There is no good way to describe what happened in New Orleans. The Kansas City Chiefs were beaten down and demoralized by the Philadelphia Eagles, trailing 34-0 at one point and only salvaging a more respectable 40-22 scoreline after a few Patrick Mahomes garbage time touchdowns.
This loss has to feel like a direct blow to the heart of this fanbase, as they head into an offseason full of uncertainty without having become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls. The mood is melancholy, and justifiably so for a fanbase that hasn't had much heartbreak lately.
However, for those Chiefs who hold onto the fact that patience is a virtue and optimism should reign supreme, there are a few silver linings fans can hold onto as they try to look at the next few weeks and months with some degree of positivity.
4 silver linings Chiefs fans can hold onto after Super Bowl 59 beatdown
4. Saquon Barkley was shut down
While the Eagles got to the Super Bowl on the back of Barkley's magnificent 2,000-yard season, the Chiefs made it a mission to slow him down above all else. To their credit, they achieved exactly what they set out to do.
Barkley carried the ball 25 times, but he mustered just 57 yards and never had a run longer than 10 yards. Considering he has topped 150 yards multiple times this season, that's a tremendous job of executing a game plan. If only the rest of the defensive game plan was as effective as the run defense.
3. Xavier Worthy had his best game
Worthy had a very inauspicious start to his NFL career, but he seems to have found his footing in these last few postseason games. Worthy, matched up against a very good secondary, made a handful of very impressive plays down the field.
Worthy caught eight passes for 157 yards and hauled in two touchdowns, one of which came on the first successful Chiefs drive of the night after finally getting open against the 1-2 punch of rookie studs Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell. Worthy picked a great time for one of his best career games.
2. O-line change is coming
Kansas City has often reacted quickly when big organizational changes need to be made. Despite investing a ton of resources into an offensive line that is normally one of the best in the league, Philly showed that this unit, as currently constructed, may need a bit of a facelift.
Trey Smith is a free agent, and the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft is already loaded with talent at both tackle and guard. Kansas City knows now that the current alignment, for whatever reason, doesn't work. Brett Veach has remade this offensive line before, and he should be able to do it again.
1. Andy Reid may shake up his staff
While defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is likely not going to go anywhere, offensive coordinator Matt Nagy could be under the microscope after such a ghoulish showing. If Reid isn't going anywhere, this loss could be enough to get him thinking about a possible changing of the guard.
With Mahomes taking a statistical step back, the Super Bowl beatdown might be the catalyst Reid needs to bring a new set of eyes to town. While Nagy doesn't call plays, his fingerprints were all over a game plan that was dead on arrival out of the gate.