The NFL season is over, and some teams will be looking back on the season and asking where it all went wrong. Others will be casting their eyes back over the same season and asking how they can repeat the same level of success in the 2024 season.
The New England Patriots are one team who will be asking how they can replicate 2023 after their shock win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in December. Meanwhile the Kansas City Chiefs will be wondering how they can recreate their 2024 Super Bowl success. These are just some of the standout moments of the 2023 to 2024 NFL season. Below is a look at some of the big moments of 2024 so far in the NFL, plus a glance towards the new season, which kicks off on September 5.
The Chiefs win the Super Bowl
This season’s Super Bowl took place in Vegas. While gaming fans were enjoying some leisure time on the online slots, the Chiefs were claiming the first back-to-back Super Bowl win in the NFL in 10 years. They came back from a ten-point deficit to retain the Lombardi Trophy and keep it out of the hands of their opponents, the San Francisco 49ers.
The two teams gave fans much to get excited and cheer about in a back-and-forth game that saw neither team willing to budge. The score was 19-19 at the end of regulation and had to be settled in overtime. Patrick Mahomes connected with receiver Mecole Hardman on a one-yard touchdown pass which would take the Chiefs to their third Super Bowl win in five years. Final score: 25-22.
The NFC wins the Pro Bowl Games
It’s now the second year the Pro Bowl has featured games of skill and a flag game instead of a traditional tackle game. In the 2024 Pro Bowl games, which took place in Orlando, Florida, and saw the flag game and some other events held on the final day in the Camping World Stadium, the NFC emerged victorious over the AFC. They proved dominant in the skills games and each player walked away with a bonus of $80,000.
The AFC may have won the flag game 50-34, but they had to survive a real flurry by the NFC in the second half of the game. In the final quarter and a half, the NFC outscored their opponents 19-6. It was enough for the conference to win the overall competition 64-59.
Travis Kelce tells us he’ll see us next year
One of the big questions of the 2023-24 season was whether the Kansas City Chiefs star tight end would retire after the Super Bowl. Some media sources were extremely certain he would. The world looked to Kelce to set it straight when the Chiefs won the Super Bowl and Kelce gave an interview. It seems he’s not ready to retire just yet, and it looks as if he wishes to go for a third Super Bowl. Fans are hoping his enthusiasm remains and he'll act on his desire for that third title.
How does the 2024-25 season look?
The Chiefs may have raised the Lombardi Trophy, but it’s their 2024 Super Bowl opponents who have become the early favorites to lift it in 2025. They’ve received +550 on the moneylines, whereas sportsbooks have made the boys from Kansas second early favorites at +650. Baltimore Ravens are the third early favorites at +900.
Speculation around who will come and who will go may have prompted this lack of confidence from the sportsbooks in the Chiefs. Chris Jones, one of the team’s best defensive players, may be leaving because of the expense his contract costs the club. Free agency is also a worry to the team. The Chiefs have room in their cap to retain some players, but several key players can be free agents this off-season.
Meanwhile, the 49ers should be doing everything possible to keep Brandon Aiyuk and Brock Purdy together. The two work fantastically well together and have a great understanding of each other. These foundational players could drive the team to some real success in the long term. San Francisco has no interest in trading Aiyuk but will have to shed some big-contract players as he starts to reach cap hits.
Third favorites, the Ravens, have 25 unrestricted free agents, so they could see lots of comings and goings by the time the 2024 season gets under way. They won’t have much cap space to keep all their free agents, so the club could be fielding a very different team from September onwards.
The NFL delivered moments to remember in the final few months of the season. The Kansas City Chiefs came out on top in the Super Bowl, but sportsbooks don’t believe they can do so for a third consecutive time. The 49ers may well take their revenge next year.