It would be an understatement to say it was a rough start for the two-time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs in Sunday’s Super Bowl.
Through an entire half of play, the Chiefs’ offense gained just a single first down as Patrick Mahomes (two interceptions) struggled to sustain a consistent rhythm against the Philadelphia Eagles’ ferocious pass rush. Meanwhile, Jalen Hurts’ Eagles offense more or less did whatever it wanted while building a seemingly insurmountable 24-0 lead.
(And this was WITH a controversial offensive pass interference penalty on A.J. Brown.)
The Chiefs’ struggles culminated with Mahomes throwing a brutal pick-six to Eagles’ defensive back Cooper DeJean at the halfway mark of the second quarter. It was a positively stunning sequence:
COOPER DEJEAN PICK TO THE HOUSE!
📺: #SBLIX on FOX
📱: Tubi + NFL app pic.twitter.com/y4Q4bGTHE2— NFL (@NFL) February 10, 2025
After the play, Fox cameras caught Mahomes going through all the emotions before literally pouting over his mistake:
Very different reactions for Nick Sirianni and Patrick Mahomes pic.twitter.com/tayuLeG1gm
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) February 10, 2025
It was that kind of half for Mahomes and the Chiefs: listless.
Unfortunately, you don’t get do-overs on the first 30 minutes, either.
