What the Bucs Can Learn From the Eagles and Chiefs Playing in the Super Bowl

Dynamic quarterback with mobility. Dynamic run game. Opportunistic defense. Fortune favors the bold.

The Bucs' 2024 season ended in a 30-24 overtime loss to the Chiefs in a game that was tied 24-all at the end of regulation. Tampa Bay lost the coin toss to start overtime and never touched the ball again as Kansas City drove 70 yards in 10 plays for the game-winning touchdown.

Baker Mayfield was Bucs' starting quarterback this season and led NFL in interceptions (16) and fumbles (13). He was so despondent after losing coin toss, he threw his head back, closed his eyes and appeared to already be absorbing sting of inevitable defeat.

Chiefs, who will be going for record third straight Super Bowl title on Feb. 9, have now won 17 consecutive one-score games. Bucs were 2-5 in one-score games this season alone.

Chiefs' opponent in Super Bowl 59 is Eagles, a team Bucs beat 33-16 in third third game of season.

What can Bucs learn from two teams playing in Super Bowl? And how far away is Tampa Bay from competing for another Lombardi Trophy?

Here’s a look at some key takeaways:

Dynamic quarterback with mobility

Face it, Mahomes already is among best of all time. He’s playing in his seventh straight AFC title game and is 17-3 in the postseason. Only Tom Brady owns more playoff wins, with 35.

No team or quarterback has ever won three straight Super Bowls, and Mahomes could have his fourth NFL championship ring at only 29. With no elite receivers, Kansas City traded with Tennessee for DeAndre Hopkins to play final 10 games. But Mahomes still passed for 3,928 yards and 26 touchdowns with 11 interceptions.

Mahomes' mobility is a bigger asset when he’s escaping pressure to throw football. But he did manage to gain 307 yards and two touchdowns with his legs on 58 carries.

That rivals Mayfield, who is elusive in pocket and rushed 60 times for 378 yards and three touchdowns.

But as a ballcarrier, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is in a different stratosphere. He had 630 yards on ground, tush-pushing his way to 14 rushing TDs. His passing was pedestrian: 2,903 yards and 18 TDs with five INTs. But in each case, both Mahomes and Hurts did an excellent job protecting football.

In many ways, Mayfield had a better season, passing for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns while completing more than 71% of his passes. But you can’t ignore his 16 interceptions, which led NFL. He also had a league-high 13 fumbles.

Dynamic run game

Saquon Barkley isn’t just any running back. Eagles star had a historic season, rushing for 2,005 yards and 13 touchdowns despite being sat for final regular season game after Philadelphia had clinched. He had 57 explosive plays from scrimmage, defined as runs of 10 yards or more and pass plays of 20 yards or more.

Add that to Hurts’ production, and you have an unstoppable 1-2 combination.

Chiefs were only 22nd in rushing yards at 105.3 per game. Hunt led all ballcarriers with 728 yards.

Certainly, Bucs are closer to Eagles in this regard. Rookie Bucky Irving became first Tampa Bay player since Doug Martin in 2015 for rush for 1,000 yards. Behind a big offensive line, not dissimilar to that of Eagles, Bucs were fourth in rushing offense (149.2 yards per game) and third in yards per attempt (5.2).

Bucs can run with anybody, and that should translate to a deep playoff run.

Opportunistic defense

Eagles had No. 1 defense in NFL after hiring coordinator Vic Fangio. They put a lot of pressure on offense just using their front seven. List includes defensive tackle Jalen Carter and edge rusher Nolan Smith Jr.

Likewise, Chiefs defense is elite. It ranked ninth in NFL, allowing 320.6 yards per game. But in terms of points allowed, it gets even better. Eagles allowed 17.8 points per game, while Chiefs were at 19.2

This is where comparison to Super Bowl teams falls with Bucs.

Tampa Bay struggled on defense all season, finishing 16th by allowing 341.8 yards per game. Bucs also were 16th in scoring defense, giving up an average of 22.6 points.

Clearly, Bucs lack an edge rusher, a game-wrecker. Calijah Kancey led Bucs with