Wednesday's prop bet
A walk-off field goal: +1,200.
Placing a couple of bucks on this prop bet is definitely worth it because the last three Super Bowls have all been decided by three points - the L.A. Rams 23-20 over the Cincinnati Bengals, the Kansas City Chiefs 38-35 over the Philadelphia Eagles and the Chiefs 25-22 over the San Francisco 49ers. This came after a lull in which Super Bowls from 2018-20 were decided by 10, 11 and 22 points. Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs) and Jalen Hurts (Eagles) leading a final-minute drive to set up winning kicks for Harrison Butker (Chiefs) and Jake Elliott (Eagles)? Entirely possible.
Matchup to watch
Chiefs WR Xavier Worthy vs. Eagles CB Darius Slay
Opponents have shied away from challenging excellent rookie Eagles cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, leaving Slay in the spotlight. Worthy has 130 yards receiving on a team-best 11 catches in two playoff games, and the expectation should be for Chiefs coach Andy Reid to make sure Slay has to cover Worthy on a variety of short, shifty, double move-type routes that take advantage of Worthy's speed. Patrick Mahomes threw quickly against the Bills in the AFC championship game. Expect the same against the Eagles' pass rush. Get it into Worthy's hands and let him do the rest.
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Numbers to know
6: Super Bowl appearances as a head coach for Kansas City's Andy Reid (one with Philadelphia and five with the Chiefs). Reid will tie Don Shula (Baltimore/Miami) for second all-time, behind Bill Belichick (nine with New England).
$800,000: BetMGM Nevada announced that one customer has bet $800,000 straight up on Philadelphia to beat Kansas City. The Eagles are +110, which would equal a $1.68 million payout.
53-23: Career record - regular season and playoffs - for Eagles coach/Jamestown native Nick Sirianni.
Seen & heard A back-up quarterback being assigned an interview podium at the Super Bowl? That was Wednesday morning at the Kansas City team hotel for the Chiefs' Carson Wentz. It was understandable because Wentz was a first-round draft pick by Philadelphia in 2016 and went 35-32-1 for the Eagles. A steady flow of media made their way to Wentz's podium.The quietest place in New Orleans at lunchtime on Wednesday? The Caesars casino across the street from the Eagles' team hotel. The music semi-blared, but the emptiness of the vast venue is a sign that most of the fans haven't arrived in town just yet. Staff roundtable
Favorite Super Bowl halftime show seen in-person?
Jay Skurski: Easy - Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles (after the 2021 season). Seeing Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg in California? Come on, it can't get much better than that. They absolutely delivered in their home state, too. Even if you aren't a hip-hop fan, if you grew up in the 1990s like I did, you were feeling this performance. Guest spots by Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar added to it, but the highlight was 100% "California Love." It was a perfect celebration of West Coast rap.
Katherine Fitzgerald: Now this is one of the hardest roundtables I've ever had to answer! I love a Super Bowl halftime show. Sometimes I like to go back and watch them to see what I missed. I am going to go with the Super Bowl LVI halftime show in Los Angeles - headlined by Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar. There's a sentimental tie, this was my first Super Bowl that I covered, but, wow, did this group put on an electric show. SoFi Stadium was the perfect venue for it, with the sun setting outside the far end zone, and I loved how they emphasized local ties to the host city. Runner up is Shakira and J-Lo.
Ryan O'Halloran: I've been fortunate to cover 11 previous Super Bowls, and the entertainment has included The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Katy Perry and Coldplay. But Prince tops the list during the Indianapolis-Chicago Super Bowl in Miami. But the best part about Prince was actually at the halftime show press conference earlier in the week. A reporter started to ask him a question, and instead of answering, he launched into a full set of songs with his band. Incredible.
-- Ryan O'Halloran, News Sports Reporter
Reach Ryan at rohalloran@buffnews.com or 716-849-6133. Follow on Twitter at @ryanohalloran.
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