I keep hearing the Steve Miller Band song, Fly Like An Eagle, in my head.
It must be a sign, as time keeps on slippin’, slippin’, slippin’ into the future that will take football fans and curious onlookers to the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sunday, when the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Philadelphia Eagles.
You know how we blame a groundhog for whether spring will come early or not? I did the same for my Super Bowl pick, only with music. Instead of looking for my shadow, I went with the notion of what song felt right in my gut from the very first note to the last.
It was either Steve Miller Band or Fats Domino, whose rolling rhythm and blues styles made Kansas City a favourite track of mine when my dad played his music on long car rides (and all car rides with my dad were long ones). I am a big fan of that big music man, but today, Fats didn’t inspire me. Maybe I’m just tired of seeing the Kansas City Chiefs win.
But after that song came Fats singing Walking to New Orleans, so guys, that’s another sign. Think about it: the Eagles are going to fly into Louisiana. They’ll be the winners. It makes perfect sense. Signs. You have to trust them.
Or I could support the Carpenter’s logic: “You cannot cheer for a team in the AFC. It’s against the rules,” he said in a voice usually reserved for school principals. “It’s wrong. It’s just wrong. We’re both NFC teams, we must remain loyal.” Um. Wow.
If I were a betting person, I would be placing all my money on the Philadelphia Eagles. Since I’m not a betting person and all my money equals $6.80 (of change I have recovered beneath the couch cushions and in jean pockets headed to the washing machine), all I can do is hope.
My second season in a competitive NFL pool proved I have limited knowledge of the sport, and thus require a few more years of water-wings before I can swim with the big fish. That’s fine. I’ll get there. I’m learning, though I wish I picked a sport with fewer rules. So many stopped plays for flags and calls. Sometimes four quarters can take four months. Whatever.
The last two years of the Super Bowl I have rooted for Kansas City simply because it irritated my spouse, the Carpenter. Infuriated is likely a better word. As a result, I endured two seasons of being called a Patrick Mahomely (his words, not mine) fan. Please let the record show, for once and for all, that I am not now, nor was I ever, a Patrick Mahomes fan. I was simply a “use your husband’s sport to push the boundaries of your marriage” fan. That’s all.
If Kansas City wins, they would be the first team in the NFL to have a three-peat of Super Bowl wins. That’s quite the accomplishment. Impressive. They’ve earned it. Yeah, so nope, can’t cheer for that.
I had flashbacks to this same rivalry match-up in Super Bowl 2023 and that defensive holding call against the Eagles in the fourth quarter, with 1:54 on the clock. Ugly.
Looks like the Eagles are the underdogs in this series. That’s all I need to know. My $6.80 is on them. All winnings will support my George Kittle Jersey Fund for next year’s Super Bowl.
