Patrick Mahomes keeps reliving painful Super Bowl loss as Chiefs prepare for Eagles rematch

By Canadian Press on September 11, 2025.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes doesn’t know how many times he has watched video of the Philadelphia Eagles’ rout of his Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. At least once after the game, the quarterback said, and probably a couple of times over the summer.

A few more times this week, of course.

It hasn’t gotten any easier to relive. The Chiefs trailed 24-0 at halftime, and 34-0 late in the third quarter, before a flurry of late scores resulted in a more respectable 40-22 final margin. The lopsided defeat last February denied Kansas City an opportunity at an historic third straight championship, and it left Mahomes and Co. vowing to get some revenge this season.

“I watch every game. You have to learn from it,” Mahomes said this week, as the Chiefs were preparing to welcome the Eagles for a rematch Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium. “It sucks that you lose the game, but in order to progress and be better next time, you have to watch and learn from it.”

The Chiefs have had to do a lot of learning lately. For all their talk about bouncing back from their Super Bowl flop, they opened the season with a lackluster 27-21 loss to the AFC West rival Chargers in Brazil last week.

Things got so bad during the game that on at least two occasions the Chiefs began barking at each other — tight end Travis Kelce got into the face of right tackle Jawaan Taylor after his fourth penalty, and linebacker Drue Tranquill likewise lit into Chris Jones after the defensive tackle lost containment and allowed the Chargers to get a clinching first down.

“Everybody in there still loves each other,” Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton said. “No rifts or anything like that.”

Good thing, because facing the Eagles isn’t going to be any easier than it was in New Orleans. They turned back the Cowboys in their own season opener, and they have won seven straight games and 17 of 18 overall.

“It’s just another opportunity for us. That’s been my approach on it,” Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts said of the rematch, and his team’s chance for a third straight victory over Kansas City. “We’ve got a lot we can learn from this past week.”

Staring down 0-2

The Chiefs have not lost their first two games since Andy Reid’s second season in 2014, when they lost their opener to Tennessee and then in Week 2 to Peyton Manning and the Broncos; that also was the last time the Chiefs failed to make the playoffs.

Meanwhile, Mahomes has not been on a team that started 0-2 since 2011, his sophomore season in high school.

What can Brown do for you?

The Eagles’ A.J. Brown had one catch for 8 yards — it came with 1:51 left in the fourth quarter — against Dallas, way below the usual output for a wide receiver coming off three straight 1,000 yard-receiving seasons. In fact, that play was the only time he was even targeted. But Brown downplayed his lack of production, saying it was just something he had to deal with.

“I’m going to focus on myself,” Brown said. “My effort and what I do.”

Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo said a “fair share” of plays were designed for Brown headed into the game, and that “sometimes games play out like that and that’s kind of how it was. We don’t ever want to force it.”

Speaking of wide receivers

The Chiefs could be without three of their top wide receivers in Xavier Worthy (shoulder), Jalen Royals (knee) and Rashee Rice (suspension) when they face the Eagles. That means more pressure on Marquise Brown, who had 10 catches for 99 yards in the loss to Los Angeles, and veterans Kelce and JuJu Smith-Schuster.

Moving the Tank

The Tank has rolled into Philly. As in, Tank Bigsby, whom the Eagles added in a trade with Jacksonville. They were looking for a backup to 2,000-yard rusher Saquon Barkley after Will Shipley sustained a rib injury on a kickoff return in the opener. Bigsby was a third-round pick from Auburn in 2023, and he has 910 yards rushing and nine touchdowns in two-plus seasons.

“Coach tells me it’s time to go, I’m gonna go,” Bigsby said. “When I get an opportunity, just be me for this team, and come out and compete. Do what Tank do best. Do what I have to do for this team.”

Coop!

Cooper DeJean became the first player in Super Bowl history to pick off a pass or score a touchdown on his birthday (he turned 22) when he returned a poor throw by Mahomes 38 yards to give the Eagles a 17-0 lead. But the second-round choice out of Iowa in 2024 has grown weary of reliving that moment with the media, fans and just about everyone he meets.

“It kind of stuck around for a little while,” DeJean said. “It’s more the people on the outside still bringing it up. I don’t want that play to be the play that defines my career. I want there to be more plays out there that I’m making in big games.”

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Dave Skretta, The Associated Press