Inside the chaos of Super Bowl LIX opening night as the Chiefs and Eagles take over New Orleans

Tow trucks descended connected the French Quarter of New Orleans connected Sunday night. Their job, according to 1 amused local? Drain the streets of vehicles and wide the mode for an invasion.

More than 100,000 fans are expected to descend connected this basin up of Super Bowl Sunday, erstwhile the Kansas City Chiefs tin marque past and the Philadelphia Eagles tin nonstop revenge.

The countdown began connected Monday night, erstwhile some teams, brass bands and fewer thousands fans gathered astatine Caesars Superdome for ‘Opening night’.

No metropolis has had much signifier than New Orleans astatine dealing with the NFL caravan. This is the 11th Super Bowl here. It's thing caller for the radical and tow trucks of Louisiana.

They cognize what tin spell incorrect – 12 years ago, the lights wrong the Superdome turned disconnected and 34 minutes of Super Bowl Sunday was mislaid to blackout. They know, too, that immoderate things don’t change.

The Chiefs are present for the 5th clip successful six seasons and, connected Monday night, astir of the cameras and astir of the microphones swarmed astir 1 chair. Just arsenic they did successful Las Vegas past year.

Shortly earlier 9pm, Travis Kelce took a spot astatine podium 4 and the mayhem resumed. 

Groundhog Day came and went implicit the play and yet, successful New Orleans, a consciousness of deja vu lingered until Monday night. The aforesaid faces. The aforesaid goal. The aforesaid questions astir glory and records and Taylor Swift.

On Monday nighttime alone, Kelce was asked 4 times to sanction his favourite Kendrick Lamar song. Except, of course, truthful overmuch is different. The Chiefs tin go the archetypal squad successful Super Bowl past to triumph 3 connected the spin.

More significantly, truthful overmuch has changed present since the crook of the year, erstwhile Shamsud-Din Jabbar drove his motortruck down Bourbon St and this metropolis was devastated by a deadly panic attack. Last month, New Orleans turned achromatic aft the heaviest blizzard since 1895. Only a fewer days ago, a level fell retired of the entity successful Philadelphia.

These are difficult, antithetic times. And it is against this backdrop of calamity and trauma that New Orleans plays big to aged rivals.

The Chiefs and the Eagles conscionable 2 years connected from Super Bowl LVII, erstwhile Kansas City won 38-35 successful Glendale, Arizona. Kelce is inactive here. So is backmost Patrick Mahomes. So are caput manager Andy Reid and galore of his roster.

The Eagles are inactive led by Jalen Hurts and Nick Sirianni, too. But since February 2023 they person mislaid Jason Kelce and gained a caller superstar.

It was nary coincidence that the spot of podium 4 was inactive lukewarm erstwhile Kelce arrived. A scrum of reporters had conscionable spent an hr picking the brains of Saquon Barkley. 

The moving backmost has enjoyed a singular archetypal play successful Philadelphia. He turns 28 connected Sunday and could bask the champion acquisition of all.

These are the weeks Barkley has ever dreamt of but ne'er could helium person envisioned immoderate the questions fired his mode astatine the Superdome. 

Barkley was asked astir his favourite Nickelodeon amusement and however helium ‘keeps things caller successful the bedroom’. Yes, really.

He discussed quesadillas and bunker shots. He was talented a helmet and day towel and a necklace that read: ‘MVP’. That’s par for the people astatine this circus.

On Monday night, players were asked to sing AC/DC and play stone insubstantial scissors. They were asked if they played Wordle and which squad got the amended of the Luka Doncic trade.  

Sirianni was talented a container of instrumentality message from Mexico City; Kelce was asked for the Chiefs’ gameplan by a antheral dressed arsenic Sirianni. NFL backmost Jameis Winston made a mates of cameos which mostly progressive chucking cookies.

‘Big Dom’, the Eagles’ main information officer, patrolled the tract but thing could shield his players from the barrage. Buried nether the avalanche of drivel, determination were moments of poignancy and earthy honesty.

Barkley, for instance, spoke with emotion astir his girl Jada - recalling however she was determination for him successful 2020, erstwhile helium tore his genu and learned to locomotion again. 

Kelce did not shy distant from his assemblage days and a failed drugs trial – present backmost successful 2010 – that astir derailed everything. 

The talking volition halt yet but questions volition stay close up until Sunday evening, erstwhile 2 good teams volition conscionable again astatine the Superdome.

Can Patrick Mahomes bash what Tom Brady ne'er could and triumph 3 successful a row? Can the Eagles close the wrongs of 2 years ago?

New Orleans is gearing up for Mardi Gras adjacent period but first, different party. It began connected Monday night, erstwhile spotlights lit up the Superdome extortion and a silhouette of Julius Caesar. 

The lone question everyone truly needs answering? Who volition deterioration the crown travel Sunday night?