NFL 2024 Super Bowl LIX Recap + Preaseason Picks/Awards Recap

 Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action is in the books. The game that was the Super Bowl was not quite the competitive game that we would expect from the biggest game in North American sports. The NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles demolished the AFC champion Kansas City Chiefs 40-22. In this post I will break down the game itself as well as the commercials I liked, the halftime show and a recap of my preseason and awards picks I made prior to Week 1. A lot to get into so let's get to work!

Super Bowl LIX Recap

Kansas City 22, Philadelphia 40
Pick: Chiefs
Anything that could go wrong for the Chiefs, went wrong for the Chiefs. The Super Bowl began with the Chiefs winning the coin toss but deferring to the Eagles. It would at first pay off as the Eagles would punt on their first drive. The Chiefs would start off running as they would hit a pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster for their only 1st down in the 1st half. The Chiefs would only get one yard the rest of the drive as they were forced to punt. Jalen Hurts would hit passes of 20 and 27 yards. The 27 yard pass went to Jahan Dotson that would guide the Eagles to the 1-yard line. The first score of the game was a Tush Push touchdown for Hurts for a 1-yard touchdown. The next Chiefs possession would be another punt as they went seven yards on a drive. The last Eagles drive of the 1st quarter was a long march that would eat up 5:21 of possession time. The result of the drive was an intercepted pass by Bryan Cook. The Eagles would have the lead 7-0.

The 2nd quarter would play out much like the 1st quarter. They would get seven yards again but the big thing was a dropped pass to Travis Kelce that would be one of the reasons why the Chiefs would lose this game. The Chiefs punted to the Eagles again. Philadelphia would start on their own 43-yard line. A big play in the game was a Hurts pass to AJ Brown for a 22-yard gain to the Chiefs 32. The Eagles wouldn't gain a whole lot after that as three runs would only yield seven yards to a 4th down. Jake Elliott hit the field goal to a 10-0 Eagle lead. The next Chiefs drive would be a disaster and a half. Back-to-back sacks on Mahomes that would drive the Chiefs back six yards. The game would break wide open as a bull-rush by Josh Sweat would force Patrick Mahomes to throw a pass that was intercepted by Cooper DeJean for a 38-yard pick-six. A huge momentum shift as a turnover turned into points as the Eagles were up 17-0. The Chiefs would go minus six yards on the next possession but wouldn't turn the ball over again. Philadelphia would go 3:00 of possession time on eight plays for 17 yards but would punt back to the Chiefs. Deep in their own territory, the Chiefs would turn the ball over again on a Patrick Mahomes pass turned to interception this time to Zach Baun. Baun was a free agent signing that would prove to be useful. On the Eagles 2nd play of the drive, Jalen Hurts found AJ Brown open for a 12-yard score. The Eagles lead went up to 24-0 at halftime. 

The 24-0 halftime deficit was the largest that Patrick Mahomes had in his career. It was also the largest deficit since Super Bowl XXIV. Kansas City's first drive in the 2nd half would show progress. The Chiefs would go farther than they had ever in the game so far on a five play, 15 yard drive. It would lead to their first down since the 1st drive on a Patrick Mahomes pass to Xavier Worthy for a 8-yard gain. Pass protection would break down a lot as Mahomes was sacked again on back-to-back plays for a collective 7-yard loss. The Chiefs would punt again. With the lead in hand, the Eagles would utilize the talents of Saquon Barkley. Barkley, a free agent from the Giants, wouldn't have a spectacular game but he made it count with catches and carries. The running back had 37 total yards on the drive. Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones would get injured during the Philly drive. The Eagles would get to the Chiefs 6-yard line but wouldn't go further. If there was something wrong that the Eagles did was pre-snap penalties on field goal attempts. A false start would send the Eagles back to the 11. Jake Elliott hit another field goal that would drive the Eagles lead to 27-0 with 5:22 left in the 3rd quarter. The Chiefs would go a bit further on their next possession with a five-play, 17 yard drive that would get another first down on a Patrick Mahomes pass to DeAndre Hopkins for a 11-yard gain. The Chiefs offense would falter yet again as a Kareem Hunt fumble that was recovered by Patrick Mahomes and an offensive holding call. The Chiefs would drive to get back to another 1st down. They would falter as on a 4th down and 4 play, Patrick Mahomes went right and tried for DeAndre Hopkins again but the wide out would drop it. The Eagles would get the ball as a result of another Chiefs miscue and turnover on downs. The Eagles first play of the game would cause it to be a nail in the coffin as Jalen Hurts hit Devonta Smith for a 46-yard score that was the biggest play of the game on offense for Philadelphia. The Eagles lead went up to a 34-0 score. The Chiefs would be playing against themselves, the Eagles and the clock. The Chiefs would go the distance as they reached past the 50-yard line and into Eagle territory. The play that would give the Chiefs that opportunity was a Mahomes pass that would see the best pass protection all day as he hit Xavier Worthy for a 50-yard play that would be the longest play for the Chiefs. Four plays later, on a 1st down and 10 play, Patrick Mahomes would once again hit Xavier Worthy in the endzone for a 24-yard score. The Chiefs were finally on the board but would miss on a 2-point conversion as Travis Kelce catch went incomplete. The Chiefs still had to contend with a 34-6 deficit as the 3rd quarter time dwindled. 

