(Reuters) – As the two-times defending champion Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles prepare to do battle in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday, here are five players who may have a big say in the outcome of the National Football League championship game:
PATRICK MAHOMES, CHIEFS QUARTERBACK
An elite thrower with exceptional improvisational skills and pinpoint accuracy, Mahomes is returning for his fifth Super Bowl appearance in six seasons having gone 3-1 in his previous trips to the title game.
Mahomes led the Chiefs to a 15-2 regular season record, tied with Detroit for best in the league, and enters the Super Bowl on the heels of an AFC Championship game in which he threw for 245 yards, one passing touchdown, and ran in two scores.
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JALEN HURTS, EAGLES QUARTERBACK
The fifth-year quarterback has proven to be a nightmare for defensive coordinators around the league as he has established himself as a true scoring threat with both his arm and legs.
Hurts was on the losing end of the Super Bowl two years ago against the Chiefs despite playing a solid game and arrives on the NFL’s grandest stage in top form having thrown for a touchdown and rushing for three scores in the NFC Championship.
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SAQUON BARKLEY, EAGLES RUNNING BACK
Acquired by the Eagles last offseason, Barkley has produced a remarkable season in which he became just the ninth player to eclipse 2,000 yards rushing in a single NFL regular season and has remained dominant in the playoffs.
Operating behind arguably one of the top offensive lines in the NFL, Barkley’s dominance as a ball carrier has commanded so much attention from opposing defenses that his presence on the field opens up opportunities for Hurts and Eagles’ receivers.
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XAVIER WORTHY, CHIEFS WIDE RECEIVER
Selected with the 28th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the speedy rookie overcame a slow start to the season to emerge as one of Mahomes’ preferred targets in the postseason.
Worthy started making noise on the Chiefs offense late in the season and has not shown any signs of slowing down, thriving under an increased workload while catching 11 passes for 130 yards and a touchdown in two playoffs games.
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JAKE ELLIOTT, EAGLES KICKER
Elliott has not been quite as automatic this season as in years past and, in a league where games are often decided by razor-thin margins, that could convince the Eagles to go for it on fourth and short when in field goal range.
In the Eagles’ first two playoff games this year, Elliott missed three of his five extra point attempts but made all six of his field goals. In the NFC Championship, he hit all seven extra-point attempts and missed a 54-yard field goal.
Of each Super Bowl team’s kickers, Elliott has been less efficient having hit 77.8% of his field goals during the regular season compared to Harrison Butker’s 84% for the Chiefs.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Toby Davis)
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