In 2022, division winners in the AFC were Buffalo in East, Cincinnati in the North, Jacksonville in the South, and Kansas City in the West, with the Wild-Cards going to Miami, Baltimore, and the Los Angeles Chargers. In the NFC, it was Philadelphia in the East, Minnesota in the North, Tampa Bay in the South, and San Francisco in the West, with the Wild-Cards going to Dallas, New York, and Seattle. By this time, most of the country was over the Covid-19 pandemic, and things were getting back to normal, as once again, the stadiums were full of fans. In the first round of the AFC Playoffs it was Jacksonville over the Los Angeles Chargers 31-30 despite trailing 27-0 in the 2nd Quarter. It was Buffalo over Miami 34-31, and Cincinnati over Baltimore 24-17. In the NFC, it was San Francisco over Seattle 41-23, the New York Giants over Minnesota 31-24, and Dallas over Tampa Bay 31-14. In the AFC Divisional Playoffs, it was Kansas City over Jacksonville 27-20, and Cincinnati over Buffalo 27-10. In the NFC, it was Philadelphia crushing the New York Giants 38-7, and San Francisco got by Dallas 19-12. In the AFC Championship Game, it was Kansas City over Cincinnati in a thriller 23-20, and in the NFC, it was Philadelphia rolling over San Francisco 31-7, as the 49ers would lose their starting Quarterback to injury, setting up the match-up for Super Bowl 57. The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 38–35, in one of the greatest Super Bowls in recent memory. The game was played on February 12, 2023, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. It was the fourth Super Bowl hosted by the Phoenix metropolitan area, and the third at this venue, with the most recent previously being Super Bowl XLIX in 2015. Philadelphia began the game with the ball. Their first drive spanned 75 yards in 11 plays and featured two rushes by Jalen Hurts for 12 yards, and four completed passes—the longest of which was a 23-yard completion to DeVonta Smith. After the Eagles converted a third down from inside the Kansas City 5-yard-line, Hurts scored the game's first points with a 1-yard touchdown run to take a 7–0 lead. Kansas City responded with an 8-play, 75-yard drive that featured a 24-yard run by Isiah Pacheco. Patrick Mahomes also completed two passes to Travis Kelce, including an 18-yard touchdown pass to tie the score. Philadelphia's second drive produced the game's first three-and-out after a pass interference penalty set them back early. Kansas City did not take advantage, as several incompletions set up a 42-yard field goal attempt by Harrison Butker, which hit the left upright and was no-good. The Eagles began their next drive from their 32-yard-line and gained yardage on two Hurts rushes and two Hurts passes, in addition to a defensive offside penalty, before the first quarter ended. Philadelphia retook the lead 14–7 with a 45-yard touchdown pass from Hurts to A. J. Brown. The Chiefs did not recover from a loss of yardage on the first play of their next drive, and they punted as a result of their first three-and-out. After a Hurts pass and a Kenneth Gainwell rush each gained nine yards, Hurts fumbled the ball while running into linebacker Nick Bolton, who recovered it bouncing off the ground in stride and ran 36 yards for a touchdown, tying the game. Hurts led the Eagles on another touchdown drive to take the lead. The Eagles converted a pair of fourth downs4th and 5 with a 28-yard scramble by Hurts and later by drawing the Chiefs offside. Hurts finished the 71-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run that made the score 21–14. The Chiefs started their next drive well after gaining a first down in two plays leading into the two-minute warning, but they stalled from there and punted with 1:33 remaining in the half. During this drive, Mahomes reaggravated a high ankle sprain that he had suffered early in the season, though the Chiefs did not play any offensive snaps without him. Britain Covey returned the punt 27 yards to his own 43-yard-line, which, in addition to a 22-yard pass from Hurts to Brown near the end of the Eagles' next drive, helped put them into field goal range. Jake Elliott converted a 35-yard kick to increase Philadelphia's lead to ten points going into halftime. Kansas City received the ball to begin the second half and drove 75 yards in 12 plays, with Mahomes completing all three of his passes for 26 yards and rushing for 14 before Pacheco's 1-yard touchdown run cut their deficit to three points. Philadelphia responded with a 19-play, 65-yard drive, in which Hurts completed two 17-yard passes to tight end Dallas Goedert, one of which converted a third-and-14. The Kansas City defense stopped the drive at their own 15-yard-line, forcing the Eagles to settle for a 33-yard field goal attempt, which Elliott converted with 1:48 left in the third quarter. The Chiefs gained 31 yards on their next four plays, including two Pacheco rushes that reached the Philadelphia 44-yard-line, to end the third quarter. Mahomes completed four passes to JuJu Smith-Schuster for a total of 38 yards after the quarter break and concluded the Chiefs' 12-play, 75-yard drive with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Kadarius Toney, giving the Chiefs their first lead of the game, 28–27. The Chiefs continued their good form by forcing a Philadelphia three-and-out. Toney returned the Arryn Siposs punt for 65 yards to the Eagles' 5-yard-line and setting a record with the longest punt return in a Super Bowl. Kansas City scored quickly on a 4-yard pass from Mahomes to Skyy Moore. Butker's extra point increased their lead to eight points. Philadelphia took four minutes off the clock on their ensuing drive, which spanned eight plays and resulted in a 45-yard pass to Smith that set up Hurts' 2-yard touchdown run on the next play. Hurts then scored a two-point conversion with a run that tied the score at 35 with 5:15 remaining. At the start of Kansas City's next drive, three runs by Pacheco for 15 yards and two completions by Mahomes for 17 yards moved the ball to the Eagles' 47-yard line. On the next play, Mahomes took off for a 26-yard run that gave the Chiefs a first down on Philadelphia's 17-yard line. A 2-yard run by Pacheco ran the clock down to the two-minute warning. Then an incomplete pass brought up third-and-8. Mahomes threw an incomplete pass on the next play, but Kansas City earned a first down after James Bradberry was penalized for holding—a call that was criticized by some, but was supported by others including by Bradberry himself. On the next play, with first down at the Eagles' 11-yard line, McKinnon rushed to the 2-yard-line where he intentionally downed himself, thereby extending the Chiefs' drive taking more time off the clock. The Chiefs ended the drive by taking a knee twice and kicking a 27-yard field goal, leaving eight seconds on the clock. A Hail Mary pass by Hurts fell incomplete, ending the game. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was named Super Bowl Most Valuable Player (MVP), completing 21 of 27 passes for 182 yards and three touchdowns, while also rushing six times for 44 yards. Mahomes became the first player since Kurt Warner in 1999 to win an NFL MVP and a Super Bowl MVP in the same season.