Mahomes-Hurts Rivalry Gives Sunday’s Showdown Extra Sauce

With apologies to Jalen Royals, the Chiefs’ rookie wide receiver battling a knee injury, it was an interesting slip. That’s because Rose and his Fab Five fame have a lot in common with another Jalen – Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts -- entering Sunday’s Super Bowl rematch at Arrowhead Stadium (3:25 p.m. CT, FOX/WDAF Channel 4, 96.5 The Fan).

Sunday is Michael Jordan against the 1998 Pacers

And for those who subscribe to the thought that Patrick Mahomes is the NFL’s modern-day Michael Jordan, this week marks an interesting test for Hurts and the Eagles.

Rose, Reggie Miller and head coach Larry Bird led the Indiana Pacers in the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals to three straight wins over Michael Jordan’s Bulls. And after Chicago knotted the series at 3-3, Bulls guard Steve Kerr called Game 7 “ the scariest game we ever faced.”

Still plenty on the line this week

Sunday's showdown is also the first time starting quarterbacks have faced off after winning Super Bowls against each other.

Mahomes and the Chiefs already played the win-or-go-home showdown against the Eagles, a miserable 40-22 loss in Super Bowl 59, but that doesn’t mean the Chiefs won’t be amped for this week’s rematch. Mahomes sounded a little Jordan-esque on Wednesday.

“I think it's just different in the sense of, ‘You're playing the best of the best,’” Mahomes said, “and so how are you going to respond? How are you going to be even better and take your game to another level? And so, I always think it's fun, playing the best and getting to see where you're at. In a game like this, I think if you're playing your first game at Arrowhead against the reigning Super Bowl champions, there's got to be some extra juice.

“I mean, it's our first home game. There’ll be a cool flyover. You know, you get everything you need. So, there's no way, no reason you should come out flat this game.”

And like Rose and the Pacers during that 1998 series with the Bulls, the Chiefs know their opponent. In fact, Sunday marks the first instance in the league-merger era (1970-present) that two NFL teams from opposite conferences will play in a fifth consecutive season.

Like Jordan and Rose in that fantastic 1998 series, Mahomes and Hurts are tied in their head-to-head meetings. Mahomes was also coming off a deflating Super Bowl loss when he first squared off with the Eagles quarterback, a 42-30 win in Philadelphia, Oct. 3, 2021. And while Hurts played a phenomenal game in Super Bowl 57, Mahomes and the Chiefs escaped with a 38-35 victory.

But Hurts rebounded with his own two-game winning streak. The Eagles avenged that Super Bowl loss with a 21-17 triumph at Arrowhead Stadium on Nov. 20, 2023, and no one needs to remind the Chiefs about their latest loss to the Super Bowl 59 MVP.

“We know the opponent,” Mahomes said. “You know, even with the Super Bowl and the Super Bowl before and the games we've played in regular seasons, we know that this is a really good football team, and we know that they have a lot of great football players. And so, when you play the best of the best, you have to take your game to another level.”