On Feb. 12, 2023, in Phoenix Arizona, the Kansas City Chiefs played the Philadelphia Eagles to figure out who claims the Lombardi Trophy. Both teams came into this game the first seed in the NFC (National Football Conference) and the AFC (American Football Conference). They also both help a 16-3 record including the playoffs and regular season. Needless to say, this was a highly anticipated game with both teams having a near-perfect season.

The first quarter kicked off with the Chiefs winning the coin toss and electing to receive the ball at halftime. They wasted no time, scoring with their Quarterback Jalen Hurts running it into the endzone. Chiefs Quarterback Patrick Mahomes responded by passing to Tight End Travis Kelce to put the Chiefs on the board for their first possession. The rest of the first quarter was back-and-forth possessions ending with a missed Kansas City field goal attempt and leaving the score to be square at 7-7. 

Walker Copeland (23) said, “I’d say the game was pretty even in the first quarter but the Eagles set the tone with their first touchdown.” Copeland believed that the Eagles came out hot to start, and had an early advantage over the Chiefs.

The second quarter started off hot with Hurts throwing a 45-yard touchdown to his receiver AJ Brown. However, on the Eagle’s next drive, Hurts fumbled the ball during a pass that Kansas City’s linebacker Nick Bolton recovered, and ran to the endzone tying the game at 14 points a piece. Hurts, unfazed by his fumble, drove the Eagles down the field and finished the drive by running it into the endzone and giving himself his second touchdown of the Super Bowl. The quarter ended with the Eagles scoring a field goal to go up 24-14 at halftime. Unfortunately, Mahomes hobbled off the field looking very unpromising whether he will be healthy for the second half.

Copeland said, “The Chiefs had to focus on stopping the Eagle’s deep ball and Jalen Hurts’ run game while improving their own.” It was clear that the Chiefs had to make a halftime adjustment to keep them in this game. 

Patrick Mahomes came out of the break with no apparent injury and led his team on a strong drive that was capped off by Isiah Pacheco’s (Chiefs running back) touchdown. The rest of the quarter was back-and-forth drives that ended with the Eagles scoring a field goal taking the score to 27-21 heading into the final quarter of play.

Trent Salberg (23) said, “ The Chiefs had the upper hand in the third quarter and made a huge halftime adjustment.” The Chiefs made a huge halftime adjustment that kept them in the game going into the fourth quarter. 

The Chiefs started out the fourth quarter hot by scoring two touchdowns putting them ahead 35-27. Hurts came up very big by leading his tired team down the field and scoring his third touchdown of the day and tieing the game at 35. On the final drive, Mahomes took off for a 25-yard scramble on his injured foot putting the Chiefs into field goal position. The Chiefs were able to run the clock down and score the game-winning field goal, and take the win over the Eagles 38-35. Mahomes played a historical game and is the first player in over 20 years to win both the season and the Super Bowl MVP.