Eagles, DeJean control the Super Bowl skies

The rookie cornerback returns an interception for a touchdown, on his 22nd birthday, as Philadelphia dismantles Kansas City.

There was a multitude of happy popcorn consumers in America Sunday, as they watched the Chiefs get splattered on the Superdome floor.

It tasted best in Odebolt, a town of 951 in northwest Iowa. Odebolt, in fact, was known as the Popcorn Capital of the World in the mid 1900s. Jolly Time began selling Odebolt popcorn in 1914. The Crackerjack people got their supply there, too.

Those days were pretty much gone by the time Cooper DeJean came along. Now the town’s identity belongs to him. The residents gathered at a community center Sunday and watched DeJean, the rookie who was recovering from a broken fibula 12 months ago and was the Eagles’ second-round draft pick anyway.

With 7:16 left in the second quarter, the Chiefs had a third-and-16 on their own 24 and were seeking their initial first down. They were already playing into headwinds. Now, DeJean assumed his cornerback position and watched his teammates besiege Patrick Mahomes yet again. Mahomes, who was throwing passes out of a burning building all night, tossed this one into the great wide open, and DeJean snagged it on the Chiefs’ 36. At that point DeJean ceased being a cornerback and reverted to his quarterback days at OABCIG High. He sprinted and cut and ran through a couple of white uniforms. When he got to the end zone, Super Bowl LIX was over.

The Eagles would lead 17-0 on the way to a halftime lead of 24-0 and another lead of 40-6. The final score of 40-22 would be the only untruth of the game. Philadelphia was as emphatic a champion as Seattle was over Denver, as the Bears were over the Patriots, as the 49ers were over several unfortunate organizations. The only thing they left the Chiefs was their reputation for winning the close ones.

DeJean’s touchdown came on his 22nd birthday. He, like Caitlin Clark, went to Iowa, and his legendary feats are no longer confined to the cornfields. At OABCIG High, which serves the towns of Odebolt, Arthur, Battle Creek and Ida Grove, DeJean passed for 35 touchdowns and ran for 24 as a senior, and he scored two touchdowns in the final two minutes of the state championship game, beating Van Meter (Bob Feller’s hometown).

He still wasn’t sure football was his best sport. He scored more points in his prep basketball career than did Harrison Barnes, of Ames, who is in his 14th NBA season. He also was the top 100-meter runner in the state and had the sixth-best long jump in state history at the time of his graduation. And he played baseball, too. Remember that, when some short-sighted coach tries to tell your kid to put away other foolish games.

South Dakota State wanted DeJean to play quarterback, but he agreed to play DB at Iowa. By the time his career was over, defensive coordinator Phil Parker said, “I never saw Nile Kinnick play but I think I’ve been watching Nile Kinnick.” That’s a holy name in Iowa, since Kinnick won the Heisman Trophy in 1939 and had 11 touchdown passes and eight interceptions, playing almost every minute. Kinnick turned down NFL offers to attend law school, but first became a Navy pilot. He died in a crash off the coast of Venezuela. The Hawkeyes named their stadium after him.

The Eagles’ defensive backfield was an E-Z Pass lane in the second half of the 2023 season, so general manager Howie Roseman, whose winning streak in player procurement continues apace, drafted cornerback Quinyon Mitchell in the first round, then traded up to the No. 40 pick so he could take DeJean. They, along with C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Darius Slay, denied Mahomes on his first looks downfield, and the crew up front never let Mahomes get second looks. At halftime Mahomes was six-for-14 for 33 yards with three sacks and two interceptions. Xavier Worthy, Travis Kelce and DeAndre Hopkins were targeted four times in that half and made a total of one catch for one yard, and K.C. was 0-for-6 on third down.

Not until Mahomes connected with Worthy for 50 yards, with 2:40 left in the third quarter, did the Chiefs even cross the 50-yard-line. By then the Eagles led, 34-0.

Over the holidays, Mahomes put a rich package under the tree of each offensive lineman. He provided a Rolex watch, deluxe cowboy boots, Yeti coolers, Oakley shades, air-compression leg attachments, a fitness traffic and some luggage. Those linemen voiced their thanks by serving as a launching pad for Josh Sweat, Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis and Nolan Smith, with Milt Williams joining the party from the bench. Linebacker Zack Baun said he thought the Eagles “might have blitzed twice,” but others thought defensive coordinator Vic Fangio never sent anyone, and the front four hit Mahomes 11 times and had five-and-a-half of Philadelphia’s six sacks. Sweat had two-and-a-half sacks and could have claimed the MVP award that went to Jalen Hurts. He lined up on both sides and mismatched everybody he faced. When Mahomes threw an interception that Baun returned to the one-yard-line, he was thrown off-kilter when Sweat pushed Joe Thuney into Mahomes’ leg upon delivery.

The linemen whom Mahomes pampered were tackle Thuney, tackle Jawann Taylor, guards Trey Smith and Mike Caliendo and center Creed Humphrey. Tight ends and chipping backs got frog-walked, too. Perhaps Mahomes should ask for the Rolexes to be returned until those blockers learn what time the game starts.

This was Mahomes’ second loss in five Super Bowl starts. The first one resembled this one. That was Tampa Bay’s 31-9 win after the 2020 season, with Covid-19 reducing the number of live witnesses. The Bucs only sacked Mahomes three times but hit him nine times, including four salvoes from Shaq Barrett. Mahomes also threw two picks that day, and had a QB rating of 52.3. That offensive line of Mike Remmers, Nick Allegretti, Austin Reiter, Stefan Wisniewski and Andrew Wylie was reorganized in time for 2021, when only Wylie started in the AFC Championship loss to Cincinnati.

Mahomes was despondent Sunday night, and welcomed all the blame, but he couldn’t have felt much worse than the Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions, both playoff casualties. Not that they would have survived the Eagles’ seamless lineup and late-season push. Philadelphia was 16-1 after Sept. 29, and they won their playoff games by a total score of 145-77. The Eagles had 16 sacks and a plus-12 turnover margin i the postseason. No Philly Special required.

Eagles fans predictably tried to flip a police car at Broad and Chestnut, took down a stop light and occupied a bus shelter, and they were just getting warmed up. A sedate parade awaits Cooper DeJean back in Odebolt, home of rare earth.