What to know about the Chiefs and Eagles booking their trips to the Super Bowl

The Super Bowl matchup is officially set: The Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs will face off once again for the NFL’s biggest prize in Super Bowl LIX in two weeks in New Orleans.

The big game is set for a 6:30 p.m. ET kick off on February 9 at the Caesars Superdome.

The Eagles won 55-23 over the Washington Commanders as Philadelphia’s two biggest stars showed out – Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley – who both scored three touchdowns on the ground, with Hurts adding a TD throw.

In the AFC Championship game, where Kansas City beat the Buffalo Bills 32-29, the Chiefs used a little magic from their star quarterback – and a controversial call from the referees, as has happened so often with this team – to secure the opportunity to try for something that’s never been done: A Super Bowl three-peat.

These two teams faced off in Super Bowl LVII, in which the Chiefs defeated the Eagles on a field goal with eight seconds to play in one of the most dramatic versions of the game in Super Bowl history.

Here’s what to know from Sunday’s action:

Chiefs are aiming for an unheard of three-peat

Josh Allen and the Bills offense were the first to take the field, with the quarterback nearly throwing two interceptions before going three-and-out on the opening drive.

Meanwhile, Mahomes and the Chiefs took advantage of the Bills shaky start, orchestrating a nine-play, 90-yard drive, culminating in a Kareem Hunt 12-yard touchdown run for the 7-0 lead with 8:56 remaining in the first quarter.

The Bills responded on the ensuing drive, overcoming an illegal formation penalty on the first play of the drive after Allen connected with tight end Dalton Kincaid for an 11-yard completion.

A couple of medium-yardage gains on pass completions to Khalil Shakir and Amari Cooper for nine yards advanced the Bills into Chiefs territory.

However, the drive stalled on the next set of downs after Allen fumbled, recovering his own gaffe. A short completion of four yards to Shakir set up a 53-yard field goal attempt for Bills kicker Tyler Bass, who converted to get Buffalo on the board.

Holding a 7-3 lead, the Kansas City offense seemed poised to extend their lead until Mahomes fumbled the ball near the Bills’ red zone and Buffalo recovered.

The Bills took advantage of the Chiefs turnover, marching down the field on a masterful 10-play, 72-yard drive, culminating in a James Cook 6-yard touchdown run to give the Bills a 10-7 lead with 10:25 to go in the second quarter.

Trailing for the first time in the game, the reigning back-to-back champs scored 14 unanswered points to take a double-digit point lead late in the second quarter.

The first came on an 11-play, 70-yard drive featuring a good mix of run and pass plays, including a huge fourth down conversion from Mahomes early in the drive. The three-time Super Bowl champion finished off the drive, connecting with rookie wide receiver Xavier Worthy for an 11-yard touchdown to retake the lead at 14-10.

Following a three-and-out from the Bills offense, Mahomes conjured up some magic, to keep the Kansas City drive alive. Facing third and five, on what looked like a surefire sack, Mahomes heaved the ball down the field and found Worthy for a 26-yard reception.

However, the Bills would challenge the play after it appeared a Buffalo defender intercepted the ball. The challenge was unsuccessful and set the Chiefs up nicely with good field position.

Mahomes would cap the drive with a scrambling 1-yard score.

Buffalo scored a touchdown late in the half when Allen connected with Mack Hollins for 34 yards with 23 seconds left in the second quarter to cut the Bills deficit to 21-16 after failing to score on the two-point attempt. The touchdown finished off a quick seven-play, 73-yard drive that took 1:32 minutes off the game clock.

With a chance to go up two scores to open up the second half, the Chiefs managed to get the ball into Bills territory, before the Buffalo defense came up with a timely stop. Linebacker Matt Milano sacked Mahomes for a five-yard loss, knocking the Chiefs out of field goal range and forcing Kansas City to punt the ball with 10:01 remaining in the third quarter.

Buffalo capitalized on the stop, leaning on Cook, who rushed for 43 yards on the first three plays of the drive. The Bills converted two pivotal fourth-down attempts, including the 1-yard touchdown run by Cook, giving them a 22-21 lead after a failed two-point conversion.

The two teams traded scoreless possessions before Kansas City’s defense delivered a game-changing stop. On a fourth-and-1 quarterback sneak attempt, Allen was ruled short after review, giving the Chiefs the ball near midfield.

Mahomes and the offense seized the opportunity, orchestrating a five-play scoring drive capped by a 10-yard touchdown run by the Chiefs signal caller. A successful two-point conversion extended the Chiefs’ lead to 29-22 with just over 10 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

Mahomes completed 18 of 26 attempts in the victory, finishing with 245 passing yards and a touchdown, while adding 43 yards and two more touchdowns on the ground.

As they’ve done in years past, Buffalo did not go down without a fight. Allen connected with Cook and Hollins for gains 23 and 36 yards on the ensuing drive that got the Bills into a first-and-goal situation at the Chiefs 4-yard line.

After being unable to convert on the first three attempts, Buffalo elected to go for it on fourth down, resulting in Allen finding a wide-open Curtis Samuel in the back of the end zone for the 4-yard touchdown pass. The Bills converted the extra point attempt to tie the game 29-29 with 6:15 left in the fourth quarter.

With the game hanging in the balance, Mahomes led a methodical drive deep into Buffalo territory. While the Bills’ defense managed to hold Kansas City to a Harrison Butker 35-yard field goal, the Chiefs regained a 32-29 lead with 3:33 remaining.

Buffalo had one final chance to dethrone the reigning champions, but Kansas City’s defense came through once again. On fourth-and-five, Allen’s pass fell incomplete, handing the ball back to the Chiefs with two minutes left.

