The Kansas City Chiefs finished Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 13 with a historic game-winning drive to defeat the San Francisco 49ers. Fans were on the edge of their seats watching the beloved American tradition.
Both teams entered the matchup not losing since Christmas Day, collecting impressive wins along their way to the big game. Both teams survived close calls in the Divisional and Conference Championship rounds, with every contest finishing as a one-possession game. The stage was set for an even and competitive Super Bowl and the game delivered.
During the first possession of the game, the 49ers offense picked up some momentum until star running back Christian McCaffrey fumbled the ball over to the Chiefs. The 49ers got the scoring started with a field goal and then wide receiver Jauan Jennings threw a touchdown pass to McCaffrey to put San Francisco up 10-0. Though they were down, the Chiefs showed determination in their final drive of the half, where their first points of the matchup set the game at 10-3 going into halftime.
The scoring was scarce during the third quarter as well, but Kansas City’s offense took advantage of their defense’s stellar performance to take a 13-10 lead after a field goal and wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling’s touchdown, the first of the game for the Chiefs. The 49ers immediately answered with quarterback Brock Purdy finding Jennings in the end zone for a touchdown, but San Francisco’s extra point was blocked. Instead of now being up by 4, the 49ers only had a 16-13 lead over the Chiefs. Kansas City then drove down the field and tied the score at 16 all. The 49ers wasted no time, kicking their own field goal, but Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes did what he does best, leading a game-tying drive to force overtime.
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Thus, the NFL’s new playoff overtime rules would come into play for the first time, and on the league’s biggest stage. In the past, the game would end if the team who received the ball first scored a touchdown, but the NFL implemented a new rule where both teams are guaranteed a possession whether or not the first possession ends in a touchdown. San Francisco won the toss and elected to receive, which garnered controversy, as after the 49ers kicked a field goal in their drive, the Chiefs had fewer questions to ask themselves regarding their play calling. On their final possession, Kansas City thrived under pressure, converting on two of three 3rd downs, one on 4th down, and Mecole Hardman caught the walk-off touchdown to secure the victory for the Chiefs.
There were several major headlines that emerged after the thrilling Super Bowl’s ending. Mahomes was named the Super Bowl LVIII MVP, putting him in the company of Tom Brady and Joe Montana as the only three quarterbacks who have won three Super Bowls and been three—time Super Bowl MVPs. San Francisco was supposedly unaware of the overtime rules and did not prepare for the event that they would be playing in OT. This drastically changed the eventual outcome of the game, and will for sure be the new “the Seahawks should have run the ball” or “28-3” that will become a laughing stock for most NFL fans, but haunt the 49er faithful.
Photo Credit: “Patrick Mahomes” courtesy of All-Pro Reels is licensed under (CC BY-SA 2.0 DEED)
