The 49ers are set to face the Kansas City Chiefs this afternoon in Las Vegas with the Lombardi Trophy on the line.
Two weeks of discussion, dissection, and dissent will end at 3:30 p.m., and the game will be decided by the players and coaches on the field.
The Niners rode a wild playoff path here, earning a late comeback win over the Packers and erasing a 17-point deficit to beat the Lions. The defending champion Chiefs are back after beating the Dolphins in a frigid home game, then triumphing in Buffalo and Baltimore.
Nearly three decades later, the 49ers’ trophy case needs to expand. The franchise’s long-sought sixth Lombardi Trophy will be flying to the Bay Area. How? This is the 49ers’ most talented offensive cast since Steve Young hoisted their fifth crown after the 1994 season. So, even if the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes scorches the 49ers’ secondary like he did for the 2019 season’s Super Bowl difference, this 49ers offense has the firepower and quarterback to survive a shootout. But the 49ers also have Christian McCaffrey, an ideal catalyst for the offense that is cleverly called by Kyle Shanahan, whose first Super Bowl in seven years as their head coach is an overdue reward for his stewardship
Danny Emerman: In a game with Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy, Mr. Inevitable Patrick Mahomes, Mr. Indestructible Fred Warner, Mr. Incredible Christian McCaffrey and Mr. Fearless Travis Kelce, the best unit is Kansas City’s defense.
The Chiefs’ offense can get hot, of course, but Kansas City’s secondary and pass rush bottled up Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen and Tua Tagovailoa in consecutive weeks when it mattered most. They’re battle-tested and ready for Purdy and Co.
San Francisco was the best team in the NFL for most of the year, but they’re lucky to even be in the Super Bowl based on their playoff performances. In Allegiant Stadium, the comeback magic runs out: Chiefs 27, 49ers 23
Jerry McDonald: I participate in a nationwide Powerpoll each week under the direction of legendary NFL scribe Rick Gosselin which poses questions to print radio, television and social media analysts and some team officials. It casts a wide net and gives a window into what those in the business are thinking. Oddsmakers have made the 49ers a 2 1/2-point pick, but a large number of those in the business covering the NFL have other ideas. Among 716 votes cast on the winner of Super Bowl LVIII, 486 selected Kansas City to beat the 49ers — a whopping 66.5 percent.
The Chiefs are in the Super Bowl by default — no one else in the AFC could handle the stage of the playoffs, and Kansas City remained steady. This is a team that only scored 17 points in the AFC title game, with supposed star running back Isiah Pacheco averaging 2.8 yards per carry. This is not the juggernaut offense from years past, and their defense, while sound, lacks the dynamism needed to flummox Brock Purdy.
If the 49ers simply run their offense at a high level, funneling touches to Deebo Samuel in the backfield and with Purdy checking down with passes to Christian McCaffrey, they’ll move the ball and should have a standard offensive output of 30-plus points.
