Super Bowl LIX Preview
Money Trees
Money Trees
- Super Bowl LIX Breakdown
- Prediction & Taylor Swift Props
- YouTube Rabbithole
Alright @YouTheReader,
Today’s tune is Kendrick Lamar’s Money Trees because he’s performing at Super Bowl LIX. Money Trees was on his good kid, m.A.A.d city album in 2012.
Part of what made his good kid, m.A.A.d city a classic is that each song in the album connects in an overall story. This will be a bit out of context, and who knows if he actually partook in a home invasion like the song depicts, but the album is supposedly loosely based on stories from his life growing up in Compton.
Kendrick Lamar told RapGenius that the chorus is about how…
“You can either go right, or you can go left and get crazy with us. Basically just saying we throw the evils of the world in the air. Now, K. Dot, you can either get with the program or you don’t have to, it’s whatever. Of course, hallelujah being the more good in me and Halle Berry being the actual vice of what’s going down – the lust for the money, the lust for this mission we are about to go on. Pick your poison, tell me what you’re doing. But when you tell me, tell me right now. We ain’t got time to wait.”
Kendrick told Complex that at this point in his life, “That was the mind state of thinking everything is about a dollar. That's where we were at the time. Everything was about money. We didn't care about nothing else, truthfully."
E-40 is a West Coast rapper named Earl Stevens who had a 1999 song called Big Ballin’ With My Homies. The “this-a-way, that-a-way” part of the chorus of Money Trees also plays on another E-40 song called Sideways. Growing up in the 90s, Kendrick’s uncle was murdered at a burger stand. That adds a bit more context to the shooter line in the chorus, being that he wrote a song that immortalizes his uncle.
(Source: RapGenius)
It’s a great song on harsh realities. The chorus is unbelievable. Wonder if he’ll perform it at the Halftime? Gotta think so.
On to…
Super Bowl LIX
Quarterbacks
Edge: Chiefs
Super Bowl LIX will feature the 4th Quarterback rematch. The only other times where two QBs have faced each other in multiple Super Bowls were Roger Staubach vs Terry Bradshaw, Jim Kelly vs Troy Aikman, and Tom Brady vs Eli Manning. In these three instances, the winner of the previous matchup went on to win the rematch. This doesn’t bode well for Jalen Hurts, who will try to make history a 2nd time after he became the first QB in Super Bowl history to score 3 rushing TDs in his SB LVII loss to Kansas City. While the Chiefs hold a positional advantage over the Eagles, the Philly QB has once again been lethal at moving the chains on short down and distance. With Hurts behind center, Philly’s Tush Push converted on 82.4% of short-yardage situations.
Patrick Mahomes will try to become just the 4th QB in NFL history to hoist the Lombardi Trophy 4 times. Only Tom Brady (7), Terry Bradshaw (4), and Joe Montana (4) have done so before. Mahomes has already won the Super Bowl MVP 3 times, which ties him with Montana for the 2nd most, and trails only Brady’s 5. After starting the regular season with an up-and-down stretch of play where Mahomes was throwing an uncharacteristic amount of interceptions (11 INTs in 10 games), the Chiefs’ franchise QB hasn’t been picked off since Week 11 in Buffalo. Simply put, Jalen Hurts is a really good QB, while Patrick Mahomes is great.
Tight Ends
Edge: Chiefs
Philly’s Dallas Goedert missed about a 3rd of the season with a hamstring pull and knee injury. Otherwise, the 7-year veteran TE had an efficient season. Goedert’s 42 catches on 52 targets is a career-best 81.4% catch rate. The Eagles TE has especially played well in the postseason as he’s caught 15 passes for 188 yards and a score as Jalen Hurts’ safety outlet.
Travis Kelce is on the cusp of breaking some more all-time NFL postseason records. The 12-year pro needs 207 receiving yards and 3 TDs to break Jerry Rice’s playoff records (2,245 yards & 22 TDs). While that may not be in the cards in Super Bowl LIX, the future Hall of Famer had yet another excellent season in ‘24. Although he got off to a slow start statistically, Kelce has caught 90+ passes for the 7th straight season. While the 7-time All-Pro was essentially used as a decoy in KC’s win over Buffalo, Kelce showed he can still gear up for the postseason with his 7 catches for 117 yards and 1 TD performance over the Texans in the Divisional Round. Despite his age, Kelce is the clear choice, and what really separates the two TE units further is his backup, Noah Gray. Kelce’s backup caught a career-high 40 passes for 437 yards and 5 TDs in the regular season. In his 4th season with KC, Gray has developed into a reliable secondary piece for Patrick Mahomes.