The Eagles next drive saw the end of the 3rd quarter and into the 4th quarter. Jalen Hurts would be used a lot as he saw Saquon Barkley for a 11-yard gain, AJ Brown on two plays later for a 9-yard gain. Then on a 2nd and 11 play, Hurts ran for a 17-yard gain to get the Eagles to the Chiefs 27-yard line. In a rare occasion in the game, Jalen Hurts was sacked for a five yard loss. The Chiefs defense would hold the line to the Chiefs 30-yard line and forced the Eagles to try for three again. Jake Elliott would hit yet again to get to a 37-6 lead. The next Chiefs drive ended in disaster again as Patrick Mahomes was stripped from the ball that was recovered by Milton Williams. The Chiefs defense would hold the Eagles yet again for another Jake Elliott field goal that would increase the lead to 40-6. The Eagles wouldn't score again in the game but by that time the damage had already been dealt. Racing against the clock, the Chiefs would drive the field again for a 12-play, 75-yard march that would get the Chiefs to another touchdown. The score went to DeAndre Hopkins on a pass from Mahomes to Hopkins on an out route pattern. Hopkins feet awareness would do the rest. The 2-point conversion was successful as Justin Watson caught the pass from Mahomes. The deficit was down to a 40-14 margin. With the lead in hand, the Eagles would turn to former Steeler Kenny Pickett. The quarterback wouldn't do a whole lot as the Eagles stalled out on their own 50-yard line. A turnover on downs and the next Chiefs possession would yield maximum results as Patrick Mahomes hit Xavier Worthy for a touchdown from 50-yards. A pass to DeAndre Hopkins on a 2-point conversion would get the Chiefs to a 40-22 deficit. It would be their last play and drive of their season and the game. On an onside kick, Harrison Butker would try to get the Chiefs the ball with 1:48 left. The attempt would fail as Grant Calcaterra would recover it. The Chiefs attempt of a comeback would fail. There would be no threepeat. The thrill of victory was felt on one sideline and the agony of defeat would be felt on the other as Kenny Pickett kneeled three times to kill the clock. The Eagles would get their revenge on Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs in a total and utter domination by a final score of 40 to 22. The quarterback that was said to be too small to be an NFL quarterback would win the game's MVP, Jalen Hurts. 

Stats in this game would be rough as Patrick Mahomes hit 21 of 32 passes for 257 yards with three touchdown passes and two interceptions. The Chiefs run game would have pitiful numbers as Patrick Mahomes ran for his life with four carries for 25 yards. Kareem Hunt had three carries for nine yards. Xavier Worthy was the leading receiver for the Chiefs with eight catches for 157 yards and two touchdowns and had a catch of 50 yards to be the longest pass play for the Chiefs. Line play would be a factor in this game and the Chiefs would fail in every regard as they couldn't control the line of scrimmage and pass protection broke down. Dropped passes would also be a factor as well as not getting the run game going. Murphy's law applied best for the Chiefs as everything went wrong for them. Kansas City had 275 total yards in the game.

Jalen Hurts hit 17 of 22 passes for 221 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. The two touchdowns went to Devonta Smtih and AJ Brown. Jalen Hurts was the leading rusher with 11 carries for 72 yards with a rushing touchdown. He had a run of 17 yards that was the longest run int he game for Philadelphia. Devonta Smith had four catches for 69 yards and had a catch that went for a 46-yard gain for the touchdown. Philadelphia would dominate on the defensive front. They wouldn't blitz a lot as most of the pressure would come on 4-man pressures. When you have that much while the rest of the defense can play pass defense, you can have success. With the defense figured out, the offense would grind out the Chiefs defense and cause them to be on the field for a long time. The Eagles would get 345 total yards in the game. 

