIX between the Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles won’t do anything to quell those theories.

Facing fourth and two from the 50 yard-line, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts appeared to connect with receiver A.J. Brown deep down the right sideline to the Chiefs 18. But Brown was flagged for offensive pass interference after his hand made contact with the facemask of Kansas City defender Trent McDuffie.

🏈 Eagles 17, Chiefs 0 — 7:03 left in the second quarter

Eagles cornerback Cooper DeJean scored on a 38-yard interception return, avoiding multiple tackles just outside the end zone to extend Philadelphia’s lead in the second quarter.

After Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes was sacked on back-to-back plays by Josh Sweat and Jalyx Hunt, he tried to find DeAndre Hopkins in the middle of the field about 15 yards out, but DeJean read the play perfectly.

The Eagles have held the Chiefs to 20 total offensive yards so far.

🏈 Eagles 10, Chiefs 0 — 8:38 left in the second quarter

Jake Elliott kicked a 48-yard field goal to extend Philadelphia’s lead and cap a seven-play, 27-yard drive.

A.J. Brown caught a 22-yard pass from Jalen Hurts to move the Eagles into field-goal range.

The Eagles have dominated time of possession so far (16:24 to Kansas City’s 4:58). The Chiefs have just one first down and the Eagles have 10.

Hurts has completed nine of 11 passes for 104 yards and has rushed for 21 yards and a touchdown in six carries.

🏈 Eagles 7, Chiefs 0 — 13:43 left in the second quarter

Chiefs safety Bryan Cook intercepted an underthrown pass from Jalen Hurts just outside the end zone to squander a chance for Philadelphia to extend its lead.

The pass was intended for A.J. Brown, and Cook made a perfect read and break on the ball after Hurts threw under pressure.

The Chiefs took over at their two-yard line, but went three-and-out. Patrick Mahomes has completed five of nine passes for 24 yards and Kareem Hunt has just one yard on two carries.

🏈 Eagles 7, Chiefs 0 — 6:15 left in the first quarter

Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts scored on a one-yard keeper also known to the world as a “Brotherly Shove” to give the Eagles an early lead.

The touchdown was set up by a 27-yard catch from Jahan Dotson, who broke away from coverage and fell just short of the end zone. The catch was initially ruled a touchdown before overturned on review.

A 20-yard reception by Dallas Goedert and a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on Trent McDuffie for 15 yards fueled the seven-play, 69-yard drive.

Hurts has completed four of four passes for 51 yards and Saquon Barkley has 13 yards in six carries.

Sports

When ‘tush-push’ comes to shove, Eagles are the best so Chiefs aim to avoid play

No one does the quarterback sneak, or so-called “tush push,” better than the Eagles, so the Chiefs defense’s only answer is to avoid short-yardage situations.

Feb. 6, 2025

🏈 Chiefs 0, Eagles 0 — 9:41 left in the first quarter

The Eagles’ first possession sputtered at midfield after wide receiver A.J. Brown was called for offensive pass interference following a 32-yard reception off a fourth-and-two play.

Fox color commentator Tom Brady didn’t agree with the penalty, and the call drew plenty of boos from the fans in the Superdome.

The Chiefs didn’t have much luck on offense, either. After Patrick Mahomes completed an 11-yard pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster, the Chiefs punted four plays later.

The final quarter of the AFC divisional round playoff game between the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs on Jan. 23, 2022, could not have been more exciting.

Three lead changes.

Five scoring drives.

A 36-36 tie at the end of regulation.

The overtime period, however, could not have been more disappointing.

One coin toss.

The Chiefs called tails — and the coin flip was tails. They elected to defer to receive until the second half and will kick off to open the game.

Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs have a chance to make Super Bowl history Sunday.

Nine teams have won back-to-back Super Bowl titles, but no team has won three in a row. In fact, when the Chiefs face the Philadelphia Eagles at Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, the two-time defending champions will be the first team in position to pull off such a feat.

NEW ORLEANS — The story of Super Bowl LIX is in the cards.