Running Backs
Edge: Eagles
The Kansas City Chiefs relied heavily on their run game last season with the emergence of Isiah Pacheco. Unfortunately, the Rutgers product running back suffered a fractured fibula in Week 2. Although he’s since returned, Pacheco has understandably not run with the same effectiveness as he did last season. In his absence, the Chiefs signed Kareem Hunt from off his couch. Hunt can certainly carry the workload in the Kansas City backfield; the only problem is that most of the time, he looks like a running back that was on his couch earlier in the fall. Technically, Mahomes is the Chiefs’ most efficient runner as he ran for 5.3 yards per carry.
The Eagles dominate in the RB category as Saquon Barkley is amid a legacy season. After being spurned by the G-Men last off-season, Barkley has been on a year-long F-U Tour. Barkley’s 345 carries and 2,005 rushing yards led all of the NFL this season, while his 46 runs of 10 yards or more were also an NFL-best. In Philadelphia’s Super Bowl run in the postseason, Barkley has raised the stakes with 442 rushing yards and 5 scores. Barkley is just the 2nd RB in NFL history to rush for 2k yards in the regular season and reach the Super Bowl. Only Terrell Davis’ 1998 campaign previously completed such a feat.
Wide Receivers
Edge: Eagles
The Kansas City Chiefs wideout room’s depth has improved since last season’s Super Bowl, but it lacks Rashee Rice. After Mahomes ended Rice’s season, the Chiefs’ best WR this season was their Xavier Worthy. The 1st Round rookie WR can really fly but is still raw and developing chemistry with Mahomes. Once Worthy and Mahomes consistently start connecting on the loads of deep balls they missed this regular season, the KC offense will be elite again. Aside from Worthy, Mahomes is also establishing the pass-game connection with newcomers DeAndre Hopkins and Hollywood Brown. Hopkins got traded to KC midseason while Hollywood signed a 1 year deal and missed nearly the entire regular season. While neither veteran WR had a season to remember, Hopkins can still make a difficult contested catches, and Hollywood can take the top off the defense. KC also has former TikTok Star Juju Smith-Schuster and Justin Watson, who can both make a random big play thanks to Mahomes. Although it’s far from the days of Tyreek Hill, KC has plenty of depth.
AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith headline the Eagles’ pass catchers. While the WR duo had a down year from their past couple of seasons together, that’s mostly because of Saquon Barkley’s production. Brown was quiet for most of the playoffs, but he just went for 96 yards and scored in Philly’s win over Washington in the NFC Championship. Smith was dinged up for much of the regular season but still led Philly’s unit with 8 receiving TDs. While Philadelphia’s unit lacks the same depth as KC,
Big Uglies
Edge: Draw
The Philadelphia Eagles’ offensive line weighs in at 1,688 pounds. They are the heaviest unit to ever play in a Super Bowl. Both of the Eagles’ tackles, Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson, were named 2nd Team All-Pro this season. Another prominent giant on their line is Right Guard Mekhi Becton. Big Ticket, as he was nicknamed when the Jets drafted Becton, has been a revelation after moving inside to guard. A massive factor as to why Saquon had a historic season and Philly can pull off their Tush Push play is because of their big guys upfront.
The Chiefs’ O-Line may not have the same size as Philadelphia's, but they are just as effective as a unit. Their group consists of two 1st Team All-Pros with Center Creed Humphrey and Left Guard Joe Thuney, who made a midseason move over to protect Mahomes’ blindside at Left Tackle. Both have been a mainstay on the KC O-Line throughout the Chiefs’ Dynastic run.
Pass Rushers
Edge: Draw
The Chiefs’ top defender is undoubtedly Chris Jones. The star defensive tackle was recognized as an All-Pro for the 5th straight season. While his 5 sacks don’t jump off the page, Jones generated an absurd career-high of 53 QB Hurries in ‘24, along with 15 QB Hits. Off the edge, Kansas City is also developing a star in the making pass rusher in George Karlaftis. The 3rd year pro picked up a solid 8 sacks this regular season, but what’s even more impressive is his knack for getting to the QB during the NFL’s biggest stage. Karlaftis has racked up 3 sacks this postseason and already has 7 career sacks in just 9 playoff games played. At just 23 years of age, it’s not a stretch to think Karlaftis has a real shot at eventually ending up with the most all-time, which is currently Willie McGinest’s 16.
