Welcome to the final game of your 2023 NFL season; the road to Super Bowl LVIII leads us to Las Vegas, Nevada. What a very interesting postseason we’ve had with plenty of aggressive gambling and passive mistakes by some teams. But the two teams who played pushed all the chips and used infinite wisdom are here to see who’s going to walk away as Super Bowl Champion.
A tale of two teams who are very familiar with each other; as they met in Super Bowl LIV in Miami, Florida. Let’s give a warm welcome to your NFC Champions San Francisco 49ers and AFC Champions Kansas City Chiefs. If you had these two teams in a rematch to start the season, congratulations on being a smart gambler. Let’s cut the small talk and get down to business shall we.
San Francisco 49ers: NFC Champions
The perfect roster in football made their return to redeem a Super Bowl loss to Kansas City, where they had a 20-10 lead in the final 7 minutes before Magic Mahomes and the Chiefs rallied to seal the comeback. Most of this roster is still active with the addition of MVP candidate Christian McCaffery, Randy Gregory, Javon Hargrave, and an upgrade at quarterback Brock Purdy. The biggest questions surrounding San Francisco is can they expose Kansas City’s offense and defense? Another lingering aspect is can Brock Purdy do what former Niners quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo couldn’t accomplish. Can he avoid making mistakes and keep the Niners in control without faltering? Head coach Kyle Shanahan is one of the best creative offensive play callers but tends to maintain consistency in big moments.
With a top defense and high potent offenses, the Niners have everything in place to play a full deck in their favor. A stacked offensive skilled players and o-line will be tested early against Kansas City’s defensive front. If Brock Purdy can put together a legacy game against the new dynasty in Kansas City, no more asking if the bright lights are too shiny and nerve racking on the biggest stage in sports.
Kansas City Chiefs: AFC Champions
The new dynasty arrives to become back to back champions since the 2003-04 New England Patriots. Kansas City had their most challenging playoff run in playing (2) road playoff games. Winning both in a lucky hand of poker. Playing in a divisional rival’s stadium, the noise won’t phase them by the slightest.
A season of many highs, lows and Taylor Swift supporting Travis Kelce, the lingering question is: Will this be Andy Reid’s last dance and go out on top as a three time Super Bowl winning coach? You may be asking why I would oppose this question? I believe the wear and tear along with family adversity a few years ago, Andy Reid had his most difficult season trying to figure out his play calling without former offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy. It’s been a season of challenges with receiver’s dropping passes, emotions boiling over and hearing all the noise of winning road playoff games.
They maintained the same formula and found themselves back in the Super Bowl against San Francisco. It’s been the Mahomes/Kelce show this season with the maddest running back in Isiah Pacheco. Offensive line has been very good but will face the challenge dealing with San Francisco’s defensive front who can get home to Mahomes. Can the Chiefs offensive line hold up and allow the game to extend with magical tricks from Mahomes?
Defensively, the front seven have been dominating all season. Carrying the offense and being a physical force. Having a blitz happy coordinator helps the secondary by a mile. Chris Jones leads this run defense against one of the NFC’s best rushing attacks. The Chiefs have shut down their share of physical running backs, but speed backs will be a challenge in this game. If this proves to be Kansas City’s best defense in the Patrick Mahomes era, rightfully so and the film speaks for itself. Many boxes must be checked, and this is the last one on the list.
Now that we’ve previewed both teams, I must make my Super Bowl pick. Cue the dark ambient lo-fi music please. The stage is set for this game to be low scoring in the first half. 14-10 lead by San Francisco going into halftime. Both defenses will keep offenses in check as Kansas City builds momentum to settle for a field goal. This will be a game of who’s defenses will win the matchup upfront and stop the run game. Niners have the better front, second level and mid-tier secondary. Giving the Chiefs different looks to take away Travis Kelce and force their full deck. Brock Purdy will have to be flawless and allow this offense to run faster to stay ahead of Kansas City. One miscue and we’re having a different discussion upon the conclusion of Super Bowl LVIII.
Patrick Mahomes said it best after defeating the Ravens: “Job’s not finished.” A line we’ve heard from the late great Kobe Bryant and he’s right about the season not being finished. But this will be his difficult challenge of checking the box: finding the weakest areas of this Niners defense without overthinking. Experienced quarterbacks and head coaches will have their work cut out.
Kyle Shanahan can’t afford to have another meltdown with his play calling and allow a repeat of Super Bowl LIV where the offense folded and didn’t score in the final 7 minutes. Brock Purdy is an upgrade with this same roster. Niners can’t play from a deficit and abandon the run game. I expect a lot of Christian McCaffery early on and if the clock is in their favor. Look for Deebo Samuel to get his touches and allow this offense to hit the jackpot and not let up. Defensive line will feast on the Chiefs sacrificial lambs who’ve been thrown into the firepits. Take away Travis Kelce and dare Mahomes to beat you.
In the end, San Francisco wins this high stakes Super Bowl 31-17 with running back Christian McCaffery your Super Bowl MVP. A sea of Niner red confetti will rain down as they celebrate the sixth title in franchise history. If you place bets on this game, please do so in a responsible way. Hopefully, your parlays will go as planned and win some money. Enjoy the Super Bowl and stay safe.
Stai tuned.
