There are players in just about every Super Bowl who, quite unexpectedly, save their greatest performances for the biggest games of their lives. Packers receiver Max McGee tearing up the Chiefs’ esteemed secondary for seven catches, 138 yards, and two touchdowns in Super Bowl I. Jets running back Matt Snell doing what nobody else could do in Super Bowl III, and tearing through the Colts’ defensive line for 30 carries, 138 yards, and a touchdown. Raiders linebacker Rob Martin picking off three Ron Jaworski passes in Super Bowl XV. Doug Williams resuscitating his career and becoming the first Black quarterback to start in a Super Bowl, win a Super Bowl, and become Super Bowl MVP in one fell swoop in Super Bowl XXII against the Broncos. Eagles quarterback Nick Foles helping his team win its first Super Bowl in LII.
Who could be the Secret Superstar of Super Bowl LVII? There are several candidates who, based on their in-season exploits, might be perfectly primed to take that all-important leap.
Here are the Secret Superstars of Super Bowl LVII.
Isiah Pacheco, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
Chiefs general manager Brett Veach and his staff absolutely nailed the 2022 draft. One of Kansas City’s best finds in that draft was Pacheco, taken with the 251st overall pick in the seventh round out of Rutgers. Pacheco had 62 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries in his regular-season debut against the Cardinals, and he had an 11-carry, 63-yard game against the Buccaneers in Week 4. Then, a few relative disappearing acts before he became Kansas City’s feature (and future) back. Now, there is no question regarding that status.
From Week 10 (when he really started to take off), Pacheco ranks ninth in the NFL in carries (108), third in rushing yards (754), seventh in yards after contact (469), sixth in yards after contact per attempt (3.17), and tied for fifth in runs of 15 or more yards (six). This 16-yard run against the Bengals in Week 13 shows Pacheco’s patience, explosiveness out of his cuts, and power on the move.
The Eagles will slow-play Kansas City’s aggressive defensive tendencies because it’s what they do; the Chiefs might do the same to Philly’s defense because they can with Pacheco. And from a matchup perspective, this would absolutely favor the Chiefs. The Eagles’ defense, for all their pass-rush and coverage acumen, is among the league’s worst when it comes to defending short-yardage rushing situations, and stopping backs in the open field.
Javon Hargrave, DL, Philadelphia Eagles
While Kansas City’s offensive tackles are points of major concern, the Chiefs’ interior offensive line is just fine with left guard Joe Thuney, center Creed Humphrey, and right guard Trey Smith. The Eagles will counter with a formidable lineup of interior defensive bashers, and none is more of a problem than Hargrave, the perennially underrated seven-year veteran who had enjoyed his best overall season in 2022. Hargrave has 12 sacks this season, tied with Washington’s Daron Payne and Pittsburgh’s Cameron Heyward for fourth-best in the NFL among defensive tackles, and he also has tallied six quarterback hits, 46 quarterback hurries, 11 tackles for loss, and 33 stops.
Built like the proverbial rolling ball of butcher knives at 6-foot-2 and 305 pounds, Hargrave has spent his time about equally at nose tackle and dealing with guards. His power is obvious and estimable, but as 49ers left guard Aaron Banks could testify from the NFC Championship game, it’s Hargrave’s speed to and though the pocket that gives him that extra added oomph.
That Chiefs interior line will have to “oomph-proof” their protections, or Patrick Mahomes will be running out of the pocket a lot on Sunday.
Nick Bolton and Willie Gay Jr., LB, Kansas City Chiefs
We’re going to cheat on this slide and put two players here — the Chiefs’ two primary linebackers in Nick Bolton and Willie Gay Jr. Because when the Eagles’ offensive line and run game demolish Kansas City’s defensive line (which will happen from time to time), Bolton and Gay will be pressed to limit the damage.
Let’s start with Bolton, who the second-most tackles in the run game among linebackers this season with 102, behind only Jacksonville’s Foyesade Oluokun, who finished his 2022 season with 109. Bolton can hold at the second level, but Steve Spagnuolo has liked to deploy Bolton on run blitzes to great effect. Bolton has 10 tackles for loss this season, and quite often, he’ll acquire them by crashing through any gap with his hair on fire, and getting to the running back as quickly as possible, as he did against Jeff Wilson of the 49ers for a one-yard loss in Week 7.
Gay has nine tackles for loss this season, and while he can also crash through, he’s very good at waiting and attacking as the play develops. These skills will be of paramount importance against an Eagles run game that can slow-play you to death. Gay dumped Samaje Perine of the Bengals for a five-yard loss in Week 13 by watching, waiting, and going after it when the time was right.
