Chiefs' practice facility for Super Bowl LIX isn't the disadvantage you might think, but rather a stark reminder of franchise history
Every year at the Super Bowl, there tend to be complaints about the practice conditions leading up to the game. It rotates between AFC and NFC each year, but one team draws the proverbial short straw and gets to practice at local college facilities, while another team gets to practice at local NFL facilities. Of course, […]
Every year at the Super Bowl, there tend to be complaints about the practice conditions leading up to the game.
It rotates between AFC and NFC each year, but one team draws the proverbial short straw and gets to practice at local college facilities, while another team gets to practice at local NFL facilities. Of course, the college facilities are seen as lesser than the facilities of teams in a league worth over $20 billion. The Chiefs have been on both ends of it in their recent run of Super Bowl successes. In Super Bowl LIX, the Philadelphia Eagles will practice at the New Orleans Saints team facilities, while Kansas City will get to practice at Tulane's facilities.
While many view college facilities as inferior and consider practicing in them a disadvantage, I'm not sure that'll be the case for the Chiefs' players because of the franchise's unique history at Tulane. Just a quick walk from Tulane's Yulman Stadium, where the Chiefs will call home for the next week of practice, is the site of the former Tulane Stadium. But why is that significant? Because that's where the 1969 Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV.
They're just footsteps from where Len Dawson handed Mike Garrett the ball on the legendary "65 Toss Power Trap." They're practicing just moments from where Willie Lanier, Bobby Bell, and Buck Buchanan became legends. They're just a few hundred feet away from where Hank Stram was hoisted on the shoulders of the team as they celebrated their first-ever Super Bowl title.
I doubt that every player on this roster knows where they're practicing and why it's special. While the "three-peat" hasn't been a frequent topic of discussion, this team has made it a season-long goal. The players are very aware of the organization's rich history.
"I know what's cool about this organization is that we, we always go back and look at the history of it," Mahomes said after the AFC title game. "And if you look at Hank Stram and Len Dawson and all the Hall of Famers, I think like six or seven Hall of Famers on that football team, it's we go, and we have museums, and we learn, and I talk to other guys on our quarterbacks, whenever they come, whenever they come in our room, like Carson (Wentz) or Chris (Oladokun), or whoever that is, about the history of the Chiefs. I think that's the cool thing about the NFL, is that you can look back at these special moments in organizations and really what defines organizations. And so, that was a huge moment for this organization."
As the Chiefs chase after NFL history with a third consecutive title on the line in Super Bowl LIX, it's only fitting that they're mere footsteps away from where this team won its first-ever Super Bowl title. Rest assured that every player in that locker room is invigorated by that fact, knowing that they, too, can make their mark on franchise history.
Chiefs vs. Eagles Super Bowl LIX will go down in NFL history no matter the outcome because of President Donald Trump
The Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles game in Super Bowl LIX will go down in NFL and USA history.
