Trevor Allen, Staff Writer
Prediction: San Francisco 27, Kansas City 24
With the Super Bowl approaching this Sunday, everybody has their predictions, but here’s mine. The San Francisco 49ers are going up against the Kansas City Chiefs in a rematch of Super Bowl LIV in 2020. The Chiefs came out on top in that one, but this time around I’m gonna have to go with the 49ers winning 27-24.
San Francisco has been the most dominant team all season, being led by Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy. On both sides of the ball, the 49ers are scary. Their offense, which has too many weapons to name, heavily overwhelms opposing defenses. With Nick Bosa and Fred Warner leading their defense, they have been able to shut down teams all season.
On the other side of the field, we have the Kansas City Chiefs. They have Patrick Mahomes, who is the best quarterback in the league by far. Just seven years into the league, he is already in the GOAT conversation with Tom Brady.
During the regular season, the Chiefs didn’t play up to their normal standards. With losses to the Las Vegas Raiders and the Green Bay Packers late in the season, expectations going into the playoffs weren’t very high for them. But it doesn’t matter when you have Mahomes at the helm of your team.
Mahomes has surgically led the Chiefs offense through the Dolphins, Bills and Ravens in the playoffs. And it’s not just the offense. The Chiefs have the best defense since Mahomes has been the starter. All around, these teams are going to have a very close head-to-head matchup come Sunday. But at the end of the day, I have the 49ers bringing the Lombardi Trophy back to San Francisco.
KK DeMello, Staff Writer
Prediction: San Francisco 28, Kansas City 24
The big game is this Sunday and expectations are high for both teams.
A win for Kansas City cements Patrick Mahomes in the greatest of all time (GOAT) conversation and puts this team in a modern-day dynasty. A win for the Chiefs also would make Travis Kelce a top three tight end of all time.
Kelce has already passed former Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez’s record for receiving yards for a tight end and Jerry Rice’s postseason receptions record (153). Kelce also has recoreded an insane 77 career touchdowns. This is not only a big game for Kelce, but a big game for the legacy of the dynamic duo of Kelce and Mahomes.
But San Francisco is going to give the Chiefs a run for their money. The offense is stacked with legendary names such as tight end and five-time pro bowler George Kittle, six-foot, 215-pound wide receiver Deebo Samuel, and veteran 11-time pro bowler Trent Williams at left tackle.
This game is going to be a battle of the offenses but the defensive side is stacked to the brim with talent on both sides as well with Kanasa City’s Chris Jones, Willie Gay, L’Jarius Sneed, and Nick Bolton.
Not only do both of these teams have all-star teams but the franchise history between these two teams is very interesting. In Super Bowl LIV, the Chiefs beat the Niners 31- 20. Not only do the Niners have a second chance at victory, they have a chance at revenge.
Because of this, I predict that the final score will be 28- 24 with San Fransisco Taking home the Lombardi Trophy. This would be a Cinderella story for starting quarterback Brock Purdy, the last pick in the 2021 draft. This would be historic as only one other “Mr Irrelevant” has won a Super Bowl before.
Carson Pfotenhauer, Assistant Sports Editor
Prediction: San Francisco 34, Kansas City 28
The stage is officially set for Super Bowl LVIII and it is set to be a great rematch of Super Bowl LIV. Except, the tables have turned.
This time, the San Francisco 49es have the advantage over the Kansas City Chiefs. Besides three straight bad, ugly losses and a poor showing versus the regular season AFC’s best Baltimore Ravens, the 49es have looked like the clear Super Bowl favorite. With one of the most well oiled, complex, and dominant offenses in recent memory led by breakout “game manager” Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey, there is no shortage of talent.
And don’t forget about tight end George Kittle, who just recorded his first 1,000 receiving yard season since 2019. Plus there’s receivers Deebo Samuel, who is the X factor that makes the offensive system work, and Brandon Aiyuk, who led this team in receiving and is due for a large payday. Although the defense has had a large step back under new defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, the 49ers still have their core stars. Led by all pros Fred Warner and Nick Bosa, this defense is built to play bully ball with Dre Greenlaw leading this mentality.
On the other sideline, the reigning champions had an up and down 2023 regular season. They’ve had questions about their receivers, offensive line and run game all season long, but it looks like it’s starting to come together for them. They have one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time in Patrick Mahomes, who had a slight down year but still displayed his typical magic.