The responsibility for keeping the Eagles from turning five-yard runs into 25-yard runs starts here.
Miles Sanders, RB, Philadelphia Eagles
One of the most interesting things about the Eagles’ offense is its penchant for running so much of their stuff out of 11 personnel — one tight end, one running back, and three receivers. Creating explosive running plays out of passing personnel is a Philly special these days, and Sanders has been a big part of that all season. This season, out of 11, Sanders has run the ball 177 times for a league-high 953 yards, 454 yards after contact, and five touchdowns.
When you combine this with Jalen Hurts’ ability to run out of 11 (107 attempts for 589 yards, 204 yards after contact, and nine touchdowns), it becomes quite difficult for defenses to figure it all out. This 13-yard touchdown run against the 49ers in the NFC Championship game showed how well it all works together.
The Chiefs, who have allowed 1,075 yards, 552 yards after contact, and four touchdowns on 239 carries out of 11 this season, will obviously want to be aware of all potential reactions.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
When the Chiefs traded Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins last March, there was a great hue and cry as to how Andy Reid and Eric Bieniemy would replicate the efforts of the NFL’s best deep receiver in Kansas City’s passing game. Turns out, they already had a plan to acquire the guy they wanted in that role. Hill’s nameplate was barely off his locker in the Chiefs’ facility when Kansas City signed Valdes-Scantling, the former Packers receiver, to a three-year, $30 million contract with $15 million guaranteed.
MVS had been a sneaky-good deep target with Green Bay, and he’s taken his talents to his new team quite estimably. This season, he has 13 catches of 20 or more air yards on 25 targets for 395 yards and two touchdowns. Not quite Hill’s numbers with the Dolphins (19 deep catches on 39 targets for 669 yards and five touchdowns), but MVS also isn’t on a four-year, $120 million contract with $72.2 million guaranteed as Hill is.
Valdes-Scantling had two of those deep catches in the AFC Championship game against the Bengals, showing his speed off the line, toughness to separate from coverage, and skill in exploiting open space.
Why is this important in the Super Bowl? Because the Eagles have been vulnerable to deep receivers this season, to put it kindly. They’ve allowed 17 completions of 20 or more air yards on 44 targets for 586 yards, six touchdowns, no interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 125.9 that is the NFL’s second-worst, behind only the Titans.
Avonte Maddox, DB, Philadelphia Eagles
On-off splits are always weird, because while they give you a sense of a player’s value in his presence or absence on the field, it’s always about so much more than the presence or absence of one player. That said, the Eagles’ defensive splits with and without Maddox on the field this season are… well, noteworthy. Maddox has missed 595 possible snaps this season with hamstring, ankle, and toe injuries, and he’s been on the field for just 417. When he’s on the field, Philadelphia’s EPA allowed drops from -0.03 to -0.17, and EPA allowed is better when it’s negative. Philly’s passing EPA allowed dropped from -0.05 to -0.25, completion percentage allowed went from 67.2 to 60.0, yards per attempt from 7.3 to 5.4, touchdown rate allowed from 5.7% to 2.1%, and interception rate rises from 2.7 to 3.3.
This is not to say that Maddox is the NFL’s best slot cornerback, which is his primary role with the Eagles. But when you watch the tape, there is some credibility to the idea that this defense is better with him than without him. From the slot this season, Maddox has one interception, and he’s allowed no touchdowns. Every other slot defender for the Eagles this season? You’ve got a combined two interceptions (both by Josiah Scott) and seven touchdowns allowed — four by Scott, two by Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, and one by Marcus Epps.
Maddox is expected to play in the Super Bowl as he recovers from a toe injury. The Eagles certainly hope to see the full-blast version of his skills on the field. Because when Marquez Valdes-Scantling is blasting off from the slot, you want a guy who can do things like walling off Steelers rookie alien George Pickens as Maddox did here out of Cover-1.
Justin Reid, S, Kansas City Chiefs
No NFL defense has played more snaps of two-high coverage than the Chiefs’ 329, and that makes sense when you have the aforementioned Juan Thornhill and Justin Reid in your quiver. In Cover-2, 2-Man, Cover-4, and Cover-6 this season, Kansas City has allowed 215 completions for 2,185 yards, nine touchdowns, seven interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 84.5.
Jalen Hurts has done well against two-deep coverage this season, but passing touchdowns have been hard to come by — just three of his 24 have come against these four coverages. This Cover-2 snap against the Chargers in Week 2 showed how Reid can come down out of a two-deep look and nuke a potential completion — in this case, an attempt from Justin Herbert to tight end Gerald Everett.
Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, DB, Philadelphia Eagles
A lot of things had to go the right way for the Eagles to rise from 25th in 2021 to sixth in 2022 in Defensive DVOA. One of those things was the August trade for Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, the safety and slot specialist who has been a revelation in Philly’s defense. He’s played just about everywhere in Johnathan Gannon’s defense, allowing 39 catches on 50 targets for 314 yards, 167 yards after the catch, four touchdowns, six interceptions, three pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 79.9.
One of Gardner-Johnson’s two interceptions of Dak Prescott in Week 6 showed what a danger he can be to any quarterback. Playing single-high in the deep third, Gardner-Johnson closed ground at a frightening rate to erase what looked like an easy touchdown to CeeDee Lamb. Lamb had cornerback James Bradberry beaten badly, but Gardner-Johnson was not having any of it.
Wherever Patrick Mahomes thinks Gardner-Johnson is before the snap, he’d better check again before releasing the ball.
Joe Thuney, LG, Kansas City Chiefs
Thuney is one of those guys who just annoys the crap out of you when he blocks you. At 6-foot-5 and 304 pounds, he’s not specifically physically imposing in any way, but he’s so technique-sound, getting a sack against him is like finding treasure on a very large beach. The metrics prove the point. Over the last five seasons — three with the Patriots and two with the Chiefs — he’s allowed five sacks. Total. There are guards who make the Pro Bowl who allow five sacks in a season.
Moreover, Thuney has allowed just 17 quarterback hits and 73 quarterback hurries over those five seasons… on 3,731 pass-blocking snaps. Thuney is also a good run-blocker, but it’s his ability to negate inside rushers by any means necessary that makes him so valuable to Kansas City’s offense.
Isaac Seumalo, RG, Philadelphia Eagles
This, we know: Chris Jones vs. Jason Kelce pits the NFL’s best pass-rushing interior defensive lineman against the NFL’s best center. But if Jones is in full Reggie White mode as he was against the Bengals in the AFC Championship game, even Kelce is going to need some help from time to time. So, we’re looking at both of Philly’s guards as big factors — not just in the Eagles’ peerless run game, but also in keeping Jones from wrecking everything.
So, let’s start with Seumalo, who has allowed one sack, three quarterback hits, and 18 quarterback hurries on 710 pass-blocking snaps. And like left guard Landon Dickerson, who we’ll discuss next, Seumalo is quite good at teaming with Kelce and others to double-team defenders right off the screen to open holes for whichever Eagle is running the ball. He’s also happy to wall defenders off by himself, as he did to San Francisco’s Arik Armstead on this Kenneth Gainwell 17-yard run in the NFC Championship game.
Kadarius Toney, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
The Giants selected Toney out of Florida with the 20th overall pick in the 2021 draft, and failed to get much out of him in his rookie year. That things didn’t go much better at the start of the 2022 season under new head coach Brian Daboll — who brought entirely new chapters of a functional offensive playbook to Big Blue — would seem to cast Toney as a bust.
The Giants traded Toney to the Chiefs in October, and as a few half-smart analysts predicted, it’s been a very good fit. Andy Reid is better with “gadget guys” than perhaps any other offensive coach of his era, and Toney has been an explosive play factory in Reid’s concepts — be it from the backfield, the slot, or outside. As he proved on this 38-yard play against the Broncos in Week 17, when you get Toney in space intelligently, good things tend to happen.
Will Reid have something up his sleeve for Toney against the Eagles? We should know to expect the unexpected.
Josh Sweat, EDGE, Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles’ pass rush comes in waves, and Sweat has 15 sacks, eight quarterback hits, and 26 quarterback hurries this season so far. Sweat has really turned it on in the second half of the season — since Week 12, he has four games with multiple sacks (11 in total over that time), and that includes two quarterback takedowns in the divisional round win over the Giants. This is a four-man rush with Sweat, Haason Reddick, Milton Williams, and Jordan Davis, and well.. good luck with that.
Noah Gray, TE, Kansas City Chiefs
One of the many ways in which the Chiefs’ offense has changed this season (what we can credibly call the post-Tyreek Hill era) is the extent to which they’re putting two and three tight ends on the field. Patrick Mahomes has more dropbacks (235) with two tight ends than any other quarterback, and he has more dropbacks with three tight ends (74) than any other quarterback. And Mahomes’ numbers in both personnel concepts should be terrifying for any defense.
With two tight ends: 159 of 221 for 1,692 yards, 814 yards, 14 touchdowns, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 111.3.
