Eagles, Chiefs land in Phoenix, prepare for clash
A few minutes after the Kansas City Chiefs and quarterback Patrick Mahomes landed in Phoenix, the pilot hung a “Chiefs Kingdom” flag out of the window as players, coaches and staff got off the plane and walked across the runway.
About an hour later, it was the Philadelphia Eagles who arrived in Arizona, with an “It’s a Philly Thing” flag fluttering in the runway as quarterback Jalen Hurts, coach Nick Sirianni and others made their way to a fleet of buses.
Super Bowl 57 is just one week away.
The Chiefs will face the Eagles on Feb. 12 in Glendale, Arizona.
Both teams landed at Goldwater Air National Guard Base in ideal Phoenix winter weather — bright sunshine and temperatures in the low 70s. Team personnel occasionally stopped to take pictures and videos on the runway.
Former Chiefs star Christian Okoye was on hand to pass out hats to Kansas City’s players as they got off the plane. The former star running back lives in Southern California and made the short trip to Phoenix.
“They called me and wanted me to come over here and welcome the team,” Okoye said. “So I said ‘Yes, of course’ — my team’s over here getting ready to win the Super Bowl.”
Oddsmakers are expecting a good game, though they disagree with Okoye and are giving the Eagles a slight edge. Philadelphia opened as a 1 ½-point favorite, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
The Chiefs advanced to their third Super Bowl in four seasons when Harrison Butker made a 45yard field goal with 3 seconds left to push Kansas City past the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 in the AFC championship game last weekend.
The Eagles routed the San Francisco 49ers 31-7 in the NFC title game. They’ve looked dominant in the playoffs so far, also beating the New York Giants 38-7 in the divisional round.
Philadelphia is back in the Super Bowl five years after beating the New England Patriots 41-33.
Now a mostly new generation of Eagles — led by Hurts and Sirianni — will come to Arizona to try and win another title.
The teams will both take part in the “Super Bowl LVII Opening Night” on Monday in downtown Phoenix, where all the players and coaches from both teams are available for the annual media extravaganza.
Then it’s down to business. The Chiefs will practice throughout the week at Arizona State’s football facilities while the Eagles will do their preparation at the Arizona Cardinals’ practice facility.
There are no shortage of storylines: Kansas City coach Andy Reid goes against his former team — which he led to Super Bowl 39 — in a game that’s also the first matchup of Black starting quarterbacks in the Super Bowl with Mahomes and Hurts.
There’s also a brotheragainst-brother showdown between Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Philadelphia center Jason Kelce.