ESPN’s Bill Barnwell sees the Philadelphia Eagles getting all the way back to the Super Bowl in 2026 - but he doesn’t see them finishing the job.
Barnwell is projecting an Eagles-Chiefs rematch on the biggest stage, and he’s siding with Kansas City in Super Bowl LXI, 27-24. It would be the third Super Bowl meeting between the two teams in a four-year span, with the Chiefs winning in 2022, the Eagles taking the rematch in 2024, and Barnwell calling for the Chiefs to grab the rubber match in 2026.
For Philadelphia, the prediction comes with both promise and a familiar sting. The defense is still viewed as elite and could be even better this season, but the offense has major uncertainty hanging over it.
A.J. Brown and Jeff Stoutland are gone, Sean Mannion has taken over, and there’s real concern about both the offensive line and Jalen Hurts.
Barnwell still isn’t backing away from the Eagles as a Super Bowl team, though. In his view, they’re good enough to get there, even if the AFC side of the bracket is loaded with buzz around teams like the Los Angeles Rams, Buffalo Bills, Seattle Seahawks, and Baltimore Ravens. He just believes Kansas City’s ceiling is still high enough to edge them out again.
“That leaves us with a Super Bowl rubber match. And as you can probably guess, if I believed enough in the Chiefs to pick them to win the AFC, I'll ride with them to gain a measure of revenge and beat the Eagles in Super Bowl LXI,” Barnwell writes.
The Chiefs’ offense has gotten a boost with Kenneth Walker, though Barnwell still sees their offensive line as a question mark. Even so, he’s picking Kansas City to win the third meeting and hand Philadelphia another painful Super Bowl loss - this one coming against the same opponent that has already split the last two matchups.
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Chiefs Suddenly Have A Week 1 Problem Denver Can Target
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