We’ve officially made it to Wednesday, folks! You know what that means? We’re not only at the halfway point of the work week, but we’re one step closer to Super Bowl LIX kicking off from New Orleans. With a game like this on the horizon, time does seem to move a bit slower than usual, but we’re chugging along. To help us pass the time, let’s comb through all the latest happenings in the NFL over the last 24 hours, shall we?
It’s Tyler Sullivan here filling in for John Breech as he gallivants Bourbon Street and makes sure the Superdome lights stay on. Of course, this is the Pick Six newsletter where we’ll be covering some Super Bowl-related news, but also take a look at what some specific deals for both Myles Garrett and Cooper Kupp could look like this offseason. If you’d be so kind, tell your friends about the newsletter and get them signed up. To do that, all you have to do is click here.
1. Pete Prisco’s Super Bowl pick: In Mahomes we trust
CBS Sports Senior NFL analyst Pete Prisco has finally weighed in on which side he believes will be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy at the end of Super Bowl LIX, and he’s backing history. Prisco is putting his trust in Patrick Mahomes to lead the Kansas City Chiefs to what would be a historic three-peat, the first of its kind in Super Bowl history.
Here’s Prisco’s breakdown of why he sees Kansas City pulling out the victory:
“How do you pick against Patrick Mahomes in the biggest game of the year? You don’t.
“That’s the simple way to make a pick for Super Bowl LIX. When the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles take the field Sunday at the Caesars Superdome, the Eagles will do so with a better roster, more top-end players and a physical style that exudes bully ball.
“But the Eagles don’t have Mahomes. He is Mr. Clutch, maybe the best ever at getting it done when his team is down or needs him to make a play. The Chiefs are 6-1 this season when trailing in the fourth quarter. In nine playoff games where the Chiefs were behind in the fourth quarter, Mahomes has won six of them and lost two others in overtime after tying it. He is 3-0 in come-from-behind victories in the Super Bowl.
“You picking against that?”
To read Prisco’s full analysis on his Super Bowl LIX pick, click here.
2. NFL Referees Association calls claims of Chiefs favoritism ‘insulting and preposterous’
Scrutiny toward the officiating is common in pretty much every professional sport, but it has seemed to reach a fever pitch in the NFL. Specifically, the public has been critical of NFL officiating as it relates to how the Kansas City Chiefs are officiated with people alleging favoritism.
That drum has been beaten so loudly that it was a question posed to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell during his annual press conference, and has more recently warranted a response from the NFL Referees Association. On Tuesday afternoon, executive director of the NFL Referees Association Scott Green called these allegations “ridiculous.”
“Commissioner Goodell’s comments that it is ‘ridiculous’ to presume that NFL officials are not doing everything possible to make the right call on every play is spot on,” Green said. “Officiating crews do not work the same team more than twice each regular season. It is insulting and preposterous to hear conspiracy theories that somehow 17 officiating crews consisting of 138 officials are colluding to assist one team.”
3. What could trades for Garrett, Kupp look like?
Super Bowl week kicked off with some seismic news on the trade front with Myles Garrett publicly requesting a deal that’ll ship him out of Cleveland along with Cooper Kupp announcing that the Los Angeles Rams plan to trade him this offseason. Given the star status of both of these players, where they end up could help shift the balance of power in the league. But just as interesting as where they could end up is what their respective price tags will be on the trade market.
With that in mind, fellow CBS Sports NFL writer Jordan Dajani and I were tasked with cooking up some realistic trades for both Garrett and Kupp to get a better sense of what the parameters of these deals could look like.
I specifically handled Garrett’s situation and illustrated three potential deals that could make the Browns bite. Here’s one of those deals that revolves around the Detroit Lions
Browns receive: 2025 first-round pick (No. 28 overall), 2026 first-round pick
Lions receive: Myles Garrett
The Detroit Lions have been meticulous and methodical when it comes to how they utilize their draft picks, and it’s proven to be extremely successful. With that in mind, shipping out multiple first-rounders would be a break from that core belief by general manager Brad Holmes. But the ability to acquire a talent like Garrett could be enough to push those chips into the middle of the table to try and cash in on this Super Bowl window. If this deal were to come to fruition, the pairing of Garrett and Aidan Hutchinson would form the most-feared pass-rushing unit in the NFL and improve on a defense that already ranked fourth in the NFL in pressure rate in 2024. For Garrett, he’d get his wish to be on a Super Bowl contender, while Cleveland would gain two first-rounders with one sitting at No. 28 overall in 2025 and the other likely in a similar spot in 2026.
