This is the curse Saquon Barkley must break if the Eagles are to win Super Bowl LIX
Running back Barkley will bid to end a 26-year hoodoo when the Philadelphia Eagles face the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
The newly-crowned Offensive Player of the Year, Saquon Barkley will be one of the major threats faced by the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX this weekend, as the Philadelphia Eagles bid to prevent the back-to-back champions from completing an unprecedented ‘three-peat’.
Can Barkley emulate Terrell Davis in Super Bowl LIX?
The league’s rushing yards leader in the 2024 regular season, Barkley is aiming to secure the first NFL championship ring of his career - but the 27-year-old running back must overcome a daunting curse if he’s to succeed.
Barkley is out to become the first rushing yards leader to win a Super Bowl since Terrell Davis more than a quarter of a century ago. Davis and the Denver Broncos were victorious in Super Bowl XXXIII in the 1998 season, claiming a 34-19 triumph over the Atlanta Falcons in Miami, Florida.
The last rushing yards leader to come close to Super Bowl glory was Christian McCaffrey a year ago. McCaffrey finished the regular season with an unmatched 1,459 yards, but was on the losing team in Super Bowl LVIII, as the San Francisco 49ers went down 25-22 to the Chiefs in Las Vegas.
Before Barkley and McCaffrey, the Seattle Seahawks’ Shaun Alexander contested Super Bowl XL after a league-leading rushing-yards haul during the 2005 regular season, but his team fell 21-10 to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Barkley denied NFL record attempt
The Eagles are back in the NFL’s showpiece event just two years after losing out on the title to the Chiefs. In Super Bowl LVII, however, they did not boast Barkley in their ranks - a player who could have set a new league record if not for head coach Nick Sirianni’s decision to rest him for Philadelphia’s final regular-season game.
Barkley finished the 2024 regular season with 2,005 rushing yards - just 100 shy of Eric Dickerson’s all-time record, set with the Los Angeles Rams in 1984. Dickerson also failed to win a championship ring that season.
Chiefs vs Eagles, when, where, how to watch?
The Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles meet in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday, February 9, 2025, at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. Kick-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. PT.
Football fans in the United States will be able to watch the clash on FOX, FOX Deportes and Telemundo.
U.S. viewers can stream these channels on fubo, which offers a free trial. You can also stream the game on NFL Plus, but only on mobile devices.
Can Eagles double Super Bowl title tally?
While the Chiefs will attempt to become the first team win three straight NFL titles in the Super Bowl era, the Eagles are aiming to lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy for only the second time in franchise history.
Philadelphia’s sole previous Super Bowl triumph was in 2017, when the Pennsylvanians defeated the New England Patriots 41-33 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Article originally written in Spanish, before being translated with the assistance of AI, and edited and expanded by William Allen.
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