Super Bowl 59 Preview
This, as they say, is it. After 271 games the 2025 NFL season comes down to one final fixture. The Super Bowl. Widely regarded as one of the biggest sports entertainment spectacles on the planet, this year’s game sees the Kansas City Chiefs poised on the cusp of making history: the first ever team to win three consecutive titles.
Chiefs Kingdom’s path to the Super Bowl hasn’t been as straightforward as one would expect. They’ve had to rely on near misses, questionable calls and more than one stroke of luck to advance to the finale. However, their inexorable conquest to the summit has almost seemed predestined and now they are mere days away from gaining immortality.
But their ascension to the pantheon won’t be easy. Standing in the way are the hard nosed, high flying Philadelphia Eagles. Boasting both the league’s leading rusher along to go with the number one defense, the dirty birds of Broad Street are guaranteed to give Patrick Mahomes and Co. a major run for their money down in the Bayou.
Throughout franchise history, the Philadelphia Eagles have made it to the big dance a grand total of five times, including the upcoming showdown in New Orleans. But so far, they have only won once. Their last victory came in 2017 when Nick Foles famously caught a touchdown pass on a play dubbed “Philly Philly”. Their last appearance came in 2023 – a heartbreaking 3 point defeat at the hands of Kansas City. Jalen Hurts has admitted the loss “lit a fire in him”, a statement which only adds to the intrigue and intensity of this Super Bowl rematch. It’s uncommon to see repeats of previous Super Bowls this close together, and on this occasion you’d have to imagine that the Eagles are the bookies favorites to win it all. They also have the support of most other fanbases, who are loath to see the Chiefs lifting another Lombardi trophy.
Hurts isn’t the only one who is on a mission however. Enter Saquon Barkley. The erstwhile New York Giants tailback was bizzarely allowed to join a division rival earlier this year, in one of the wildest moves ever seen in the NFL. Barkley didn’t waste a moment in making his former team rue the decision, claiming the leagues’ rushing touchdown title and finishing exactly 100 yards off setting a record. But the Super Bowl was the ultimate goal, and the former Penn State stand out is just 4 quarters of football away from laying claim to his first. Needless to say that Barkley’s heroics have provided this Eagles outfit with a massive boost and could give them the momentum needed to get over the hump and finally avenge their 2023 defeat.
Some are saying that this Super Bowl isn’t a great matchup or won’t be exciting or isn’t what they wanted. And sure, the Bills and Lions may have been the game that everyone was REALLY hoping for, but you have to relish what’s on the line here for these sides. And as a fan of the underdog, I really want to see the Eagles win.
Make sure you stay tuned to @gaelicgridiron on all socials for build up to the game as well as live coverage from the official NFL Super Bowl watch party in Dublin!