The China Mail - Eagles and Chiefs still among fancied few as NFL season opens

The Eagles seek a third trip in four seasons to the championship game behind Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Jalen Hurts at quarterback, star running back Saquon Barkley, a veteran line of blockers and a top receiver group including A.J. Brown plus tight end Dallas Goedert.

While Philadelphia, who beat the Chiefs 40-22 last February in Super Bowl 59, lost some key defensive players, the Eagles are considered a title contender once again.

The Cowboys have their own issues after trading star defensive end Micah Parsons to Green Bay last week when they couldn't reach a contract deal.

"I definitely didn't think he was going to get traded," said Cowboys quarterback Zak Prescott, the NFL's top paid player with an average annual salary of $60 million.

"But just with the way that negotiations went down, it seemed like it got personal on their ends."

The Chiefs, whose star tight end Travis Kelce became engaged to singer Taylor Swift last month, remain among the fancied NFL squads behind quarterback Patrick Mahomes after last year's 15-2 season despite falling short in the final.

Kansas City begins the quest for a fourth consecutive Super Bowl trip on Friday against the Los Angeles Chargers at Sao Paulo, Brazil.

It's the first of seven NFL international contests in 2025, including first-ever regular-season games in Ireland and Spain.

Minnesota meets Pittsburgh at Dublin on September 28 and face Cleveland on October 5 at London's Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Denver and the New York Jets meet on October 12.

The Los Angeles Rams play Jacksonville at Wembley Stadium on October 19 while Atlanta faces Indianapolis on November 9 in Berlin and Washington meets Miami on November 16 at Madrid.

Washington upset Detroit and Tampa Bay in last season's playoffs but lost to Philadelphia in the NFC championship game and figure to threaten again behind second-year quarterback Jayden Daniels.

- Ravens-Bills on Sunday -

The AFC offers plenty of familiar rivals for the Chiefs, including the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans.

Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen, the reigning NFL MVP, sparks the Bills, who have been ousted from the playoffs by the Chiefs in four of the past five seasons.

The Bills have never won an NFL crown and have not reached the Super Bowl since the 1993 campaign, when they lost it for the fourth season in a row.

The Ravens, who last won the NFL crown in the 2012 campaign, have not reached the Super Bowl in Lamar Jackson's seven seasons in Baltimore but the two-time NFL MVP quarterback had career highs of 316 completions in 474 passes for 4,172 yards and 41 touchdowns last season and ran for 915 yards and four touchdowns.

Early bragging rights will be up for grabs when the Ravens visit the Bills to begin the season on Sunday.

Cincinnati will challenge the Ravens behind Joe Burrow, who threw for an NFL-best 4,918 yards and 43 touchdowns last season and led the Bengals to the Super Bowl in the 2021 campaign, while the Pittsburgh Steelers, who haven't won a playoff game since the 2016 season, try to improve their fortunes behind 41-year-old signal caller Aaron Rodgers, a Super Bowl champion and four-time NFL MVP.

Houston, behind quarterback C.J. Stroud, is a division favorite while top NFL Draft pick Cam Ward hopes to make rookie magic passing for the Tennessee Titans.

The Detroit Lions went 15-2 last season but were upset by Washington in their playoff opener and hope to bounce back behind quarterback Jared Goff, but Green Bay and Minnesota are threats after playoff runs last season.

Green Bay, powered by Jordan Love at quarterback, received a defensive boost by landing Parsons from Dallas while Minnesota has J.J. McCarthy back from injury and star receiver Justin Jefferson.

A.Sun--ThChM