Kansas City’s offense sealed the victory with two crucial first downs, running out the clock and clinching their spot in the Super Bowl.

The Chiefs improved to a perfect 4-0 against Buffalo in playoff matchups during the Mahomes era, while the Bills’ postseason woes against their AFC nemesis continued. Despite winning four straight regular season tilts against Kansas City, Buffalo has now been eliminated by the Chiefs in four of the last five postseasons, including the 2020 AFC Championship, and the 2021 and 2023 AFC divisional round games entering Sunday’s contest.

“It’s not about one guy. It’s not about a couple guys. It’s about the whole entire team,” Mahomes said. “And when we needed a defensive stop, they got stops. Offense we made plays. That’s why we’re so special. It’s a team effort and it’s a team football game.”

The Eagles fly all the way to the Big Easy

Washington started the game well, but midway through the second quarter, it allowed the Eagles to pile on the points. That deficit was too much for Jayden Daniels and company to come back from despite fighting valiantly and not allowing Lincoln Financial Field’s hometown fans to truly feel comfortable – until the fourth quarter.

Washington’s 18-play, seven-plus minute opening drive – their longest of the season – culminated in three points, but Philly immediately answered with an 18-second drive that took the early lead.

On the Eagles’ first play from scrimmage, quarterback Hurts pitched the ball to MVP candidate Barkley, who weaved and spun through the Commanders’ defense on his way to a 60-yard touchdown.

After a Commanders’ fumble, Barkley once again rumbled into the end zone to extend the lead for Philly with his second touchdown of the opening quarter.

Down 14-3, Washington needed a big play, and it came from some trickery. From the Commanders’ own 31-yard line, punter Tress Way pulled out the fake punt, floating a perfect pass to tight end Ben Sinnott for a large gain and a fresh set of downs. The gutsy call didn’t lead to six as the drive ultimately stalled but did lead to points with Zane Gonzalez converting from 46 yards out to make it 14-6 in the second quarter.

Another explosive play brought the Commanders back into the contest.

Now with the ball back, Daniels hit Terry McLaurin on a quick slant on third down from the Eagles’ 36-yard line. McLaurin did the rest, breaking a tackle before running away from the rest of the Philadelphia defense to take it to the house for a touchdown. The two-point conversion failed.

Yet another big play allowed the Eagles to answer right back. Ahead of the two-minute warning, facing a fourth-and-five at the Washington 45-yard line, Hurts found AJ Brown for a deep pass to get a fresh set of downs and move Philadelphia down to the Washington 14-yard line.

On a third-and-long, Hurts threw to DeVonta Smith in the end zone, who dropped the ball. But Commanders’ defensive back Marshon Lattimore was flagged for pass interference to set the Eagles up with a first-and-goal on the 1-yard line. Philly executed the “tush push” for a short touchdown run from Hurts. The Eagles once again lined up for the “Brotherly Shove” play for two points, but the Commanders’ defense was able to turn them away.

Now up 20-12, the Eagles profited from a Commanders gaffe on the ensuing kickoff. Jeremy McNichols lost the football and Eagles’ special teams man Kenneth Gainwell jumped on it. The turnover was costly as the Eagles turned it into points, thanks in part to mental errors from Washington.

After the Commanders defense appeared to hold the Eagles to a field goal attempt, a personal foul call kept the drive alive. Washington’s cornerback Mike Sainristil leveled Barkley a moment after the running back stepped out of bounds. The mistake drew a flag for unnecessary roughness and gave the Eagles a fresh set of downs. Hurts extended Philadelphia’s lead three plays later when he found Brown on a four-yard touchdown pass to make it 27-12.

Washington tacked on a field goal to end the half, making it 27-15.

The Eagles scored first after the break. Hurts started the possession with a 16-yard completion to Brown. Next, it was a pair of passes to Dallas Goedert for gains of seven and 26 yards to set up first-and-goal in the blink of an eye. Hurts gave his receivers a rest on the next play and ran in for a nine-yard score to extend the lead to 34-15.

The Commanders pushed to scare the home fans – Daniels followed Hurts’ lead with his own QB-keeper to score six points. With the added two-point conversion, the lead was down to 11. That was as close as Washington got as another costly mistake halted any comeback.

Linebacker Oren Burks punched the ball loose from Austin Ekeler after a short catch with Philly’s Zack Baun jumping on the pigskin. It was the Commanders’ third turnover of the game, and it proved to be the final nail in the coffin of their underdog run.

Philly orchestrated its “Brotherly Shove” play again, with Hurts scoring just inches from the goal line.

This was followed by another Eagles’ “tush push,” but this time, it came with some comedy.

Following another Washington fumble, the Eagles found themselves with a first-and-goal from the Commanders’ one-yard line.

Trying to get a jump on the play they knew was inevitably coming, Washington was flagged for three consecutive encroachment penalties, two of which saw Frankie Luvu flying over linemen onto the Eagles quarterback.

Washington’s tactics led to referee Shawn Hochuli making an announcement reminding the Commanders that he had the authority to award the Eagles a score if “this type of behavior happens again.” On the next play, the “Brotherly Shove” was successful, as Hurts finally scored. With his third running score of the game, Hurts now has the most postseason rushing TDs by a quarterback in NFL history, with nine.

With Washington unable to move the ball, the Eagles kept scoring. This time, it was Barkley’s turn to go for the rushing touchdown hat trick, joining Hurts. From four yards out, Barkley made it look easy as he darted for the goal line, scoring untouched and extending the lead to 48-23.

Philadelphia scored one more time. Rookie Will Shipley ran in from two yards out for his first career touchdown to literally put the game on ice and head coach Nick Sirianni got the traditional Gatorade bath with the game out of control.

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