In my closing thoughts, I think it serves as a reminder that the Chiefs success this season shouldn't be a failure. Yes, they didn't get the threepeat but it proves once again that it is difficult to even get to a Super Bowl, let alone win one, let alone get to another Super Bowl and to even get another Super Bowl win to defend your championship. The Eagles played a better game on Sunday and they had no pressure on them. They dominated the trenches, got takeaways and scored points like a pinball machine. The Philadelphia Eagles got their 2nd Super Bowl championship and their 5th overall championship in franchise history. 

Commercials

The commercials this year weren't too shabby. It certainly made the game a bit easier to digest as the Chiefs were getting stomped on. In most years, the commercials aren't good as they are mostly off the top and you have to get the humor of it. Here's some of the commercials that I liked. 

Mountain Dew:

Nike:

Hellman's:

UberEats:

The Mountain Dew one was kind of funny as you have the artist Seal as a seal singing a parody of his song "Kiss From A Rose." If only there was a biopic of Mike Ditka that Matthew McConaughey would star in. I think he has a case for Football being more like Foodball. 

Halftime Show

Kendrick Lamar did the halftime show this year. For the most part, I didn't really understand it. I thought the show design was kind of neat and the choreography was kind of cool. The real winner was Samuel L. Jackson playing as Uncle Sam. Prince's performance in Super Bowl XLI was still top notch for me. 

Preseason Predictions + Awards Recap

Prior to the Week 1 Picks post last September, I made a preseason predictions post where I picked where the 32 teams will finish in the standings, the playoffs, the Super Bowl matchup and winner as well as the Awards winners as well as my bold predictions. It's a fun way to look back on where I was right and where I was wrong. This will be painful. Let's take a look:

Regular season predictions

NFC:

East

Philadelphia Eagles (picked to finish 1st; final result: 1st place): Correct

Dallas Cowboys (picked to finish 2nd; final result: 3rd place): Incorrect

Washington Commanders (picked to finish 3rd; final result 2nd place): Incorrect

New York Giants (picked to finish 4th; final result: 4th place): Correct

North

Detroit Lions (picked to finish 1st; final result: 1st place: Correct

Green Bay Packers (picked to finish 2nd; final result: 3rd place): Incorrect

Chicago Bears (picked to finish 3rd; final result: 4th place): Incorrect

Minnesota Vikings (picked to finish 4th; final result: 2nd place): Incorrect

South

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: (picked to finish 1st; final result: 1st place): Correct

Atlanta Falcons (picked to finish 2nd; final result: 2nd place): Correct

New Orleans Saints (picked to finish 3rd; final result: 4th place): Incorrect

Carolina Panthers (picked to finish 4th; final result: 3rd place): Incorrect

West

Los Angeles Rams (picked to finish 1st; final result: 1st place): Correct

San Francisco 49ers (picked to finish 2nd; final result: 4th place): Incorrect

Seattle Seahawks (picked to finish 3rd; final result: 2nd place): Incorrect

Arizona Cardinals (picked to finish 4th; final result: 3rd place): Incorrect

AFC:

East

Buffalo Bills (picked to finish 1st; final result: 1st place): Correct

Miami Dolphins (picked to finish 2nd; final result: 2nd place): Correct

New York Jets (picked to finish 3rd; final result: 3rd place): Correct

New England Patriots (picked to finish 4th; final result: 4th place): Correct

North

Baltimore Ravens (picked to finish 1st; final result: 1st place): Correct

Cincinnati Bengals (picked to finish 2nd; final result: 3rd place): Incorrect

Pittsburgh Steelers (picked to finish 3rd; final result: 2nd place): Incorrect

Cleveland Browns: picked to finish 4th; final result: 4th place): Correct

South

Houston Texans (picked to finish 1st; final result: 1st place): Correct

Indianapolis Colts (picked to finish 2nd; final result: 2nd place): Correct

Jacksonville Jaguars (picked to finish 3rd; final result: 3rd place): Correct

Tennessee Titans (picked to finish 4th; final result: 4th place): Correct

West

Kansas City Chiefs (picked to finish 1st; final result: 1st place): Correct

Los Angeles Chargers (picked to finish 2nd; final result: 2nd place): Correct

Denver Broncos (picked to finish 3rd; final result: 3rd place): Correct

Las Vegas Raiders (picked to finish 4th; final result: 4th place): Correct

The final tally of the teams I had correct was 20 out of 32 correct placing. In terms of percentages it is 62% correct. For perspective, I had 15 out of 32 correct last year and then 19 of 32 correct the year before. I would say it is a successful picks placing. 

