Miami, Fla. – On Sunday evening, the Kansas City Chiefs return to the Super Bowl for the first time in 50 years. They’ll face the highly talented San Francisco 49ers who are aiming for another piece of hardware. It’s a classic NFL battle – offense versus defense – that on any given play, the final score could hinge on a single moment. However, for the Chiefs, they might have an edge nobody talks about.
As an avid fan first, and a writer second, my team, the Kansas City Chiefs, hope to claim their second Super Bowl title in 50 years. However, the San Francisco 49ers won’t make that dream a reality for the Chiefs Kingdom just because it would make for a great (feel good) story for both the city and Head Coach Andy Reid – seeking his first Super Bowl title.
Kansas City will have to earn it.
For 50 years, I’ve dreamed of this very moment. When the Chiefs defeated the Tennessee Titans two weeks ago, I vowed to enjoy the two weeks leading up to Super Bowl 54. I did just that by spending the week in South Beach soaking it all up because let’s be honest, it could possibly be another 50 years before this happens again for the Chiefs.
Nothing in life is guaranteed, and despite the brilliance of quarterback Patrick Mahomes, let’s look no further than Miami’s own Dan Marino, who made it to just one Super Bowl in his Hall of Fame Career.
There is no question the Chiefs are the feel-good story of this Super Bowl, and with a win on Sunday, they might supplant the Dallas Cowboys as America’s Future Team (AFT). Don’t get me wrong plenty of experts, NFL pundits and sports critics, are siding with the 49ers defense to control Mahomes.
If I put my reporter hat on, I believe the 49ers defense is by far the best unit in the NFL. Thus, I can see multiple avenues – that on any given snap – that defense can change the game with a big sack of Mahomes or a timely turnover that ends the Chiefs’ trajectory as Super Bowl Champions.
Will that happen? More on that in a moment.
This game though is bigger than the Chiefs against the 49ers or Andy Reid versus Kyle Shanahan. It’s about what drives each team to win this game. For Kansas City, it’s simple: Win this game for their Head Coach, and the city that has dreamed of this day since Hank Stram was hoisted atop his players’ shoulders, after defeating the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV.
San Francisco has reinvented its brand thanks to the brilliance and patience of General Manager, John Lynch. He accepted all the growing pains after he inherited the reigns of this franchise a couple of years ago. Even though, thankfully for Chiefs fans, he passed on Mahomes in the 2017 draft, because both he and Shanahan, felt his talents weren’t quite NFL ready.
Clearly, that wasn’t the case, and despite their lack of faith in Mahomes, the 49ers are building and NFC dynasty brick by brick but so are the Chiefs.
This week in Miami, Mahomes said all the right things publicly, but behind the scenes, there is no question he believes his Chiefs will win. In fact, he has 52 other teammates convinced of the same thing. As a team, if they are in unison, Kansas City will raise the Lombardi Trophy in triumph after winning the biggest game of the year.
Yet, there are overriding factors outside of the 50-year gap in Super Bowl appearances for the Chiefs, the case for Reid’s Hall of Fame credentials, the 49ers quest for their sixth title, Kansas City has another unspoken edge.
This game is about the human elements that have built a mountain of hope and Super Bowl dreams for every Kansas City fan. In 60 years of football, we’ve all had some great highs and heart-breaking lows, but we shared them all together (win or lose) – and we never gave up on this day becoming a reality.
In the end, the 2019 version of the Chiefs embraced the rich history and every failure of the 50-year Super Bowl drought that ends on Sunday. They were willing to learn from the mistakes they made in the AFC Championship game last season and let that drive them to Sunday’s Super Bowl game.
To a man in the locker room, they dedicated every day to remembering the sting of that loss, but also remembering those players that came before them that failed in their own Super Bowl quest. As a result, this 2019 squad intends to re-write the story for each generation of die-hard Chiefs fans – who dared to dream one day – Kansas City would be playing on the final Sunday.
For their loyalty, this team will turn that dream into reality and deliver another Super Bowl Championship to the Chiefs Kingdom.
Final Prediction: Chiefs 41 – 49ers 32
