The Philadelphia Eagles are in this year’s Super Bowl because of a superior running game, along with one of the most improved defenses in the NFL since last year. Anecdotally, throughout the playoffs, they have simply appeared bigger, faster and stronger than most of their opponents. 

But, according to some industry experts—like my mother-in-law—the Eagles are also dominating for one important reason: They are more Italian than any other team in the NFL. No offense to Tommy DeVito and the New York Giants, who have managed to corner the market on the Italian NFL subculture, but recent (sauce-covered) breadcrumbs supporting the theory have been unignorable.