With three tight ends: 50 of 65 for 711 yards, 326 air yards, 11 touchdowns, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 151.3.
So, it’s about more than Travis Kelce, and Gray is the second-most prolific tight end in these packages. He has 30 receptions on 36 targets for 330 yards and a touchdown, and it’s that occasional explosive play he can make when you’re trying to cover everyone else that makes Gray dangerous in a small sample size sense.
On this 29-yard completion against the Jaguars in the divisional round, the Chiefs had three tight ends on the field (Kelce, Gray, and Blake Bell), and it was Gray who beat Jacksonville’s Cover-3 with the kind of intermediate crosser you’d expect from Kelce.
Marcus Epps, S, Philadelphia Eagles
The Vikings took Epps in the sixth round of the 2019 draft out of Wyoming, and released him on November 6 of that year. The Eagles took a flyer on him the next day, and they have not regretted that move. Epps has increased his involvement in Philly’s defense every year since, topping out this season with 1185 snaps so far. Epps is up and down in coverage, but he can scream out to stop a quick swing pass, and he’s active and gap-aware when it’s time to blow up a run fit. That closing speed and aggression also come in handy when he needs to defend the kinds of quick movement routes and intermediate crossers the Chiefs can throw at you all day long.
Jerick McKinnon, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
McKinnon may have the most circuitous route to this Super Bowl of any player on either roster. The former Georgia Southern quarterback had bit roles with the Vikings in the first four years of his NFL career, lost two full seasons to injury after signing a large contract with the 49ers in 2018,and then wound up signing a vet minimum deal with the Chiefs in 2021. Andy Reid and company brought him back on another one-year agreement in 2022, and this has been the season in which McKinnon has finally been able to show off all his attributes in the perfect offense.
From Week 13 against the Bengals through Week 18 against the Raiders, McKinnon caught at least one touchdown pass in six straight games. No running back since at least 1970 had ever done that before, and his nine touchdown receptions this season is tied for the most since 1970, along with Marshall Faulk (2001), Chuck Foreman (1975), and Leroy Hoard (1991). Only Washington’s Charley Taylor, who had 12 touchdown catches in 1966, had more among running backs in pro football history, and like McKinnon, Taylor split his time between runner and receiver.
McKinnon has also thrown several killer blocks this season, which speaks to his desire to be an every-down producer however he is asked. We haven’t seen much of McKinnon in the postseason, but against this Eagles pass-rush? Maybe a few full slabs should be at the top of the order.
Heck of a blitz pickup by McKinnon pic.twitter.com/kxTG0ufsPF
— Laurie Fitzpatrick (@LaurieFitzptrck) January 21, 2023
Kyzir White, LB, Philadelphia Eagles
The Chargers selected White out of West Virginia in the fourth round of the 2018 draft, and over the next four seasons, White moved from anonymous player to sleepy-good defender. The Eagles were well aware of White’s potential, and they stole him on a one-year, $3 million deal. That’s larceny for a guy who, in his first season with his new team, has two sacks, four quarterback pressures, 79 solo tackles, 49 stops, and six pass breakups.
He’s become a big part of a linebacker corps that has reinvented itself in the 2022 season, and he’s done it all over the field. This pressure against the Cardinals in Week 5 saw White start in a head-over nose alignment, drop into a spy look, and then chase Kyler Murray to the sideline, forcing a throwaway.
That’s a pretty decent skill set on display, and White could do that kind of stuff to Patrick Mahomes, as well.
Jaylen Watson, CB, Kansas City Chiefs
Watson had to wait a long time to hear his name called in the 2022 draft — it didn’t happen until the Chiefs took him with the 243rd overall pick in the seventh round — but he didn’t have to wait long to make a difference for his new NFL team. With 10:43 left in the Chiefs’ Week 2 game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Justin Herbert tried to hit tight end Gerald Everett in the red zone for a touchdown. The resulting play was a touchdown, but not in the way Herbert had intended.
THE ROOK WITH A 99-YARD PICK SIX‼️ @jaylenwatson12 pic.twitter.com/fNZkRQL1wU
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) September 16, 2022
Watson wasn’t even supposed to be in that game; he had his first NFL start only because first-round cornerback Trent McDuffie suffered a hamstring injury in Week 1 against the Cardinals. But when the Washington State alum got his shot, he knew he’d have to make it resonate.
Mission accomplished, as they say.
“I just knew, being a seventh-rounder and getting my first start, I was going to get tested a lot, and early,” Watson said after the 27-24 win. “I just felt I was going to get one today, and that’s what happened.
