|
 [February 11, 2023]
(Reuters) - Five storylines to watch for during the 57th
Super Bowl on Sunday between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City
Chiefs in Glendale, Arizona.
HISTORIC QUARTERBACK MATCHUP
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Eagles counterpart Jalen
Hurts will become the first Black quarterbacks to face off in a
Super Bowl, when the National Football League's championship game
gets underway on Sunday.
A victory for Mahomes, 27, would make him a two-times Super Bowl
winner, having led the Chiefs to the title three years ago.
Hurts, who the Eagles took in the second round of the 2020 NFL
Draft, is looking to close out his breakout season with a triumph
that would make him the fourth Black quarterback to win a Super
Bowl, joining Mahomes, Russell Wilson, who won with the Seattle
Seahawks, and Doug Williams - the first Black quarterback to start a
Super Bowl - with the Washington Redskins.
- -
SUPER-SIZED SIBLING RIVALRY
In another first, this year's Super Bowl will be a sibling rivalry
game for Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and his older brother Jason,
who is a center with the Eagles.
The Kelce brothers, who between them have been selected to 14 Pro
Bowls, will not be on the field at the same time as they both play
on offense. As a result, their mother this week said she will be
rooting for whoever has the ball.
Both Kelces have already won a Super Bowl with their respective
teams. Travis will be appearing in his third NFL title game in four
seasons while Jason returns for the second time in five years.
- -
CHIEFS COACH FACES FORMER TEAM
Andy Reid's quest to win a second Super Bowl trophy with the Chiefs
will come against the team he spent 14 years with as a head coach
prior to his current role.
In his 14 seasons as Eagles head coach, Reid compiled a 130-93-1
record and made one trip to the Super Bowl but was never able to
bring the championship Vince Lombardi Trophy back to Philadelphia.
[to top of second column] |
Feb 9, 2023; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; Kansas
City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce speaks to media during a Super
Bowl LVII press conference at Hyatt Regency at Gainey Ranch.
Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Reid will be the fifth head coach in Super Bowl
history to face a team he previously led, joining Pete Carroll, Jon
Gruden, Dan Reeves and Weeb Ewbank. The previous four head coaches
went 2-2 versus their former clubs.
- -
CLASH OF NO. 1 SEEDS
Sunday's game will be a battle between the two best teams from the
regular season as the Chiefs (14-3) and Eagles (14-3) captured their
respective conference's top seeds to secure a first-round bye.
The last time the two top seeds faced off in a Super Bowl came in
February 2018 when the Eagles defeated the favoured New England
Patriots.
- -
PLACE YOUR BETS
The Super Bowl is a betting bonanza each year and this year could be
the biggest yet with the American Gaming Association expecting a
record 50.4 million American adults, or about 20% of the population,
to bet $16 billion on the game.
This year's Super Bowl will also be the first held in a state that
offers legal sports betting. There is even a physical sportsbook on
the same grounds as the stadium.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
 |
