The American football NFL champion will be decided the night before Monday in Las Vegas. Last year’s winner, the Kansas City Chiefs will defend their title against the San Francisco 49ers.
The Chiefs and 49ers also faced each other in the February 2020 Super Bowl. Patrick Mahomes was already the quarterback of the Chiefs at that time. The San Francisco attack was led by Jimmy Garoppolo. Mahomes managed to win the first Super Bowl of his career when the Chiefs overcame a ten-point deficit and beat the Niners 31-20.
They are still the head coaches Andy Reid and Kyle Shanahan. The experienced Reid led the Chiefs to their fourth Super Bowl in the last five years. It will be a dynasty if the Chiefs raise the Lombardi Trophy for the third time.
A year ago, the Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles 38–35 in the Super Bowl. As a result of a penalty on the Eagles, the Chiefs got into kicking distance at the end, running out the clock and deciding the game by Harrison Butker with a three-point performance.
Bad season for the Chiefs – or not at all
This season of the Chiefs has been considered weaker than usual. The last time the team fell short of 12 wins in the regular season was in 2017, when Mahomes was not yet the Chiefs’ starting quarterback as a rookie. KC started the 2023 season with a loss to Detroit, and the normally fiery offense sputtered throughout the regular season.
The team went to the playoffs ranked third. Before the playoffs, the Chiefs were not considered the biggest favorites, as there was no information about the explosive offense: Mahomes’ number of touchdown throws (27) was the lowest in his career, and the star also threw more interceptions (14) than before in his career.
Also an inside winger Travis Kelce played a worse regular season than a year ago. The Chiefs led the league in sacks, and the offense had the second most penalties in the league. KC was seventh in turnovers.
– They have played phenomenal playoffs. The way they played the middle and end of the regular season gave no indication that they would be in the Super Bowl. They have played their three best games in the previous three weeks, the head coach of the Finnish national team Mikko Koikkalainen says.
Attack geniuses
“Defenses win championships”. This time, two coaches considered to be offensive geniuses face off, when Reid’s Chiefs, who is already considered a legend, will receive a machine tuned to its peak by Shanahan.
Shanahan was the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons in the infamous February 2017 Super Bowl when the Falcons blew a 28-3 lead against the New England Patriots in the final quarter. Shanahan is still chasing his first Super Bowl. He has come close, but in the decisive moments Shanahan’s teams have been marked by haste.
Will there be fireworks in the Super Bowl with two offensive geniuses facing off as head coaches?
– I don’t think the defenses would be able to stop it. I believe that this will be an even game in the sense that both attack and defense will have success, Koikkalainen estimates.
The stars of the defense are the cornerback from the Chiefs Trent McDuffie and lineman Chris Jones. The defenders mentioned from the 49ers are from the line Nick Bosa and supporter Fred Warner.
“Mr. Vanity Fair”
There are few who do not consider KC’s quarterback to be the best player in the league. Even on their bad days, Mahomes’ Chiefs are better than most of their competition.
At the heart of San Francisco’s game is building offense Brock Purdy, whose rise to the top defies the odds. The Niners signed Purdy in 2022 as the last player, so Purdy earned himself the nickname “Mr. Irrelevant”, translated into Finnish as “Mr. Turhake”.
Booked third in the 2021 draft Trey Lance’s was supposed to be the future of the team, but his fumbles and injuries gave Purdy a chance. However, the young player was injured in last year’s playoffs and the Niners had something to worry about in the loss to the Eagles. Now Purdy is healthy and it’s up to him to turn San Francisco’s championship dreams into reality.
The 49ers have a more comprehensive arsenal at other positions of the offense. Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey form a good back four for Purdy to throw or pass the ball to.
Even though Purdy has shown his level, KC has the edge at quarterbacks.
– Purdy is in his first Super Bowl, and in previous games the opponent has caught a lot of balls that should have been intercepted. Mahomes should never be underestimated. He has shown that he is the best again in the playoffs, Koikkalainen compares.
The Taylor Swift phenomenon
You can’t watch the Super Bowl without hearing a pop star Taylor Swift’s name. Swift and the Chiefs’ Kelce have been comfortable together since this season.
The famous singer has often been a guest in the Chiefs shed. This year’s Super Bowl halftime shows Usher nor Swift, but betting companies have a huge number of different Swift-related items.
Fans can bet on whether Kelce and Swift will announce they’re expecting a baby or how many times commentators will mention the singer.
Swift is performing in Japan this week, but the artist is expected to attend the game. The Kelce romance is a big deal for the NFL, as the series has reached new fans.