And by cards, think of a large sheet of heavy-stock paper loaded with information — player names, numbers, statistics and sometimes annotated trivia — always within reach of the broadcasters calling the game.

They’re called “boards” and they’re usually created from scratch by the play-by-play announcers and color analysts in the days leading up to a game, a meticulously organized study sheet that provides a commentator with detailed information in a pinch.

Fox is broadcasting Sunday’s game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs, and although the network will offer every conceivable camera angle, not one of the more than 100 million viewers will get a clear glimpse of the boards used in the booth by Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady.

NEW ORLEANS — When Trent McDuffie positioned himself near the line of scrimmage on a season-defining fourth and five, Jason Negro had an idea of what his former star could do. It’s what the St. John Bosco alumnus has done for years.

Make the play.

McDuffie’s red No. 22 jersey flashed in the backfield on a perfectly timed blitz in the AFC championship game to send the Kansas City Chiefs to their third consecutive Super Bowl. Any nerves Negro felt from watching one of his former players faded instantly, replaced by euphoria.

Jason Kelce would seem to have a dilemma going into Super Bowl LIX with this year’s game featuring his favorite team facing his favorite player.

The NFC will be represented by the Philadelphia Eagles, the team for which Kelce played all 13 of his NFL seasons before retiring last offseason to become an ESPN analyst.

The AFC will be represented by the Kansas City Chiefs, the team for which Kelce’s brother and podcast co-host, Travis Kelce, has played for the last 12 years.

So what’s a Philadelphia legend who is very close with one of Kansas City’s biggest stars to do?

NEW ORLEANS — The Mannings are the first family of football, especially in this town, and this week has been a big one for Cooper Manning, whose younger brothers Peyton and Eli were star quarterbacks in the NFL.

VIDEO | 00:35

Cooper Manning

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Cooper Manning talks about his last Super Bowl experience in New Orleans in 2013.

Not only did the boys grow up in New Orleans — where their dad, Archie, was quarterback of the Saints — but Cooper got his formal start in comedy here. That was back in 2013, when the city was playing host to the Super Bowl between Baltimore and San Francisco.

That’s when the Dan Patrick Show armed the irreverent Cooper with a microphone and camera crew and had him interview football fans in the French Quarter. The “Manning on the Street” segment was a hit, with Cooper completely at ease with improvisational comedy.

“Doing impulsive, on-camera stunts was always in my comfort zone,” said Manning, 50, who parlayed that experience into “The Cooper Manning Hour (minus 58 minutes)” on Fox’s NFL pregame show.

All three Manning boys were devoted connoisseurs of 1980s comedies — “Stripes,” “Vacation,” “Caddyshack” — and likewise huge fans of David Letterman. In fact, it was Cooper who coached Peyton before his first appearance on “Late Night with David Letterman.”

“I had him ready,” Cooper said. “Peyton killed it with Dave. He and Dave became close forever.”

Cooper, whose day job in hotel and real-estate development keeps him plenty busy, now has a serious rooting interest in football, even though both of his brothers are retired. His son, Arch, is the new starting quarterback at the University of Texas.

“I probably get a little antisocial as the game kicks in,” he said. “I get a little nervous and I’m not really in the mood to jibber-jabber an hour before kickoff. I don’t know how I’ll be. I’m hoping I can be cool and balanced.”

It is, after all, no laughing matter.

Here are the players who will not be suiting up for the Chiefs and Eagles in Super Bowl LIX:

NEW ORLEANS — In his four seasons as the Philadelphia Eagles’ starting quarterback, Jalen Hurts led his team to four playoff appearances and two Super Bowls.

And he’s done it playing under three offensive coordinators.

In a league in which coaches and players endlessly preach about the value of consistency and continuity, Hurts has flourished in the sport’s most important position despite near annual changes.

“Everyone desires that continuity because that consistency definitely does breed something,” Hurts said Wednesday as he continued preparations for Sunday’s Super Bowl against the Kansas City Chiefs. “But there’s also something in having the mentality of turning these situations into a positive. And learning as much as I can, taking in as much knowledge as I can, to be the best player I can be and ultimately lead the team to success.”

