As the 2022-2023 NFL season comes to a close, we find ourselves down to just one final game, the biggest game in sports: the Super Bowl. This game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs will have no shortage of star power thanks to their two star-studded offenses. As fans, we can expect an electric, high-powered game.

Before I hand off a proper prediction, I’m going to break down how I expect each offense to perform against the opposing defense.

Philadelphia against Kansas City

Both of these offenses are great, but they are completely different in the most classic way: while the Kansas City Chiefs do most of their damage through the air, the Eagles’ thing is to go to the ground. Having the fourth-ranked rushing offense means the Eagles set the tone on the ground set up the ability to pass. Their powerful offensive line, led by center Jason Kelce, has proven to be the most dominant unit in football. On the other side of the field stands the stout Kansas City Chiefs defense, which stacks up at eighth in rushing yards allowed. Led by defensive player of the year candidate Chris Jones, the Chieves’ defensive unit only allows a total average of 107 yards on the ground per game, so the battle in the trenches will be something to watch on Sunday. 

For the Chiefs to be successful, they have to limit the damage on the run game. As skilled as the Eagles’ offense is, their biggest weakness is their passing attack. While quarterback Jalen Hurts has done a fantastic job passing the ball to his playmakers, such as AJ Brown and Devonta Smith, he’s also shown some inconsistency with his accuracy. Getting push from the KC defensive line to prevent Philly establishing the run will force Hurts into uncomfortable situations and may cause him to make uncharacteristic mistakes.

If Kansas City wants to win, they need to get an early lead—because if Philadelphia does that, they won’t give it back. With their dominant offensive line and Miles Sanders, the Eagles don’t have any issue chewing clock and running the ball down your throat for 60 minutes. The Eagles have very much adopted the gritty, hard-nosed mentality possessed by their Head Coach Nick Sirianni.

Kansas City against Philadelphia

The game plan for the Kansas City Chiefs on offense is much simpler: let Royals owner and Whataburger fan Pat Mahomes do his thing through the air. Even after the loss of All-Pro wide receiver Tyreek Hill, Mahomes is still putting up MVP numbers and leading the most prolific passing offense in the NFL. It helps that his leading receiver is, of course, future Hall of Famer Travis Kelce. At over 1,000 yards and more than 10 touchdowns tallied this season, Kelce has become Mahomes’ absolute, no-doubt #1 target. 

Of course, that means the #1 goal for the Eagles’ defense is preventing Travis Kelce from producting. Two defenders must be around him at all times. But when one player is double-teamed, that leaves the other receivers in one-on-one situations. Luckily for the Eagles, they have two All-Pro cornerbacks in Darius Slay and James Bradberry. The defense needs to force Mahomes to throw to Marquez Valdes-Scantling and JuJu Smith-Schuster. I believe that Slay and Bradberry can limit their production—but if the Eagles can’t contain Kelce, it won’t matter.

The Kansas City offensive line has been a solid unit this year that has done a fairly good job keeping Mahomes off the ground—something recent playoff teams (who will not be named, but whose initials are the 2021-22 Cincinnati Bengals) have struggled with now and again. But they haven’t seen a defensive front like the Philadelphia Eagles quite yet. After almost breaking the team single-season sack record, the Eagles front has not slowed down. Led by veterans Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham, the Eagles defensive line has wreaked havoc all season. Defensive end Haason Reddick is coming off a two-sack game in the NFC Conference Championship and he is looking to feast on Orlando Brown Jr., who has had an up-and-down year. When Mahomes has time in the pocket, he often pulls off something incredible . . . but given his recent ankle sprain in the Divisional Round, it will be interesting to see how well he will be able to maneuver his way around the pocket.

Prediction Time 

This game should be a competitive affair with two high-powered offenses going after it. In the end, I think the Philadelphia Eagles’ offense overpowers the Kansas City Chiefs’ defense, and Philly’s defense will do just enough to hold on to their second ever Super Bowl victory

• Score: PHI 28, KC 24.
• MVP: Jalen Hurts.