Isaiah Pacheco who looks like a miniature Marshawn Lynch reincarnated, has had a breakout season rushing for almost 1,000 yards in a mostly pass heavy offense. Although tight end Travis Kelce seems to be regressing this season after not reaching 1,000 yards for the first year since 2015, all eyes are on him because of his off field antics and world famous girlfriend. There’s no question that the Mahomes-Kelce connection is one we will remember forever, but they have to make sure to turn it on Sunday as the connection seems to be fading.
Of all the Chiefs’ Super Bowl runs, this year on the defensive side of the ball looks like the strongest yet. They have solid linebackers in Willie Gay and Nick Bolton, good corners with Trent McDuffie and L’Jarius Sneed, and all-world defensive tackle Chris Jones, who is dominant in both run stopping and pass rushing, making him a problem.
This game will be decided by three things. Purdy can’t do too much and the 49ers need to get the ball in McCaffrey’s hands at all costs. Pound the ball on the ground and that sets up the play action and deep shots. And when they take the 49ers deep shots, they need the right moment. The 49ers aren’t known for an air raid style of offense, but coach Kyle Shanahan likes to take his shots occasionally. This has been the case more often since Purdy took over for former 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who is well documented struggling to push the ball down field.
The second thing is if the Chiefs offensive game plan. If they want to be smart, they will run the ball outside the lines with Pacheco. In seasons past, the 49ers run defense has been elite. This year it’s been a different story. In the regular season, they gave up the third most yards on the ground with an 89.7 average per game. In the Divisional and Championship, the 49ers gave up a combined 318 yards on the ground, which is the most ever allowed by a team to advance to the Super Bowl.
Teams don’t want to run inside against the 49ers when they have Arik Armstead and Javon Hargrave, but on the outside, they are weaker. Bosa is primarily known for his pass rushing, but he is also very good against the run. On the other side, new addition Chase Young is very poor against the run and has shown effort issues, so if the Chiefs were smart they would attack whatever side he’s on.
The final deciding factor is turnovers. Whichever team turns the ball over more will lose the game. Every possession counts especially now, and both teams need to hold onto the ball. Purdy had four interceptions on Christmas against the Ravens, and that can’t happen again. For the most part, Purdy has passed every major test this year (beating Dallas and Philadelphia), but he struggled versus other formidable defenses, such as Cleveland and Baltimore. Mahomes rarely turns the ball over, so if the 49ers are going to win this game they need to win the turnover battle.
I predict the final score will be 34-28 with McCaffrey scoring twice and Purdy throwing one touchdown and having a solid game. I think Mahomes will play well but ultimately I don’t think he can keep up with the star power of this 49ers team.
Landon Olberg, Staff Writer
Prediction: San Francisco 31, Kansas City 27
This year’s Super Bowl has some high expectations coming into America’s favorite game of the year. The two teams in the super bowl are the NFC champions San Francisco 49ers and the AFC champions Kansas City Chiefs.These are two juggernaut teams going at it. My predictions for this game are very simple. I think the 49ers will show up and beat the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Even though Kansas City is on a roll now, the 49ers are a superior team and they have been playing really good in the second half and getting the job done.
Both teams have some superstar athletes on offense and defense. The 49ers offensive weapons are Christan McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle, and quarterback Brock Purdy. Purdy was the last pick of the 2022 NFL draft but is making a name for himself.
After being the third string quarterback toward the end of last season, he got the starting job through injuries of the first and second string quarterbacks. Purdy got his chance to prove himself and led the team to the NFC championship his first season. He was named the starting quarterback this year.
The question for the Chiefs is how can they stop this offense when they have to face all these superstars. The 49ers went 12-5 in the regular season and earned the top seed in the NFC. This team is hungry for a Super Bowl win after losing in their previous two appearances in 2020 and 2013.
The Chiefs on the other hand have been dominant for the past six years but really struggled this year, going 3-5 their last eight regular season games. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes has led this team to six straight AFC championship games. Including this season, Mahomes will go to his fourth Super Bowl appearance in five seasons. Mahomes, with his two Super Bowl wins, two Super Bowl MVPs and two regular season MVPs, is arguably one of the best quarterbacks. He is already trying to win his third ring by the age of 28.
But I still believe that the 49ers will win the Super Bowl to claim their sixth title in franchise history.
The 49ers are going to have to play their A game against the reigning Super Bowl champions. I still think that the 49ers will get it done and win. The 49ers will win 31-27 in an insane fashion coming down to the last few minutes of the game.