NEW ORLEANS — Trent McDuffie can’t remember the year. All he remembers of his first Super Bowl memory was cheering against the New England Patriots.

So when the Patriots lost to the New York Giants, McDuffie relentlessly teased his younger brother, who was rooting for New England. From hoping to see the fall of one football dynasty, the Kansas City Chiefs cornerback is now in position to keep another one going.

Almost two decades after the Patriots established themselves as the dominant NFL force, the Chiefs have become the league’s new evil empire, taking the most-hated torch from the Patriots while trying to accomplish something even the NFL’s greatest dynasty never did.

The Kansas City Chiefs are the new team you love to hate, and that could be fuel for another Super Bowl ratings record.

The defending champions inspire the kind of resentment once reserved for the Dallas Cowboys, from conspiracy theory memes of quarterback Patrick Mahomes exchanging gifts with the referees to online conservatives complaining about screen time given to Travis Kelce’s girlfriend, Taylor Swift.

But emotion drives viewership and could be the ingredient that gives Fox a huge Nielsen number Sunday when the Chiefs try for an unprecedented third consecutive championship against the Philadelphia Eagles at the Superdome in New Orleans.

I’ve long sought a truth as pretty as a Patrick Mahomes scramble.

I’ve instead continually stumbled into a reality as nasty as the tush push.

For exactly a quarter of a century, I’ve grasped and groveled and guessed.

For nearly that entire time, I’ve gagged.

In New Orleans on Sunday it’s Super Bowl LIX between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.

That means it’s time for Super Bowl Prediction Column XXVI, written by the worst Super Bowl predictor in America, this wrong-way hack stumbling through the last quarter-century embarrassing supporters naive enough to back me and richly rewarding those with enough common sense to bet against me.

Tom Brady is widely acknowledged as the greatest quarterback of all time. His knack for performing in the clutch and winning Super Bowls is unparalleled.

His current juggling act might be every bit as difficult.

Brady made his NFL broadcasting debut as an analyst for Fox in September after signing a 10-year, $375-million contract despite being a novice in the booth.

A month later the NFL approved his purchase of a minority ownership stake in the Las Vegas Raiders.

It’s a tiny corner bar in a gritty South Philadelphia neighborhood, a hangout no bigger than the row houses that surround it. A group of maybe 30 locals, some friends for 50 years, gather at Big Charlie’s Saloon every fall Sunday, filling the place to the brim.

Sometimes you wanna go

Where everybody loves your team

Imagine, a Kansas City Chiefs bar in the City of Brotherly Love, where authorities have to grease the light poles to keep jubilant Eagles fans from climbing them — and even that doesn’t work. Yet, even with Philadelphia squaring off against Kansas City in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, the patrons of Big Charlie’s still belly up to the bar in the belly of the beast.

NEW ORLEANS — Chris Jones marveled at the sight.

Three years ago, in the final minute of Super Bowl LVI, Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald burst off the line of scrimmage on fourth down, wrapped up Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and took him to the ground. Burrow narrowly avoided a sack by flipping an incomplete pass.

The play clinched the Rams’ Super Bowl LVI victory.

“Doing it on the biggest stage — that speaks volumes,” said Jones, the Kansas City Chiefs’ three-time All-Pro defensive lineman. “That was major.”

NEW ORLEANS — Police cars are lined up in the narrow streets. Officers toting large firearms stand at alert. Barriers block many entrances to Bourbon Street.

Behind two squad cars parked horizontally in front of a large truck that blocks the entrance to New Orleans’ most famous street, a memorial greets visitors. Flowers, candles, notes and 14 white crosses with blue hearts — one for each of the victims of a Jan. 1 terrorist attack, carried out by an attacker who allegedly was inspired by the Islamic State and drove a truck through people walking the busy street.

Visitors view the memorial for the victims of the terrorist attack along Canal Street near the intersection of Bourbon Street in New Orleans.

