Jalen Hurts has the trophy, but the biggest reason the Philadelphia Eagles crushed the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX wasn’t their quarterback. It was Vic Fangio, their 65-year-old defensive coordinator, who took a deep breath, looked at Patrick Mahomes, and said, “Yeah, we’re not even going to blitz.”
And somehow, that worked-brilliantly.
Despite never sending extra rushers, the Eagles pressured Mahomes on 38.1% of his dropbacks, forcing errant throws, hurried decisions, and two costly interceptions. It was a masterstroke of defensive design. Fangio understood that with a front as nasty as Philly’s, he didn’t need to dial up anything exotic. Instead, he let his defensive line handle business while seven players dropped back to smother the passing lanes.
It wasn’t just the lack of blitzing that threw the Chiefs off-it was the scheme itself. All year, the Eagles leaned on single-high coverages. But in the biggest game of the season, Fangio switched things up, calling Cover-4 far more often than usual. Why? Because Mahomes had struggled against it all year, and Fangio knew it. The result? A completely disoriented Kansas City offense.
Zack Baun’s first-half interception was a perfect example of how well-drilled Philly’s defense was. He didn’t see the throw coming, but he knew where it was going, thanks to Fangio’s emphasis on disciplined coverage and trusting your help. Cooper DeJean’s 38-yard pick-six? Another example of a perfectly coached defense anticipating Mahomes’ every move.
The Chiefs weren’t just outplayed, they were outthought
Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball, Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense looked completely out of sync. Not because they weren’t trying-because they simply couldn’t figure out what the Eagles were doing. After the game, Chiefs center Creed Humphrey admitted that the Eagles didn’t show any unusual looks. That was the problem. They just lined up, executed, and completely shut Kansas City down.
The final score-40-22-doesn’t even tell the full story. This was a game that felt over by halftime, and Mahomes’ lone touchdown before the fourth quarter was essentially a defensive lapse in an otherwise airtight performance.
Hurts might be taking home the MVP trophy, but Vic Fangio should be getting something bigger-maybe a trophy of his own.
Read the full article here
