NFL: Four key matchups that will help decide winner of Super Bowl LIV
Sunday’s Super Bowl between offensive powerhouses Kansas City and San Francisco has the potential to be a classic, with the over-under set at 54 points. Let’s take a look at the factors that will be most important in determining the outcome:
The 49ers’ pass rush vs.
Patrick Mahomes: No player will play a bigger role in deciding the Super Bowl than Kansas City’s 24-year-old quarterback. Even though the 49ers outscored the Chiefs this season — 29.9 points per game to 28.2 — Mahomes has caught fire since returning from his two-game absence with a dislocated kneecap.
A Mahomes strength is his ability to figure out the opposition as the game progresses, which was on display in comeback playoff victories over Houston and Tennessee. The key for San Francisco is keeping Mahomes in the pocket. That’s why 49ers pass rushers Nick Bosa, a rookie, and Dee Ford, traded from Kansas City to San Francisco in the off-season, are pivotal. They transformed a defensive line that couldn’t rush the quarterback a season ago.
The Chiefs’ speed vs. the 49ers’ secondary: San Francisco defensive co-ordinator Robert Saleh had it right when he compared the Chiefs to an Olympic track team. Tyreek Hill has 4.29-second speed in the 40-yard dash. Fellow wide receivers Mecole Hardman and
Sammy Watkins ran 4.33 and 4.43. According to the NFL’s NextGen Stats, Kansas City was the fastest team in football this season based on miles per hour.
The key to this game might be the Chiefs’ ability to throw quick crossing patterns and slants against the 49ers’ zone coverages that can be vulnerable to shorter passing plays in the middle of the field. It’ll be up to the Chiefs’ speedy playmakers to turn those plays into major yardage after the catch.
Kyle Shanahan’s running game vs. the Chiefs’ defence:
Like his father, Mike, Shanahan is the best designer of running plays among his peers, and he has created a second generation of runs that are hard for defences to diagnose. Each year, he outdoes himself with motion fakes and pre-snap movement, and he employed pre-snap motion 72 per cent of the time this season. The 49ers averaged 5.4 yards per rush on those plays.
The 49ers overwhelmed Green Bay with their rushing attack, winning with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo only having to pass eight times. Kansas City can’t allow that to happen, in part because it would enable San Francisco to take time off the clock and keep Mahomes off the field.
The Chiefs’ star tight end vs.
the 49ers’ star tight end: Kansas City’s Travis Kelce and San Francisco’s George Kittle won’t be on the field at the same time, but whichever player has the better game could go a long way toward determining the winner.
Their styles are different. Kelce, who has put together four consecutive seasons of 1,000-plus receiving yards, essentially functions as a big slot receiver who destroys the defence in the middle of the field. His game is built on speed and elusiveness; 81 of his 97 catches came when he was lined up in a position not attached to the offensive line (either in the slot or split out wide).
Kittle is similarly talented as a receiver but also is a devastating blocker. Perhaps his best trait is his run-after-the-catch ability. He led all tight ends with 641 yards after the catch this season.