What was set up to be a tight game damn near turned into an instant classic last night, as the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 to win Super Bowl LVII. I mean, hell – maybe it is still an instant classic, but that’s dampened at least a little bit by the controversial holding call on James Bradberry that gave the Chiefs a fresh set of downs and the opportunity to run out the clock and kick a game-winning field goal. I get it – it absolutely took the wind out of the sails for that game. The Chiefs are likely going to score, and we’re going to be set up for roughly a minute and a half with the Eagles possessing the ball, playing for the chance to win it or tie it up. It could’ve been epic!
As for the call itself, I get it. Bradberry himself admitted to holding. Nick Sirianni spat out the old “it never comes down to one play” line, and whether that was genuine or not, it’s true. That penalty did nothing for the fact that the Eagles pass rush, vaunted all season, couldn’t get to Mahomes. They couldn’t stop the run. Andy Reid and company unleashed a beast in the second half of that game that one holding call wasn’t going to offset. My suspicion, and this is just pure reckless speculation on my part, is that Bradberry felt he could get away with one (actually, two – he held twice on that play) because of the magnitude of the moment. Maybe he had gotten away with a similar one earlier in the game, and felt the referees would swallow the whistle. It’s just a bad decision on Bradberry’s part, and you just don’t put the game in the officials’ hands like that.
But, that play shouldn’t take away from what was so impressive about that second half from the Chiefs anyway. Reid, who also shouted out the game offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy had during the post-game celebration, played the patient game with his offense, studied closely how the Eagles defense was responding to certain motions and looks, and then used that to absolutely bury them on two touchdown plays, including this one to Skyy Moore.
SKYY MOORE FOR THE SCORE!
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 13, 2023
THE CHIEFS HAVE TURNED IT ON IN THE SECOND HALF #SBVLII
(via @Chiefs)pic.twitter.com/7t48TiIBDS
The other one went to Kadarius Toney off of motion from the right side of the formation. But, this practice is just a masterclass in coaching. All game long, the Chiefs had been seeing the cornerback pass the motion man off to the safety. The Eagles probably felt pretty comfortable in defending this play in this manner, as the Chiefs have been doing stuff like that all season long. When Patrick Mahomes handed the ball off to Jerick McKinnon, the Eagles were able to keep it from being too big of a play. “We got this motion stuff,” the Eagles said (probably (maybe)). But, twice, the Chiefs saw it happen, and decided to break those routes out instead of continuing the motion in. The effect was similar to pulling the rug out from under the Eagles defense.
You can see in the play embedded above how the safety hangs with Moore, but he’s just too far gone when Moore plants his foot in the dirt and turns to take the route outside. The Chiefs have a couple of quick shifty guys that can do that in Toney and Moore. And, it puts the defense in a precarious position regardless of how you play it. If you play it the way the Eagles did, well…you see what happens. But, if you load up to defend the back side of the play, what’s to stop the Chiefs offense from recognizing that and just having Moore/Toney continue the motion and getting wide open on the other side of the formation? It’s genius, and I cannot express to you guys how tight that makes my Levi’s. Not only was it a masterclass in coaching, patience, and adjusting to your opponent….but it’s just flat out football porn.
It’s easy to get caught up in the moment and overvalue what a Super Bowl like this means for the legacies of guys like Mahomes, Reid, and Travis Kelce. But, given the way this group has performed so consistently for the last five years, I don’t really mind it. Hell, I’ll get caught up in the heat of the moment myself and say this Super Bowl very well could end up cementing Reid’s legacy as the greatest offensive mind the sport has ever seen! Maybe I’ll just allow myself to be swept away by this emotion and say that in addition to his athleticism and reliability, Kelce’s underrated football intelligence makes him the greatest tight end to ever do it. Why stop here? I’m fighting back tears at this point, but maybe Mahomes truly is the most talented quarterback the NFL has ever seen. I’m sure I’ll calm down at some point and regret putting this on the internet, but it’s the Super Bowl, another season is in the books, and the inevitable passing of time is weighing heavily on my conscience this morning. Forgive me for being a little too dramatic.
Also, shout out to linebacker Nick Bolton. He was one of my big draft crushes the year he came out, and I wanted him so badly to end up in the two-tone blue of my Tennessee Titans. It wasn’t meant to be, and he ends up becoming a key contributor on a Chiefs defense that tends to just show up in the postseason. That scoop-and-score touchdown was a huge moment in the game that felt like it kept the momentum from fully swinging into the favor of the Eagles. Congrats, Kansas City – you have a special group going for you.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.
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