For the second time in five years, the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers will meet in the Super Bowl. These two squads faced off in Feb. 2020, with the Chiefs defeating the 49ers 31-20 in Super Bowl LIV to claim their first championship in over 50 years. Now, the two teams are all set for their highly anticipated and unpredictable rematch.
Representing the National Football Conference (NFC), the 49ers enter as slight favorites. With a win on Sunday, the Niners would win their first title since 1994 and their sixth total, tying the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots for the most Super Bowl wins in NFL history.
The 49ers are well-equipped to make this happen. They have one of the best, if not the best, rosters in the league. This team features several future Hall of Famers and has incredible talent that cannot be overstated. Nine 49ers players were selected for the Pro Bowl, which is the most of any team this season.
The Niners have seven starters who played against the Chiefs five years ago, including reigning defensive player of the year Nick Bosa. Bosa, a defensive end, recorded 10.5 sacks this season and will have a good opportunity to add to that total on Sunday. While the Chiefs have a strong offensive line overall, they are weak at offensive tackle. This weakness means Nick Bosa and other 49ers pass rushers will have ample opportunity to get to the quarterback.
Offensively, the 49ers are potent, scoring over 28 points per game. Despite this production, however, many people still question the capability of the 49ers’ quarterback, Brock Purdy. Purdy, the last pick in the 2022 draft, put up MVP-caliber numbers this season, throwing for over 4,000 yards and 31 touchdowns, but many question whether the strength of the Niners’ roster is bolstering his numbers.
Purdy has been able to silence many critics this postseason, leading the 49ers to victory even when they were trailing in the second half in each of their two playoff games. Before then, the Niners had not won a game where they trailed in the fourth quarter this season.
Hopefully, for San Francisco fans, this new trend continues. Five years ago, San Francisco found themselves trailing 24-20 in Super Bowl LIV with less than two minutes left. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was unable to lead the Niners to victory, missing an open receiver on third and 10 and ultimately turning the ball over on downs. Maybe things will be different with Purdy.
On the other hand, no one is concerned about Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes as he and the Kansas City Chiefs find themselves in another Super Bowl. This is the fourth time in five seasons they are representing the American Football Conference (AFC) in February, meaning they have experience in high-pressure situations.
However, this season has been different from others. Normally, the Chiefs are an offensive juggernaut that can score 20 points in the blink of an eye, but this season, the team has been led primarily by its stellar defense. The Chiefs are scoring an average of 22 points per game, which is 15th in the league, but their defense is only allowing 16.8 points per game — the second-fewest in the league.
The strong defense is largely because of their ability to stop teams from throwing the ball. The Chiefs’ defense has allowed the fourth-fewest passing yards this season. However, Kansas City allows four and a half yards per carry on the ground, which could present an issue against the NFL’s leading rusher, Christian McCaffrey.
Kansas City’s offense has been sputtery and inconsistent all year. Their season was marked by key drops and penalties at crucial times, which have conspicuously vanished in recent weeks. Travis Kelce is a perfect example of this improvement. Despite not reaching 1,000 receiving yards for the first time in seven years, he caught 11 passes for over 100 yards in the AFC Championship against Baltimore.
The last two Super Bowls were both won by three points, and this one looks to be a great game as well. I could see either team winning this game because they are both that good and deserve to be here. It is hard not to pick the 49ers. They have been consistently one of the best teams all year, and I find it difficult to believe they will not win a Super Bowl with this core.
However, it is even more difficult to pick against Patrick Mahomes. Just like he was five years ago, Mahomes is the ultimate X-factor in this game. In 2020, the 49ers had the better team and led for the majority of the game, but in the last five minutes, none of it mattered. Mahomes put the Chiefs on his back, and I think he’ll do it again to win his third Super Bowl. The 49ers may have the better team, but the Chiefs have the situational experience and the quarterback to carry the day and the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
