It was always supposed to end this way — a battle between two elite quarterbacks and former MVP finalists who have snuck under the radar this season. For most of the season, the discourse surrounding the Kansas City Chiefs was about the team winning in spite of Patrick Mahomes’ occasional struggles. Similarly, Saquon Barkley stole all the headlines for the Philadelphia Eagles, overshadowing the most efficient season of Jalen Hurts’ career.
Both Mahomes and Hurts have both stepped up in the postseason, especially in their respective conference championships. The 246 passing yards that Hurts accounted for in the NFC Championship were his fifth-most of the season, while Mahomes’ 111.9 passer rating in the AFC Championship was his fifth-highest of the season.
In honor of the big game, DraftKings Sportsbook has launched a series of passing special bets. Below, I’ve highlighted two of my favorites.
Bet on Super Bowl passing specials at DraftKings Sportsbook here.
Patrick Mahomes to Have 25+ Pass Yards in Each Quarter (-130)
It doesn’t take a lot to reach 25 passing yards; a screen-and-run to Xavier Worthy, who set an NFL Combine record last year with a 4.21-second 40-yard dash, might suffice. Plus, Kansas City’s offense is good at staying on the field; the Chiefs ran an average of 63.4 plays per game, the ninth-most in football, and picked up 20.6 first downs per game, the 12th-most in football. Kansas City’s offense sees the field for at least 47% of each quarter, which should give Mahomes plenty of opportunities to throw for 25 passing yards, even against a Philadelphia defense that has no real weaknesses in the secondary.
Plus, the Eagles’ fearsome front seven will likely have no issue containing Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco, so Mahomes’ best answer is to pass, especially to tight end Travis Kelce. I’m predicting a big bounce-back game from Kelce after he was quiet in the AFC Championship Game, and Hollywood Brown should be more comfortable with the offense in his fifth game with the team. Mahomes has the weapons to piece together three solid completions in every quarter, which is all he should really need.
Jalen Hurts to Have 100+ Pass Yards in Each Half (+190)
Of the Chiefs’ front seven and secondary and the Eagles’ front seven and secondary, Kansas City’s aerial defense is clearly either team’s weakest aspect on paper. I’m not sure if the Chiefs’ league-best rush defense will actually be able to slow down Barkley and Hurts as runners, but if I were Hurts, Trent McDuffie, Jaylen Watson, and Chamarri Conner wouldn’t scare me, given that they struggled to slow down Josh Allen’s weaker receiving weapons in the AFC Championship Game.
In the first two games of the postseason, Hurts didn’t throw much because he either didn’t have to — against the Green Bay Packers, Philadelphia was dominant enough that they could largely run out the clock — or was clearly injured, as he was against the Los Angeles Rams. In the NFC Championship Game, Hurts had to throw in order to out-duel Jayden Daniels’ high-powered Washington Commanders offense, and he passed for 141 yards in the first half and 105 in the second half. Kansas City’s secondary is better than Washington’s, but with all due respect to the rookie, Mahomes is better than Daniels. Barring an Eagles blowout, Hurts should throw enough to reach 100 passing yards in each half.