Playoff Predictions

AFC

1st seed: Kansas City Chiefs (correct; Chiefs #1 seed)
2nd seed: Baltimore Ravens (incorrect; Ravens #3rd seed)
3rd seed: Buffalo Bills (incorrect; Bills #2nd seed)
4th seed: Houston Texans (correct; Texans #4 seed)
5th seed: Cincinnati Bengals (incorrect; Chargers #5 seed)
6th seed: Miami Dolphins (incorrect; Steelers #6 seed)
7th seed: New York Jets (incorrect; Broncos #7 seed)

Wild Card: 

Ravens over Jets (ravens did win their wild card matchup)

Bills over Dolphins (incorrect)

Bengals over Texans (incorrect)

Divisional

Chiefs over Bengals

Ravens over Bills (almost happened)

Conference Championship

Ravens over Chiefs (incorrect)

NFC

1st seed: Philadelphia Eagles (incorrect; Eagles #2 seed)
2nd seed: Los Angeles Rams (incorrect; Rams #4 seed)
3rd seed: Detroit Lions (incorrect; Lions #1 seed)
4th seed: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (incorrect; Buccaneers #3 seed)
5th seed: Dallas Cowboys (incorrect; Cowboys didn't make playoffs)
6th seed: San Francisco 49ers (incorrect; 49ers didn't make playoffs)
7th seed: Green Bay Packers (correct; Packers #7 seed)

Wild Card:

Rams over Packers (kind of correct; Rams did win their Wild Card game)

Lions over 49ers (incorrect)

Buccaneers over Cowboys (incorrect)

Divisional:

Eagles over Buccaneers (Eagles did win their divisional game)

Lions over Rams (incorrect but Rams did lose their Divisional game)

Conference Championship:

Eagles over Lions (kind of correct; Eagles did represent the NFC in Super Bowl)

Super Bowl 59:

Ravens over Eagles (incorrect for the AFC winner and Super Bowl winner; correct for NFC winner).

Award Predictions:

MVP: Josh Allen (correct; you're welcome Josh!)

Offensive Player of the Year: Justin Jefferson (incorrect; Saquon Barkley won)

Defensive Player of the Year: T.J. Watt (incorrect; Patrick Surtain II won)

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Marvin Harrison Jr. (incorrect; Jayden Daniels won)

Defensive Rookie of the Year: Dallas Turner (incorrect, Jared Verse won)

Comeback Player of the Year: Aaron Rodgers (incorrect, Joe Burrow won)

Coach of the Year: Dan Campbell (incorrect, Kevin O'Connell won)

Bold Predictions

Mike McCarthy will be let go as Cowboys head coach prior to the Super Bowl - Correct, he was let go prior to the Divisional playoff. 
Tyreek Hill will achieve 2,000 receiving yards - Incorrect, He had 959 receiving yards. 
No team(s) will have 14 or more wins - Incorrect, four teams had 14 or more wins (Lions, Vikings, Chiefs and Eagles)
We will have four quarterbacks throw for more than 4,000 yards - Incorrect, six quarterbacks had more than 4,000 passing yards: Joe Burrow, Jared Goff, Baker Mayfield, Geno Smith, Sam Darnold and Lamar Jackson. 

Farewell to 2024

Well another season ends in the books and hopefully you all enjoyed me reading all the goings on in the NFL season. I would like to announce that my days on Blogger are going to come to an end. Blogger has been somewhat of a useful tool for me to blog with but the years from 2017 to 2024 have been enjoyable. I am planning on going back to my roots and write on WordPress again. I had written on WordPress from 2012 to 2014. I just find it to be a bit more useful for writing blogs than Blogger. It doesn't mean that I won't stop writing for the National Football League. I plan on writing more on there about season recap, free agency, the draft, random blogs, etc. Until then, I hope you enjoy reading these blogs as much as I enjoy writing them. Farewell! :-)

-Tom