Mumbai: Safety was the most important concern forward of Sunday’s Tremendous Bowl, the 59th version of the Nationwide Soccer League’s championship match. It passed off at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, 41 days after a truck assault on Bourbon Avenue noticed 15 individuals die, the situation barely a mile away from the stadium.
Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts threw for 2 touchdowns and was awarded the MVP of the match (AP)
After which there was the presence of US President Donald Trump, who grew to become the nation’s first sitting chief to attend the annual spectacle.
Amidst the heavy safety preparations, Philadelphia Eagles emerged triumphant with a complete 40-22 win, dismantling the resistance of two-time defending champions Kansas Metropolis Chiefs. They led 24-0 at halftime.
Eagles grew to become Tremendous Bowl champions for the second time in franchise historical past, after their win in 2018. The victory denied the Chiefs’ hopes of turning into the primary NFL staff to win three consecutive Tremendous Bowl titles.
It’s the sporting occasion of the season in the US which celebrates American soccer with numerous superstar performances at halftime. And this yr’s occasion was no completely different.
With Trump watching from the stands, Hollywood star Samuel L Jackson performed emcee whereas US rapper Kendrick Lamar was the spotlight of the halftime present, that includes with singer SZA. Tennis legend Serena Williams additionally took the stage as she danced to Lamar’s efficiency.
Earlier than the halftime spectacle nonetheless, the Eagles had put in a dominant show in defence that shut down the most important risk out there on the Chiefs’ roster.
Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs quarterback, had been an instrumental participant within the staff’s seek for an unprecedented “three-peat”. There had been seven previous situations when a staff dealing with double-digit deficits had come again and win. Mahomes was concerned in three of these matches. On Sunday although, the Eagles shut down the 29-year-old, and the way.
Mahomes was tackled, or sacked, 3 times and his passes had been intercepted twice within the first half alone, forcing him to register his worst half efficiency as knowledgeable participant. He had been tackled six instances by the tip of the match, essentially the most he has been in a recreation.
Together with Mahomes, Chiefs’ tight finish Travis Kelce, whose pop icon girlfriend Taylor Swift was watching from the stands, had been left and not using a provide of the ball. Kelce managed to get his first catch of the evening solely when the Eagles led by 31-0.
“We didn’t pressure much,” Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio was quoted by AP as saying. “He’s so good against pressure that I was hoping we could play the game without having to pressure much — and that happened.”
With two of crucial gamers taken away by the Eagles’ strong line of defense, Eagles took the initiative in assault as properly. They opened the scoring by means of MVP Jalen Hurts.
A couple of minutes later Cooper DeJean, on his twenty second birthday, scored one other landing. In direction of the tip of the primary half, Hurts was at it once more, this time passing to AJ Brown who scored a 3rd landing, taking the rating to 24-0 on the interval.
Mahomes finally handle to get in a strong move for a Xavier Worthy landing, the rating turning into 34-6. Jake Elliot added six extra factors for the Eagles with two subject objectives earlier than Mahomes managed to arrange DeAndre Hopkins for one more landing.
The late touchdowns by the Chiefs finally proved to be tutorial in entrance of a strong first half efficiency by the Eagles.
“This is the ultimate team game. You can’t be great without the greatness of others. Great performance by everybody – offense, defense, special teams,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni was quoted as saying by The Guardian. “We didn’t really ever care what anyone thought about how we won, or their opinions. All we want to do is win.”
The Eagles and Chiefs had met within the Tremendous Bowl ultimate two years in the past. Then, the Chiefs gained 38-35. The final staff to attain a minimum of 40 factors in a Tremendous Bowl match too was the Eagles, once they beat New England Patriots 41-33 in 2018.
A day that began with tributes to those that misplaced their lives within the assault on January 1 ended with one other profitable chapter within the celebration of American soccer.