Jalen Hurts Quiets Doubters While Denying Chiefs a Historic Three-Peat

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts could have pointed his finger and said “I told you so” at those who said he couldn’t win the big game. Instead, he stayed true to his humble character after helping the Eagles end the Kansas City Chiefs’ hopes for an unprecedented three-peat with a dominant 40-22 victory Sunday night in Super Bowl LIX at the Superdome.Mr. Hurts as a sophomore was famously pulled at halftime from Alabama’s 2018 national championship game, later lost to the Chiefs, 38-35, in the Super Bowl two years ago, and has had his passing skills and leadership abilities constantly questioned. He silenced his critics on Super Bowl Sunday passing for 221 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for another 72 yards and one score to earn the Super Bowl MVP award.“The criticism of him blows my mind because I think he’s so special,” Philadelphia coach Nick Sirianni said after the game. “I mean he’s won so many games and works his butt off and just continues to get better and block out everything and just focus on the task at hand of betting better, and putting himself in position to win each week.”As confetti rained down from the rafters of the Superdome with President Trump in attendance, Mr. Hurts lifted his MVP trophy but refused to mock his doubters. “I’ll always be the same guy,” he said. “I was telling someone that I’m the same kid that came to a national championship and lost, went back and got benched and had to transfer and had to go through this unprecedented journey. That kid always kept the main thing the main thing and always was true to his vision of what he saw.”Free agency was supposed to end the possibility of building dynasties in the NFL. The constant change in personnel was expected to make it hard for teams to create continuity. The New England Patriots and the Chiefs have proven that theory wrong by playing in a combined 13 Super Bowls and winning eight in recent years. Now the Philadelphia Eagles can be football’s next great franchise.Mr. Hurts, 26, is part of a core of Eagles under age 30 that should keep the Eagles in Super Bowl contention for years to come. The list includes running back Saquon Barkley, who set an NFL single-season rushing record, including the post-season. Mr. Barkley, 28, gained 57 yards rushing in the Super Bowl giving him 2,504 yards and 18 rushing touchdowns for the entire season, breaking the previous mark of 2,476 set by former Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davis.It completes a magical year for Mr. Barkley, who signed a free-agent contract to join the Eagles after six seasons with the New York Giants. He was the AP Offensive Player of the Year and won a Super Bowl on his birthday. “It was a hell of a year,” Mr. Barkley said. “But all the numbers and stats or records are cool, but the best thing is to be able to hold that Lombardi Trophy.”Wide receivers A.J. Brown, 27, and DeVonta Smith, 26, also aren’t going anywhere soon. Each caught touchdown passes from Mr. Hurts. Mr. Brown grabbed a 12-yard scoring pass in the second quarter to put the Eagles ahead 24-0, while Mr. Smith hauled in a 46-yard rainbow from Mr. Hurts in the third quarter to give Philadelphia an insurmountable 34-0 advantage.Defensive tackle Jalen Carter and defensive backs Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell are still in their rookie contracts. They added to a defense that kept quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the vaunted Chiefs scoreless until the final seconds of the third quarter.Mr. DeJean celebrated his 22nd birthday by returning a second-quarter interception 38 yards for a score to put Philadelphia ahead 17-0.“I never thought that would happen,” Mr. DeJean said of his interception. “It’s pretty cool. I’m just happy we won the game.”The Eagles’ triumph capped a disappointing week for the Chiefs whose chance for a three-peat was over by halftime. A pair of touchdown passes by Mr. Mahomes with under three minutes to play kept the score from being a total embarrassment. Though he passed for 257 yards and three touchdowns, Mr. Mahomes was intercepted twice — once for the pick-six, lost a fumble, and sacked six times.“They played better than us from start to finish,” Mr. Mahomes said. “We didn’t start how we wanted to. The turnovers hurt. I take all the blame for that.”The loss made for a disappointing weekend for Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and his girlfriend Taylor Swift. First Ms. Swift didn’t win any of the six Grammys for which she was nominated. Then the Chiefs laid a dud in the Superdome with Mr. Kelce being a virtual non-factor, catching just four passes for 39 yards and no touchdowns. Kansas City should have known it was in for a long night when Ms. Swift was booed by the pro-Philly crowd, while Mr. Trump, the first sitting president to attend the Super Bowl, was loudly cheered.

Jalen Hurts Quiets Doubters While Denying Chiefs a Historic Three-Peat

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