NEW ORLEANS, LA — Thanks to being completed smothered and dominated by the Philadelphia Eagles in a 40-22 loss, is the Chiefs dynasty dead?
In a game and a moment that not even President Donald Trump could upstage, the Chiefs getting bullied for three hours in front of the most-watched Super Bowl ever by a more determined and physical Philadelphia Eagles team, the blueprint to beat the Chiefs was in full display.
Apply constant pressure on Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offensive line: in what has to be a traumatic case of PTSD for Chiefs Kingdom from their 31-9 loss in Super Bowl LVI , the Eagles sacked Mahomes three times, held the future Hall of Fame quarterback to 24 yards on 5/11 passing in the first half and thanks to two interceptions from Cooper Dejean and Zach Baun, all but put the nail in the coffin for the Chiefs down in the Big Easy.
Whatever Creole voodoo hex was put on the Chiefs down in New Orleans, the Eagles feasted and preyed on the Chiefs like they were a fresh batch of jambalaya in sacking Mahomes a total of six times, and rendering the much-ballyhooed Chiefs offense moot.
There were no good times rolling for the now former two-time Super Bowl champions in the Superdome. It was a good ol’ fashioned beatdown in the Bayou.
Where was Travis Kelce? Lost somewhere in the 9th Ward, because he was MIA for the game. How does a player of his magnitude only record four catches for 39 yards on six targets?
If there was one bright spot, in what can now in hindsight as a bad Bourbon Street hangover, is wideout Xavier Worthy catching eight passes for 156 yards and two touchdowns in a loss.
Honestly, that’s about it.
Is the Chiefs “dynasty” dead? It may not be quite dead yet, but it could be on life support and asking for its last rites.
You have Kelce on the other side of 30 in a very ageist league, and aside from the obvious, this could very well be the last time we ever see him and his Canton-bound No. 87 in Chiefs red again.
Until the Chiefs get—or draft—their own version of Saquon Barkley or Derrick Henry, the Chiefs will become a heavily-reliant Mahomes squad.
In his two losses in the Super Bowl, teams pressured him, and were able to make him eat the ball and take sacks.
With the NFL being a copycat league, look for more teams to copy what the Eagles and Bucs did in attacking the Chiefs up front on the offensive line.
Until and unless Kansas City fixes and addresses these issues, any future discourse about Mahomes being the next GOAT, or even in the same room as Tom Brady is as vexing as the Crescent City itself.