The pair of National Football League (NFL) Conference Final games that were played last Sunday, provided enough drama that could fill a regular season weekend that had a full slate of games. Of course, last weekend’s games decided this year’s Super Bowl match-up and it will be the Philadelphia Eagles against the Kansas City Chiefs on February 12 in Glendale, Arizona.

The National Football Conference (NFC) title game featured an old-school meeting of two teams that rely on the running game and stout defence to win, while the American Football Conference (AFC) decider showcased two of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, players who could define the league’s next decade.

The drama in the NFC game was highlighted by the continuing quarterback (QB) carousel of the San Francisco 49ers. San Francisco’s smothering defense,ranked second in the NFL with a stingy 3.4 yards per carry allowed, had propelled them to the conference title game with a third-string, rookie, seventh-round pick QB leading the offense. But when that QB (Brock Purdy) went down with an elbow injury in the first quarter, the 49ers were faced with the prospect of trying to claw their way into the Super Bowl,led by the 36-year-old fourth-string journeyman Josh Johnson.

Since replacing the injured Jimmy Garoppolo last December, Purdy had gone undefeated, including two play-off wins, but before that, Garoppolo had replaced Trey Lance when the initial starter went down with a season-ending ankle injury in the second game of the season. The departure of Purdy severely hampered the San Francisco offense and when things started to look bad for the 49ers, it got dramatically worse. Purdy was forced back into action after Johnson was removed in the third quarter with what was later ruled a concussion, following a sack.

Unfortunately, Purdy’s elbow injury to his throwing arm prevented any effective throws and their run-game, apart from one spectacular effort from Christian McCaffrey for their lone touchdown, was ineffective. It is very unfortunate that injuries prevented the 49ers from getting a fair shot at their first Super Bowl since 2019 but take nothing from the Philadelphia Eagles whose defense took control from early and made it easy for the offence, leading to a commanding 31-7 win and a place in the big dance.

The AFC shootout was also defined by an injured QB, but with a completely different result. Kansas City’s sharpshooter Patrick Mahomes, playing through a high ankle sprain suffered the previous week, used every bit of grit and guile to lead the Chiefs to a 23-20 victory and their third Super Bowl appearance in four years. Their opponents, the Cincinnati Bengals were riding high, having unceremoniously disposed of the JustBet preseason favourites the previous week, and with QB Joe Burrow seemingly all set for a shootout, no better stage could have been set.

Burrow was previously undefeated in three games against the Chiefs in his career: a 2021 Week 17 game in Cincinnati, the 2021 AFC championship game in Kansas City and in Week 13 this season, also in Cincinnati). The Bengals won those three games by a combined nine points (a 3-point edge in each game) and the expectations for the AFC Championship game was another edge-of-your-seat encounter, and it delivered.

Mahomes was clearly hampered by the injury and needed the help of pass catchers to ensure he kept pace with the Cincinnati offense. He remained in the pocket more often than normal and completed 29 of 43 passes for 326 yards and two touchdowns. Burrow responded with 26 of 41 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown but had two interceptions that were ultimately costly. And while the teams didn’t necessarily abandon the run-game, they both had more than twice as many passes as rushing attempts, which would prove to be eerily poetic as the pivotal moment occurred on a running play.

The game appeared to be headed to overtime with the score tied 20 apiece, until Mahomes scrambled for a five-yard gain in the closing seconds of regulation and was hit out of bounds by Bengals defensive end Joseph Ossai. The resulting 15-yard penalty set up a 45-yard field goal attempt for Harrison Butker, which he converted for the win, and yet another 3-point margin of victory — this time for the Chiefs.

The Eagles and Chiefs were the top seeds in the NFC and AFC, respectively, and it is fitting that they have progressed to meet in Super Bowl LVII. There will be many blistering storylines leading up to the tantalising match-up, but immediately obvious is the fact that this will be the first time that two black QBs will face off in a Super Bowl. Should the Eagles emerge triumphant, then Jalen Hurts would become the fourth black QB to win a Super Bowl after Doug Williams with the Washington Redskins in 1988, Russell Wilson with the Seattle Seahawks in 2014 and Mahomes with the Chiefs in 2020. Conversely, if the Chiefs win, Mahomes would be the first black QB to win multiple titles.

The current Kansas City head coach Andy Reid spent 14 seasons with the Eagles and there have been three games between these teams since he left 10 years ago. Reid is 3-0 against the Eagles in those games but none as consequential as the pending encounter. Which leads to another storyline, since Philadelphia’s centre Jason Kelce will be on the opposite sideline to Kansas City’s tight end Travis Kelce, they will be the first brothers to play against each other in a Super Bowl. The Kelce brothers have one Super Bowl ring each and only one of the two will have two rings in just over a week.

A second Super Bowl win in four years — including three total appearances — would ignite dynasty conversations surrounding the Chiefs, and for the Eagles, a second Super Bowl victory in six years, with a completely different core, might be even more impressive. The Eagles are the designated home team and slight JustBet favourites for the encounter, mainly due to their superior defence and the opposing QB’s ankle. Their defence slammed the doors shut on the New York Giants and San Francisco over the past two weeks, but Mahomes has over a week remaining to get his ankle in shape and there’s no secret to what he can do when he’s fully mobile. It will feel like a long wait until February 12. Are you ready for some football?

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Super Bowl LVII Champion

TeamOdds

Philadelphia Eagles1.68

Kansas City Chiefs2.00

Note: Odds are subject to change