This 2023-2024 NFL season has been full of incredible storylines that have captivated not only American football fans but also international supporters and Taylor Swift fans. After a long journey, the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers will meet in Las Vegas on Sunday to determine who will hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
From a third-string freshman at Iowa State to a franchise quarterback in the NFL, Brock Purdy has quickly become one of the biggest names in football. Purdy was relatively unknown and unrecruited out of high school but managed to find his way onto the Iowa State team. After a solid four-year college career, he was selected as the last pick in the NFL draft and given a very special nickname. “Mr. Irrelevant” is the nickname given to the last player drafted in the NFL, the nickname comes with the understanding that this player will most likely never make a name for themselves in the NFL. Brock Purdy has proven this notion wrong and is already one of the greatest players to hold the title “Mr. Irrelevant”.
Alongside Purdy, the 49ers offense has some real firepower. At running back is Christian McCaffrey who recently won 2024 NFL Offensive Player of the Year at the NFL Honors ceremony. His speed and agility make him incredibly difficult to tackle and has been virtually unstoppable for San Francisco all year. Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk are a dynamic duo at wide receiver that will look to take over the passing game alongside the team’s powerful tight end George Kittle.
One of the craziest facts about this Super Bowl involves the fathers of head coach Kyle Shanahan and Christian McCaffrey. In 1995, 49ers offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan won the Super Bowl with wide receiver Ed McCaffrey. Now, in a true full-circle moment, Mike and Ed get to watch their sons have a chance to make history in their own respects.
For the 49ers, their path to Super Bowl 58 has been, for the most part, smooth. At the start of the season, many experts and football fans predicted the star-studded squad to make a deep playoff run, and the team has proven them right.
With a 12-5 regular season record, the 49ers entered the playoffs relatively unchallenged, with the #1 seed in the National Football Conference (NFC). The playoffs, however, have been a different story for the West Coast powerhouse. Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love gave the 49ers a run for their money and showed he will be a star for years to come. In the end, the 49ers were able to hold on and narrowly defeat Green Bay 27-24 to advance to the team’s third straight NFC Championship game. Once again the 49ers had their backs against the wall and were down 24-7 to the Detroit Lions at halftime. Many were ready to call the game over but the 49ers were able to score 27 unanswered points in the second half and win 34-31.
Super Bowl 58 will be the eighth time the San Francisco 49ers have the chance to compete on the biggest stage. The 49ers won their first five appearances but have lost their last two. This game includes some fresh faces but the rivalry itself isn’t new, the last loss in the Super Bowl for the 49ers took place against the Chiefs back in 2020. If the 49ers win, they will be the first NFC team with six Super Bowl wins and the third team overall along with the Patriots and Steelers. Putting it simply, a win on Sunday night could cement the 49ers’ legacy as one of the best franchises in NFL history.
The Kansas City Chiefs have been one of the most successful and consistent teams in NFL history these past couple of seasons and that is entirely due to its strong core of players and coaches. Sporting an unmistakable mustache, Head Coach Andy Reid is in his 11th season with the Chiefs and has won two Super Bowls and boasts an impressive 128 wins to 51 losses. Reid currently has the fourth most wins by a coach in NFL history and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.
The most important player in this game is undeniably Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes is playing in his seventh season and already holds 13 NFL records. He has won two Super Bowls, in which he won Super Bowl MVP in both, and two NFL MVP awards. He won Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year in 2020 and the ESPYs Best Male Athlete award in 2023. His value is off the charts and the Chiefs know that too. His newest contract from Kansas City is valid until 2031 and is one of the largest in professional sports, worth approximately 450 million dollars. If the Chiefs win, Mahomes will be the first quarterback in NFL history to win three championships and two MVPS in his first seven seasons. Mahomes has the ability to change the course of the game and everyone’s eyes are going to be on him to see whether he does or not.
The second biggest name that will be on the field on Sunday will be Travis Kelce. The veteran tight end has performed at a level most players only dream of achieving and has done it for most of his career. His ability to make lighting-fast decisions and incredible catches separates him from the bunch. With a couple of years left in his career, he has already cemented himself as one of the greatest tight ends in history.
Kelce’s play on the field wasn’t the main reason he has been in the news this season, rather his relationship with Time’s Person of the Year Taylor Swift has taken the football and music scene by storm. Apex Marketing Group estimates that Taylor Swift has generated over 331.5 million dollars in revenue for the Chiefs and the NFL since the beginning of her relationship with Kelce. Swift is in the middle of her record-breaking worldwide tour(Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour) that has had fans in a frenzy and crashed Ticketmaster over the purchase of seats. The relationship has shifted the conversation around the Chiefs to purely talk about Swift and her fame. One example that is indicative of this notion is that one of the major headlines on news stations discussing the game was whether or not Taylor Swift would have time to get to Super Bowl 58 after her tour’s performance in Japan a day before. If you’d like to read more about Taylor Swift and her Eras Tour, I recommend checking out articles by Dial writers Rebecca Ingles and Sarah Barsanti.
Heading into the game, the 49ers are a slight favorite over the Chiefs but don’t be fooled if they go up big early. The last two Super Bowls Mike Shanahan has coached in, his team began by winning the game by a big margin and then went on to lose.
As the Chiefs entered the Super Bowl Opening Night festivities, they were met with a barrage of boos. Many football fans think it’s time for new football royalty to rise up and dethrone Kansas City. Patrick Mahomes had only one thing to say during his sit-down press conference .
“I think I just like winning. If you win a lot and that causes you to be a villain, then I’m okay with it,” he stated. “But at the end of the day, I’m going to enjoy playing the game and try to win as much as possible.”
Super Bowl 58 has all the makings of an all-time Super Bowl matchup and the only thing left is the four quarters of football.