When the Eagles made Super Bowl LVII, Philadelphia’s veteran group of pass rushers was the driving force. In ‘22, they recorded 70 team sacks, falling just 2 shy of the 1984 Bears. While this current unit doesn’t have the stats, they are arguably just as imposing. Their sack leader in ‘24, Josh Sweat, is the only holdover on their active roster from the ‘22 season. This new version of Philly’s pass rush is headlined by 3 Georgia Bulldog 1st Rounders with Jalen Carter, Nolan Smith, and Jordan Davis. Carter earned his 1st All-Pro recognition this season after he finished with 7 sacks, 51 QB Hurries, and 15 QB Hits. He was absolutely unstoppable in the Divisional Round Snow Game, where he sacked Matthew Stafford twice. While Carter is a menace up the gut, Nolan Smith is a dangerous speed rusher off the edge. Smith had 6.5 sacks in the regular season but has been even more of a menace in the playoffs, picking up at least 1 sack in each round. The Eagles may have a bit more depth in this matchup but it’d be foolish to discount Chris Jones, so it’s a draw.
Linebackers
Edge: Draw
Manning the middle of Kansas City’s defense for the past 2 Super Bowls has been Nick Bolton. This season, he led KC in tackles (73 solo) and TFLs (11). Their outside linebackers, Drue Tranquill and Leo Chanel, also combined to record 94 solo tackles. All 3 linebackers are above-average run defenders that can be exploited in the passing game. While they aren’t necessarily game changers, the Chiefs’ linebacking core was a key reason for allowing just 101.8 rushing yards per game. That said, after allowing Joe Mixon and James Cook to run for 5.6 yards per carry in this postseason, they’ll have their work cut out for them chasing Saquon.
Philly would’ve held a clear advantage in the linebacker unit had Nakobe Dean not gone down with a knee in the playoffs. Dean had returned from an injury-riddled ‘23 season, but unfortunately, he will miss the Super Bowl. That said, the Eagles still have their top tackler in Zack Baun. In his first season with the Eagles, Baun was named 1st Team All-Pro, as he came up with 93 solo tackles and 11 TFLs. To fill Dean’s loss, the Eagles’ rookie linebacker, Jeremiah Trotter Jr., is in line for more reps. His father, Jeremiah Trotter Sr., led Philly in tackles in Super Bowl XXXIX (‘04 Brady vs McNabb).
Defensive Backs
Edge: Eagles
After being an elite unit in ‘23, the Kansas City defensive backs took a step back in ‘24. The loss of L’Jaruis Sneed could be responsible for that, as they went from allowing the 4th fewest pass yards in ‘23 to the middle of the pack in ‘24. Trent McDuffie is still the team’s top corner and was named 2nd Team All-Pro. It’ll be interesting to see if they will match him up with DeVonta Smith 1 vs 1 and shade more help with Jaylen Watson on AJ Brown. Watson is the bigger corner, so that may be the play.
Topping off the Eagles’ excellent defense is their elite secondary. Veteran CB Darius Slay is still a playmaker in his 12th season in the NFL. He’s been rejuvenated by the Eagles’ rookie CBs, Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper Dejean. Mitchell and 12 pass breakups this season finished 2nd in the NFL Rookie of the Year voting. Dejean wasn’t too shabby either as the team’s starting nickelback, finishing with 6 pass breakups and receiving the 4th most NFL Rookie of the Year votes. While they’ll be matching up against KC’s WRs, it’ll be on starting safeties CJ Gardner-Johnson and Reed Blankenship to defend Kelce & Gray. The Eagles’ safeties combined for 10 interceptions this season.
Special Teams
Edge: Chiefs
Eagles’ Kicker Jake Elliot went 28 for 36 on kicks this season. One thing of note in crunch time is he went 1 for 8 on kicks 50+ yards (including playoffs). With Kenneth Gainwell still in concussion protocol, expect rookie Will Shipley to handle kickoffs. Shipley has flashed in his limited opportunities this season and was a great all-purpose player at Clemson. Also, should note that their punter, Braden Mann, is a former Jet, so he could be bound for a blunder.
Chiefs’ Kicker Harrison Butker had an off-year by his standards, as he missed some time with a left knee injury. While he might be rusty, I’d still take his experience. In 21 playoff games, Butker has hit on 67 of 70 Extra Points and 36 of 40 Field Goals. After losing Mecole Hardman to injury, rookie returner Nikko Remigio has come on strong. In these playoffs, Remigio has already taken a kick return 63 yards and a punt return 41 yards.
Head Coach
Edge: Chiefs
This is Nick Sirianni’s 2nd Super Bowl in 4 seasons. Sirianni joins Joe Gibbs and Mike Tomlin as the 3rd coach in NFL history to make it twice in his first 4 seasons as an HC. Despite all the sideline antics, he’s in good company.
This will be Andy Reid’s 6th Super Bowl appearance. His 273 career wins place him 4th all-time, and if he can win his 4th Super Bowl, Reid will join Chuck Noll for 4th most Super Bowls. The Chiefs might get every 50-50 call, but they’re also very well-coached and rarely make dumb decisions.
Prediction & Props
Prediction: 31-21 KC (-1.5 KC & Over 48.5)
Taylor Swift Props
