Super Bowl LVII recap: The end of one chapter is the beginning of another

There are a lot of great compliments to be given regarding this NFL season’s Eagles performance. before we jump into those, we must first address the elephant in the room: The Super Bowl vs. the Kansas City Chiefs. Eagles Quarterback Jalen Hurts summed up what we all feel in two words: “It Stings”. And if we think the same – For Jalen, who had a massive impact on taking the early lead and executing one of his finest plays so far, matching the most points scored for a player record, it stings a little more. Let’s jump into the Super Bowl LVII recap.

Super Bowl LVII First Half: Philly Take Early Lead

After winning the coin toss, Kansas City chose the second half and gave the Eagles the ball to start the game. Jalen Hurts led the offense by driving 75 yards in 11 plays and a 1-yard touchdown, stationing the eagles at a 7-0 lead. 41 yards belongs to DeVonta Smith for a fantastic catch and run and an extra 5 for creating an opening in a crossing route underneath. Devonta and Hurts made us go wild and proved that teamwork makes the dream work.

The 7-0 Eagles lead placed a lot of pressure on the Chiefs and was responded to by Isiah Pacheno’s 24-yard run and a touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes to Travice Kelce, tying the game at 7-7. 

Eagles Retake Lead with a Big Play

The excitement levels of the first quarter rose to new heights due to a tremendous 45-yard touchdown pass from Hurts to A.J. Brown on the second quarter’s first play. Resulting in a 14-7 lead for the birds. The Chiefs fumbled in executing the subsequent offense and could not move the ball down the field, resulting in a three-and-out and a punt. An excellent opportunity for the eagles to storm the grass that turned out to be less fortunate.

The Chiefs land a 36-yard touchdown

The pressure on Hurts was felt big time throughout the game. After a successful pass to Gainwell that resulted in a 9-yards, Hurts dropped the ball to the hands of Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton who ran an impressive 36 yards for a defensive touchdown, Tying the game at 14 -14. This fumble will likely lead to decision-making for The Eagle’s 2023 draft. The current strategy of re-building the team around Hurts will continue, recruitment of great linebackers and cornerbacks.   

The Eagles regain the lead

With just over two minutes and twenty seconds left for the first half, Hurts ran the ball and landed a four-yard touchdown, bringing the score to 21-14 for the Eagles and getting all Eagles fans at State Farm Stadium on their feet roaring “M-V-P .”a very well-justified roar, this brilliant touchdown assisted in adding another title to Hurt’s career – the first QB in Super Bowl history to rush for two touchdowns and throw for another. after that play The Chiefs could only keep their momentum and stall.

But this intense 2nd quarter wasn’t over with just stalling. The Chief’s Derrick Nnadi neutral zone penalty returned the drive to the eagles with Jake Elliot’s field goal that raised the score to 24-14, followed by a superb 27-yard punt return by Britain Covey.

Five years longing – the apple music Super Bowl halftime show

This halftime apple music show was among the most anticipated in NFL history. After five years without public performances, the one and only Caribbean Queen – Rihanna, took center stage in a red jumpsuit and reminded us why “there can be only one .”The entire act was carried on seven transparent floating platforms, another aspect Pennsylvania “shined bright like a diamond” that night – the platforms were built and operated by the Pennsylvanian entertainment company “Tait Group .”The Arizona state farm stadium was filled with PA presence, from great athletes and fantastic bird fans to keystone state tech innovation. The performance ended with Rihanna ascending to the sky on her own platform and our hopes and dreams for the second half of the Super Bowl LVII.

Second Half: Not a catch and not a touchdown

The second half started livid, with the Chiefs coming on vital to take the lead, which was felt hard by Miles Sanders. A second after catching a pass from Hurts and getting two feet down on the tomahawk grass, Sanders was brought down by L’Jarius Sneed and dropped the pigskin. Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton scooped it and brought it downfield for his second Super Bowl touchdown. After a quick review by the referees, the play was overturned due to Sanders not having enough time to make a move and complete the catch. Keeping The Eagle’s lead alive.

The Eagles are playing it Tight

The rush of the overturned touchdown has become a good incentive for the rest of the 3rd quarter. The eagles managed to keep their lead alive. a lot on the part of tight end Dallas Goedert, that managed to catch two passes on third down. The second reception was an impressive sideline grab right under the noses of Bryan Cook and L’Jarius Sneed. Despite the Chiefs’ claims for an incomplete catch and the US #1 favorite in-game Easter egg of “was it a catch,” the referees deemed it legal play, keeping the Eagles in the lead of 27-21 at the end of the 3rd.

Lean Back Toney

The fourth quarter marked the beginning of the end for the Eagle’s lead, with the Chiefs QB Mahomes bringing the Lead to Kansas with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Kadarius Toney at 12:04 left on the clock getting the score to 27-27 and to 28-27 with the extra kick. This confusing play made real on the part of saving Toney for a red zone play from the beginning, keeping him low-guarded until the time comes to utilize his speed. But that wasn’t all for this New York Giants mid-season trade show of speed. 

Sprinting a 65 into Super Bowl history

With ten minutes and thirty seconds left to the game, Arryn Siposs passed the ball with a low sinking kick to Toney, who managed to return a 65-yard punt and break the previous Jordan Norwood of Denver Broncos’ 61-Yard record for the longest punt return in Super Bowl history. This play turned into a 4-yard touchdown pass from Mahomes to wide-open Skyy Moore, increasing the lead to 34-27 for the Chiefs.

Rushing in with a purpose

This Super bowl was a show of will, determination, and heart by Jalen Hurts and The Eagles, who refused to go down without a fight until the last second. Hurts gathered everything he had to respond to that 65-Yard and touchdown with a 2-play, 75-yard drive for a touchdown that tied the game at 35-35 with less than 6 minutes remaining. Hurts recently filed for a trademark application on the quote, “I had a purpose before anyone had an opinion.” That rushing touchdown made us understand what he is on about – pure purpose or, in his own words: “It’s just about going to do it because that’s what you want.”

Bradberry flag in the ten

With under two minutes left on the clock, James Bradberry was called for holding JuJu Smith’s jersey. The penalty call paved the way for the Chiefs to kick a field goal, gaining the upper hand at 38-35 while leaving the Birds with an impossible timeframe of just a few seconds to answer the play instead of a minute and 45 seconds. Despite the fact Bradberry did a brave thing and admitted he committed the penalty, there is much disagreement among football experts and fans as to whether this penalty should have been called in this situation.

All eyes on 2023

Under Sirianni, the team grew together and adopted a run-heavy play that tackles rivalry defenses like an M1A2 Abrams tank, only faster. There are certainly questions and tough calls to be made for the 2023 NFL season set to start on April 27th. Still, when examining the outcome of last season –  the Birds now have the advantage of having draft capital of two first-round picks, a brilliant QB that is still at the beginning of his career. A solid foundation to be built upon. Every Super Bowl is always subjected to hyper analyzation by fans and sports experts alike but the main thing to remember, no matter the opinion, is that out of 32 teams, only two get to go to the Super Bowl, and the Eagles were one of those teams.

From the sports betting perspective – when reviewing the numbers, this super bowl did wonders to Pennsylvania sports bets. The PGCB recently announced that preliminary figures show wagers on the Philadelphia Eagles Vs Kansas City Chiefs match increased by 24% in comparison to last super bowl wagers on the Los Angeles Rams Vs. Cincinnati Bengals match.