(Matthew Hinton / Associated Press)

The tragic incident has come back into focus one month later as security is ratcheting back up with New Orleans hosting Super Bowl LIX on Sunday.

With an estimated 100,000 visitors expected to flock to the city, organizers “have no specific credible threats to this event,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Monday at a news conference.

Dick Vermeil loves being Switzerland.

He’s got good friends with the Philadelphia Eagles and good friends with the Kansas City Chiefs — he represented both franchises — but the Hall of Fame coach now revels that now he can “embrace neutrality.”

The Chiefs and Eagles are headed to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, and, as was the case when the teams squared off on the NFL’s biggest stage two years ago, he can be the innocent bystander.

“I have compassion for both teams because I know people in both organizations,” said Vermeil, 88, who coached the Eagles from 1976 though ’82, and the Chiefs from 2001 through ’05. He won a Super Bowl as coach of the St. Louis Rams.

NEW ORLEANS — Line up, push and pray.

When it comes to stopping the Philadelphia Eagles’ punishing quarterback sneak — dubbed “the tush push” for the unique way players line up behind quarterback Jalen Hurts to push him forward — the Kansas City Chiefs acknowledge they’re not sure if they have the answers entering Super Bowl LIX on Sunday.

“It just comes down to sheer will,” Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said. “They’ve found a way to out-will people on that particular play.”

It resembles a rugby-like scrum when Hurts goes under center and teammates position themselves behind either hip. Lunging forward in a mass of humanity that could reach more than 3,000 pounds, the Eagles have dominated short-yardage situations and goal-line opportunities since they debuted the play in 2022 behind then-center Jason Kelce.

Best call in the NFC championship game?

It didn’t happen on the field.

No, it was when coach Nick Sirianni was driving home after his Philadelphia Eagles beat Washington to reach the Super Bowl for the second time in three seasons.

Sirianni dialed his college coach from University of Mount Union to bask in the excitement of the moment and invite him to Super Bowl LIX.

Larry Kehres, who retired in 2012 with a winning percentage of .929 — the highest in college football history — opted to watch from the comfort of home in Alliance, Ohio. He’s getting older, and he and his wife don’t travel as much as when they did so for games, coaching conventions and the like.

Greg Olsen was a key part of the second-most-watched TV broadcast of all time.

On Feb. 12, 2023, more than 115 million people tuned in to Super Bowl LVII to see the Kansas City Chiefs defeat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35. The game was broadcast on Fox, with Kevin Burkhardt handling the play-by-play duties and Olsen providing color commentary.

Next month could provide an encore of sorts. Super Bowl LIX is back on Fox. The Eagles and Chiefs are back as the competitors. Burkhardt will be back in the broadcast booth, and Olsen ... well, he won’t be back.

The NFL playoffs are rigged. The referees favor the Kansas City Chiefs. It’s all a conspiracy to hand those Reid-revering, Mahomes-adoring, Kelce-and-Swift-lovin’ cultists a third consecutive Super Bowl championship.

For these charges to stick, however, evidence and motive need to be established. Let’s start with evidence.

—A ruling that Chiefs receiver Xavier Worthy made a catch deep in Bills’ territory on a third-and-five desperation pass from Patrick Mahomes with 3:13 remaining in the first half. Replays indicated the ball struck the ground and could have been called incomplete. Kansas City promptly scored a touchdown.

NEW ORLEANS — Andy Reid likes to joke that the Kansas City Chiefs plucked Kareem Hunt “off the couch.” To the Chiefs running back, however, his coach’s description of how Hunt re-joined the team that drafted him is not just funny hyperbole.

“It is the truth,” Hunt said Tuesday.

After he worked out at his former high school and used the sauna at a local YMCA to stay in shape for the NFL, the 29-year-old Hunt signed with the Chiefs following an injury suffered by Isiah Pacheco. Hunt has a team-best 836 yards rushing, including the postseason.

We need the Super Bowl for more than multimillion-dollar TV ads and sexy extravaganza halftime shows. We also need it to happily prod us into mindless discussions about semi-meaningless things.

