Plus other top storylines ahead of next week’s Super Bowl matchup between the Chiefs and the Eagles.

The Super Bowl matchup is officially set as the Kansas City Chiefs will face the Philadelphia Eagles at 6:30 p.m. ET Feb. 9. This is a rematch from 2023, when Patrick Mahomes and Co. took home the Lombardi Trophy with a 38-35 win.

While this game pits familiar opponents against each other, it still has plenty of intrigue.

NBC News and NBC Sports got together to preview a few of the biggest topics as we head into Super Bowl week.

The biggest thing we learned from the conference title games were …

Greif: The Eagles’ offense doesn’t rest entirely on Saquon Barkley. Quarterback Jalen Hurts was criticized after averaging less than 130 yards passing in Philadelphia’s first two playoff victories while looking hesitant to take risks with his passes. But the way he found A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith for 246 passing yards against Washington added a new dynamism to Philly’s attack.

And in the AFC championship, Kansas City proved it can stop the quarterback sneak that has become so in vogue in recent seasons — the short-yardage play that Hurts and Philadelphia have made nearly unstoppable. We will surely see more “tush push” in the Super Bowl.

Daugherty: Gravity still applies. Mahomes remains enough all on his own, and no one can stop Barkley. It sets up a classic “unstoppable force meets immovable object” Super Bowl matchup. Something’s gotta give. Either the Chiefs’ one-man band on offense finally collapses under the weight of its lack of explosiveness, or the Eagles never spring the big run and leave Hurts overexposed against a tough defense. It’s a game of perfect narrative symmetry.

Nadkarni: The Chiefs can still be the Chiefs! There was so much talk this year about how Kansas City was no longer the offensive juggernaut it used to be during the early years of the Mahomes dynasty. Yet when push came to shove against the Bills — and the Chiefs needed to score more than 30 points — they scored more than 30!

It wasn’t quite the offensive barrage from Kansas City’s heyday, but it was a reminder that the Chiefs can win in many different ways. Defensive struggle? They did that all season long. Can Mahomes still go toe-to-toe with another star quarterback? Yes! So even if Kansas City’s offense has been in a two-year lull, it seems the Chiefs can reach another gear when needed.

Is this a Super Bowl matchup you’re excited to see?

Greif: Would I have wanted to watch Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson make his Super Bowl debut? Yes; in fact, it was probably my first preference this season. And seeing whether Josh Allen could break generations of Buffalonian Super Bowl misery would have made for great theater. But I am excited about this Super Bowl rematch, because no matter who has the ball, there will be a strong matchup.

How will Vic Fangio’s defense, one of the NFL’s most talented, attack Andy Reid’s offense, which finds ways to win behind Mahomes despite scoring only 32 points at most this season? And speaking of offensive players who have yet to truly be solved: Barkley, the newest member of the league’s nine-man 2,000-yard club, has a chance to author perhaps the greatest season by a running back in league history. He’s only 30 yards from breaking Terrell Davis’ record for most rushing yards, postseason and regular season combined. But Chiefs defensive anchor Chris Jones will have something to say about that.

Daugherty: Absolutely. The Chiefs are a storyline in and of themselves. They’re trying to accomplish something that’s never been done before in winning three consecutive Super Bowls. But they not only have a worthy opponent; they have a worthy opponent who has history with them via the 2023 title tilt.

The Chiefs are one of the stranger dynasties in recent memory in that they haven’t felt unbeatable in a long time. It’s just that: No one can beat them. The Eagles — who have compelling characters everywhere you look, right down to their chief security adviser, “Big Dom” — can do this. We are either going to witness NFL history or someone finally slaying the vulnerable giant. What’s not to like?

Nadkarni: Look, I get the Chiefs fatigue, but I am actually more upset about the Eagles being in this game. A Lions Super Bowl berth would have been incredible. That said, this is still a great matchup.

These are two of the best teams from the regular season with loaded rosters, not a matchup of two quarterbacks who got hot at the right time. There will be multiple stars on both sides of the field. One issue with the league’s playoff system (and really NFL games in general) is that the randomness of the sport can sometimes lead to, let’s say, lesser teams in the Super Bowl. This is not that. Let’s be thankful to have two truly great teams squaring off.

Would a Super Bowl win make Mahomes the greatest quarterback of all time?

Greif:  In that scenario, the GOAT discussion might come down to individual preference. Would it be more impressive to win seven Super Bowls over a 19-year span like Tom Brady did, as he continually pushed away opponents and Father Time? Or do you consider it the higher degree of difficulty for Mahomes to have won four titles in his first seven seasons as a starter, all before turning 30? For now, I lean Brady, given the sheer size of his personal ring display.

Daugherty: Not yet. Mahomes is still in his “Sandy Koufax phase.” This is probably the greatest peak any of us have ever seen. But Brady not only had multiple peaks — he played the long game like no one else in sports history, not just NFL history. He peaked more than once and essentially never had a valley.

I think even with the lack of longevity, Mahomes will already have a strong case to surpass Joe Montana and Peyton Manning on the “all time leaderboard,” but Tom remains safely ensconced at the top for the time being.

Nadkarni: I don’t think a win makes Mahomes the GOAT. I think he needs at least one more championship for a solid case to truly eclipse Brady. Seven rings is seven rings. (And Brady did it with two teams!)

I will cheat, however, and say I do think Mahomes is the most talented quarterback of all time, with or without another Super Bowl win. Nobody has been this good at every aspect of quarterbacking, as far as I can tell. Mahomes is certainly closing in on Brady, and it’s pretty wild how soon after Brady’s career there’s already someone legitimately threatening his GOAT claim.

Are the Chiefs making the NFL boring?

Greif: Had Kansas City advanced to its fifth Super Bowl in six seasons by winning blowouts and bringing back largely the same roster, that success would indeed be boring. Yet the Chiefs each week are the most entertaining show in football, often putting themselves in a straitjacket of their own making as we ask ourselves, “Is this the week the champions finally will fail to wriggle free?”

Their average margin of victory is just 3.7 points, which ranks 11th in the league, yet they have won 17 of their 19 games, including the postseason, and 17 consecutive one-score games. And they have done so despite roster turnover, particularly at wide receiver and running back, that has led to multiple iterations of the Chiefs during this historic run.

Daugherty: On the contrary. When was the last time you saw people this fired up about a team that wasn’t their own? The Chiefs and Mahomes have filled the Patriots/Brady center of gravity in two ways: In addition to being the team “everyone” is sick of winning, it’s … not actually everyone.

Mahomes’ greatness is the kind many like to front-run. There’s a dynamic where Mahomes not only creates scrappy underdogs wherever he goes, but also draws in fans who want to see Michael Jordan- or Tiger Woods-level athletic achievement. Brady, for a variety of reasons, never quite got the same love. With Mahomes’ greatness, we get to have it both ways any time the Chiefs take the field: Either we are about to witness a living legend, or the wicked witch finally loses.

Nadkarni: No! First off, it’s fun watching teams try to take them down. The next time Mahomes loses in the playoffs will be an incredibly memorable moment.

Don’t you all remember how fun it was to watch their offense when this all started? And this isn’t like the NBA in which a bunch of stars joined forces on one team (cough, 2017 Golden State Warriors, cough) and won a ring together. The Chiefs aren’t doing this as a result of some sort of fluke. There’s nothing stopping NFL teams from catching up to them. This is fair and square competition, and I enjoy watching the greatness as much as I enjoy watching others trying to end it.