Commentary: From dynasty to disaster, the Chiefs had no chance against the Eagles

NEW ORLEANS – You could see the resignation on Andy Reid’s face. It happened late in the third quarter as the Kansas City Chiefs coach watched a replay of the Philadelphia Eagles toppling his dynasty.

Reid stared at the video board for one more look. It wasn’t a mirage. The evidence was undeniable: Philadelphia wide receiver DeVonta Smith raced past Kansas City cornerback Jaylen Watson (Washington State) and caught another picturesque pass from Jalen Hurts. A staggering score flashed on the screen: 34-0. Two minutes, 40 seconds remained in the third quarter, but the Chiefs’ dream of becoming the first team to win three straight Super Bowls was already, amazingly over. As Reid winced, his thick mustache couldn’t conceal his dismay.

On Sunday night, Kansas City watched its historic bid succumb to disaster. The Chiefs met a force that they could not outwit. They were shoved into a fight that they couldn’t win with clever strategies and championship moxie. The Eagles weren’t here to play chess and hope to be the rare team to survive a close game against a team that has profited from narrow-margin drama.

During their 40-22 victory in Super Bowl 59, the Eagles overthrew the two-time defending champions with the kind of force that only they are powerful enough to marshal. The Chiefs hadn’t seen anything close to what the Eagles threw at them since the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stomped them, 31-9, in the title game four years ago. In many ways, Philadelphia is more dominant than those Bucs were. The Chiefs are wiser and healthier, more versatile and adorned with more jewelry than they had back then. Still, the Eagles made them look like skittish novices.

It was a merciless takedown. And for those tired of watching the Chiefs roam about their kingdom unbothered, it was a long-awaited, balance-affirming whoopin’.

The NFL is fair again, it seems. Eventually, we will get around to realizing Philadelphia is a fearsome giant as well, one that has won two titles and made three Super Bowl appearances in the past eight seasons despite being sandwiched between the formidable regimes of the Chiefs and the New England Patriots. To win their first title, the Eagles had to deny Tom Brady while starting a backup quarterback. And now, with a vastly different core and quarterback, they have sent Patrick Mahomes searching for answers that we assumed he already had.

Perhaps this was the only way the Chiefs, proprietors of one steely dynasty, could fall. No opponent had shown itself capable of outfoxing them. So the Eagles smashed them until there was no hope.

“It’s something that’s going to stick with us the whole offseason,” Chiefs center Creed Humphrey said.

As Philadelphia built a 24-0 lead by halftime, it outgained Kansas City 179-23. Mahomes went to the locker room with the most gruesome stats of his career: 6 for 14 passing for 33 yards with two interceptions. His passer rating was a miserable 10.7. Ten. Point. Seven. You figured he got that many points just for putting his headband over his mohawk.

“He’s a human being,” Chiefs wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins said. “And I guess the world got to see that.”

The Chiefs were out of sorts and tried to execute a foolish game plan. In the first half, they ran the ball just three times for three yards. They were left to face the full force of the Eagles’ pass rush, which finished with six sacks of Mahomes and harassed him into making amateur decisions. Kansas City finished the first half with just one first down. On third down, it was 0 for 6. Mahomes’ interceptions resulted in 14 Philadelphia points, including a 38-yard return for a score by rookie cornerback Cooper DeJean.

“Too many turnovers,” Reid said. “Too many penalties. Against a good football team, you just can’t do it.”

When Philadelphia’s top-ranked defense wasn’t controlling the game, the Eagles were making it look easy on offense. Hurts, the Super Bowl MVP, completed 17 of 21 passes for 221 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 72 yards and a score. He was nearly flawless, the only major mistake being an interception in the second quarter. Hurts completed passes to five receivers in the first quarter, responding to the attention Kansas City paid to running back Saquon Barkley.

For parts of the season, the Eagles drew criticism and endured locker-room angst for going vanilla in the passing game. But Hurts became more and more spectacular as the playoffs progressed. Now, at 26, he has a championship, and while he’s not as prolific as the AFC quartet of Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow, he deserves his own cozy spot among the game’s best quarterbacks. Hurts is the ideal conductor of an offense and a team that specializes in balance.

“When you sell out to stop one thing, another thing opens,” Eagles Coach Nick Sirianni said. “Jalen was able to take advantage of that. Man, he and this team are world champs forever.”

Sirianni lives by a mantra: “You can’t be great without the greatness of others.” He inspires a headstrong team full of personalities to play unselfishly, dealing with drama and infighting when necessary. For as doubted as Sirianni has been, he guided this team to perfection. The Eagles were great together. Even scarier, the Eagles can remain great for quite a while if they stay focused.

From the moment the Chiefs emerged from the locker room Sunday, they seemed uncomfortable. It started with boos during pregame warmups, a thunderous razzing from a Superdome crowd of 65,719 that felt more intense than anything I had experienced at a Super Bowl. Most Chiefs players trotted on and off the field as if they were oblivious to the venom from fans who either loved the Eagles or adopted them simply out of disdain for the Chiefs. Some Kansas City players pranced, skipped and did everything they could to antagonize the boobirds. But the vibe was an omen.

Later, when Taylor Swift received the same treatment, it was another sign that the Chiefs weren’t about to have a fun night. When they fell behind, they weren’t about to mount another of their classic comebacks. And when they needed Mahomes, they weren’t about to ride their savior to a fourth championship in six seasons.

History didn’t bow to the Chiefs. They got clubbed by history. The Eagles were glad to be the ones swinging the weapon with astonishing ruthlessness.