Super Bowl LIX DVOA/Quick Reads

Well, that was a defensive performance, wasn’t it? The Philadelphia Eagles defense completely destroyed Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, getting constant pressure without ever blitzing. They didn’t send more than four pass rushers even one time!

In the first half, the Chiefs had more turnovers (2) than first downs (1). At the end of the first half, the Eagles had defensive DVOA of -163%. That’s the best first half defense in any Super Bowl. The 1985 Bears were at -137% for the first half of Super Bowl XX against the Patriots.

(The Eagles allowed 1.1 yards per play in the first half, while the 1985 Bears actually allowed NEGATIVE -0.9 yards per play in the first half! The difference comes from era adjustments, since there’s more overall offense in the modern NFL than there was in 1985, and because the Bears’ two turnovers were forced fumbles rather than interceptions, and fumble recovery is random.)

If the game had ended after three quarters, the Eagles would have had the third-highest DVOA in any Super Bowl ever, trailing only the 2013 Seahawks and the 1989 49ers. Then the garbage time happened, and the Chiefs scored some points. As a result, the Eagles end up with the fourth-highest defensive DVOA in a Super Bowl. Their total DVOA ranks 12th, because the offense didn’t really have a great game despite Jalen Hurts‘ MVP award. The running game was bad! Imagine if someone told you that the Eagles would blow out the Chiefs with Saquon Barkley having only 2.3 yards per carry. You would have said they were nuts.

DVOA (with opponent adjustments)
TEAM	TOT	OFF	DEF	ST
KC	-7%	-28%	-23%	-3%
PHI	80%	-1%	-73%	8%

VOA (no opponent adjustments)
TEAM	TOT	OFF	DEF	ST
KC	-35%	-46%	-14%	-3%
PHI	65%	-5%	-63%	8%

Here’s a look at the best defensive DVOA ratings in the Super Bowl, along with where each team stood after halftime and then again after three quarters.

Top 10 Defensive DVOA in a Super Bowl, 1978-2024
YEAR	TEAM	VS	PF	PA	TOTAL	OFF	DEF	ST	1H DEF	Q1-3 DEF
2000	BAL	NYG	34	7	102%	-16%	-103%	16%	-78%	-104%
1985	CHI	NE	46	10	115%	13%	-103%	-1%	-137%	-115%
2002	TB	OAK	48	21	89%	24%	-86%	-21%	-100%	-86%
2024	PHI	KC	40	22	80%	-1%	-73%	8%	-163%	-103%
2020	TB	KC	31	9	85%	11%	-71%	3%	-33%	-43%
1991	WAS	BUF	37	24	88%	22%	-67%	-2%	-117%	-80%
2013	SEA	DEN	43	8	129%	34%	-67%	28%	-70%	-56%
2018	NE	LAR	13	3	54%	-2%	-58%	-2%	-70%	-60%
1989	SF	DEN	55	10	120%	64%	-56%	0%	-45%	-44%
1983	LARD	WAS	38	9	89%	35%	-56%	-2%	-57%	-42%

Now let’s look at Quick Reads with the individual numbers. I got in a lot of trouble on social media with Eagles fans for pointing out that Xavier Worthy had a great game in garbage time. But he did! It was garbage time, yes, but Xavier Worthy ranks fourth in wide receiver DYAR in a Super Bowl behind three Jerry Rice performances and just ahead of Larry Fitzgerald in Super Bowl XLIII. (For those wondering, garbage time performance is downweighted in the team DVOA stats, but not in the individual stats.)

When I run my tables for Quick Reads, it includes running backs with at least four carries. The Chiefs didn’t even have a running back with at least four carries! I had to add Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco manually. Just another example of the Eagles’ defensive domination, because the Chiefs fell so far behind they never ran the ball.

Quarterbacks

Rk	Player	Team	CP/AT	Yds	TD	INT	Sacks	Total DYAR	Pass DYAR	Rush DYAR	Opp
1.	Jalen Hurts	PHI	17/22	221	2	1	2	110	91	19	KC
2.	Patrick Mahomes	KC	21/32	257	3	2	6	-14	-19	6	PHI

Running Backs

Rk	Player	Team	Runs	Rush Yds	Rush TD	Rec	Rec Yds	Rec TD	Total DYAR	Rush DYAR	Rec DYAR	Opp
1.	Kareem Hunt	KC	3	9	0	1/1	5	0	2	0	2	PHI
2.	Isiah Pacheco	KC	3	7	0	1/2	5	0	-3	-3	0	PHI
3.	Kenneth Gainwell	PHI	6	10	0	0/0	0	0	-14	-14	0	KC
4.	Saquon Barkley	PHI	25	57	0	6/7	40	0	-22	-34	12	KC

Top Five Best Wide Receivers or Tight Ends

Rk	Player	Team	Rec	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	Total DYAR	Opp
1.	Xavier Worthy	KC	8	8	157	19.6	2	87	PHI
2.	DeVonta Smith	PHI	4	5	69	17.2	1	32	KC
3.	A.J. Brown	PHI	3	5	43	14.3	1	19	KC
4.	Jahan Dotson	PHI	2	3	42	21.0	0	12	KC
5.	Dallas Goedert	PHI	2	2	27	13.5	0	8	KC

Worst Wide Receiver or Tight End

Rk	Player	Team	Rec	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	Total DYAR	Opp
1.	Marquise Brown	KC	2	6	15	7.5	0	-21	PHI

Here’s a look a the top 10 wide receiver performances in the Super Bowl by DYAR:

Top 10 Wide Receiver DYAR in Super Bowl, 1978-2024
Year	Player	Team	Opp	DYAR	Pass	Rec	Yds	TD	Runs	Yds	TD
1989	Jerry Rice	SF	DEN	96	9	7	148	3	0	0	0
1994	Jerry Rice	SF	SD	96	13	10	149	3	1	10	0
1988	Jerry Rice	SF	CIN	90	14	11	215	1	1	5	0
2024	Xavier Worthy	KC	PHI	87	8	8	157	2	0	0	0
2008	Larry Fitzgerald	ARI	PIT	82	8	7	127	2	0	0	0
1997	Antonio Freeman	GB	DEN	69	13	9	126	2	0	0	0
1992	Michael Irvin	DAL	BUF	65	9	6	114	2	0	0	0
2021	Cooper Kupp	LAR	CIN	65	10	8	92	2	0	0	0
1992	Andre Reed	BUF	DAL	61	10	8	152	0	0	0	0
2003	Deion Branch	NE	CAR	61	13	10	143	1	0	0	0