The Kansas City Chiefs reigned supreme over the San Francisco 49ers by a score of 25-22 (OT) in Super Bowl 58. The Kansas City Chiefs defence stepped up big-time, with the DLine forcing Brock Purdy out of the pocket and the secondary tallying multiple passes defensed in coverage. Chiefs CB Trent McDuffie tallied 3 PDs in the Super Bowl, while the defensive line wreaked havoc quickly and often. According to NextGenStats, Chiefs stand-out pass rusher Chris Jones tallied 6 QB pressures, with 3 of them occurring under 2.5 seconds. Kansas City’s DC Steve Spagnuolo called the game of his life on Sunday night.
Faltering First Half
In the first quarter, there was a severe lack of scoring. 49ers’ superstar RB Christian McCaffrey fumbled at the Chiefs 29-yard-line, ruining any momentum San Francisco could have started the game with. After two drives capped off with a punt for each team, San Francisco was looking to start the scoring.
The 49ers, led by QB Brock Purdy, were driving down the field with ease. On 3rd and 9 with 1:51 left in the first quarter, Purdy made a perfect pass to ex-Chief Chris Conley on an out route for an 18-yard gain. The drive would end with a 55-yard-field goal drilled by rookie kicker Jake Moody, giving San Fran the 3-0 lead.
The Kansas City Chiefs hadn’t had anything going right until their first drive of the 2nd quarter. On 1st and 10 at the KC 39, Patrick Mahomes dialled up a deep ball to Mecole Hardman for a 52-yard gain. It appeared that 49ers DB Tashaun Gipson had an opportunity to intercept the pass by playing underneath, but he was unable to track the football, resulting in the big play by KC. However, RB Isiah Pacheco would fumble on San Fran’s 9-yard line, ending the Chiefs’ promising drive.
2 drives later, San Francisco drove down the field all the way to the KC 21 with the help of Brock Purdy, Deebo Samuel, and an unnecessary roughness penalty on Chiefs CB L’Jarius Sneed. On 2nd and 10, Brock Purdy made a quick pass to WR Jauan Jennings behind the line of scrimmage. Jennings then threw it across the field to Christian McCaffrey, and with blockers in front, scored the first touchdown of the game. Jake Moody nailed the extra point, giving the Niners a 10-0 advantage.
Kansas City got the ball back with only 4:23 left in the first half. On this critical drive, Patrick Mahomes did what Patrick Mahomes does best and threw for 55 yards to carry the KC offence to San Fran’s 10-yard line. After the 49ers defence held their own in the red zone, the Chiefs settled for a field goal to make the score 10-3 going into the half.
Spectacular Second Half
To start off the second half, Kansas City received the football. However, Patrick Mahomes would end up throwing an interception to Ji’Ayir Brown to put the 49ers in prime position to extend their 10-3 lead. However, HC Kyle Shanahan and San Francisco decided not to run the football to Christian McCaffrey, but rather put the football in Brock Purdy’s hands. However, Purdy would end up going 0/2 with 4 rushing yards on the drive, resulting in a punt and wasted opportunity for San Francisco.
With 9:02 left in the 3rd quarter, Patrick Mahomes continued his theatrics, as he broke out for a 22-yard rush during the drive. Kicker Harrison Butker would end up breaking the record for the longest field goal made in Super Bowl history with a 57-yarder, bringing the score to 10-6 in favour of San Francisco.
After Kansas City appeared to be 3-&-Out, the 49ers special teams unit made a critical error. On a deep punt by Chiefs’ Tommy Townsend, the football went off one of the 49ers’ players feet and PR Ray-Ray McLoud was unable to secure the rock, while Kansas City’s Jaylen Watson recovered the football, giving the KC offence an opportunity to take the lead. Patrick Mahomes found WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling for the 16-yard TD. The Harrison Butker XP gave Kansas City the 13-10 lead.
San Francisco was desperate to respond to blowing their past 10-point lead. Brock Purdy ended up throwing for 60 total yards on the 49ers first drive of the 4th quarter. The drive capped off with a 10-yard TD on a quick slant to Jauan Jennings. Jennings became the first NFL player to throw and catch a touchdown in a Super Bowl since Nick Foles in Super Bowl 52. The 49ers had another special teams blunder, with Jake Moody’s extra point being blocked. The score remained at 16-13.
Both teams traded field goals on the next two drives, giving San Francisco a 19-16 lead. The Chiefs had 1:53 left in the 4th quarter with 2 timeouts to either tie or win the contest. Clutch 3rd down conversions from both RB Jerick McKinnon and TE Travis Kelce led Kansas City down the field to the San Francisco 11-yard line. However, the Chiefs were unable to cash in and score a TD, so they settled for a field goal and decided to go to overtime, all knotted up at 19.
Overtime Thriller
The 49ers won the coin toss and decided to receive. This time, Christian McCaffrey led San Francisco. CMC tallied 52 yards on the drive and put the Niners in prime position to score a TD. However, Brock Purdy was unable to beat the blitz as Chris Jones brushed right by OT Colton McKivitz and forced an incompletion. San Francisco would settle for a field goal, giving them the lead 22-19.
And so the Kansas City Chiefs had an opportunity to end the football game. Mahomes was able to utilize his running and passing abilities. On 4th and 1 at the Kansas City 34-yard line, Mahomes found a hole and ran for an 8-yard gain and a first down. On 3rd and 1 at the San Francisco 32, Mahomes zoomed right past All-Pro Fred Warner for a 19-yard gain. Travis Kelce then caught a 7-yard pass to put the Chiefs at the SF 3. WR Mecole Hardman was able to beat DB Logan Ryan to the outside to score the game-winning touchdown. Kansas City was back-to-back champs.
Special Teams Struggles
In order to win a Super Bowl, football teams have to perform in all 3 phases of the sport. The punt return fiasco and the blocked extra point were crucial mistakes that resulted in the 49ers’ loss. If Moody’s kick is made, the Chiefs need a touchdown rather than a field goal on that final drive of the 4th quarter. With how well the 49ers’ red zone defence was performing in regards to holding the Chiefs to field goals, San Francisco could have sealed the victory.
Patrick Mahomes is the GOAT?
The Patrick Mahomes GOAT debate has already begun after winning his 3rd Super Bowl ring. While Mahomes still has a long way to go in order to pass Tom Brady for the most championship rings of all time, it is quite possible that Mahomes will go down as the most talented quarterback in NFL history.