The Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers will to face off in Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, Nevada Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024 at 6:30 p.m. EST. This will be the second time the two teams have met in the Super Bowl. The last time they met was in 2020, where the Chiefs beat the 49ers by a score of 31-20. The quarterbacks in that Super Bowl were Patrick Mahomes for the Kansas City Chiefs and Jimmy Garoppolo for the 49ers. This time, the 49ers will have Brock Purdy at the helm, while the Chiefs will have Mahomes again.
Statistical analysis:
In the 2023 regular season, the 49ers had one of the most dominant offenses in the league, averaging 398.4 yards per game and 28.9 points per game, which ranks second behind the Miami Dolphins among all offenses. Meanwhile, the Chiefs had the 9th ranked offense in the league, averaging 351.3 yards per game and 21.8 points per game.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Chiefs had one of the most dominant defenses in the league, allowing an average of 289.8 yards per game and 17.3 points per game. The 49ers also had a pretty stout defense in the 2023 regular season, allowing 303.9 yards per game and 17.5 points per game.
The 49ers had a positive turnover differential in the 2023 regular season of +11, while the Chiefs had a negative turnover differential -11. However, in the postseason, the Chiefs have allowed the lowest passer rating of any other team in the playoffs, 75.2, and generated six total sacks. The 49ers have allowed a passer rating of 81.4 against playoff opponents and generated two sacks in the postseason thus far.
Patrick Mahomes, despite depending alot on Travis Kelce, who is ranked 6th in the NFL this year in passing yards (4,183), 8th in passing touchdowns (27), and had the 8th best QBR in the league (63.0). However, Mahomes also ranked 4th in interceptions this year with 14, tied with Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Meanwhile, Brock Purdy is ranked 5th in the NFL this year (4,280), 3rd in passing touchdowns (31), and had the best QBR in the league in the regular season (72.7). However, Purdy is ranked 10th in the league in interceptions with 11, tied with Jordan Love of the Green Bay Packers and Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams.
The San Francisco 49ers have had the 4th best rushing attack of any team in the postseason, averaging 133 yards on the ground, with the Chiefs not too far behind, holding the 5th best rushing attack in the postseason, averaging 127.3 yards per game.
Key players:
The 49ers have a plentiful amount of star power on their team. Whether it’s Christian McCaffrey on offense or Chase Young and Nick Bosa on defense, there is a playmaker at about every position on the field.
Christian McCaffrey: CMC rushed for a career-best 1,459 yards on the ground this season, scoring 14 rush touchdowns and seven through the air. Cumulatively, McCaffrey had 2,023 yards of total offense, making him one of the most dynamic players in the NFL this season and a front runner for the MVP award.
Brandon Aiyuk: Aiyuk totaled a career-best 1,342 receiving yards this past season, ranking him seventh in the NFL. Aiyuk also put up seven receiving touchdowns and averaged 17.9 yards per catch.
George Kittle: Kittle put together his first 1,000-yard receiving year since 2019, accruing 1,020 receiving yards and six touchdowns. Kittle also had his highest average of yards per catch with 15.7 this season.
Chase Young: Former Defensive Rookie of the Year Chase Young was traded to the 49ers from the Washington Commanders in week six of the 2023 NFL regular season for a 2024 third-round pick. Since the trade has occurred, Young has put up 2.5 sacks for the 49ers and ten total tackles while also serving as another big defensive lineman for the 49ers to plug up an opponent’s run game.
Nick Bosa: Bosa put up 10.5 sacks in the 2023 season and forced two fumbles, recovering one of them. Bosa also had 53 tackles on the year and tallied two sacks in the NFC Conference Championship game against the Lions. The Chiefs found offensive help through their rookie wide receiver Rashee Rice and star tight end Travis Kelce this past season; however, the story as of recently has been more centered around the Chiefs defense, with players like LB Nick Bolton and CB L’Jarius Sneed making plays for the Chiefs in critical moments throughout the postseason.
Rashee Rice: Rice finished his rookie year with 938 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns, serving as Patrick Mahome’s number two receiving target outside of Travis Kelce this past season. So far in the postseason, Rice has 223 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Travis Kelce: Kelce had another dominant year, leading the Chiefs in receiving yards with 984 and recording five receiving touchdowns on the season. Serving as Patrick Mahomes No. 1 target, Kelce has 262 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns.