To read the other two potential deals for Garrett, click here.
Meanwhile, Dajani tackled Kupp’s trade market and cooked up three trade scenarios for the former Super Bowl MVP, including one with the Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers receive: Kupp, 2025 sixth-round pick
Rams receive: 2025 third-round pick
The Steelers have been in the market for a wide receiver for some time now. Maybe Kupp isn’t Brandon Aiyuk, but he is a playmaker who would add something to this offense — and this offense needs a makeover. Pittsburgh makes the decision to part ways with a third-round pick since Los Angeles agrees to send a sixth-rounder back while taking on a chunk of Kupp’s salary. The salary L.A. has to eat to move on from Kupp is something that may make or break potential deals.
To read the other two potential deals for Kupp, click here.
4. Barkley ‘pretty damn close’ to signing with Bears in free agency
In an alternate universe, could Saquon Barkley have led the Chicago Bears to the Super Bowl instead of the Philadelphia Eagles this season? Even in alternate universes and parallel worlds, that seems farfetched, but we did almost see the star running back suiting up for the Bears this season instead of the Eagles.
During Super Bowl Opening Night at the Caesars Superdome, Barkley told reporters that he was “pretty damn close” to signing with the Bears last offseason. Throughout his free agent tenure, the Eagles, Bears and Houston Texans were three teams linked to Barkley, and it’s a fascinating “What if?” scenario when thinking about how different the league — and this Super Bowl — could look if he chose to take his talents to Chicago.
5. Ranking every Super Bowl QB matchup: Where does Mahomes vs. Hurts rematch land?
One of the central storylines surrounding Super Bowl LIX is that we have a rare rematch between the Eagles and Chiefs, making it just the ninth rematch in Super Bowl history. Meanwhile, Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes are just the fourth pair of opposing quarterbacks to meet in the Super Bowl multiple times.
In that spirit, we tasked our in-house NFL historian Bryan DeArdo to rank every quarterback matchup in Super Bowl history. No. 1 on this list probably comes as little surprise and includes Mahomes but it’s his matchup with Tom Brady in Super Bowl LV that claims the top spot.
Here’s DeArdo’s breakdown of that Super Bowl head-to-head:
1. Tom Brady vs. Patrick Mahomes, Super Bowl LV
Feb. 7, 2021: Buccaneers 31, Chiefs 9
No, this is not recency bias. And though the game didn’t play out as one of the best, the QB matchup is our No. 1. Widely considered to be the NFL’s best quarterback, Mahomes is the youngest player in NFL history to win regular season and Super Bowl MVP trophies. He and Brady are the only players with multiple regular season and Super Bowl MVP awards.
A member of the NFL’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team, Brady is widely considered to be the greatest quarterback who has ever played the position. He’s also the greatest Super Bowl quarterback of all time, with 10 appearances, seven rings and five Super Bowl MVPs to boot. His three touchdown passes in Super Bowl LV propelled the Buccaneers to an upset win over the defending champion Chiefs.
As for where this latest QB matchup ranks, DeArdo has it slotted at No. 20, which includes their prior contest in Super Bowl LVII.
20. Patrick Mahomes vs. Jalen Hurts, Super Bowl LVII and Super Bowl LIX
Feb. 12, 2023: Chiefs 38, Eagles 35
Feb. 9, 2025: ???
Yep, we’ve got a top-20 QB showdown on our hands for Sunday. Mahomes has already built his case as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, and Hurts’ career is off to a great start as well. One of the NFL’s top dual-threat quarterbacks, Hurts had a Super Bowl for the ages against the Chiefs two years ago. Hurts threw for over 300 yards and became the first quarterback to rush for three touchdowns in a Super Bowl. On Sunday, he will join Mahomes and Wilson as the only active quarterbacks with multiple Super Bowl starts.
To read DeArdo’s full list, click here.
6. Extra points: Trump expected to attend Super Bowl LIX
It’s been a busy 24 hours in the NFL, and since it’s nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you.
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Author: Tyler Sullivan
February 5, 2025 | 2:15 pm
