Call it boring, call it history. You do not bet against Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes in these games, and we are sticking to this rule on Sunday, when Kansas City looks to win their third straight Super Bowl against Jalen Hurts and the Eagles.
While Mahomes should make his impact on the ground and Barkley through both the ground and air, our sleeper pick is DeAndre Hopkins - one of the best wideouts of the last decade - to score a touchdown that gives Kansas City the lead at some point in this ball game.
Patrick Mahomes has been nothing short of spectacular in Super Bowls with his legs. The three-time Super Bowl MVP has rushed for 29, 33, 44, and 66 yards during this Chiefs never-ending dynasty.
Whether on 1st and longs or 3rd and shorts, Andy Reid always seems to find a way to scheme Mahomes into open space. When marching down the field, Mahomes tends to pick up his rush yardage in chunks at the opponent’s 49-20-yard line.
In 16 regular season games played, Patrick had 26 rushes for 167 yards (6.4 average) when in this situation, securing 11 first downs. With this ball game expected to be an offensive showdown, this is an area where Mahomes should thrive.
Barkley has a real chance to become the first running back since Terrell Davis to win Super Bowl MVP. His odds on most books sit at +280 for the award. Oh, by the way, he turns 28 the day of the Super Bowl.
Whether coincidence or not, Barkley is due to make an impact - in the receiving game. KC allowed 49 yards through the air to James Cook and 12 yards to Joe Mixon in their two playoff wins in this current Super Bowl run.
Looking back at their last four Super Bowl appearances, Kyle Juszczyk went for 39 yards, Leonard Fournette 46 yards, Kenneth Gainwell 20 yards, and Christian McCaffrey 80 yards through the air. Although Barkley hasn’t had a huge impact as a receiver this postseason, that should change against the Chiefs and their defensive scheme.
Here we go. This is the longshot play that only happens in a perfect world. With that being said, there’s something that the Chiefs haven’t totally unlocked with DeAndre Hopkins and maybe it’s been purposeful?
I’m not saying that Andy Reid has purposely hidden one of the best wide receivers of the last decade… but has he? With Xavier Worthy hitting his stride and Travis Kelce due to deliver a solid performance in a recurring moment, DeAndre Hopkins is new to all this winning and because of that, I believe this is the perfect recipe for him to catch a touchdown.
Mahomes has thrown 2 or more touchdowns in all of his Super Bowl appearances outside of that beatdown against Tampa Bay and if you had to give me a KC wideout to score in the red zone through the air, Hopkins is my bet.
You do not bet against Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid in February. Period.
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