After another exciting NFL season, there is just one game left on the calendar as the AFC Champion Kansas City Chiefs and NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers will make the trek out to Las Vegas in search of a big time victory.
The matchup that the fans will get this year – despite many fans wishing on both teams downfalls – includes a familiar face and a powerhouse team that is looking to finally fulfill its destiny after falling short for nearly half a decade.
Representing the AFC is the defending Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs who have a lot of the same players from last February but with a bit of a new style of play. They are hoping to become the first team since the New England Patriots in 2004 and 2005 to win consecutive Super Bowls.
The holdovers from their previous three Super Bowl appearances include the Phenomenal Patrick Mahomes II, Travis Kelce, and Chris Jones. Outside of the three, they have seen plenty of guys on defense and a couple of guys on the offensive side of the ball make massive leaps in order to help a struggling Chiefs team make it back to the Super Bowl.
Mahomes is still the player everyone has watched grow into an all-time great as he is surprisingly just hitting his prime right now. He is coming off of a 2022-23 season where he was named League MVP and Super Bowl MVP while capturing his second Lombardi Trophy in his first year without All-Pro Wide Receiver Tyreek Hill, who was a crucial piece to the puzzle in years past.
If he is able to win his third Lombardi Trophy next week, it is safe to say Mahomes truly will enter the elite conversation as one of the three or four best Quarterbacks to ever play the game, and he still hasn’t turned 30 yet! This game could truly be a legacy altering game for the man many fans think could one day surpass Tom Brady’s records.
The right hand man to Mahomes hasn’t changed as Travis Kelce is still a member of the Chiefs Receiving core, but the attention he has garnered has been off the field as the 34-year-old Tight End began dating singer Taylor Swift.
The relationship has angered fans and while that has stolen headlines, it has distracted fans from the fact that Kelce had one of his worst seasons since his rookie campaign. He had under 1000 yards for the first time since 2014 while averaging a career low 10.4 yards per reception, recording only 5 touchdowns (his lowest since 2019) and many fans noticed him dropping more passes than usual.
While Kelce struggled until recently and was busy going to Taylor Swift’s concerts on off days, rookie sensation Rashee Rice has stepped up and finally gave the Chiefs a true wide receiver number one since the departure of Hill in the 2022 offseason.
Rice only started 8 games for the Chiefs but he made the most of his time in the lineup, posting 938 receiving yards while finishing second in yards after catch only behind Dallas Cowboys Superstar Ceedee Lamb. He also led all Chiefs players with 7 receiving touchdowns.
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Kansas City Chiefs Quarterback Patrick Mahomes has a chance to win back to back
Super Bowls for the first time since Tom Brady did with New England in 2004-2005 @chiefs | Instagram
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Defensive Tackle Chris Jones joined the team a week late this year as he sat out due to a contract dispute before agreeing to a one year deal with incentives that he ended up meeting on the tail end of a dominant year that saw the 29-year-old post 10.5 sacks and garner First Team All-Pro Honors. He will most certainly get a massive payday this offseason for his efforts.
Joining Jones on the All-Pro team on the defensive side of the ball was Slot Cornerback Trent McDuffie. The 23-year-old was as good as it gets as he was often tasked with shutting down an opponent's slot receiver and he would put his matchup on an island all game.
The rest of the defense consisted of a mixture of rising stars and Pro Bowl level talent. L’jarius Snead, George Karlaftis III, Bryan Cook, Willie Gay Jr., Nick Bolton, and Justin Reid help the Chiefs Defense become one of the best units in Football. Want proof? They just held Lamar Jackson and the Ravens to 10 points on the road during the AFC Championship game. Lights out defense.
The Chiefs' opponents happen to be a team that were dismantled by the Ravens during the regular season and still have a lot to prove despite being one of the most complete teams we have seen in recent years. That team is none other than the San Francisco 49ers.
The 49ers Offense is the best unit in football. No arguments will be valid about it. The unit was led by All-Pro Running Back Christian McCaffrey who has finally found the formula to staying healthy and he is putting up ridiculous numbers since a mid-season trade last fall sent him over to the Bay Area.
As a runner, McCaffrey posted his best season to date. He led the league with a career high 1459 rushing yards and a ridiculous 21 total touchdowns (tied with Miami Dolphins Running Back Raheem Mostert). He was the piece that made the 49ers offense really “go” this past season.
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The NFL's Promotional Photo for the Super Bowl on February 11th in Las Vegas
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Distributing the ball to the best offensive weapons in the NFL has made life extremely easy for 2022 Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy. The former Iowa Quarterback has made it to the Super Bowl in his first full year as the 49ers starter but he has been exposed as nothing more than a game manager at times where he struggled against superior defenses or when Samuel or McCaffrey aren’t on the field. But he still served as an upgrade at Quarterback over both Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo as he makes the right throws – for the most part – and he won’t lose you any games, but he isn’t the guy that moves the needle.
On paper, the defense that San Francisco has constructed should be on par with the Avengers. The defensive line consists of 2022 Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa, 2020 Defensive Rookie of the Year and 2023 Trade Deadline acquisition Chase Young, Two-Time Pro Bowler Javon Hargrave, Arik Armstead, Javon Kinlaw, and Randy Gregory. Behind them at the linebacker position is All-Pro Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw, forming a dangerous front seven.
Their secondary consists of Second Team All-Pro Cornerback and former Chief Charvarious Ward who has had the best season of his career. He has cut down on holding penalties and he has become one of the top 10 Cornerbacks in the NFL. Along with Ward, Isaiah Oliver has been solid while Deommodore Lenoir continued his production from 2022-23 into this past season.
The safety’s over the top tend to be the only defensive weakness for this team as they lost their All-Pro from last year Talanoa Hufanga tore his ACL 10 weeks into the season.
They have relied on 12 year veteran Tashaun Gipson to be the man to make a play from the safety position since Hufanga went down, but he has been hovering around league average play as he is unable to recapture his 2014 form when he was a Pro Bowler and All-Pro Snub for the Cleveland Browns. Rookie Ji'Ayir Brown has gotten some run out there and has flashed the potential to be good for years to come, but he is still very raw as a prospect.
When it comes down to it, there's a lot of narratives and storylines in this game. Can Mahomes solidify his case as one of the best to ever play his position? Can the 49ers win their first Lombardi of the 21st century and tie the Steelers and Patriots for the most ever won? Will this be the last ride for a 49ers team that is about to deal with some tough decisions this offseason due to cap concerns?
All these questions will be answered on Sunday, February 12th in Las Vegas, Nevada. This South Shore Writer predicts a Kansas City Chiefs victory by 7 points. As much as I dislike Taylor Swift, I truly believe Patrick Mahomes is too good to lose to the 49ers who have been horrific under head coach Kyle Shannahan while losing at any point of the game.