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Philadelphia Eagles News

The one thing about Patrick Mahomes’ game is the dude is never out of a play, no matter how dire things can look in the moment.

His ability to consistently make plays when things break down are one of the several traits that make him so special. Just when a defense thinks it has him, he flips the script and puts the Kansas City Chiefs in a better spot.

Mahomes didn’t make any magic happen during Super Bowl LIX, however, as the Philadelphia Eagles defense completely controlled the game until Mahomes and Co. were able to compile some garbage time stats in the fourth quarter.

“Sometimes I get where I want to make a big play to kind of spark us and that’s something that I’ve done with my entire career,” Mahomes said after the game. “… And I think that’s something that you saw today, is that there [were] times when guys [weren’t] open and I need to throw the ball away or or check it down to let the other guys make plays happen.”

The catalyst behind the Eagles’ defensive success was by far and away the defensive line. Per Next Gen Stats, Vic Fanigo called a grand total of zero blitzes on the night. Meaning, the Eagles were getting home with four guys – any and every defensive coordinator’s dream. They pressured Mahomes on 38.1% of his dropbacks, hit him 11 times, and sacked him six times. He also threw two interceptions because of the constant pressure.

The key with all of it though is the fact the Eagles’ pass rush kept Mahomes contained in the pocket – they were disciplined enough to prevent him from escaping the pocket and making big plays. That’s a lot harder to do than it sounds, but the Eagles executed perfectly.

“They were going to make me be a fundamental quarterback from the pocket,” Mahomes told reporters.

The Eagles backed Mahomes into a corner and took away one of the most dangerous aspects of his game. Don’t get it twisted: It was an all-around bad effort from the Chiefs offense as a whole, but Mahomes also didn’t play well. He couldn’t overcome the Eagles’ game plan and it resulted in a disastrous night that he’ll never forget.

“I think in order to make a team blitz, you have to be able to beat what they’re showing,” said Mahomes. “And that’s what we didn’t do, especially in the first half, and we made some good adjustments at halftime and came out better. But it was almost too late, the momentum had kind of flipped in their favor. And how they play with Saquon [Barkley] and how they can run the football and control the clock with Jalen [Hurts] making big third down conversions, it kind of put our defense in a really bad spot.

“And so when you’re in these big games, you have to play better from the beginning, and that’s tough at all to continue to continue to get better at and force defenses to blitz by attacking their zone covers the right way.”

Per Next Gen Stats, Mahomes registered -0.44 EPA/pass attempt, which is lower than his previous-worst mark of -0.38/attempt he compiled during the 31-9 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl LV. He, along with the rest of the Chiefs offense, simply couldn’t do anything when it mattered all night long. He threw two crucial interceptions, one a pick-six, and couldn’t get any points on the board until very late in the third quarter.

The Eagles set out on a particular mission and it’s more than safe to say they got the job done. And now, the franchise fanbase can bask in the glory of taking down yet another one of the game’s all-time signal-callers en route to a second Lombardi Trophy.