So, let’s take a look at this NFL three-peat thing.

As the Kansas City Chiefs closed their recent semifinal victory, the discussion in the network broadcast booth turned to the Chiefs’ opportunity to win their third straight Super Bowl. That three-peat was labeled “unprecedented,” and thousands of Green Bay Packers fans, when they heard that, sat straight up in their easy chairs.

The word “unprecedented” is actually accurate, but dependent on semantics. It is unprecedented for the official Super Bowl but there are asterisks.

How is it that Ken Norton Jr. has skin in Super Bowl LIX? The former UCLA and NFL Hall of Fame linebacker and longtime NFL and college assistant coach has zero ties to the Kansas City Chiefs or Philadelphia Eagles.

But Norton holds the distinction of being the only NFL player to win three consecutive Super Bowls, starring for the Dallas Cowboys in 1993 and 1994 thumpings of the Buffalo Bills and for the San Francisco 49ers in their one-sided win over the San Diego Chargers in 1995.

The Chiefs are attempting to become the first team to win three Super Bowls in a row after defeating the Eagles in 2023 and the 49ers last year. So any Chiefs player on the roster for a third consecutive season would tie Norton’s record with a victory Sunday in New Orleans.

NEW ORLEANS — Marcus Allen never flinched.

Early in Super Bowl XVIII in 1984, the Los Angeles Raiders running back fumbled against the Washington Redskins. Allen watched as the ball rolled away from him, seemingly in slow motion, until a teammate recovered it.

Allen returned to the huddle unfazed.

“Most guys would be in a full panic,” Allen said in a phone interview. “I didn’t even blink. ... It’s almost metaphysical to describe. I was so locked in. I was so fifth-dimension.”

NEW ORLEANS — As the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles prepare this week for Super Bowl LIX, the NFL will be reconnecting with an old friend.

Hola, NOLA.

New Orleans will play host to its 11th Super Bowl, matching South Florida for the most.

“Every other city hosting the game wanted what New Orleans has, and that’s an it place,” said Jim Steeg, who served as the NFL’s senior vice president of special events for 26 years. “Everything’s walkable, and you’ve got Bourbon Street. Nobody else has that.”

Tracy Wolfson stood next to Patrick Mahomes during an interview that’s become an annual tradition.

“We meet again,” the CBS sideline reporter told the star quarterback after the Kansas City Chiefs advanced to their fifth Super Bowl in the last six seasons.

After defeating the Buffalo Bills in the AFC championship game, the Chiefs are trying to return to another familiar mountaintop. The first NFL team to repeat as Super Bowl champion since the 2004 New England Patriots is one win from becoming the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowls. A win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 9 would make the Chiefs the first NHL, NBA, NFL or MLB team to “three-peat” since the Lakers did it from 2000 to 2002.

NEW ORLEANS — Los Angeles Times NFL writer Sam Farmer breaks down the Super Bowl LIX matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and the two-time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. PST Sunday and will be televised by Fox (Channel 11 in the Los Angeles area) and streamed by Tubi:

Chiefs pass offense vs. Eagles pass defense

Covering Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is always a problem for defenses.

(Brynn Anderson / Associated Press)

Protection is a problem for Kansas City. Patrick Mahomes was sacked more this year than any other quarterback. He started getting the ball out quicker toward the end of the season but he isn’t turning over the ball. He hasn’t been intercepted since the Buffalo game in mid-November. The Eagles can cover anyone. The cornerback tandem of Quinyon Mitchell and Darius Slay is smothering. Covering Travis Kelce will be a big challenge, but Cooper DeJean is a remarkable rookie. The ability of Mahomes to extend plays and improvise is what scares defenses. He and Kelce have a seemingly telepathic connection. EDGE: Eagles

The conference championship games are over and the countdown to Super Bowl LIX begins.

Super Bowl LIX will be played at 3:30 p.m. PST on Sunday. It will take place at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, the home of the Saints.

Here’s everything you need to know about the game, including start time, TV channel, how to stream, betting odds and more.