“I was surprised, but I still knew I was going to get one.”
Watson has not been a one-hit wonder — he picked up his second pick of the season in the divisional round against the Jaguars on this Trevor Lawrence attempt to Marvin Jones.
The next week, against the Bengals in the AFC Championship game, Watson got his second pick of the postseason on this Joe Burrow throw to Tee Higgins.
However Watson got to this place in his early career, he has certainly arrived. He’s allowed 50 catches on 77 targets for 570 yards, 168 yards after the catch, five touchdowns, those three picks, and an opponent passer rating of 92.5. Like all four of the Chiefs’ rookie defensive backs preparing to appear in this Super Bowl, Watson has seen his game advance as he adapts to the challenges of the NFL/
Joshua Williams, CB, Kansas City Chiefs
We might have to do a separate article this week on all the later-round, underrated, and impactful defenders Chiefs general manager Brett Veach and his crew have plucked from the draft tree over the last few years. Williams, taken in the fourth round of the 2022 draft out of Fayetteville State, is yet another name added to that impressive list.
This season, Williams has allowed 30 catches on 48 targets for 450 yards, 118 yards after the catch, six touchdowns, two interceptions, five pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 115.5. But Williams is yet another Chiefs rookie defender who has improved exponentially over the season, which projects so well for Kansas City’s defense even beyond this Super Bowl.
Williams hasn’t allowed a touchdown since Week 14, and his metrics since Week 15 are startling — three catches allowed on nine targets for 33 yards, four yards after the catch, one interception, two pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of?
5.6. Yeah, that’s pretty good.
And Williams’ interception couldn’t have been more important, as it came with 7:02 left in the fourth quarter of the AFC Championship game, and it was Williams as the man in the right place at the right time when safety Bryan Cook batted Joe Burrow’s pass to Tee Higgins in Williams’ direction.
In the Chiefs’ case, the kids are more than alright.
Milton Williams, DL, Philadelphia Eagles
As NFL defenses have become more multiple and varied in their pass-rush concepts, the value of the lineman who can win from multiple gaps has been amplified. Williams, the 6-foot-3, 290-pound second-year Louisiana Tech alum, reminded me a bit of Michael Bennett when watching his college tape, and of course, Bennett also wreaked havoc all over the Eagles’ line in 2018. Williams is a bigger man, so he’s been more of an inside presence, but he’s split his quarterback disruptions nicely, and he has a great combination of power inside, and the speed to blow right by interior blockers. When the Eagles start to get really interesting in their sub-packages, expect Williams to do his best to expand on the four sacks, three quarterback hits, and nine quarterback hurries he’s put up this season.
Derrick Nnadi, NT, Kansas City Chiefs
Chris Jones is the top problem for any offensive line facing the Chiefs this season, but when considering how well the Eagles can just mulch your defense in the run game, the next two players — Nnadi and Khalen Saunders — will have to bring their best if Kansas City is to avoid Philly just rolling the same boulder downhill over and over. Nnadi, a 6-foot-1, 310-pound primary nose tackle (85% of his snaps this season), has the attributes to at least make it difficult for that seemingly inevitable run game. Once in a while, Nndai will also split a double team for a quarterback takedown, but his primary role in the Super Bowl will be to take those body shots from Philly’s offensive line and respond in kind.
Khalen Saunders, DI, Kansas City Chiefs
Saunders presents similar — and at times greater — challenges for run-heavy teams at 6-foot-0 and 324 pounds. One wonders if the Chiefs might put both of these guys on the field at the same time in the Super Bowl. There were at least three instances against Las Vegas in Weeks 5 and 18 that both big men were inside, and the results were not at all positive for the Raiders. This sort of swarm mentality might be precisely what is required.
T.J. Edwards, LB, Philadelphia Eagles
We talk a lot about Philadelphia’s defensive line, and a lot about their defensive backs, but you don’t improve on defense as much as the Eagles have without credible play from your linebackers. Edwards, the fourth-year undrafted man from Wisconsin, has seen his snaps increase exponentially in each of the last four seasons, which is generally a good sign that your coaches believe in you. This season, on 1,129 snaps, Edwards has two sacks, 11 total pressures, 130 tackles, 52 stops, and 49 catches allowed on 73 targets for 359 yards, 270 yards after the catch, no touchdowns, no interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 78.5.
Edwards also has six pass breakups on the season, and if you’re running mesh or other short crossers over the middle, he might be the guy asked to break that up. Which he can do. He’ll be a sneaky-important short-area defender in this game.
